The One-Acts Festival was moved from the fall to the spring last school year to prevent a conflict with the fall musical, but was reinstated to its usual time this year (a clash with the spring comedy created just as severe a problem). Now, the Stuyvesant Theater Community (STC) has decided to have two One-Acts Festivals each year, one in the fall and one in the spring.

“All year underclassmen have had opportunities to view shows and work on backstage crews,” junior and STC Slate Financial Coordinator Dylan Tramontin said. “The One-Acts offer them a chance to finally dive in and direct or act in a smaller, less intimidating environment.”

The One-Acts were initiated to encourage a wider scope of participants. This year, that goal has been achieved like never before —a conglomerate of newbies and theater veterans are involved in this spring’s One-Acts Festival. “Those who saw the fall One-Acts when it was too late to get involved can join in now,” junior and STC Slate Productions Coordinator J.J. Russo said.

This spring’s One-Acts Festival has already seen increased student participation. “We had 14 plays submitted this year,” Tramontin said. “I’ve never heard of a larger turnout.”

The One-Acts Festival’s producers, junior Amy Crehore and freshman Ben Garner, are both new to the position. Crehore directed “Brenda and Jerry” with junior Gaby Flamm for the One-Acts this past fall. Crehore is hesitant, however, to direct again. “I didn’t feel too confident with my directing skills, but I knew I had to be part of it again,” Crehore said.

This is also the first directing experience for three of the One-Acts directors, although few are new to the STC. Juniors Daniel Goldstern and Jonah Meyerson are directing “Line Leader,” a comedy about the universal struggle to find a niche in society. The two had watched a rendition of the play by the Whitest Kids U’Know, an independent sketch comedy group, before deciding that “the topic would be relevant to the Stuy community,” Goldstern said.

Although this is their first time directing, both Goldstern and Meyerson helped write the Junior SING! script. “I had a great time doing it,” Goldstern said. “It enabled me to interact with the actors much more than I would have otherwise.”

Junior Boris Jacobson is directing “Exodus: A Blasphemous Tale of Biblical Proportions,” an original play written by sophomore Wes Schierenbeck. The play is a humorous portrayal of the biblical exodus, centering on three Jews who missed the chance to leave Egypt and must remain slaves there for the rest of their lives.

According to Schierenbeck, inspiration for “Exodus” came from a dream. “The way I get ideas for things is by blacking out,” Schierenbeck said. “I actually passed out from fever, and dreamt this while my dad was watching Charleton Heston’s ‘Exodus’.”

Schierenbeck was originally going to direct “Exodus,” but his failure to pass a majority of his classes resulted in his removal from the One-Acts Festival. Jennifer Choi, English teacher and the show’s faculty advisor, would have been forced to pull the play, but Schierenbeck wanted the show to be performed, even if “Exodus” would be directed by Jacobson instead of himself.

“He wasn’t meeting the standards for being able to participate in extracurriculars,” Russo said. “James [ Dennin, STC Slate Studio Coordinator] tried talking to Ms. Damesek but she wouldn’t allow it.”

Meanwhile, “The Closet,” an original play written and directed by freshman Miryam Coppersmith, brings a darker side to the One-Acts. “The Closet” depicts the struggle of a Jewish pianist who is hiding in a nuclear physicist’s apartment during the Holocaust. Coppersmith wanted to write a piece that would link art and science when she noticed that “no one had really ever connected the two events of the Holocaust and the making of the A-Bomb together in a way that shows the parallels between the two,” Coppersmith said. “I’m looking for people to enjoy it and for it to change the way some people think about the Holocaust.”

“English Made Simple,” directed by seniors Caroline Brickman—who directed “Group” during last fall’s One-Acts—and Ezra Glenn, centers on a young couple who reveal that they knew each other from a previous encounter, and were even involved romantically. At the same time, a scientist is on stage, psychoanalyzing the couple’s words and explaining the real meaning of their words.

Another stray from the typical One-Acts Festival play is “The Sermon,” directed by junior Jos Diaz. “The Sermon,” a monologue, is a unique addition to the festival.

“I have never seen a monologue done in the One-Acts,” Tramontin said. “I would usually doubt how entertaining a monologue could be to an audience of high school students, but I have complete faith in Jos to pull it off.”

The slate admits to having taken some risks in their decision. “A lot of our one-crewmen are first timers to their jobs,” junior and STC Slate Technical Coordinator Danielle Blackman said. “Our producers are new and the majority of our directors are new.”

But the slate is confident that the One-Acts will be a success. “It’s going to be different because we’re trying out a bunch of different things,” Russo said. “But I know it’ll turn out well.”

“The audience will be very pleased with the variation of the plays,” Blackman said. “This is going to be a supercalafradgelistic show.”