KUER, Plan B Theater host radio drama marathon

The kids likely went trick-or-treating last night, and parents have already picked over the candy buckets. But it's Halloween. Maybe you're still in the mood for a little fright?

Gather the family around the radio tonight as Plan-B Theatre Company and KUER host a "Radio Hour Marathon." All five of the theater company's radio dramas will air from 8 p.m.-midnight.

"The radio drama has been part of the history of the company from almost the beginning," said Jerry Rapier, producing director of Plan-B.

And the dramas have changed a bit over the years.

"It started as just a radio drama," he said. "We had talks with Doug Fabrizio at KUER and found out he loves the genre, too. So we said, "What if you guys provide the support and the airwaves and we'll provide the show."

For three years, the partnership worked strictly as a radio drama. "We did one week of rehearsals and one performance on the air," Rapier said. These in-studio dramas were done in front of a 10-person audience.

"We found that people had a lot of sound questions and wanted to be part of it," he said. "For 'Radio Frankenstein,' we wanted to expand it and let more people in. And people wanted to see how it worked."

So the Radio Hour moved to the theater, where, complete with a foley (sound effect operator), the actors sat in front of a script, wearing black, and the audience was left filling in the visual gaps on its own.

The theater company is taking a break from producing a radio drama this year. "we had a nice five years of it. We enjoy it but thought we should pursue other things," Rapier said.

The marathon broadcast will include:

"Radio Hour: Radio Po"

"Radio Hour: The Hitchhiker & Zero Hour"

"Radio Hour: Lavendar and Exile"

"Radio Hour: Frankenstein"

"Radio Hour: Alice."

Rapier noted that during the first three years, "there were interviews at the beginnings of the show. So, it totals four hours."

"These were recorded live so they're not perfect," he chuckled. "It'll be a fun night. Halloween is on a Sunday, so it's a great opportunity to curl up with the radio and listen to some Halloween radio drama."

If you go …

What: Radio Hour Marathon

Where: KUER, 90.1 FM

When: Oct. 31 (today), 8 p.m.-midnight

e-mail: ehansen@desnews.com