(Above: Eryne Grant-Sherk and Phoebe Thompson are the cast of Silver Sixpence, one of 2025’s NW10 Festival of new 10-minute plays at Oregon Contemporary Theatre.)

By Daniel Buckwalter

It’s the relentless revolving stages that get me every time. Just as I am about to sink my teeth into the narrative of a play — it ends after just 10 minutes.

This non-stop and fun-filled night of short plays returned on April 4 with the 17th annual NW Festival of New 10-Minute Plays at Oregon Contemporary Theatre. The festival — which continues through April 13 — is an eight-play romp through the whimsical imaginations of Northwest playwrights with nods to social commentary and everlasting love that have something for everyone.

Whimsical, you ask? Yes. For instance, take The Whimsical Heartstrings of a Child’s Aging Plaything by Dale Light and directed by Alexander Holmes, then decide for yourself who’s crazier: the worn-out beer-guzzling stuffed bear with a pull string that activates programmed lines (Mark Van Barrick) or the near-psychotic boy (Chris Bucklew) who can’t get the stuffed bear to say what he wants.

Never mind that now. Right now both of them are stuck on the moon for all of eternity, and the stuffed bear, at least, seems happier for it.

Then there’s Frank’s First Dance Recital by Martin Fogarty and directed by Annie Craven. Frank (Eric Hadley) is a portly bald middle-age man whose fiancé, Suzie (Sabrina Haesche), has left him. He discovers ballet dancing, then gets laid off from his deli job at Walmart. Frank’s having a hard time, so he digs in with ballet dance training. Finally, after three months of rigorous work (mostly studying YouTube videos), Frank takes the plunge and (ahem) awkwardly does his pirouettes and jetés, much to the delight of Susie, who storms out of the audience and onto the stage to congratulate him. Frank has found a hobby!

There’s a murder mystery others will have to resolve when poor Myrtle meets a gruesome end in Spread the Compost on the Weeds by Rose Heising and directed by Jesse Merz. The afterlife is explored in The Ghostbot of Veronica Croft by Isaac Paris and directed by Gil T. Rodello. Veronica the bot (Jennifer Sellers) terrifies and finally comforts her niece Elizabeth (Zoe Holbo).

Two plays that carry a soft touch of humanity and are well worth watching are Stay by Amy Weinkauf and directed by Paul Rhoden as well as The Fabulist by Paul Lewis and directed by Scott Machado.

And then there’s Silver Sixpence and Happy Anniversary, two productions that check the box for plays that resonate deeply with an audience.

Silver Sixpence, written by Jessi Pitts and directed by Hailey Eckerdt, is a stark look at two young adult sisters who clearly love each other yet could not be more diametrically opposed, and they’re trying to understand each other. Eliza (Eryne Grant-Sherk) is straight, and this is her wedding day at the Catholic church. Lily (Phoebe Thompson) is lesbian and does not want to wear a dress or heels, or even be inside a Catholic church for an hour. Their socially oppressive mother, unseen in the play, lurks in the background.

Happy Anniversary, written by Rich Rubin and directed by Marla Norton, is a sweet and moving play where the characters Dorothy and Colin take the audience for an autumn walk to a park bench. Not just any park bench, mind you, but the very park bench where Dorothy (Dianne DeBorde) and Colin (Lee Vogt) sealed their love 50 years prior with their first kiss.
She now has dementia, and what unfolds is a tender (sometimes frustrating) coaxing from Colin to prod Dorothy into remembering at least snippets of the anniversary day. It is a warm and gentle look at a dreadful disease that is prominent among us.

Overall, this year’s NW10 Festival is a solid collection of plays that will resonate well long after you leave the show at Oregon Contemporary Theatre.

Information and tickets: octheatre.org or 541-465-1506