International Centre for Women Playwrights News

Centre Stage Podcast #16 with Hortense Gerardo

Mon, 10 Apr 2023 09:11:14 GMT

Hortense Gerardo talks about her plays I SEE YOU, COUNTERPOINT, TOASTING MAN, MIDDLETON HEIGHTS, GLACIAL INCANTATIONS of THE HERAKLES PROJECT and THE HOUR BETWEEN DOG AND WOLF,

MIDDLETON HEIGHTS in Concord, MA March 31 – April 23, 2023

She also discusses the PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT AWARD from ICWP, the DRAMATIC WRITING AWARD from Mass Cultural Council, the ALFRED P. SLOAN FOUNDATION, and the CHANGEMAKER ANTI-RACIST PEDAGOGY LEARNING COMMUNITY FELLOWSHIP at the University of California, San Diego.

Hortense is a playwright and anthropologist. She is the Director of the Anthropology, Performance, and Technology (APT) Program at the University of California, San Diego and her works have been performed nationally and internationally, including: LaMama Experimental Theatre, the Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA) in Boston, the International Performance Art Festival, the Performance Mix Festival, The Fence, and the Nuit Blanche Festival, Toronto

For more information go to: www.hortensegerardo.com

Past works of note

THE MEDFIELD ANTHOLOGY – June 4, 5, and 11, 2020, produced by the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) and the Cultural Alliance of Medfield on the video platform ZOOM during the Covid Pandemic.

THE SAUNA PLAYS – March 20, 2020 produced by ARDNA in Oslo, Norway with funding from the Mass Cultural Council. This production was cancelled due to the Covid Pandemic.

PAINLESS – June 18 – 30, 2021, produced by Speakeasy Stage as part of the Boston Project Resilience.

GLACIAL INCANTATIONS for the Without Walls Festival produced by La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego on April 27- 30, 2023

THE HOUR BETWEEN DOG AND WOLF directed by Jessica Ernst and produced by Sleeping Weasel Theater as part of the Boston Theater Marathon on May 7, 2023.

See the Author Online

Website: www.hortensegerardo.com

Twitter - @hfgerardo

Web page where plays can be found: https://newplayexchange.org/users/261/hortense-gerardo

Hortense was interviewed by Dr Jennifer Munday, Charles Sturt University, Australia.

A Brief History of the Gender Parity Movement in Theatre

Sun, 26 Feb 2023 13:30:35 GMT

This post references a brilliant and landmark article by Jenny Lyn Bader which appears on the WIT ( Women In Theatre website March 18, 2017

A Brief History of the Gender Parity Movement in Theatre by Jenny Lyn Bader

In October 1978, the Feminist Theatre Study Group picketed five shows on London’s West End, handing out leaflets that began with a few questions. To wit,

Did the characters in this play imply that:

Blondes are dumb?
Wives nag?
Feminists are frustrated?
Whores have hearts of gold?
Mothers-in-law interfere?
Lesbians are aggressive?
Intellectual women are frigid?
Women who enjoy sex are nymphomaniacs?
Older women are sexless?

We are a group of theatre workers who are tired of portraying these cardboard cutouts. We want theatre managers, directors, and writers to stop producing plays which insult women.

At that point, the group Action for Women in Theatre had looked at US theatres from 1969 to 1975, releasing a study that found that the number of female playwrights and directors working in regional and off-Broadway theatres was at 7 percent. Women were not merely getting insulted more than men, they were also getting hired a lot less. The two things were perhaps related.

While the numbers have improved since then, the gender imbalance has continued to exist to the present day.

The first known woman playwright: the tenth century German canoness Hrosvitha of Gandersheim. [Image]

I myself became aware of it gradually and then suddenly. I remember the moment a consultant for a certain theatre suggested I apply for a playwriting fellowship designated for disadvantaged minorities because at that theatre, “women are considered a minority.” More profoundly, I remember a town hall meeting where discussion topics ranged from historical statistics to the public’s received image of a playwright as a “bad boy” or “angry young man.”

We live in a world dominated by male imagination. Guys write 80 percent of produced plays and commit 80 percent of violent crimes, while the rest of us try to catch up with the former and avoid the latter.

In case you missed the theatre industry’s gender parity movement, here’s a recap: women have been writing plays for millennia and landing productions for centuries. Over time they’ve also come to play key roles......

Read the rest of the article on the WIT website

https://witonline.org/2017/03/18/on-the-gender-parity-movement-jenny-lyn-bader/

Centre Stage Podcast #14 with Deena Ronayne

Wed, 22 Feb 2023 15:04:13 GMT

We hear excerpts from Deena’s first play “Triple Bypass” and discuss her upcoming second play “The Canonized Club.”

Deena lives in South Dakota, USA and is the Founder/Creative Director of Hardly Working Promotions, LLC

Past works

Triple Bypass: Three Ten Minute Plays About Living for Death & Dying for Life

Upcoming works

The Canonized Club: The Curious Lives & Deaths of the Saints

Website
https://hardlyworkingpromotions.com/about/

Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/hardlyworkingpromotions

Twitter https://twitter.com/HardlyWorkingPr

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hardlyworkingpromotions/

Find Deena's plays:
https://newplayexchange.org/plays/1526482/triple-bypass

CENTRE STAGE PODCAST #13 with LOU BECKETT

Thu, 29 Sep 2022 10:14:36 GMT

Listen to an excerpt from Lou Beckett's audio play " Bletchley Girls". Bletchley was the headquarters of the code-breakers unit trying to break the secret codes used by the enemy during WWII.

Based on a true story of two young women and their remarkable effort to crack some of the enemy’s toughest codes, Bletchley Girls follows an unlikely friendship between Mavis Lever and Margaret Rock. Pressure increases to decipher intercepts which will impact the course of the war, but it’s not all night shifts and Enigma machines; there are dances, pranks and even a little romance.

Lou Beckett wrote for the stage until Covid lockdowns inspired the director of her play, Bletchley Girls, to turn it into a radio play and podcast. Since then, the allure of having a legacy for one’s work, as well as the continuing presence of Covid, has meant her subsequent plays have been created for radio/podcast.

Lou’s other works include Rotten Luck, The Parrot, the Poet, and the Philanderer, and Forbidden Music.

Upcoming works:

We Can’t Be, a new audio play, tells the story of two young women who decide their town needs a statue of a woman.

Lou's Online Pages

Website: https://www.loubeckett.com/

Facebook Page @loubeckett.playwright
Twitter: @loubeckett4

Instagram: loubeckett_

Amazon Author page https://www.amazon.co.uk/Radio-Play-Bletchley-Girls-WW2/dp/B08K5Y7831

Buy the Audio On Audible

Spotify

ICWP Member URL

50 years of solo performing art in Nigerian Theatre 1966-2016 - Review

Wed, 14 Sep 2022 07:30:30 GMT

Carolyn Nur Wistrand, Assistant Professor of English and Drama Dillard University reviews 50 years of solo performing art in Nigerian Theatre 1966-2016 by Greg Mbajiorgu and Amanze Akpuda.

Since the 1970s, Performance Art has championed site-specific artists conceptualizing singular visions as nontraditional theatre practitioners throughout the globe. The collective international rise of solo performances that utilize open spaces as diverse as street corners to shop windows has brought us revolutionary artists whose messages, offered to the people, are not for sale.

Challenging and discarding many conventional theatre aesthetics, this minimalist theatre style began as a vehicle for agit-prop, in your face, performances to bring spectators into a raw engagement with the performer. 50 years of solo performing art in Nigerian Theatre 1966-2016, is the first anthology to provide an overview of this practice as it has developed in Nigeria. Edited by Greg Mbajiorgu and Amanze Akpuda, this important addition to the study of Performance Art includes over 30 essays from Nigerian scholars and theatre artists, providing a definitive and up-to-date study of solo performance in Nigeria.

