Original play debuting at PURE Theatre

Rather than always staging plays that were produced five years ago in such theatrical meccas as New York or Chicago, PURE Theatre implemented a PURE Lab Theatre to develop new plays right here in the Holy City.

Described as a workshop production, the one-act play with an intriguing title, "Horse Tranqs & Carriage People," was written by local actor R.W. Smith. It opens Friday at PURE's temporary home at Circular Congregational Church's Lance Hall.

But don't expect a Sunday School lesson.

"When I first started writing the play, I knew I wanted to combine the violence of 'Reservoir Dogs' with the quirky humor of 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer,'" says Smith. The work tells of a robbery gone horribly wrong, forcing three friends to decide what is most important in their lives: friends, family or money.

Smith says his initial intent with the play was to throw real people into an insane situation of their own doing, and then see how they find their way out of it.

Read more in Sunday's editions of The Post and Courier.