Abel Parada plays Ralph in Play the Game, one of the short comedies in Happy Hour – four short comedies. He tells us a little bit about his experience of transitioning from film to theatre:

"Despite the merciless pace of time, I think of myself as a young actor. A few years ago, I discovered the beauty of filmmaking and learned how to act through independent short films. Although I’ve got experience in front of the camera, Play the Game constitutes my theater debut. And I cannot wait!

'Meaningful things are created through struggle'

I believe proper timing plays a crucial role in every single aspect of our lives. My engagement with acting came at a time when nothing else made sense: the outbreak of the pandemic.

Acting was more than just a way of coping. It was sustenance! A journey of self-rediscovery where I allowed myself to be creative, to be whoever I wanted to be, to rediscover and express myself without caring about the prying eye of shame or fault. In no time, performing became more than just a hobby.

Soon after I started in the theater, I realized that performing in front of the camera differs greatly from being on the stage. In theater, building character happens progressively and chronologically, as opposed to film, where scenes are shot and performed in a non-chronological basis. Not to mention the importance of vocalization!

As a non-native English speaker, proper enunciation is a constant battle, and one better win that battle in the theater on the first try!

My performances on camera include the crime/drama short Impulse Response and the horror short Ouija Board."

Introducing the fourth of the plays in Happy Hour: Going Viral written and directed by Zachariah Chamberlaine.

What controls us? What are we slaves to? One of the first things that springs to mind is advertising. And when you live in a society that constantly stimulates fear and desire in order to make you a better consumer, you’re gonna get a bit messed up.

The Powers That Be have always toyed with our fears and desires to keep people in their place, whether through religion, propaganda or commercial advertising. As increasing volumes of data are being collected to provide us with ‘more relevant adverts’, we seem to be fast approaching a strange and frightening world in which all the adverts are true and all the news is fake....

Sometimes it feels as if there’s no escape from advertising. But if you think things are bad now, you’d better watch out for the next megatrend. Because in "Going Viral", the future of advertising is here and now there really is no escape. At least not for Marshall (Zach Chamberlaine), whose (albeit accidental) commitment to the latest form of advertising is making it very difficult for him to get through a job intervew with Mr Fitzroy (Salomon Marttila), a top executive at a major marketing agency.

But does Marshall end up getting the job or not? You'll just have to come to the show to find out!

Read more about Happy Hour – four short comedies

Photo: Anni Taponen

Introducing the third of the short plays in Happy Hour: Please Do Take Offence written and directed by Zachariah Chamberlaine.

Customer service reps are used to dealing with angry callers from time to time. But as Alex (Zach Chamberlaine) works for the Broadcasting Standards Authority, pretty much everyone who calls is doing so to complain. And this disgruntled caller (Salomon Marttila) is no exception!

The caller has been VERY OFFENDED by several programmes he’s seen on TV, but it turns out his problem isn’t quite what it first appears to be….

So, what’s he really complaining about? You’ll have to come to the show to find out!

Read more about Happy Hour – four short comedies

Photo: Anni Taponen