Organized in nine sections, the anthology begins with three essays from Moses Oludele Idowu, Emeka Nwabueze, and Chike Okoye that lay the historical foundations of Performance Art from a West African Cosmology. Chapter One, Idowu’s Words of Power, and the Power of Words: The Spoken Word as Medium of Vital Force in African Cosmology leads off the edition with an essay on spoken word that captures the mystical root of “The Word” in traditional African, Judeo-Christian, and Muslim religious belief systems, before narrowing in on Ase in Yoruba Cosmology. Nwabueze (Chapter 2) continues to trace the origins of Performance Art in his essay through a narrative on the traditional griot as storyteller and guardian of the people that would also be of interest to African American spoken word artists.

Throughout American streets and college campuses, countless young “Neo-griots” rhyme and recite their poetry unaware of the African roots in their aesthetic. Okoye (Chapter 3) then takes us into sacred rituals surrounding Igbo masks/masquerade and the evolution in scholarly arguments that identify the Igbo Mask as an example of solo performance. The first three essays are vital in locating the foundation of Performance Art in Nigeria far beyond 20^th century Western Avant-Garde theatre.

Section B targets “Meta-Theoretical, Comparative, Analytical, and Generic Studies” to pinpoint various approaches to the solo performer, from the American comedian Lily Tomlin to Greg Mbajiorgu. Unfortunately, this section falls short, losing an important opportunity to cross the Atlantic by not mentioning Ana Deavere Smith, whose one-woman performances (portraying over 30 characters in each performance) of Fires in the Mirror (1992), Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992 (1994), and The Arizona Project (2008) have brought international acclaim to Solo Performance Art.

Throughout the text references to numerous Western artists-Shakespeare, Jean-Paul Sartre, George Bernard Shaw, Mark Twain, Bertolt Brecht, and Virginia Woolf (to name a few) are made; to not include the foremost African American Performance Solo Artist, Ana Deavere Smith leaves Section B with a major omission that would have added dimension and scope.

The Pioneer Nigerian Soloists: Betty Okotie, Tunji Sotimirin, and Funsho Alabi are captured in nine essays in Section C. Tracing the rise of solo performances and the issues in crafting a solo play, the essays consider how various pioneers in the discipline, Okotie, Sotimirin, Alabi, and Mbarjiogu have responded and claimed this theatrical genre in post-colonial Nigeria to give voice to their own creative force.

Directing the Monodrama Script includes four essays that target real-world issues a director encounters working with a solo performer to flesh out authentic character/s. This section provides a fascinating discussion of a director’s challenge in capturing the distinct physical, intellectual, and emotional nuances of each character that is brought to life on the stage through one performer (since a solo performer may take on numerous characters in his/her mono-drama).

The transitions from and to each character are tackled in the direction and enhanced working with other theatre practitioners to mount a one-wo/man production. Section D is also a testament to the evolution of this art form as technical designers (lights, sound, set, and costumes) are considered to enhance the vision of the director.

It is midway through the book that we are introduced to the creators of Nigerian Performance Art in Section E: Encountering Dramatists/Actor-Dramatists. This is one of the most important sections of the book, highlighting interviews with Tunji Sotimirin, Greg Mbajiorgu, Tunde Awosanmi, Inua Ellams (arguably Nigeria’s most renowned performance artist in England), and Benedict Binebai. What makes these interviews so engaging is their universal appeal to theatre artists throughout the globe seeking to take risks and forge fresh vision as they create new works for the stage.

Additionally, personal reflective essays by Akpos Adesi, “My Heritage as a Dramatist and My Monodrama Creations: Reflections and Benedict Binebai, “My Monodrama: The Vision and Philosophy” allow the reader deeper insight into the process by which individual theatre artists forge into the dramatic landscape of monodrama as technique and craft continue to evolve. These artistic statements offer a wealth of primary material for future theatre practitioners and scholars of theatre performance.

Greg Mbajiorgu, (the editor whose original vision and dedication to monodrama brought this text into fruition), is prominently highlighted in Section F. Seven theatre scholars offer essays that seek to deconstruct Mbajiorgu’s theatre practices in his definitive piece, The Prime Minister’s Son, a modern sorrow song that takes the audience through the harrowing tale of a homeless and bereft young man.

An examination of Mbajiorgu’s monodrama and his non-binary performance consider the layered subtexts he crafts to bring to the stage the consequences of war, sexual abuse, and shameful discarding of street children in this singular piece through dialogue, poetics, and music. Short excerpts from the play The Prime Minister’s Son are incorporated into the essays, although including the entire script in this section would provide added weight to the criticism.

Incorporating essays on one singular play (moving dangerously close to a “vanity press” chapter by the editor) from seven scholars demands the reader have the opportunity to access the script under scrutiny. An additional section with a sampling of the major Dramatists works (Okotie, Sotimirin, Alabi, Mbajiorgu, Awosanmi, Ellams, and Binebai) would carry this volume to a wider audience.

Two essays on Inua Ellams’ work bringing magical realism to the stage through the voice of the outsider are highlighted in Section G, while Benedict Binebai, (who was interviewed and provided a personal essay in Section E) is considered in three distinct essays in Section H beginning with a discussion of Karina’s Cross and feminist aesthetics in Nigerian monodrama.

Chidi O. Nwankwo’s Chapter 38, Idiomaticity of Feminist Aesthetics in Binebai’s Karina’s Cross locates this piece as the first monodrama in Nigeria to incorporate feminine consciousness and empowerment. Section I concludes this epic study with two essays by Kenneth Efakponana and Emeka Aniago placing feminist theory at the forefront of their examinations of Akpos Adesi’s “Whose Daughter Am I?” a one woman play originally staged by The Department of Theatre Arts at Niger Delta University in 2015.

Eni considers how identity is presented in Adesi’s work (who defines the identity of the female gender-controls the identity of the female gender) as a major theme at the core of this one woman monodrama. Aniago goes on to consider the layers of victimhood in Adesi’s main character, Tarilayefa, who believes her descent into prostitution is the result of misery, poverty, and inequalities-blaming society as her oppressor.

The book concludes with short bios of all 36 scholars and theatre practitioners who contributed essays and conducted interviews. At 614 pages, this project is a monumental undertaking that began in 2015. Documenting in one volume the first practitioners in post-colonial Nigeria to create solo performance as a viable stage practice, makes this work, edited by Mbajiorgu and Akpuda, the foundation of all future studies in solo performing art in Nigeria.

Since none of the monodramas were included in this book, a second volume that provides the major works in one anthology is recommended. This edition should not be confined to Nigeria. 50 Years of Solo Performing Art in Nigerian Theatre 1966-2016 widens the discussion of this innovative art practice to Solo Performance Artists, scholars, and students of African Drama throughout the globe.

Reviewer: Carolyn Nur Wistrand, Assistant Professor of English and Drama Dillard University, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA

Mbajiorgu, Greg and Akpuda, Amanze. 50 years of solo performing art in Nigerian Theatre 1966-2016. Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria: Kraft Books Limited, 2018. ISBN: 978-978-918-514-6.

CENTRE STAGE PODCAST #12 with Kari Ann Owen

Sun, 17 Jul 2022 19:53:26 GMT

Jenni Munday interviews Kari Ann Owen and Kari reads from two of her works.

Kari Ann Owen is a Missoula, MT playwright. She discusses her comedy routine about Dr. Fauci’s loving lost-lost brother in the Mafia, and her play, Fighting It!, about courageous men and women during the New York Covid Pandemic lockdown. Her plays are published and produced in the USA.

Examples of past works:
“Bernie Madoff in Hell”, San Francisco Fringe Festival
“Modern Life”, a series of one act plays about a disabled computer scientist and his service dog, dot.com, and their conquest of prejudice, produced and awarded playwrighting and directors’ prize at Dominical University, San Rafael, CA.

Websites
https://wildhorse.sparkdisk.com/

THEATRE ENGAGE

https://kariannowenandtheatreengage.vpweb.com/

Digitalization of Theater by Amy Drake

Sat, 11 Jun 2022 15:47:50 GMT

“Necessity is the mother of invention.” ... Plato

Digitalization of theater has evolved with advancing technology and the need to bring theater to a wider audience. The original intent to record the event for posterity, as with the video recorded plays of Sacha Guitry, in the 1930s, when talking films were a new art form.

