"COMEDY"

THE MAN IN THE JAR

BY: IRWIN MERCER

PLOT SUMMARY:
This comedy story is about a man who lives in a jar, which is
quite obviously fictional, bizarre and at the same time
humorous. But it also is an example of how we so often are
judgmental of others. What we view as bizarre may be quite
normal and rational for someone else.

"TRAGEDY"
A SUMMER TRAGEDY
BY: ARNA BONTEMPS
PLOT SUMMARY:
Jeff Patton has farmed the same acres on Greenbriar Plantation for
forty-five years. He loves the land, but life has been physically
demanding and the shares system has kept him locked in poverty. A
recent stroke has left him lame, and he fears that another will make
him a helpless burden on his wife, Jennie, who has been blind for years
and is now frail. Both are sound of mind, but their life has been
reduced to a series of losses, including the deaths of five adult children
in the last two years. They share a state of constant grief and anxiety.
Jeff struggles to don the moth-eaten formal attire that he wears only on
rare occasions, such as weddings. He feels excitement and fear as he
and Jennie prepare for a trip. A short time later, driving through the
countryside with Jennie in their old Model T Ford, Jeff feels a familiar
thrill, as he surveys the vitality of the crops and natural vegetation. He
feels again the determination and pride that always have accompanied
his sense of his mental and physical strengths, required for survival on
the land, but if he takes his hands from the steering wheel, they shake
violently.
Jennie has repeatedly prompted Jeff to make this trip, relying on his
courage to match her belief in the rightness of their decision. As they
near their destination, however, she becomes wracked by grief at the
thought of leaving everything behind. Crying like a child, she questions
whether they should continue. Jeff is tortured by his knowledge of what
they are about to do and would like to turn back, but he assures his
wife that they must be strong. He knows that they have fully
considered their fate, and that more reflection would merely lead to
the same, inevitable conclusion. They both know that life has become
intolerable, and would only get worse. After they regain their resolve
and composure, Jeff drives the car into the deep water of the
Mississippi.

"FARCE"
THE OUTER LOOP
BY: JOHN BENNETT
PLOT SUMMARY:
Quiche Lorraine and Crepe Suzette are two adult women who delight in
committing petty crimes. When those crimes don't get them the media
attention they want, they plot to kidnap Natasha Helmsley, a spoiled
heiress to a steamed crab company fortune, Meanwhile, three friends
in their late teens, Vince, Valerie, and Vera aimlessly hang out in and
around Baltimore, lightly trying to make sense of their various
problems. As the film progresses, the two stories begin to gently
overlap, ultimately making the film a daffy farce with a wry smile.

"HISTORICAL PLAY"
OTHELLO
 BY: WILLIAM SHAKESPEAR
PLOT SUMMARY:
The story of William Shakespeare's Othello is set in 16th-
century Venice and Cyprus. Othello the Moor, a noble black
warrior in the Venetian army, has secretly married a beautiful
white woman called Desdemona, the daughter of a prominent
senator, Brabantio. When he finds out, he is outraged, and
promptly disowns her.
Othellos ensign, Iago, harbours a secret jealousy and
resentment towards the Moor, partly because another soldier,
lieutenant Cassio, has been promoted ahead of him, and also
because he suspects that Othello has had an affair with his
wife. Intent on revenge, Iago hatches a devious plan to plant
suspicions in Othellos mind that Desdemona has been
unfaithful to him with Cassio. He orchestrates a street fight,
for which Cassio is wrongly blamed, and is then dismissed from
his post by Othello. Desdemona takes up Cassios case with
her husband, which only further inflames his suspicions that
the pair are lovers.

"MELODRAMA"
MANHATTAN MELODRAMA
BY: GARY JACKSON
PLOT SUMMARY:
Orphans Edward "Blackie" Gallagher and Jim Wade are lifelong friends
who take different paths in life. Blackie thrives on gambling and grows
up to be a hard-nosed racketeer. Bookworm Wade becomes a D.A.
vying for the Governorship. When Blackie's girlfriend Eleanor leaves
him and marries the more down to earth Wade, Blackie harbors no
resentment. In fact, their friendship is so strong that Blackie murders
an attorney threatening to derail Wade's bid to become Governor. The
morally straight Wade's last job as D.A. is to convict his friend of the
murder, and send him to the electric chair. After he becomes Governor,
Wade has the authority to commute Blackie's death sentence-- a
decision that pits his high moral ethics against a lifelong friendship.