Couch soup
Encyclopedia
Couch Soup is a mini-festival
of one page plays which started in 1997 and is run annually in Hamilton, New Zealand
, and, for the last two years, in Wellington
as part of the New Zealand Fringe Festival. Plays are selected via an open call for scripts, and are performed with minimal props, costumes and set (the couch
). The format followed in the last two festivals has been around 30 one page plays, performed by four actors (two male, two female), with a run time of approximately an hour.
Though the plays are limited to one side of an A4 page, no restrictions are placed on the format
used, and plays may vary from under thirty seconds to over two minutes in length, with the average being around a minute per play. The festival is thus characterized by the demands it places on an actor as much as for its accessibility and vigor http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/CU0603/S00011.htm.
Because it is difficult to tackle a serious theme completely in the course of a page the plays are commonly absurd, satirical or (rarely) dramas of the kitchen sink
variety. Comedic and dramatic monologues as well as homage
s in the style of a particular writer are also common.
Festival
A festival or gala is an event, usually and ordinarily staged by a local community, which centers on and celebrates some unique aspect of that community and the Festival....
of one page plays which started in 1997 and is run annually in Hamilton, New Zealand
Hamilton, New Zealand
Hamilton is the centre of New Zealand's fourth largest urban area, and Hamilton City is the country's fourth largest territorial authority. Hamilton is in the Waikato Region of the North Island, approximately south of Auckland...
, and, for the last two years, in Wellington
Wellington
Wellington is the capital city and third most populous urban area of New Zealand, although it is likely to have surpassed Christchurch due to the exodus following the Canterbury Earthquake. It is at the southwestern tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Rimutaka Range...
as part of the New Zealand Fringe Festival. Plays are selected via an open call for scripts, and are performed with minimal props, costumes and set (the couch
Couch
A couch, also called a sofa, is an item of furniture designed to seat more than one person, and providing support for the back and arms. Typically, it will have an armrest on either side. In homes couches are normally found in the family room, living room, den or the lounge...
). The format followed in the last two festivals has been around 30 one page plays, performed by four actors (two male, two female), with a run time of approximately an hour.
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
used, and plays may vary from under thirty seconds to over two minutes in length, with the average being around a minute per play. The festival is thus characterized by the demands it places on an actor as much as for its accessibility and vigor http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/CU0603/S00011.htm.
Because it is difficult to tackle a serious theme completely in the course of a page the plays are commonly absurd, satirical or (rarely) dramas of the kitchen sink
Kitchen sink
Kitchen sink is a term often used in the phrase everything but the kitchen sinkKitchen sink may also refer to:* A sink in a kitchen for washing dishes, vegetables, etc* Kitchen Sink, a 1989 short film by Alison Maclean...
variety. Comedic and dramatic monologues as well as homage
Homage
Homage is a show or demonstration of respect or dedication to someone or something, sometimes by simple declaration but often by some more oblique reference, artistic or poetic....
s in the style of a particular writer are also common.
Playwrights
Over a hundred playwrights have participated since 1997, including:- Mark Prebble - Creator of makemarksmovie.com, through which he sold the Executive Producer credits on his feature debut Futile Attraction to successfully fund its post-production.
- Albert Belz - Acclaimed writer of Awhi Tapu and Te Maunga
- Sarah Peters - Former assistant producer of AucklandAucklandThe Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
Theatre Company's 2nd Unit, now working in the UK.