Ladies and gentlemen, we’re now boarding for a destination filled with three straight days of laughs, poignancy and a few brilliant moments of absurdity.
The Iola Community Theatre takes its next production skyward, with “Airport Encounters” Friday and Saturday evenings at 7 o’clock and at 2 p.m. Sunday at the ICT Warehouse.
The ensemble cast under the guidance of co-directors Rhi Jordan and Paige Olson serves up 10 vignettes, all completely separate aside from their setting — an airport waiting area.
Their stories, with a minimal amount of props or set decoration, rely almost entirely on dialogue.
And with an assemblage of talented veterans and newcomers, “Airport Encounters” is ready for takeoff.
YOUR FLIGHT SCHEDULE
• “A Camel Might Step on Your Head” features River Hess and Morgan Lea. Lea is about to board a flight to Africa, keen on serving in the Peace Corps. However, she must first deal with River Hess, hired by her ex-boyfriend to persuade Lea to stay home and rekindle their relationship. Their banter is equal parts stirring and humorous.
• “Stuck” offers a touching look at Bumble Ard as Palmer, a long-time flier who has never actually flown anywhere. Instead, Palmer seeks out tickets for overbooked flights in order to recoup a hefty gift package by agreeing to give up a seat in exchange for cash.
Palmer’s path crosses with Jenna Morris as Zoe, an airport employee who yearns to travel the world but never been able to afford a ticket.
Ard, a first-time performer with ICT, and Morris keep the audience enthralled as they realize their destinations never change, even though their intentions are vastly different.
• “Insurance” takes a rib-tickling look at Teagan Kern as Lauren, an insurance agent whose increasingly outrageous (and unique) policies cover everything from dealing with flight delays to crying babies. And if a passenger comes down with some exotic disease in the airport restroom facility, they could get quite a payout, she promises.
Kern matches wits with Alison Fees and Jacob Cooper. Cooper is a hoot as the easily excitable, if not naïve, potential customer. Fees, however, is a bit more cynical.
• “Going Home” tackles the age-old family dilemma — convincing a recently widowed and elderly mother to move in with her son and daughter-in-law.
Diana Dashnaw sparkles as Deb, the mother with an independent streak who barely tolerates her son’s overtures and is downright hostile to her daughter-in-law.
The real life husband-and-wife team of Ben and Sofie Alexander are her son and daughter-in-law. Sofie shines as she calmly tolerates her mother-in-law’s insults; Ben is equal to the task as the well-intentioned and doting son.
• Your journey’s route takes a delightful course adjustment straight for the funny bone with “Therapy Dog,” featuring the always-memorable Judd Wiltse as Theo. He’s an airport employee hired to portray an emotional support dog after the real animal was fired for biting a passenger. And he’s good at it, too, garnering the affection of travelers like the aforementioned Morris and Katie Jo Knoblich, but much to the chagrin of Jason Chandlee, who can hardly believe his eyes.
Never one to back away from a challenge, Wiltse takes it upon himself to melt Chandlee’s heart and his skepticism. As one of five ICT rookies in the ensemble, Chandlee excels at meeting Wiltse’s outlandishness.