Before Covid, some theater companies began using digitalization to create an interactive experience with a live audience. Belgium’s Ontroerend Goed theater company gave patrons hand-held devices to “vote” during a show about democracy (When theatre goes digital | The Space) Some theaters posted Twitter comments projected on a backdrop during performances to involve the audience in the show in real time.

As Covid closed theaters, presenting theater on Zoom became a necessity to reach any audience at all. For playwrights, Zoom readings, and even semi-staged shows from separate locations, became the primary vehicle to stay active and connect with a remote audience. It was not ideal, but it was the best solution t keep theater going during the crisis, for theater gets its energy from the interacting between actor and audience and from the shared experience between audience members. A hybrid of remote performance with a live audience is in cinema broadcasts of actors performing as a group to an empty house provided part of the solution addressing half of the equation—the audience has a shared experience with each other, but not with the performers who are spurred on by audience engagement.

During the pandemic, viewing theater on the screen of a device from any comfortable location served the valuable purpose of creating a vehicle for theater makers to maintain an audience. Now, we have an opportunity to take the tricks we have learned from producing works for online viewing to incorporate digitalization in promoting and staging theater for live and remote audiences.

Amy Drake

THEATRE, PLAYS AND PLAY-READING AS A TOOL TO COMBATTING GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN IN AFRICA. -Wuraoluwa Soibi Ayodele

Fri, 10 Jun 2022 23:04:23 GMT

Gender-based violence against women and girls globally has become critical in the last decade. Many women experiencing violence in communities around the world are beginning to recognize what situations they are in and demand safety and better living conditions.

Women still struggle to combat cultural practices, religious beliefs and social norms that promote gender-based violence against women such as domestic/intimate partner violence, sexual violence, harmful traditional practices and child marriage.

Following the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic, women around the world experienced a spike in gender-based violence. Following the lock-down rules in many countries in global north and global south, many women were forced to live at home, restricted to staying with abusive spouses, partners and family members.

In countries across Africa, women majorly suffered domestic and sexual violence. Many other women suffered economic violence, psychological abuse and an increase in harmful traditional practices such as female genital mutilation. Seeking justice for women in this situation was almost impossible because of the restrictions on work and movement. Alternative solutions and interventions were being sought out to support women facing violence.

Photo -- Play on domestic violence and storytelling for women in Nigeria (2021)

During this time, women were only able to get support through theatre, plays of playwrights and play-reading sessions within local communities. In Nigeria for instance, these plays portrayed women going through violence, condemned cultural practices and religious beliefs inconsistent with good conscience and provided options for interventions to women experiencing violence in local communities. The use of plays created a spotlight on the already existing pandemic of gender-based violence against women. Non-governmental organizations, Civil society organizations and Community-based organizations engaged playwrights to produce gender-based violence prevention related content for women in local communities. Due to restrictions on movement, taking these plays to local communities became a powerful tool for women experiencing violence to find their voices and decide to seek justice for themselves. During these plays and play-readings, members of the media, law enforcement agencies, lawyers, doctors and social workers were invited to provide immediate response to women facing violence. Women have been empowered by these plays to find their place in society and speak against stakeholders, government agencies, traditional and religious leaders in their communities who promote violence.

Photo --Play-reading and storytelling of domestic violence in Nigeria (May, 2021)

The use of theatre, plays and play-readings has evolved to empowering local communities as a method of community engagement with community members, stakeholders and leaders to educate them on prevention and response techniques to gender-based violence for women and girls of all ages. The heat of the COVID-19 pandemic is over and as communities globally continue to find normalcy in their daily activities, theatre, plays and play-reading have found a permanent place in providing support for women and girls facing gender-based violence.

Wuraoluwa Soibi Ayodele

Opera as Accessible Music Videos by Jacqueline Goldfinger

Fri, 10 Jun 2022 22:33:49 GMT

During COVID, Resonance Works in Pittsburgh – a company known for making opera and choral work accessible to the general public – began a project called the Decameron Opera Coalition (DOC). Resonance’s Artistic Director, Maria Sensi Sellner, was the point person for opera companies whose values included art-for-all initiatives and wanted to continue to reach wider audiences during the pandemic. I was asked by Sellner to write the libretto for one of their short operas by Composer Justine F. Chen. What I learned through that process changed my mind about how we make and present opera.

Chin and I created a 13-minute opera titled LETTER TO OUR CHILDREN which explore the unsung heroes in our lives, and it streamed on the DOC site from September 2021-May 2022.

Instead of staging the piece like a traditional opera on a stage with singers in formal attire, we shot a music video in the style of popular videos you’d see on VH1, MTV, or YouTube. The singer was poised on a bridge overlooking the city of Pittsburgh, as she sang, and we cut between her and images of everyday heroes in action. Heroes that we spotlight include teachers, stay-at-home caregivers, and first responders.

This fresh combination of operatic sound and everyday images shot in a pop music video-style attracted thousands of viewers. The DOC commissioned 13 short operas during the height of the pandemic with similar results. The Company received feedback that viewers who were not comfortable going to the opera house, did enjoy watching the music videos of the operas. They liked and connected with English language opera that told stories they could related to, and would be willing to watch more of them. This is a tremendous finding, especially given that many in opera believe that it is dying due to lack of interest from today’s audiences. Perhaps, it is not lack of interest, but a failure to evolve in form and style with other contemporary forms, that is causing the drop in opera’s audience numbers.

Learn more about the DOC and other digital theatre activity “outside the proscenium” with me at this year’s digital LMDA Conference which is focused on these new types of art-making: https://lmda.org/2022-conference I will be hosting a Conversation with Maria Sensi Sellner online in which will delve into how they created the project, what they learned, and how they will be moving forward into a digital future.

Jacqueline Goldfinger

www.jacquelinegoldfinger.com

Centre Stage Podcast #11- With Sharon Wallace

Sun, 06 Feb 2022 12:11:09 GMT

Sharon Wallace is a past President of ICWP, The International Centre for Women Playwrights. She reads from her play 1967: A Life of its Own.

" I was inspired to write the play from a short story based on a personal reflection from my childhood memory of the 1967 Riot in Detroit, Michigan.

I decided to build characters within the riot setting and develop a story within the conflict of the riot.

My first experience with playwriting began as an adolescent adapting a story to a play.

Many years later, studying acting at the National Black Theatre in Harlem, New York, I got into playwriting. I collaborated with my fellow actors to write a play titled "Ouch Outrageous Love."

However, years later, I committed to the genre of playwriting when I completed my first play, 1967: A Life of its Own, as the creative component of a master's degree. "

Sharon's other works

Poetry
Inheritance, In Search of a Woman, PushCart Evening, Without Skin, 2646 West Grand, My Passions and the Practical Self, Locations Unknown, White Socks

Upcoming works
Children's Books
Marching to See a King, A Mustard Seed of Faith

Plays
Long Way Home, Twilight Hours, Out of the Lions Paw

Contact
Twitter @Sharruth4
Instagram sharonwallace9051
ICWP Member Directory

Centre Stage Podcast #10 with Joanna Pickering in Paris

Tue, 04 Jan 2022 17:10:28 GMT

Joanna Pickering tells the wonderful and uplifting pandemic story about how she moved from the USA to Paris, France and ended up with a showcase of her plays being produced in Paris in December 2021.

From NY to LA to Paris - A Passion Pandemic Project becomes a dream production – by Joanna Pickering

Mon, 06 Dec 2021 22:53:07 GMT

After being displaced from my home in NYC in the pandemic, when theatre went dark, I was miraculously awarded a one-year writing residency in Los Angeles. In July, when the residency ended, I decided to travel to Europe to see my family after almost two years of separation.

I knew, as a Brit and European living in the USA, with the borders still closed, I would be locking myself out of my work and life in the US, as an immigrant.

UPDATE - Joanna talks about how all this came about in the Centre stage Podcast

However, spending time with family was my priority. It was therefore, with incredible delight, that I was taken under the wing of leading literary agent Wendy Goldman Rohm, who had awarded one of my one act plays a scholarship in Paris, in 2019. Wendy, kindly, invited me to her summer retreat workshops in Paris and Biarritz, offering to be my agent on my screenplay, and to work on a novel. In this way,

I met so many literary artistic souls, who encouraged me to read my plays in salons at Wendy’s house. Wendy suggested I bring them to stage in Paris. This is how this passion pandemic project began. I started to put the word out, and soon, fabulously, experienced thespians and directors, from the Paris literary theater community were reading my work.

