Itsy Bitsy Drama

In Summer Shorts, it's life, death, and liberal politics in gritty little segments

Comments (0) By Ronald Mangravite Thursday, Jun 10 2004

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"A Speedy and Public Trial" takes on the Patriot Act in Summer Shorts

Details

Twenty-one one-act plays, presented through June 27. Call 305-365-5400. Also July 8 to 18 at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts, 201 SW 5th Ave, Fort Lauderdale; 954-462-0222 or www.citytheatre.com.

City Theatre at the University of Miami Ring Theatre, Coral Gables

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This year's version of Summer Shorts maintains the company's signature quick, upbeat pace and breezy style, but it adds a certain edge. A number of hot-button issues are touched upon: gay marriage, same-sex kissing, masturbation, and, with the program B's "A Speedy and Public Trial," a biting, Kafka-esque critique of the Bush administration's Patriot Act. There's nothing here you couldn't find on network television; the play selection limns a cultural geography that's white, upscale, gay-friendly, and left-of-center. That City's writers are individually raising such issues might be meritorious, but overall there's something missing here, something that's missing in virtually every South Florida theater -- a willingness to honestly give voice to and examine opposing sociopolitical views. Despite the obvious standoff in this deeply divided society, most arts professionals doggedly pursue a proscriptive liberal-left vision instead of offering a forum for opposing views that might challenge conventional thinking and provoke an exchange of ideas. More on this subject in a future column.