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Theater lovers can experience seven world-premiere short plays at Fusion Theatre Company鈥檚 short works festival, The Seven, starting Thursday, June 4. This year鈥檚 theme is 鈥淭he Heart of the Matter.鈥�

鈥淲hat鈥檚 incredibly exciting about this year鈥檚 version of The Seven is, it鈥檚 our 20th anniversary,鈥� Dennis Gromelski, Fusion co-founder, said. 鈥淚t was something conceived at the local level and has now spread nationally and internationally. This year we received submissions from, I believe, 38 states and six countries.鈥�

A 12-member jury of theater professionals blind-read the scripts, and the seven highest-scoring ones are produced.

One of this year鈥檚 winners was sa国际传媒官网网页入口鈥檚 own Laurie Thomas. A co-founder of Fusion who has been involved in The Seven on the administrative side since its inception, Thomas said this was the first time she submitted her own work to the festival.

鈥淚鈥檇 always been a little shy or reserved about doing that, because I鈥檓 so involved in Fusion,鈥� Thomas said. 鈥淚 always thought, 鈥極h my God, they see and hear enough of me!鈥欌��

Thomas鈥� two-person play, 鈥淭he Hail Mary,鈥� centers on a caregiver and a resident in an assisted living facility.

鈥淚t appears, at least at the beginning of the play, that they have a very adversarial relationship. But, as the play moves along, we realize that there鈥檚 a surprising sense of understanding between the two of them,鈥� Thomas said. 鈥淭hen, AI rears its head in the script as a sort of corporate tool that鈥檚 being used in the facility for cost savings and efficiency.鈥�

Thomas said the 鈥淗eart of the Matter鈥� theme made her think about what care and compassion mean in an assisted living context and how bureaucratic systems can sometimes get in the way of compassionate, human-centered caregiving. She drew upon her own experiences navigating the health care system on behalf of her parents.

鈥淚 had a really trying scenario, in which my parents were in a facility for about three years, and that also included the COVID shutdown,鈥� Thomas said. 鈥溾�� So, I would say that I know that system intimately.鈥�

Gromelski said each playwright approached the theme differently, and the winning short plays run the gamut from comedy to drama, and one-on-one conversations to ensemble pieces.

鈥淭his year, in particular, I was really thrilled with how many different angles the playwrights took to approach the subject matter,鈥� he said.

The overall winner and recipient of the Bradford Gromelski Jury Award is Mary Donnet Johnson, a playwright based in Knoxville, Tennessee. Her play, 鈥淭he Sound of Light,鈥� is an extended monologue by a woman with a severely autistic child. Like Thomas, Donnet Johnson drew on her own life experience.

鈥淢y son 鈥� he鈥檚 a grown man now; he just turned 31 鈥� is severely autistic, which, in his case, mainly manifests in the fact that he cannot reliably speak, which in and of itself is a totally weird thing to happen to me, because I was an actor, and I鈥檓 a writer. I really love words 鈥� But he鈥檚 delightful, and he鈥檚 really, really smart,鈥� Donnet Johnson said, 鈥渁nd just recently we鈥檝e been doing a protocol that has been unlocking some of his speech. It鈥檚 been incredibly enlightening. And I am so grateful that, even at this age, we鈥檙e getting a chance to know him.鈥�

Donnet Johnson had originally conceived of the play as a far more elaborate production with multiple characters, musicians and even an aerialist. But she decided to pare it down to submit to The Seven, focusing on the main character鈥檚 transformation.

鈥淪he comes to an epiphany by merely actively observing and embracing who (her son) really is,鈥� she said.

Jacqueline Reid will perform the solo role under the direction of Gil Lazier.

The other five winning plays are 鈥淭he Force of Attraction鈥� by Ron Davies of Ottawa, Canada; 鈥淭he July Effect鈥� by Andrea Trotenberg of Highland Park, Illinois; 鈥淒o Not, I Repeat, Do Not Hang that Mistletoe Tonight鈥� by Mike Byham of Southlake, Texas; 鈥淭he Dark Cloud: A Fable鈥� by James W. Perry of Manteca, California; and 鈥淎ll Roads Lead to Prospect Park鈥� by Dan Perry of Los Angeles.

Audiences will get to see all seven 10-minute plays performed live, and many of the playwrights will be in attendance.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a joyful time and a great vibe,鈥� Gromelski said. 鈥淎nd you know what else this is? It鈥檚 an incredible sampler. Even if you don鈥檛 like theater, or you don鈥檛 know if you like theater, you can come see these pieces, and I guarantee you, you鈥檙e going to resonate with five of the seven, without a doubt. If something鈥檚 not to your taste, don鈥檛 worry. In 10 minutes, you鈥檒l get another flavor.鈥�

In addition to The Seven, Fusion will host a staged reading at 7 p.m. Monday, June 8, of what they call 鈥淭he Second Seven鈥� 鈥� works that finished in eighth through 14th place. Then, at 7 p.m. Friday, June 12, they will present a staged reading of 鈥淭he New Mexico Seven鈥� 鈥� the top seven works out of the 40 submitted by New Mexico-based playwrights.

Gromelski also said that lack of funds should not keep anyone away.

鈥淥ur normal ticketing prices are 20 bucks for students and 40 for general admission, but we offer pay-what-you-wish ticketing at every performance we do at Fusion, thanks to the city of sa国际传媒官网网页入口,鈥� Gromelski said. 鈥淪o, this really is open to anyone. Economics are not a barrier to attendance.鈥�

Logan Royce Beitmen is an arts writer for the sa国际传媒官网网页入口. He covers visual art, music, fashion, theater and more. Reach him at lbeitmen@abqjournal.com or on Instagram at @loganroycebeitmen.