Forty-nine original short plays in English and Spanish are running weekends at the Morgan-Wixson Theatre through Sept. 13, as the Brisk Festival returns for its sixth year in Santa Monica.

The international theater festival, which opened Saturday, Aug. 22, features 30 English-language and 19 Spanish-language productions, each 10 minutes or less. About 210 artists are participating as writers, directors, actors and crew members. Performances run Saturdays and Sundays at 5:45 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. at the theater, 2627 Pico Blvd.

"Brisk Festival celebrates the immediacy and emotional power of live theater," founder and festival director Christian Rodrigo said in the festival's announcement on Visit Santa Monica. "The VI Edition will continue expanding our mission of creating a bilingual, inclusive, and international space for theater in Los Angeles."

Rodrigo, an actor, producer and director who leads the production company Full Emotions, has built the festival into a platform for short-form theater in Los Angeles. Since its founding, Brisk Festival has featured more than 1,200 artists.

Plays are grouped into programs of six, and each selected play performs four times during the run. Winners from each program advance to a Final Gala on Sunday, Sept. 13, where awards for Best Script, Best Play, Best Director, Best Actress, Best Actor and People's Choice will be handed out. The winning play receives $500 and a short film production.

The festival's bilingual programming is supported by Instituto Cervantes of Los Angeles, which partners with Brisk to promote Spanish-language writers, directors and actors on stage. International cultural organizations including the Argentine Consulate in Los Angeles and the Consulate of Peru in Los Angeles are also listed as community partners on the festival's website.

Javier Balderas, who serves as the 2026 LA stage manager, won Best Actor, Best Director and Best Play at last year's festival for his play "Los Monjes Anti-Zen."

Four free workshops open to the public are also part of the 2026 lineup. Argentinian restaurant Fuegos is providing food at the festival. Artists submit and participate at no cost.

Tickets are available at briskfestival.com/tickets.