By merely glancing at the words "theater festival," you'd think that the event would be full of Shakespearean monologues, ancient Greek oration, tragicomedies and a handful of modern plays for good taste. That is, you would think that until you realized that the festival was in San Francisco, a fair city in which standard rules do not apply. And true to the city's reputation, the San Francisco Theater Festival was a diverse affair that reached far beyond the boundaries of what we call "traditional theater." Instead of acting as a crash course in theater, the nearly day-long free festival was proof that dramas need not be stuffy and refined, comedy need not be banal, and that theater need not even be confined to plays. It was proof that it can not only be easy and enriching to watch theater but incredibly satisfying and enjoyable as well.

The festival was varied, ranging from solo shows to lectures to clownery and magic, all of which were scattered throughout the Yerba Buena Gardens, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, the Zeum, the Metreon and surrounding areas. The theater groups there ranged from youth groups such as I Go and Youth for Asian Theater to professional groups such as the Bay Area Repertory Theater. Some groups brought new plays to perform, while others were just there to announce their presence in the theater community. Either way, all the companies brought a different dimension to the festival.

The companies were mostly good, but occasionally they ran into problems. The main difficulty with many performances was their outdoor setting, which made it hard for the audience to hear the actors. This was especially true since many acts in the gardens were performed simultaneously, causing audience laughter and talk to drift over to other performances. While the actors cannot be blamed entirely for not compensating for this, it still would not have been difficult for actors to raise their voices a bit more. Still, most of these acts managed to be entertaining on some level, and the indoor acts naturally were better in the vocals department; nonetheless, there still weren't many mind-blowing performances.

However, two of acts were undoubtedly noteworthy: the improvisation groups Big City Improv and Un-Scripted Theater. The former performed to a room nearly overflowing with people, a situation that clearly benefited them as they were able to feed off the audience's enthusiasm. The group did not disappoint, creating songs on the spot and even involving the audience in certain skits. Un-Scripted Theater, who were the last act in the gardens, had a slightly less enthusiastic and more difficult audience, but despite this, their performance was hilarious, culminating in an improvised opera that centered around the SFPD and the audience-chosen words "violence," "racism" and "purity."

As a final testament to the purpose of the festival, the day ended with Emeryville Taiko performing a number of songs and proving once again that the idea of theater stretches beyond the stage. As the performers synchronized each of their moves like actors in a complex scene, the audience grew steadily in size as the last song came on. Perhaps it was the knowledge that they had completed an entire day of nonstop theater that drew them there, but more likely than not, it was the fact that the unusual demonstration was so rousing and fascinating. And like the final performance, the festival was an announcement that theater can still be stirring, moving and intriguing, if we all just give it a chance.