December 2, 2005

A pair of next-door-neighbor kids establish a way to communicate with each other, via underwear on a clothesline. A misguided call in a baseball game leads to some tragic and morally troubling ramifications. A woman enters a living nightmare when everyone in her office suddenly blurts out exactly what they think of her — and a couple traveling through Newark Airport are thrown for a loop when they spot "Dirty Dancing" actress Jennifer Grey.

If none of the preceding sounds very much like "holiday" fare, there's an excellent reason for that. In an interlude wherein our local theatrical stages are either dark for the duration or held hostage by various Scrooges, nutcrackers and other nunsense, only one brave little troupe has the spunk and the moxie to buck the treacly trend, with an exhilarating program of original playlets collected under the title "An Evening of One-Acts" — and presented tonight through Dec. 11 at that best-kept semi-secret of the regional stage, the Navesink Library Theatre in Middletown.

Although it might understandably get a bit overshadowed these days by Middletown's great big, newly renovated main branch, the quaint and modest Navesink Library remains a true community asset, a local landmark that occupies a pocket dimension of Little Red Country Stores and duck-feeding ponds, even though it sits just seconds from busy Route 36. For the past half century, the white meeting house (currently the subject of an ongoing renovation under the supervision of the Duryea/Navesink Library Board) has also boasted a cultural resource found nowhere else — the Monmouth Players, the area's oldest continuously operating theatrical company.

Presented under the banner of the "Not Necessarily the Players" spin-off, "An Evening of One-Acts" is the latest installment in a freshly minted tradition that dates back to 2002, when executive producers and artistic directors Lori and Paul Renick first presented an experimental showcase of skits and sketches as a way to "open ourselves up to new audiences and break out of our mold," in Paul Renick's words.

The Highlands-based couple, who have carried the standard for the Players during the past decade, have faithfully maintained a three-show season that often includes such Navesink traditions as Neil Simon comedies and Agatha Christie twisters. For the edgier fare of their fourth seasonal offerings, the Renicks have opted to operate under the "Not Necessarily" banner.

Don't let the name throw you. This "fourth" production of the 2005-2006 schedule (actually the second to hit the boards) is indeed the Monmouth Players at their best and brightest. With a menu of seven short works — two of them original pieces — "An Evening" has the potential to rank among the most exciting community theatrical offerings of the year.

The premiere work is "Baggage." Somerset resident Dan Bocchino directs his own script concerning that terminal-bound couple and the crises that emanate from their chance sighting of the 1980's-era celebrity. Also new to the stage is Jersey native Audra Lord's "Group," in which a trio of very neurotic women are accidentally trapped with each other in their therapist's office. It co-stars Lori Renick (who also directs three of the program segments) under the direction of Dot Turner, a familiar stock company member considered the "grande dame" of the Monmouth Players.

Turner also co-stars in Robert Anderson's hilarious "I'm Herbert," a dialogue between two memory-challenged spouses that's back by popular demand after winning over audiences in 2002's inaugural one-act festival.

The remaining sketches include "Acorn," the soul-searching "Judgment Call," the black comedy "Just Be Frank" and the wedding-rehearsal satire "The Procession." Such Players perennials as Alex Faerman, Dean Anderson, Elizabeth Mahon and Fortunato Seveninni populate the cast of 15 actors.