Poolyle Productions' heraldic shield includes a royal blue "P" and crossed paintbrushes, underneath which Pig Latin scholars will recognize their motto: "Ongue-Tay In Eek-Chay." Ten years ago Susan Poulin (Pool) and Gordon Carlisle (Lyle) pooled their consonants and vowels and created Poolyle Productions. Up until that point, their acting, singing, and painting skills contributed to various Seacoast sets and stages. They'd worked in Generic Theater and helped host "One Thing After Another," a successful series of one-acts. Gordon painted with MuralWorks and played with a band. Susan acted with a half dozen companies and moonlighted as a home sanitation engineer.

In an effort to marshal their energy, focus their resources, and liberate Susan from her day job, they decided to write an original play. They'd just married, and their first play, "In My Head I'm Thin," was born on their honeymoon. It was conceived as a feminist comedy about food, eating and America's unhealthy preoccupation with body image. It resounded as both comedy and cultural critique, and its success launched a decade of original plays, which they produce, direct and perform. After "Thin," "Ida: Woman Who Runs with the Moose," "Spousal Deafness and Other Bones of Contention," "Franco Fry or Pardon My French," and "The Full Angel: My Year in Cancerland" have followed.

Sitting down to breakfast one day this past fall, Gordon and Susan perused their touring calendar, which had only a sprinkling of dates this spring. They realized "Thin" was turning 10. Perhaps it was time to bring it back for a retrospective. As their first show, it was the one they'd let go of to some degree. It has lavishly painted sets (from larger than-life-Titians and Rubens to something-shall we say- Barbie-esque), a million props and multiple scene changes, and it needs complex tech support. They'd rewritten it two years ago and then put it to bed again after one or two performances. It was a bear to take on the road. Maybe they should try it in the comfort of their own home?

"A Wicked Good Time at Town Hall" has ensued. The retrospective of their comedies is being performed in reverse order, newest to oldest. They're offering comedy, three months running, the second weekend of each month, through April.

"It was really a gamble for the first show," Susan says. "We'd been using the South Berwick Town Hall for rehearsal space and it had a real homey feel." After enduring a dozen years of small theaters and a few rehearsal spaces so cold Gordon couldn't move his fingers to play guitar chords, they intone, "We really love the idea of being in our own home town," and, Susan chimes in, "It's warm!"

"Spousal Deafness" ran right before Valentine's Day. "We had hoped our first weekend would be about 200 folks, and almost 300 came, which was exciting. Almost all new faces for our work," Susan says. They offered a three-month pass, The Wicked Good Deal Pass, and gave the option to trade up after the show. They had 17 takers. South Berwick residents got a break on the ticket price, as did seniors and starving artists.

"It's also a great way to show how theater can build community," Gordon says. "The Great Works Land Trust was here with information about their preservation and conservation efforts. The Old Berwick Historical Society and the Friends of the South Berwick Library teamed up to do refreshments as a fundraiser, and that all fills the space up very nicely." The month of March brings "Ida: Woman Who Runs with the Moose," and "In My Head, I'm Thin" will receive its 10th anniversary production on the second weekend of April.

With "Thin" in production for 10 years, it has its own story to tell. Susan notes that it marks 10 years of the couple working together, an important benchmark in both their collaboration and the perilous world of playwriting.

"As our first full-length show, it was perceived by others as a gendered play. With its success, we resolved to build a 'whole audience' for our shows. It's a treat to get back to it, to rediscover it, and play with it. Gordon's paintings for the props are great and fun to work with," Susan says. Particular high points in the show's run are a hearty recommendation by Dr. Christiane Northrup, author of "Woman's Bodies, Women's Wisdom." "It was also very much an honor to perform it at The Music Hall as a benefit for the Feminist Health Center," Susan notes. "I also learned to sing for that play. I had good coaching and support, and it created new ways for Gordon and I to collaborate."

"Spousal Deafness" (as a notion and not a play) grew out of a parody of a Cosmo quiz. In one-act comedy piece called "Stud Finder," a tough Maine woman (Ida LeClair) writes a book about the quest for the perfect man and uses the book tour to hunt one up, to try to practice what she preaches. This exploration was fruitful. "Ida" was fully developed in October of 1997.

About the writing process, Susan shares, "Gordon and I have often written episodically and often look back on what we have. Usually the first things I write are the funny parts. Some of the things I tried were just not funny in my voice, but when I tried it in Ida's they became really humorous. In Ida's voice, I can get stuff that in my voice sounds mean or whiny." Ida's able to bring out the underlying humor and highlight human absurdities in ways that tickle rather than sting.

Around the time of the play's development, women's groups were being much parodied, and Susan posed the scenario of an old-style Maine Yankee attending the local library's book group, which was discussing new-age female empowerment. Ida's own down-to-earth wisdom carries the day. Susan said, "We had some funny observations to make about women's groups, and (then) Gordon posed the scenario of the boys getting caught by their wives at the topless donut shop."

Susan has three different versions of "Ida" so that she can mount a production according to an audience's needs. She's really enjoyed performing at women's retreats where she finds the quality in the laughter different than in mixed audiences. Gordon and Susan are in the process of writing a new show for "Ida." Its working title is "Ida and the Permanent Yard Sale." It will debut at Portsmouth's West End Studio Theater on Sept. 30, and is much looked forward to by Ida fans.

Plays that are not a part of A Wicked Good Time are "Franco Fry or Pardon My French" and "The Full Angel: My Year in Cancerland." They represent more autobiographical work and have a different flavor. Susan has been investigating her heritage and personal narrative these last few years, reclaiming her French, studying folk songs and folk traditions with Lucy Therrien, and participating in a writing group.

Regarding "Franco Fry," Susan shares, "It was one of the only parts of my life that I feel sad about-losing my language. This was the first story I wrote by myself. Because it's my story, Gordon couldn't write it. He was amazingly helpful with research." What started as a relatively simple concept for a play turned into two years' work. They interviewed Susan's Franco-American relatives and transcribed the tapes. They explored patterns of migration down from Canada to Maine and New Hampshire. Susan took French lessons for over two years and had a two-week immersion with a French speaking family in Quebec.

Susan debuted a portion of "The Full Angel: My Year in Cancerland," a reflective monologue that emerged from journaling a narrative of her mother's cancer, at the York Public Library reading series in the spring of 2004. When asked, she acknowledges that she's been invested in the writing in a different way. "In writing 'The Full Angel,' I'm really claiming myself as a writer, and it's a big deal for me," she says. For those accustomed to her acting, it was very interesting to see the strength of the story take precedence over its presentation. An adaptation for the stage is not in the works. "Right now, it would be too hard to take it off the page and go to the places I'd have to go to act it. I like having it on the page," she says.

This retrospective should launch Poolyle Productions into the next decade of their work. It's great to see where they've been, and equally exciting to see where they're headed. If you head to SOBO to see for yourself, there's still time to pick up the Not Too Shabby Pass if you missed the Wicked Good Deal!

"Ida: Woman Who Runs with the Moose" runs March 10 and 11; "In My Head I'm Thin" runs April 8-10 at South Berwick Town Hall. Call 207-384-4526 for reservations or visit www.poolyle.com for information.