Short+Sweet headed to NIDA

Short + Sweet producers have made  a significant announcement in relation to next year’s venue, with a deal done with the prestigious National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA).

It was announced earlier this week that NIDA and the Newtown Theatre will share the iconic little play festival that has taken not only Sydney but the world by storm.

Short + Sweet has become something of a Sydney summer institution.

Hundreds of actors, directors and writers as well arts arts celebrities will gather to hear the official announcement of which brilliant ten-minute plays will premiere in Sydney this summer.

Apart from publishing the full programme, festival director Alex Broun will announce the 1000th new Australian play premiered by Short & Sweet.

Plus there will be news that Foxtel’s MovieExtra channel will expand its popular series To Be or Not to Be – which follows the fortunes of the festival’s leading artists from debut to Gala Awards Night.

In 2010, Short + Sweet will present 160 works from January to February in two parallel venues.

Among the highlights this year are the debut of an autobiographical one-man play co-written by and starring former Guantanamo Bay inmate Mamdouh Habib, as well as Sydney premieres for the controversial Caryl Churchill play Seven Jewish Children and Edward Albee’s revised version of his brilliant The Sandbox.

Short & Sweet began life at the Newtown Theatre in January 2002 and expanded to Melbourne (2005), Singapore (2007), the Central Coast of NSW (2007) and Malaysia (2008). It launched in Canberra and Brisbane in September 2009 and in January 2010 the first ever Short & Sweet Auckland hits the stage.

In its nine year history Short+Sweet has presented 1380 of the best ten minute plays from writers all over the world, with over 60% of those coming from Australian writers.

“Short + Sweet is now the largest producer of Australian theatre on the globe,” Broun said.

“I would argue that Short + Sweet has done more for Australian playwriting over the last decade than any other theatre company or organization in the nation.”

Australian writers whose work have featured in the festival read like a Who’s Who of Australian playwriting: David Allen (returning in 2010), Alan Seymour, Hilary Bell, Ross Mueller, Kate Mulvaney, Suzie Miller, Daniel Keene, Nick Enright, Tom Holloway, Vanessa Bates, Van Badham, Christopher Johnson, Alex Broun, Noelle Janacewska, Patricia Cornelius and Brendan Cowell.

And Short + Sweet has also played a role in discovering a whole new wave of exciting new playwrights including Wayne Tunks, Jane Miller, Ashley Walker, Cerise de Gelder, Mark Andrew, Tom Taylor, Carl J Sorheim, Nathan Curnow, Kate Toon, David Sharpe, Richard Graham, Steven Hopley, Con Nats, Charles Freyberg and David Bulmer.

Short & Sweet has also helped to launch the careers of many actors including Nicole da Silva, Renee Lim, Tom O’Sullivan, Matt Holmes, Rose Byrne and Trilby Glover – just to name a few.

This year local actors and directors also have a chance to be selected for Shorter & Sweeter, the professional touring arm of Short &Sweet which embarks on a four month nationwide tour in April 2010.

Short + Sweet’s ability to attract younger audiences also remains the envy of many established companies.

“With national and international success for the festival, there is no better time to sample the tasty treats of Short+Sweet,” said Founder and Creator of Short + Sweet International Mark Cleary.

The full program of works for Short +  Sweet Theatre Sydney 2010 is available at www.shortandsweet.org.

AussieTheatre.com will review EVERY play of the 2010 Short + Sweet Festival.