They were praising the writing and they wanted to be involved, despite the logistics and unusual circumstances. In the same way, my finance arrived. Then we had a church. Then I was upgraded to theater space in the heart of Paris. Then I had my amazing actors. It just kept growing from there... My dream to write and perform in Paris was coming true...

I still didn't believe it was possible (and working as a producer myself). I made a call to The League of Professional Theatre women and the ICWP and they started networking across the pond. Then, all the way over in NY (Barrow Group FAB women) producer Christine Cirker, knowing the plays from the USA showcase, jumped in and said, it absolutely wasn’t impossible (it was).

I was also, fortunate to have my co-producer Koël Purie Rinchet and Hollywood talent Eugenia Kumina flying in from LA (to read a small role just to be part of my writing). They all made connections (often over the pond) right into the Paris theatre community -- the exact people I needed to know, vouching on my behalf that this had to happen.

Then, the miracle that is super director Chris Mack arrived. Chris is connected and revered, by the entire Paris English Theatre community. I tend to go for all female directors for my themes, but he sent me his scripts (all written for strong women) and he understood my work and vision, so exactly, and in ways I was yet to experience, especially on 'Cat And Mouse," which is the bravest piece I have written.

I don't want to write in black and white areas. I want to explore areas that other's are afraid to explore. I think that is our duty as writers, but it's not easy when tacking difficult subject matter (sexual allegations and assault), not to mention current times. The direction of that piece is as crucial as the writing. Every person in Paris replied on my news to have him direct (not only my work, but me, and as a film actress predominately), “You’re in the best of hands.” And, I am. It's a wonderful feeling for my work, it’s themes, and me as a writer.

Then, I had the magnificent, director Pulchérie Gadmer, who got my work instantly, as a dark British playwright. She has worked on Sarah Kane’s work and came with all these 100% unique ideas, (which I do not want to spoil -- so come and see the show). And then, Alessia Siniscalchi joined -- who worked with all my peers in NY and The Brave New Theatre Company/New School. Alessia is an absolute force to be reckoned with as a director. We are all -- cast and producers -- a little in awe of her directing style.

It was such a welcoming experience in Paris from US. Even the Parisian thespians and directors who read the work, or auditioned, and sadly, could not make the final line up, mainly due to schedule (or mom's who were sick or in hospital -- hope she's doing okay if you're reading) praised the work and I was flooded with more encouragement. They instantly passed it on to another, forming this magnificent Parisian theatre chain to get my work to stage for me. It was awesome. I am so grateful. It is now a project that grew from the problems of the pandemic into something much bigger than us and carried us on.

It is a very humbling time for me and lots of crazy hard work. And that's not to say I haven’t made mistakes along the way as a producer, but I love that feeling too, as it means you’re learning new skills. All my team know, at the end of the day it’s about the writing, the plays. I hold the utmost respect for those who bring my words to life. I’ve met so many wonderful people through my writing work all over the world. That’s a gift to me. This is the dream. And anyone who knows me, I never stop.

We are now in full rehearsals and the work is finally taking a wonderful shape. The impossible just became possible.

I can't wait to share it with everyone.

Link to Ticket Office , Dates and times [ https://www.womenplaywrights.org/marquee/12158525]

Featured in Broadway World

Centre Stage Podcast - With Annie Lanzillotto

Sun, 12 Sep 2021 23:05:09 GMT

Annie Lanzillotto reads her story Twelve Rabbis Went to a Party, and talks with Jenni Munday about her story writing and performing, and how she is helping herself and others cope with the COVID pandemic.

Annie Rachele Lanzillotto is a New York poet, performance artist, actor, director, playwright, songwriter, who has promoted audience participation in hundreds of performances everywhere from street corner mailboxes, to Bronx butcher shops, to the Guggenheim Museum. She is the Artistic Director of StreetCry. Find out more about her on her website.

My Creativity Secrets by Sharon Baker

Wed, 01 Sep 2021 08:30:49 GMT

My Creativity SECRETS

By Travel Journalist/Playwright/Artist Sharon Baker

Every creative female has her Secrets. Don’t you?

Most of mine are darker and scarier than you’d ever guess. But surviving the terrible pandemic/lockdown launched this Light bulb moment: why keep all my creative secrets locked inside my Pandora’s Box?

So, dear Friends, read on.

THE CREATIVE TEEN, 1967

“Sharon is exceptionally creative,” my high school guidance counselor enthused. “Aren’t you so proud of her many accomplishments, Mrs. Spence?”

“She’s lead Soprano in choir,” my mother beamed. “And VP of Yearbook and Photo Clubs. You got mostly straight A’s, right hon?”

Mamma winced. “Except for that D in calculus…. But she’s going to be A Writer!!!! Did you know Sharon wrote the sweetest story about adopting our dog Hoodie?”

I wear my best Mona Lisa smile, staying oh so very silent.

How’d I adopt a puppy, you wonder? I was disobedient at age ten. Despite Mamma’s warning to “NEVER EVER LEAVE THE FRONT YARD”, I happily followed an energetic little beagle out my front yard, across the six- lane highway, uphill to the dangerous guns/drugs/hooker neighborhood and picked him right up.

A snarky teen in a green bikini and red stilettos (I would kill for) snarled, “He’s mine.” But I grabbed beagle’s tail.

“No,” I insisted. “Hoodie just wandered out of our house.” Before we started scratching each other’s eyes out, a shiny black police car arrived, flashing a beautiful cherry light.

“Your hysterical mother has sent out a countywide notice: a girl named Sharon ran away from home,” the police office said. “Would that be you, miss?

Bikini Babe ran away, sobbing.

“Meet my new puppy,” I declared triumphantly. “His name is Hoodie.”

That nice policeman smiled, and gave Hoodie and me a wonderful ride home. Mamma was sobbing at our front door.

First I got a butt smack. Then a bear hug. Mamma was so happy to see me not dead; she let me keep that naughty dog.

So I wrote a pack of lies story on “How I Rescued Hoodie”. That essay got me an A in English and a full ride scholarship to Northwestern University Journalism/Theatre in Chicago. Every Christmas I visited Hoodie, thanking him for keeping Our secret.

THE CREATIVE YOUNG WOMAN, 1980

Remember just starting your career? Of course you tell prospective employers everything you’re good at. Since I was masterful at making stuff up, I mailed resumes to 500 international magazines.

“I’m a brave, confidant, adventurous, globetrotting travel writer,” my cover letter lied. “To get a fantastic travel story, I’ll go anywhere, do anything.”

Over the next fifteen years, editors that had never been outside asked me to write about really scary things. Outside.

Imagine scaredy cat me kayaking with orca killer whales off Vancouver Island. Swimming with giant whale sharks off Cancun. Climbing to 15,000 feet in Peru. Riding Thai elephants in mosquito infested jungle. Wading Trinidad’s rivers teeming with boa constrictors. Diving with hungry hammerhead sharks off Palau.

The scariest? Freezing on a Polar Rover bus in icy Churchill Canada, whereupon a 12- foot snarling polar bear almost snatched me out the bus window for his lunch. My essay, “A Polar Bear in my Window” and my YouTube video, “Hey Mr. Polar Bear” were global sensations. But no one cared I was nearly devoured. Not one bit.

The more danger I was in, the more assignments I got. I would cry to my Editors how terrified I was, how I hated being cold, hot, lost, starving. Their response? “Good Sharon. Keep Writing.” Over fifteen years, I published 300 travel essays and 5 guidebooks.

I found out: Once you’re a creative liar, no one believes when you tell the Truth.

THE CREATIVE SENIOR CITIZEN

So now that I’m 68 years YOUNG, spending languid days with my golfer husband Kenny, my one eyed cat Sage, and a pack of fun loving gal pals, am I still creative?

