In our technology era of intimacy interrupted, “The Car Plays: San Diego” drives into town for a site-based theater experience at the La Jolla Playhouse — staged up-close-and-personal in cars. “Expect the unexpected,” said Michael Shutt, who has acted and directed in The Car Plays since its 2006 inception. “What’s amazing is how intimate the shows are. The audience comes right into your world.” The Moving Arts’ production, conceived by Paul Stein, is a series of 10-minute plays in which audiences of two move from car to car to experience five works by different playwrights. Carhops usher the audience to a car, the doors close and a drama — or comedy — unfolds. Ten minutes later, the doors open and the audience moves to a new car with new actors and a new story. In the course of an hour, the audience takes in five plays. “The Car Plays: San Diego,” which runs from Feb. 23 to March 4, is the second in the Playhouse’s Without Walls series. The production, funded by a grant from The James Irvine Foundation, will feature work by four commissioned playwrights from UC San Diego’s Graduate Playwriting Program, seven local directors and Moving Arts’ playwrights. Sara Wagner, a “Car Plays” actor and director, said using a car as a stage creates a new theatrical dimension. “It’s like you’re doing a film scene in a car, but instead of a camera and a director, you’ve got the theater audience sitting behind you,” she said. “When you separate that big audience into little groups of two you get a very specific personal response and it’s very immediate.” Because the audience is new each time the play starts — five times in an hour, three runs a night — Shutt and Wagner find it helps keep every performance fresh. “Every set of two people brings a different energy and the energy is palpable,” Shutt said. “Whether they know it or not, they’re affecting the course of the play.” Wagner agreed. “Their different reactions give me a new experience every time I do the play,” she said. “People cry. People talk back. People are stone silent. People even do their hair and makeup. And maybe they’ve had a few too many cocktails. “It’s a challenge as an actor to remain truthful to the piece without feeling you have to earn somebody’s attention because maybe they’re not quite present in the car,” she said. Nature also plays a part in “The Car Plays,” which take place rain or shine, day or night. “There’s a reason to do site-specific theater in a less-controlled environment,” Wagner said. “We’re in the elements. People walk by. Planes fly overhead. It might rain. It’s always surprising in a good way.” Stein was inspired to create “The Car Plays” while sitting in Los Angeles traffic. He couldn’t help but notice a couple in another car arguing in sign language. He lingered on their exchange to try to figure out what the story was and got the idea for plays in cars. When Moving Arts lost its stage space in 2006, he seized the opportunity to keep the company going and launched “The Car Plays.” What makes a car play successful is that it is something that only happens in a car, Stein said. The same play would not translate to stage. Vehicles also help define characters — a byproduct of our car culture dictum that says you are what you drive. “Think about people who drive a particular car,” Stein said. “What does that say about a character?” At the Playhouse, a taxi and a town car will be in the mix. Stein recalled one audience member who put a seat belt on. “Which is OK, even though the car is not going anywhere,” he said. “But once the door opens, you have to get out.” If you go… Tickets for “The Car Plays: San Diego” are $25 each and may be purchased by calling the Playhouse box office (858) 550-1010. For a full roster of plays, writers and directors, visit www.lajollaplayhouse.org.
