Audience engagement at The Guinea Pig. Photo courtesy of Zane Peña.
For the first time in four years, Arts Mission Oak Cliff is bringing back “The Guinea Pig” play festival this Thursday at 7:30 pm. A one-night-only event, nine actors from the Flexible Grey Theatre Company will perform dozens of original plays for 90 minutes without rehearsing.
According to the Arts Mission Oak Cliff website, this is “Unlike your average theatre experience, the show is completely unpolished, totally impermanent, and wholly reliant on direct audience interaction.”
Audience members will be encouraged to take charge of their watching experience because “the order of the plays is decided by the audience in real time.”
The night will be commemorated as “The Return of the Guinea Pig” due to COVID-19’s limitations stopping production for the past few years. This is “The Guinea Pig’s” sixth ever program and tickets are $15 each.
The Flexible Grey Theatre Company is a “A queer safe haven with a focus on marginalized groups and emerging artists, creating work in unconventional spaces in DFW,” according to the company’s Instagram.
In a “Meet the Actors” Instagram post, the actors’ portraits and quotes gave small snippets of what to expect from the show- shenanigans, jokes, and a whole lot of fun. One actor’s quote read, “Jonah Hill and Seth Rogen’s love child.”
“The Guinea Pig’s” actor and playwright submissions were also unlike normal procedures as the submission does not require memorization, pre-rehearsed monologue, or a 5 minute runtime.
In a “Calling All Playwrights” Instagram post, the caption read “Any subject or genre is welcome- make us laugh, make us cry, make us utterly confused.”
“The Guinea Pig,” as a part of The Flexible Grey Theatre company, hopes to support emerging artists and create art which reflects voices that are often cast aside.
The doors will open at 7 pm and tickets can be purchased through the EventBrite website.
Actors at a previous night of The Guinea Pig. Photo courtesy of Zane Peña.