No….. Yes……

No-I can easily while away a whole day watering flowers. Or Swiffering the entire house. Or ambling through a grocery store: should buy chicken fingers for our gourmet dinner or get take out from Chick Fil-A?

Yes-I’m writing comedy stage plays inspired by my global adventures and pitching theaters worldwide. I’m enjoying books by authors who have secrets waaaaaay darker and scarier than me.

The great part? Everything I write now can be a Big Fat Lie.

It’s called Fiction.

I’m just the same creative girl I always was.

THE END

Sharon Baker writes happily in Bluffton, SC.

Her stage play comedy about the meaning of life, “Birthday Party at the Dalai Lama’s Palace,” was presented on ZOOM in 2020 by the Dramatists Guild of America. Some of it is True.

Email her: sharonspencelieb@gmail.com

Sharon’s travel essays and books are on Google, under Sharon Spence Lieb.

Her 4 plays, under Sharon Baker, are on New Play Exchange.

Laugh over her YouTube polar bear music video, “Hey Mr. Polar Bear by Sharon Spence Lieb.”

She exhibits her wildlife paintings at Hilton Head Art League, South Carolina.

Centre Stage Podcast - With LaurA! Force-Scruggs

Mon, 05 Jul 2021 13:38:22 GMT

Laura reads an excerpt from her play " Punk Grandpa" and discusses the writing of the play and how she began writing plays.

Centre Stage Podcast #7 - With Christine Emmert

Thu, 27 May 2021 23:09:56 GMT

Christine reads from, and then talks about three of her plays: Dying in Pittsburgh, Fragments of A Witches' Journal, and Old Hippie.

Christine Emmert is an actress, playwright and director as well as enthusiastic fan of theatre. Living in the woodlands of eastern Pennsylvania with her husband Richard, she has been in the theatre world for over sixty years.

Her work has been performed and read through out the English speaking world. She will be filming her one woman play, FROM OUT THE FIERY FURNACE, next month for the National Parks.

This piece has been presented as a story of one woman and her stove to bring attention to the ironworking industry that flourished in the 1800s throughout the Northeastern part of the United States. You can read her occasional blog on
chrisitneemmert.wordpress.com or access her on dakinichris@yahoo.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/christine.emmert.54

Beyond Covid © by Sandra Dempsey

Mon, 24 May 2021 07:28:27 GMT

Hard doctor’s fingers 
grab her tiny baby arm

Failing tawny flesh
strained against the sharp until
pop
he forces it in
a new hole
the size of a bullet

Her final journey
paused impatient

Blown vein leaking
infant red
into tissue and
flies flies flies
in seared heat
of middle east last breaths

Family gone she is the only left
not for her to know no one notices

This home this God
forsaken inhospitable dust
thanks be to the occupying infidels
God help her and you go yourself lord
not Jesus this is no place
for children La ilaha illallah

Green lake of soldier urine
and poppies grow crimson

Row on row the vital provisions
rushed out to relieve in discretions
from distant lands so bombs bombs bombs
she is just culled lateral dam age
name unknown concussed
internal organs blown butchered

Impatience interstitial fluid
will not replace blood
lost why bother mere moments
he must move on no longer
he speaks when
“A Gift from US”
arrives it is not polite to
complain in horses’ mouths.

Supplies are supplies
are supposed so flies flies flies

No cries she also is polite
slipping away sixteen-gauge I.V. catheter
so-called sewer-pipe reserved for
major adult veins
major adult arteries
major adult surgeries

Needle one third
the size of her arm

Exploding vein
and tearing humerus

Muscle already that is cold
no more abductions here
statistics are needed not in
formation of actual people

And now she

these tiny baby
three months is

But one more.

------------------------------------

Sandra Dempsey

SandraDempsey.com

ICWP Member Profile

Centre Stage Podcast - With Joanna Pickering

Sun, 02 May 2021 19:31:29 GMT

Member Joanna Pickering is a British actor and writer, currently living in the USA. She reads from her play Beach Break, and then talks with Jenni Munday about her current projects and where to from here after COVID.

Centre Stage Podcast - With Amy Ostreicher

Thu, 01 Apr 2021 20:51:04 GMT

Jenni Munday Interviews Amy Ostreicher about her work and Amy reads from her monologues.

Read Amy's plays on New Play Exchange
Amy's Website https://www.amyoes.com/playwright
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/amy.oestreicher

Centre Stage Podcast - With Ali MacLean

Mon, 01 Mar 2021 11:27:57 GMT

US member Ali MacLean reads excerpts from two of her plays “Sullen Girl” and “This Will Be Our Year”. She then joins Jenni Munday for a conversation about what motivates her playwrighting, researching dark subject matter, and what inspires ideas for new plays.

Learn More about Ali MacLean
Website: www.alimaclean.com
Twitter and Instagram: @aliontheair

Centre Stage Podcast - With Julia Pascal

Mon, 25 Jan 2021 15:46:37 GMT

Jenni Munday in conversation with Julia Pascal, playwright and scholar. Julia reveals insights into the background and writing of her play " Happy as God in France", and reads an excerpt from it. Julia also discusses her play "The Honey Pot" .

More about " Happy as God in France"

Genre DRAMA

Length FULL LENGTH

Characters

Hannah Arendt at 33

Charlotte Salomon at 25

Eva Daube at 16

Agathe Blumenfeld at 50

Trude Gottlieb at 22

Other roles are taken by the ensemble.

As Happy As God in France.

The title references the joyful Yiddish invented by Jews in appreciation of their new status as equal citizens in post-Revolutionary France. Its use here is ironic as the play explores French antisemitism In May 1940, German Jewish exiles, seeking refuge in France were ordered to report as 'Undesirables'. Of those 8,000 women were deported to the largest of the many camps near the Spanish border. This drama focuses on the largest of these, Gurs, whose history is hardly known.

This text investigates the false dream of safety in France through the lens of three German Jewish women: thirty-four-year-old, political writer, Hannah Arendt; sixteen-year-old schoolgirl Eva Daube and twenty-four-year-old painter, Charlotte Salomon. They were incarcerated during in the chaotic days between armistice and occupation. The action of this play focuses on a decision of whether to stay, and hope for liberation, or escape in to a dangerous landscape.

As Happy As God in France explores major events of the twentieth century as experienced by these women. Themes include the French betrayal of Revolutionary values, the abandonment of the Jews, sex, love, art, politics, resistance, survival, suicide and escape. It is the first play about Arendt, Salomon and Daube in Gurs.

The facts

Hannah Arendt was in Gurs in 1940 for eight weeks. Charlotte Salomon is believed to have been incarcerated there before she was murdered in Auschwitz. Eva Daube was in Gurs. Agathe Blumenfeld and Trude Gottlieb are created from research in this hidden history.

The play was completed in 2020 and has had no productions.

To contact Julia about this play go to her website and use the contact form.

www.juliapascal.org

If you enjoyed this podcast or would like to ask Hulia a question, log in to the site and leave a comment.

Centre Stage Podcast - With Eliza Wyatt

Sat, 14 Nov 2020 16:51:19 GMT

When she was married to an Iranian, Eliza's interest in Muslim social and religious practice was acute and her interest has endured into the present.

Eliza reads from a play that combines elements from an earlier play she was commissioned to write about Cliterodectomy.

That play was not allowed to be performed at a university theatre festival in Turkey, because of its subject matter. Later, she incorporated it into another play about some actors rehearsing two short plays against a background of Muslim restrictions that require women actors to wear face coverings. That later play is titled Blue Sky Thinking and is available on Amazon.

Zooming Along Part 2

Jenni Munday — Wed, 21 Oct 2020 02:31:04 GMT

by Bara Swain

Fast forward. My second monologue selected for “Climbing the Walls” has a comical history. In response to a call for submissions for another Zoom opportunity, Theatre is the Cure (TITC), I followed their specific guidelines – and that’s an understatement. The writing prompts were: (1) Theme: With/in / With/out (interpret as you like); (2) Prop: Something you’ll die without; (3): Location: somewhere dark, (4) Line: Nowhere but here, (5) Actor: wiry female, 20 something, funny, intense, androgynous but not boyish, adorable.

