Chained to this desk as I often am, it’s easy to lose sight of the fact that there is life outside of Norwich. For years, it has been my pleasure to cover the thespians who’ve strutted the Norwich High School stage, but it wasn’t until a couple years ago that I realized kids outside of Norwich can act, too.

Thank you, Colleen Law-Tefft, for calling me all those years ago and challenging me to get off my butt and see some theater outside of Tornado land. I’ve had a ball watching and covering the Sherburne-Earlville drama club advisor’s annual evening of one-act plays for the past three years. Last night, I was able to sneak in a dress rehearsal for this weekend’s lineup, titled “The Play’s the Thing.”

High school theater, in Chenango County and the world over, is lovable both for its successes and its foibles, but sometimes I have to admit a full-length production can be trying to sit through if you’re just not that into it. That’s what makes Colleen’s devise of the 10 one-act play presentations such a treat ... if you don’t like one, it’s over in 10 minutes and you’re on to the next. For those of us, myself included, with short attention spans, it’s just what the doctor ordered. That, and Ritalin.

Another thing I love about these S-E productions is the freedom Colleen gives to her students to express themselves both on stage and off – in addition to acting, several of the students directed a short vignette, and a couple even wrote them!

Though I only got to see the first half, there were several standout performances worth mentioning – and definitely enough to make me want to go back and check out the whole show this weekend (7 p.m. Friday and Saturday at the S-E auditorium; admission is $5).