The Pine Island Playhouse will be performing a collection of David Ives’ one-act plays over two weekends at the end of February.

According to playhouse founder and director Nichole Pichon, Ives is an extraordinarily talented comedic playwright.

“He and Sondheim were just going into previews for a show they wrote together on Broadway right before Sondheim died. He makes jokes for the common man, that make it easy to get a laugh, but it also has higher education — for instance, if you know Shakespeare, you’re going to laugh, but it works for everybody. You’re going to enjoy it no matter who you are,” Pichon said.

The performances will be held Feb. 18-20 and Feb. 25-27.

Having worked on Ives’ one acts previously while still in college, Pichon feels a familiarity with his work that’s made her comfortable enough to commit to a part in the production along with husband, Paul Pichon, who produces at the Playhouse with her.

This collection, “All in the Timing,” has been interesting to revisit, she said. The Performacast will include only a handful of adults this time around, as this is the time of year when the Playhouse focuses on a small all-adult productions, unlike the holiday show, where as many children as possible are generally included.

Each of the five acts is unique in its presentation, Pichon said. The acts the Playhouse will perform are: “Sure Thing,” “Variations on the Death of Trotsky,” “Words Words Words,” “Universal Language” and “The Philadelphia.”

Watching the small cast get together on their own time, behind the scenes, shows a commitment to the Playhouse Pichon admits she’s enjoyed witnessing. With COVID added to the mix of things to which the Playhouse must adhere, Pichon wanted something that would not require a giant set to build, since she and her husband do most of the production work themselves. A small cast also allows for more energy to go into the production of each act of the show.

“We knew we’d be able to keep doing it even if restrictions got tighter,” Pichon said.

Pine Island Playhouse is located within Pine Island United Methodist Church at 5701 Pine Island Road, N.W., St. James City. For more about the community theater group, visit pineislandplayhouse.wordpress.com