Yikes! With less than 12 hours to write, I dripped a pot of coffee, obsessed, googled, cranked out a monologue, submitted and waited for my acceptance or rejection notice. Several hours later, I received a gentle reprimand. “Your monologue is too long.” Browsing the instructions again, I noticed that I overlooked one important element of the challenge: a strict time limit of two minutes. My unspectacled eyes misread the number and I crafted my piece for a time-frame of seven minutes. Over the next few hours, I redirected my energy and dashed out a two-minute monologue and hit the “send” button. Whoop whoop! The Golden Girls was selected for performance.

What I learned: Read the instructions. Then read them again. Acknowledge your errors and be grateful for a flexible Artistic Director. Communication is key. In fact, the “twenty something, wiry, adorable actress” was unavailable. I reached out to a twenty something, wiry, adorable actress whose work I observed at the recent FAB Zoom. Jessica Washington, whom I never met before, was cast in the role and, subsequently, invited to return for another program. This type of networking serves the company, the actress and the playwright.

Danielle Bourgeois in YOU MIGHT AS WELL

https://www.studiotheaterinexile.com/news/climbing-the-walls-you-might-as-well-bara-swain (inspired by a prompt from "Theatre is the Cure."

Yikes! But what should I do with my original submission? I wrote a second draft of You Might as Well and reached out to Mara Mills to see if she’d consider a second monologue. Upon acceptance, I incorporated several of her notes and brought actress Danielle Bourgeois on board under the direction of Christian Haines, a California resident. In fact, I’d only met Christian weeks earlier when he was assigned to direct my Zoom play, Carolina in the Morning, as a first-time playwright applicant with Shotz-Amios. I was eager to work with him again. This experience differed from the live Zoom events that I’d participated in previously and, truthfully, it was another wonderful collaboration. With a stage and film background, Christian experimented with the Zoom format. You can see his results and judge for yourself.

CAROLINA IN THE MORNING, directed by Christian Haynes

What I learned: Mutual respect is the foundation for artistic relationships. And it’s a win-win. Evaluate the abilities of your colleagues and their enthusiasm. And give back! This duo will be invited to our next program at Urban Stages. Oh, I also learned that a rehearsal can be ruined by a thunderstorm. Check the weather, playwrights, when you’re scheduling a final rehearsal!

Meanwhile, I’ve had the opportunity to write several more monologues intended for Zoom with different outcomes. During a 24-hour challenge with Vintage Soul Productions, I wrote three five-minute monologues for three specific actors who self-directed their performances – off-book! – over an eight-hour span. Another monologue, You Can’t Argue with Fact, written for a recent TITC challenge was accepted and performed live last Friday under the direction of the Artistic Director, Hannah Logan, just as I was entering tech weekend for another project with Planet Connections Play Fest.

What I learned: When actors are self-directing their work, make sure that their audio-visuals are working. One monologue in Vintage Soul Productions could only be heard in a whisper. That was disappointing. Another monologue wasn’t fully realized due to misinterpretation of the time and place. The most successful piece was where the actress reached out to me with questions about the text, context and transitions. Playwrights, be open to communicating with your actors. Exchange contact information!

Moving on: On Monday evening, The Southern Comfort Plays (a trilogy of short plays), opened and closed. Yes, it was a one-night event. For this opportunity, I chose director Kim T. Sharp, a colleague of mine at my former stomping ground and my current home at Urban Stages. These pieces were not written for the Zoom platform and, under Kim’s guidance, I made revisions to the story and tweaked the physical action. The Planet Connection Associate Artistic Director cast the three plays and a rehearsal schedule was finally confirmed. The rehearsal process for this presentation was intense but very satisfying. The technical elements working on Zoom were challenging, from entrances and exits, to overlapping dialogue (it doesn’t work on Zoom), to the use of stage directions. I was particularly impressed by the skills Kim displayed, from his supportive tone and his listening skills, to his discussions on character development. The cast of The Southern Comfort Plays were committed, professional, and hard-working. Where I fell short as a playwright, their enthusiasm and gratitude sustained me.

THE SOUTHERN COMFORT PLAYS, a trilogy, directed by Kim T. Sharp

Planet Connections Zoom Fest

What I learned: Know your venue and ask, in writing, what the expectations are for the guest artists. After the fact, we learned that a technical director was assigned to the performance. In retrospect, our learning curve on Zoom has grown in leaps and bounds due to this oversight. In all fairness, a designated stage manager was also offered to assist early on in the process. We dropped the ball there. Again, know the roles of each member of the “team” involved, from playwright to director to the producing organization … and the actors. Are they union? Non-union? Respect everyone’s role.

In conclusion: Zoom is a platform that enables theatre artists to continue to create during this unprecedented time. With all of its flaws and impracticalities, until our remaining theatres open and it’s safe for audiences to fill the houses, it’s a great and sustainable way to stay motivated, set goals, take risks, and be productive. The Zoom cloud may be challenging and, yes, you may be elated, disappointed or frustrated with the process and the product! But it’s a wonderful opportunity to build community, nurture relationships and begin new ones, as well. (Thank you, Mara!)

Yes, it’s a learning curve but here’s the bottom line: If you’re not in the game, you can’t play. So let’s keep playing, playwrights!

In the meanwhile, stay safe, everyone. Oh, and if anyone can suggest a mnemonic for differentiating wild cats, send it my way!

The article is reprinted courtesy of Mara Mills, Artistic Director, Studio Theater in Exile: www.studiotheatreinexile.com

Here are some of my upcoming Zoom projects:

UNFATHOMABLE, The Group Rep Theatre, CA

FOLDED, Warner Theatre’s 9^th International Playwright Festival

FOLDED, Theatre Workshop of Owensboro

ALL MOTHERS WERE SUMMONED, Ego Actus Virtual Play Reading Series

JOANNA HOGG, Women in History, FAB@Barrow Group

CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW, Pastiche Series

RESPONSIBLE, Greenhouse Ensemble Quarantine Series

THE AFFIRMATION PLAYS (audio), Borderless Productions

UNFATHOMABLE, The Group Theatre, CA

Zooming Along Part 1

Jenni Munday — Wed, 14 Oct 2020 06:15:30 GMT

by Bara Swain

My anxiety level peaked last week when I couldn’t recall the words “kiwi” and “chili.” I also summoned my Chihuahua, “Let’s take a walk, Melulah,” and asked my granddaughter, “Please pass me the red crayon, Tallinka.” Neither my granddaughter, Tallulah, nor my beloved canine, Melinka, were nonplused. That was reassuring.

Bara's granddaughter

Indeed, the strain of this uncertain and unprecedented time has been stressful and challenging, with coronavirus statistics and news headlines and media taking center stage in our fragile world. No one has been spared the repercussions of today’s pandemic, no one! … including theatre artists and our communities.

Enter Zoom.

The first time that I participated in a Zoom chat was with my immediate family. I swore and cried while I fiddled on my iPhone for entry, my only source for access due to a malfunctioning sound system on an antiquated laptop. (Why, oh, why didn’t I get it repaired last summer?) By the time I navigated the cloud platform, I was in a full-blown tantrum, assuaged by my two year old niece’s acknowledgement, “I like your shirt, Aunt Bara.” (It was an animal print. Possibly a jaguar, a lion or a tiger.)

Since my first Zoom experience, a loaner MacBook Air has enabled me to fully participate as a guest and participant on this modern video communication platform. And I embraced every opportunity that I could! With nothing to bookend my days in solitary, I pounded the keys of my computer with purpose, searched festival listings, submission opportunities and one challenge after the other. (I also made three new best friends: an indoor bicycle, an electric coffee pot, and low dose Ativan.)

What have I learned? What are the pros and cons for a playwright on this cloud platform?

