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By Shana Dines

Daily Bruin Contributor

Finally, an evening at the theater made just for people with really short attention spans.

The Playwright’s Group 2001 Short Play Festival, “A La Carte,” is now showing at the Tamarind Theater in Hollywood every weekend until Nov. 18.

Audiences can expect a fast-paced night of theater. Featuring eight short plays, each 10 minutes or less, “A La Carte” offers audiences a variety of different writing and directing styles with each play. The restaurant setting remains for the entire production, however, allowing for a cohesive theme among the four comedies and four dramas.

The subjects vary from a mother and son celebrating their birthdays, to a man and a woman on a “speed date,” to a stylized, absurdist white-face scene about a power struggle over a certain table. The eight writers, six directors and 18 actors constitute a wide array of untapped talent, as all eight shorts are world premieres.

Eugenie Davis, one of the festival’s co-producers, with Deirdre Lenihan, expressed great excitement following last year’s success.

“Though the theater only has seating for 71 audience members, there is room for more seats if necessary,” she said, adding that running out of seats is a problem she would not mind encountering.

“A Birthday Chronicle” follows a mother and son who share the same birthday and celebrate at the same restaurant every year. Written by Harry Singleton and directed by Ellen Sanford, this play is the first of the dramas of the set.

The menu for the evening includes “What a Character,” written by Kurt W. Thum and directed by Kieran Sala. This first one-act play is about a writer whose character has taken a life of its own.

Third is “The Table,” written by UCLA theater professor Hindi Brooks and directed by Howard Teichman. The play features a proprietor, a maitre d’ and a waiter, all in white-face, who are competing over control of the coveted table.

“The audience must decide for themselves what it is about,” Brooks said.

Following this is “No Dessert,” written by Tim Turner and directed by Kate Randolph, about an elderly couple that must make a life-altering decision even more important than their choice of dessert. “Speed Dating 101,” by Jeffrey Davis and directed by Elizabeth Farley, includes a man, a woman, a stopwatch and a referee on a playful take on the search for meaningful relationships.

Written by Nalsey Tinberg and directed by Kate Randolph, “Long Island Iced Tea” is a chilling, dramatic look at a mother and daughter who encounter a man sitting at their regular table in their favorite restaurant. The stranger takes on the role of their dead husband/father and helps the women cope with their loss.

Actor Louise Davis, who performs in “Long Island Iced Tea,” hopes the audience will experience something very different at “A La Carte” from any other play they’ve ever seen.

“The show is being put on by a wonderful group of writers. Shows like this are good for the heart,” Davis added.

“Post-Matinee Tristesse” is the seventh play of the evening and is written by Felix Racelis and directed by Elizabeth Farley. This lusty affair about an erudite professor who has eyes for a delectable youth is a farce of May-December romances.

The evening closes with “Time Warp Cafe,” written by Jim Tavares and directed by Seth Wiley. The play takes a comical look at dating through history, starting in the present time, flashing back to 1986, then 1975, 1270, 64 A.D. and finally, prehistoric cavemen. Using time travel as the gimmick to poke fun at the timeless practice of “coffee dates,” this play promises to be one of the more comedic moments of the festival.

Director Wiley hopes the audience will get a good laugh out of this play, on which he is especially excited about working.

“I am most thankful for getting the opportunity to direct and gain experience with actors while having a great time,” Wiley said.

UCLA students will also find a familiar face – Matt Corboy, a regular at the Westwood Brewing Company’s live improv comedy show – in the cast.

THEATER: “A La Carte” will run through Nov. 18 at the Tamarind Theater, on 5919 Franklin Ave. in Hollywood. Performances will be held every Friday, Saturday and Sunday night at 8 p.m. Tickets are $20 for general admission, and reservations can be made over the phone at (213) 892-6825.