LANSING, Mich.–When the Greeks looked for an explanation for the evils of the world, they gave us the story of Pandora, the first human woman who opened a jar and let loose all the evil spirits that plague humanity. She only managed to slam it shut in time to stop a single spirit from escaping—Hope.

So it is fitting that Ixion, a theater that has often explored the mythological roots from which it gets its name, chose that topic for their annual collection of new, short plays. They also chose original works that are as complicated in their outlook on hope—and whether it is a blessing or a curse—as the original myth trying to explain that indomitable human spirit.

“Hope” presents eight short plays with seven actors, led by first-time director Rose Jangmi Cooper.

The night opened with “172 Push-Ups,” in which hope is found from two very different people discovering not just that they are more alike than appears, but that even across differences there are ways to connect. It ended with “Scripted,” in which a couple finds a script on their bedside table that magically foretold their every word and action and led them to discuss not only whether they could break out of their own predictability, but what made a life that was interesting and good.

Between those two, the stories ranged from realistic to sci fi, from frightening to comical. There was political satire and historical accounts. Some authors succeeded more than others in mastering the 10-minute format and making the theme and their story blossom within the limitations.

Likewise, some performers succeeded more than others in telling compelling stories.

Opening night felt a tad unprepared. In the second play, “Winter in the House,” one actor went up on his lines and there was a dead space for minutes as he paced and his scene partner stood frozen, only finally breaking in with a quiet, uncertain rescue after a prolonged interlude which had the audience squirming. The scene never recovered. The male character felt stilted and it was too obvious the actor found him as offensive as the audience did, which didn’t sell the story. The woman’s character was sympathetic, but she didn’t have anything to play against, which made what she sent out fall flat.

“Hijab” by Andrea Clardy was a lovely variant on the high school “Miss Popularity” vs. “Outcast” trope. Muthu Jayatissa and Jacquelyn Marks meet awkwardly at lunch as Marks’s character claims she is apologizing for tweeting a picture of Jayatissa’s character in the locker room without her hijab. But Clardy isn’t going for some simple “let’s understand Islam better.” There is authenticity in the exchange and there is actual growth, change and a hope of a better understanding between the two.

It helps that both actors do a beautiful job of creating their characters. Jayatissa has a stillness that indicates deep waters and she listens far more intently than her seemingly more shallow classmate notices. Marks brings beautiful facial tics and a vocal style that immediately let the audience make short cut assumptions about her that work for the telling of the story.

In each play she appears, Ellie Weise puts in a strong presence. Each character is different, she moves with confidence, she understands the story she is telling and makes the telling interesting.

Lekeathon Wilson is compelling in both of his appearances. In “Be More 282,” he captures the anger, fear, frustration and despair in a very challenging role. He immediately commits to the playwright’s conceit, a conceit that becomes powerful once it is clear what it means. He and Marks both keep the energy very high in this piece.

Wilson and Jayatissa return in “Low Light,” a futuristic piece that feels very current. It is early morning and neither of the bunk mates can sleep. Jayatissa’s character tries to comfort and calm Wilson’s who is new, while also disillusioning him about his hopes of a short stay.

On a lighter side, Sadonna Croff’s character forgets her numbers in “One, Three, Two,” despite being an accountant. Her monologues are delivered with charm, but her scene partner took awhile to warm up and felt too much like he was reciting lines.

“Classics for Kids” features classic children’s books jealous of Harry Potter stealing all their readers. Once again, Weise demonstrates a fetching charisma, dominating the story both because of her clearness of speech and the purposefulness of her storytelling.

In the small space that is the Robins Theatre, sets for Ixion shows are almost always non-existent and this show is no exception—gray boxes that can quickly be moved about the stage make up the entire set. For this show, costuming is also very limited, mostly sticking with modern dress.

The “Classics for Kids” featured each of the book characters wearing banner-like pieces with their book titles on it. However, two were hard to read—one because it got folded up (though it was easy enough to figure out the title as it was a once-popular classic children’s book) and the other because it was almost too long for the banner and went up over the actor’s shoulders.

Two of the technical aspects that this show did spend time on and do well were the lights and sound.

When the stories called for it, such as in “Be More 282,” there was an effective change in lighting and special effects that followed.

Even more well done was the sound for those stories that required it. The effects, handled by Clint Hoagland, were jarring when they needed to be, believable in each use and always performed exactly on cue.

Ixion’s “Hope” offers an evening of interesting ideas presented in a way that stays true to Ixion’s commitment to staging diverse voices.