While I continued to acknowledge my accomplishments with a double-order of turkey bacon or a pint of ice-cream, I learned that plays submitted prior to the shutdown that were intended for the stage were not as successful as pieces written specifically for the modern medium. I watched with a critical eye while several of my one-acts were presented via Zoom: My Heart Will Go On (Crafton Hills New Works Festival) and Folded (Geneva Theatre Guild Playwrights Play Reading Series), as well as inhouse Zoom readings of The Wonder of You (Shawnee Playhouse) and a monologue, Joanna Hogg (FAB @ Barrow Group). As a playwright who usually prefers a seat in a middle row of the house during the rehearsal process and performance, I was intimidated by the immediacy of simply “checking in.” In preparation for my first event, I washed and moussed my unruly hair, embraced a new moustache depilatory and smiled with loose dentures, hoping that I looked a decade younger than the image on my half-fare metro card.

These initial experiences illustrated the most difficult adjustment for both playwrights and actors during performance: There is no audience response on the Zoom platform. While talkbacks play a critical role in play development, audible reactions are missing. “Did that particular section work?” “Was that line offensive or amusing or gasp-worthy?” “Where did I lose the audience’s attention?” “Did the ending land? And was it satisfactory?” I exited Zoom rooms utilizing my basic math skills. “If there were 70 participants at the top of the show, and there were 48 at the end of the performance, then 22 audience members left.” What? Hmm. Aghh! I’m a failure.

Setting aside my own insecurities, my first opportunities to write for the Zoom platform were validating and, yes, exciting! When I was selected for Primary Stages’ “Coronalogues,” I was assigned two theatre artists: actress Lizzy Jarret and director Emily Hartford. To set the groundwork, I spent several hours speaking to – let me rephrase – interrogating my actress. In the shadow of the Smokey Mountains, I discovered that the displaced New Yorker liked roles that were “edgy” and, specifically, “tough, headstrong women.” Lizzy was particularly curious about the theme of “being surrounded by death.” Since most of my writing is informed by illness and loss, we were a great match. Next, I asked her questions: Can you do a southern accent or a cartwheel? Will you show me your bedroom, your bathroom, your wallet? Do you wear eyeglasses, PPE, a favorite scarf? Do you have a hobby, sex toys, a pet? What’s your family dynamic, your sister’s name, your place of birth? Finally, I found my hook! – and Seventy-Seven was born, honing in on both of our strengths and accommodating Lizzy’s non-urban location – her uncle’s rural cabin in North Carolina with rustic furniture, picturesque landscaping and an unreliable internet connection. I drafted the script, cut it to three minutes, and handed it over to our director. Once again, I felt like I’d won the lottery. Emily was a generous, enthusiastic and conscientious director, whose goal was to serve the writer’s voice. Kudos to this theatre artist for surpassing my expectations with her creative choices – yes, the location was the bathroom! – and for supporting the story through her imaginative lens.

What I learned: Zoom can be a platform where intimacy and trust can be nurtured. It’s also an excellent way to expand your network of theatre professionals and identify individuals with whom you’d like to work with again.

Part 2 will be posted in the coming weeks... The article is reprinted courtesy of Mara Mills, Artistic Director, Studio Theater in Exile: www.studiotheatreinexile.com

Bara Swain's plays and monologues have been performed across the country in more than 165 venues in 25 states and abroad.

www.BaraSwain.com

Revisiting Carolyn Gage’s interview with Dr Janice Liddell

Jenni Munday — Fri, 11 Sep 2020 05:33:23 GMT

by Carolyn Gage

Dr. Janice Liddell is an author, playwright, and retired professor and Assistant Vice President for Academic Affairs and Coordinator of Faculty Development at Atlanta Metropolitan College. She also served on faculty at Clark Atlanta University for nearly 35 years, as a professor of English, department chairperson and director of faculty development.

Dr Janice Liddell

Carolyn: Janice, you and I met online about fifteen years ago, I believe… on an international chat list of women playwrights. And I remember you wrote a play titled Who Will Sing for Lena? This is a one-woman play that gives voice to Lena Baker, a black woman who killed her abusive white employer in self-defense. Using the actual trial transcripts, you wrote a play that would enable audiences to understand her background and her motivation. That play has had a strong track record… and even a film?

Janice: Yes, Carolyn we met on the ICWP chat list and, as I recall, we left the chat about the same time for some similar small “p” political reasons related to our respective identities as minorities on the list. I guess it would be in bad taste to go into any more detail. (lol)

Carolyn: Well, not to keep readers in suspense, we were frustrated in our respective efforts to confront racism and homophobia. And, in fairness, it was fifteen years ago.

Vanessa Adams-Harris in Who Will Sing for Lena?

Janice: And yes, I had written Who Will Sing for Lena? around that time and since then, it has done fairly well in various places. But the film was a totally different project; it was, of course, related to Lena Mae Baker, but not at all related to my play. Believe it or not, the two are very different perspectives, even of Ms Baker. But as I have always said, Lena helped me to write my play and I told it the way she told it to me.

Carolyn: I just want to tag onto that last comment. YES! Working with historical figures, and especially those in what I call “unquiet graves,” I have had that experience of a presence outside of myself standing by my side and nudging me to tell her story. Practicing theatre as a sacred art… full of miracles. So, I just want to say that this recent play of yours, The Talk, is absolutely brilliant, and I would like to see every community in this country mount a production of it. It’s packed with so much… history, politics… but the characters are believable, the dialogue is spot-on, and I had chills over and over reading it… Beautiful craftsmanship, deep humanity… just an amazing piece of theatre… but also a tool, a social justice project, a powerful, powerful way to bring communities together. I was so deeply moved by it.

Janice: Wow, coming from you as a brilliantly successful playwright yourself, that is quite an endorsement. I am glad it affected you because, truth be told, it affected me even as I wrote it. But I’m sure you know that experience—of being carried away by the work as though you are channelling it. That’s a bit how it was for me.

Carolyn: So… “the Talk”… First off, before we get into talking about the play specifically, can you tell us to what “the talk” refers?

Janice: I always have trouble with titles so I just throw a tentative title at it with hopes that the real title will emerge at some point. But as I was conceptualizing the play and characters and got into writing, I realized The Talk was THE title for this play because in the play “the talks” are manifold. By now, most everyone knows that Black parents are “forced” to have a conversation with their adolescents about the “dangers” of the streets, especially those of encountering police officers who ostensibly are there to protect the citizenry. But Black citizens, especially Black males, have not really found this protection; in fact, it has been at the hands of officers that a hell of a lot of brothers have been killed—unarmed Black men, I might add. So, in the play The Talk is an obvious allusion to the conversation that the Black father has with his Black son on how to be safe when “driving, walking, sleeping, picnicking, etc. etc. while Black.” Specifically, Quincy Sr. has the talk with his son, Quincy Jr, who, not surprisingly, has his own ideas about staying safe. Then there is the talk that unfolds regarding both the mother and the father. As in so many Black families, the hardships and difficulties are often hidden from the youth with a kind of attitude that if we don’t talk about it, we can overcome it or even sometimes, if we don’t talk about it, it didn’t happen. So, we have a detailed talk about Lillian’s upbringing in an orphanage—the Carrie Pitts Steele Orphanage, an historical orphanage in Atlanta. And finally, the climactic talk is the one that reveals emotionally charged experiences that actually caused the family to migrate from Mississippi to Ohio—a route not uncommon for the underground railroad.

https://unsplash.com/photos/zIHsQqJ71IE

Carolyn: In The Talk, you have four generations of an African American family, on a Saturday morning… and there is a lot of conflict, because the two youngest members of the family, a brother and sister, want to attend a Black Lives Matter march and their parents don’t want them to go. Can you talk a little bit about that conflict? They even make their son take off his Black Lives Matter tee shirt.

Janice: This is a highly successful Black middle-class family and in their eyes, as in the eyes of many “highly successful Black middle-class families,” their success has resulted from them pulling themselves “up by their bootstraps.” They would likely never admit they went to university on an Affirmative Action program (as did I), for example. Additionally, they desire to separate themselves from the more “common” element of Black folks—separate themselves in every way they can. In fact, they tend to look down on the experiences of Black folks who, in their middle-class eyes, are financial, intellectual, educational, etc. failures in life. These parents have tried to shelter their children from these “failures” and serve as models for the successful route of Black people from poverty to wealth; from the ghetto to the suburbs. However, their middle-class Black children are highly influenced by the world outside of their “burbs.” Quincy Jr. is in college with youngsters from all walks of life; Miranda is so attached to her tablet and research on it that there is nothing that gets by her. The children and their parents are in totally different “realities”—and at this point, never the twain shall meet.

