Starlite Players present short comedies in Sarasota

One of the area's newest theater companies is devoted to celebrating the works of local playwrights.

Every month, Starlite Players present a different set of short comedies, all written by playwrights from around the Tampa Bay area. Most of the playwrights live in Manatee or Sarasota county. The plays are grouped together by a vague theme, and they're performed in a small space above the Starlite Room in Sarasota.

So far, there's been no shortage of quality material for the company to stage. Starlite Players have been drawing healthy crowds since the day they opened.

This month's offering consists of four plays, collectively titled "Looking for Love (in All the Wrong Places)."

The individual plays are "Rage Against The Robot" by Jack Gilhooley, directed by Carole Kleinberg, "Confessions a Deux" by Stephen Cooper, directed by Mark Woodland, "The Unmovable Seat" by Martin Tucker, directed by Jamie Lee Butrum, and "The Chatterbox Club" by James Rayfield, directed by Brad Wages.

If you follow local theater, you no doubt recognize a lot of those names, and you've certainly seen a lot of the actors who are this month's plays, including Rafael Petlock, Diana Shoemaker and Natalia Mock.

One of the plays that sounds most intriguing is Gilhooley's "Rage Against the Robot," in a which a woman who is accused of killing Robby the Robot says she acted in self-defense. The information from the Starlite people says that it's "inspired by a real event."

Details: Nov. 19-22, The Starlite Room, 1001 Cocoanut Ave., Sarasota. Show Times: 7:30 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday, 2 and 6:30 p.m. Sunday. Tickets: $17.50. Information: 941-587-8290, starliteplayers.com.

-- Marty Clear

This story was originally published November 18, 2015 at 5:10 PM with the headline "Starlite Players present short comedies in Sarasota ."