Drama Queens, a five-star arts journal focusing on female artists

Playful Substance Theater Company-Pithy Party

Playful Substance Theater Company-Pithy Party

Artists have a voice, a vision and a story to tell through mediums such as art, music and theater. What they need is an opportunity. Playful substance provides those crucial opportunities as well as support to artists. This is what Playful Substance is all about in their own words:

Playful Substance is a New York based theater company dedicated to fostering new works through our Writers Groups, developmental workshops, community events and fully staged productions. We believe that lifelong artist development, work-life balance, and the vitality of an inclusive creative space are integral to the artist’s practice. “Playful Substance” is the mission; substantive work approached with joy, cooperation, sensitivity, and humor.

Their Pithy Party is an annual event putting Playful Substance’s writer’s groups in the spotlight with staged readings featuring excerpts of works in progress directed and read by company members and friends. This year’s event was roughly four hours long and showcased 10 writers, 10 directors and 30 cast members. The live performances were spread out over 3 seatings. The online performance featured bonus content such as artist interviews and a more in-depth look at Playful Substance.

Written by and Starring-Osi Mizrahi

Building the Home Within: A solo show based on the upcoming book

In Building the Home Within, Osi Mizrahi takes us on an international journey. The story begins in a bucolic setting in upstate New York. Ms. Mizrahi has been invited to a ayahuasca ceremony via email. Ayahuasca is a South American psychoactive brew used for social, medicinal, shamanic, and psychological means. There is often a ceremony involved with its use, led by a Shaman. Prior to ingesting the ayahuasca, a powder is passed around. Ms. Mizrahi inhales the powder and immediately recalls a strong memory of her grandparents. We learn that Ms. Mizrahi is a transplant from Israel. She is a divorced mother who seems to have found her way in life after a 23-year marriage.

I always say, hats off to solo artists. They are out there all alone with their precious narrative. They have an obligation to connect with the audience very quickly. Ms. Mizrahi did just that. She made a confident connection with the audience immediately. She had an interesting story to tell which left the viewers wanting more. Lucky for us there is more to come in the form of a longer solo play and a book.