Carolyn: But the whole power dynamic shifts when the grandparents and great grandmother show up for the brunch. We see such a panoply of African American history in this family. It’s just wonderful. Four generations… up from poverty to affluence… but the lynching remains a constant.

Janice: With so many killings of Black males and the eruption of Black Lives Matter movement, I knew I wanted to write a play about this era, but I saw so clearly its connection to a previous era, and I wanted to make the connections. I wanted these two eras to guide the play, but not be the play. So, I thought hard and long about a way that wouldn’t be so hard-hitting, so didactic and came up with this wonderful multi-generational family. I don’t want to talk too much about THE lynching since it is the turning point of the play, but “lynching” per se is a constant trope in the play. Quincy Sr does not share with his children that a noose was put on his desk after he received a promotion at work; that he has definitely encountered racism in his rise to affluence. Lynching is an obvious parallel to what is occurring between all the young men and women who have been shot down by police officers across the country. In fact, the introduction of the play is a tight focus on all of these “lynchings” that have occurred from the killing of Trayvon Martin to the killing of Philando Castille and Alton Sterling on eve of the Black Life Matters march in Atlanta at the play’s rising (2016). And, of course, the final “lynching” provides a history of how this violent and deadly tool of racism and control has affected the lives of Black folks on both a micro and macro level.

https://unsplash.com/photos/E77SjOPCE5Y

Read the entire interview at: https://carolyngage.weebly.com/blog/interview-with-dr-janice-liddell-about-the-talk

Jessica Washington is the most recent of several excellent actors who have played this role. Jessica has already won several awards for her Lena Baker presentation and she will likely astound you in this special 1 hour-long festival performance. You don't want to miss it, September 30, 2020--the first day!!.

Janice Liddell’s play Who Will Sing for Lena is being performed at the Atlanta Black Theatre Festival (ABTF) online.

An incredible line-up that includes...
WHO WILL SING FOR LENA? by Janice Liddell
A true story, one Black woman's struggle in rural Georgia.

Three Outstanding Production awards, Three Outstanding Actress awards (Jessica Washington) - AACT's State, Regional, and National Festivals.

Get your FREE Black Theatre at Home Show Guide @ Atlantabtf.org/contact

Enjoy FOUR DAYS OF BLACK PLAYS: Wed. 9/30 - Sat. 10/3

Carolyn Gage is a lesbian feminist playwright, performer, director, and activist. The author of nine books on lesbian theatre and sixty-five plays, musicals, and one-woman shows, she specializes in non-traditional roles for women, especially those reclaiming famous lesbians whose stories have been distorted or erased from history.

Website: www.carolyngage.com

My opera premiere at the Kennedy Center's Washington National Opera

Jenni Munday — Sun, 16 Aug 2020 04:27:25 GMT

by Sandra Seaton

In February 2019 I received the news that I had been awarded a commission from the Washington National Opera at The Kennedy Center. There were approximately 85 semi- finalists for the award. My commission as librettist (author of the story line and words) and the commission of the composer, Carlos Simon, constitutes a team for the creation of a new opera.

In September I went to DC for a week of rehearsals at the Washington National Opera's rehearsal hall with the composer, conductor, singers. This was the first time I had heard it sung. It was wonderful! On Saturday, September 21st there was a workshop performance at the REACH, a brand-new facility at the Kennedy Center.

On Friday, January 10th, I returned to DC for the premiere at the Kennedy Center's Terrace Theatre.

Marlen Nahhas, left, and Alexandra Nowakowski perform in Liliya Ugay’s “Woman of Letters.” (Scott Suchman/The Kennedy Center)

I am so lucky the premiere was in January 2020. By March everything in DC was closed.

Is this the first time you’ve undertaken a project like this?

I've been a librettist previously. I collaborated with composer William Bolcom on the monodrama From The Diary of Sally Hemings.However, this is my first actual opera. (I have written a musical and plays with music as a character, but that is not the same as opera.)

Since this was a commission, I started the process with three short proposals. The WNO liked one of my ideas the best. I then proceeded to write drafts in pieces and send them to the composer. I'm always excited about daydreaming about characters, living in their world. I believe in writing--creating characters and situations when I am doing things around the house, going for a walk, washing dishes, folding clothes--anytime I am doing something that I don't have to concentrate on, the writing takes over. The composer and I talked about my text. He set parts of it to music. I did a number of rewrites. We workshopped the piece in DC. Four months later it premiered. The words were always first.

Production photo by Scott Suchman.

What will happen now with the work?

Several opera companies have expressed interest in the work. One of them wants an expanded version. The problem: as soon as COVID-19 happened, everything's on hold. Performances of my work for 2020 have been cancelled. I don't know when they will be rescheduled.

What does this mean for your future, and future work?

When a piece receives strong reviews, that's a good sign. It gives arts organizations a reason to look you up. Since January, I have written a piece for a tenor that he will sing on remote with a pianist in another location. I have two new commissions for 2021. The success of the opera was a big factor in getting those. Of course, who knows what the future will hold for this live art form.

Production photo by Scott Suchman.

Here are the links to three opera reviews:
Monday, January 13th in the Washington Post:

https://wapo.st/38iAPA7

Monday, January 13th in A Beast in A Jungle

https://bit.ly/389uuHR

and Saturday January 11th in the Washington Classical Review: https://bit.ly/2NyOmvQ

Sandra Seaton is a playwright and librettist. Her plays have been performed in cities throughout the country, including New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles, and her libretto for the song cycle From the Diary of Sally Hemings, set to music by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer William Bolcom, has been performed at such venues as Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center.

Sandra Seaton

http://www.sandraseaton.com/

www.facebook.com/sandraseatonwriter

The Forgiveness Story

Jenni Munday — Tue, 28 Jul 2020 04:13:03 GMT

by Lynette Grace

Growing up I had always enjoyed reading various books by Dr. Seuss. After “Horton Hears a Who,” I also enjoyed reading, “Oh, the places you’ll go by Dr. Seuss.” I had no idea the places one simple act of kindness would take me or the people it would bring into my act.

I was working in Atlanta, GA when I received a phone call from home that my Mom had died unexpectedly in her sleep. After attending her funeral I decided to visit with a woman who I considered to be my Spiritual mother and her family from my hometown of Ohio before returning to work. After going to bed I was awakened suddenly to what I determined to be an argument between my friend and her 16 year old Son.

I got up to investigate but not to pry. To my horror I found that my Spiritual mother had been stabbed to death in the basement at the hands of her 16 year old son. Without provocation for reasons un-known to me he began stabbing me.

He was convicted of involuntary manslaughter for killing his mother and also received time for his felonious assault crime against me. I felt compelled to visit him in prison for answers as to why such a beautiful woman had to die. At our meeting he cried more than I did. He had gotten into trouble for stealing cars and breaking in houses and wasn’t supposed to be on the phone. When she kept catching him on the phone they started arguing and the argument escalated into him stabbing her to death.

Since I was able to speak with him I received some answers to the questions that had been haunting me for years. It was almost time to leave the prison’s visiting room when he unexpectedly asked if I could forgive him for his actions against me. It didn’t take long for me to realize that since life had given me a second chance at life I couldn’t do less for him than to forgive him. I told him yes I could forgive him for his actions against me.

He shared that with me visiting with and forgiving him it was as if a burden had been lifted off of him and he was able after all these years to be able to forgive himself. I too found that my visits with him helped to ease the survivor’s guilt I was feeling since I survived the attack and his mother had not.

Soon after that I began to travel and to share my story of forgiveness and healing with others. Since he showed remorse and accountability for his actions and took the classes required for him to take I took a letter of support for him to the parole board. Unfortunately when the powers that be realized I was his victim our visits were discontinued.

It has given me the opportunity to give testimony at the Senate and at the House of Representatives for bills going through legislation to give youths an opportunity to go before the parole board. I welcome the opportunity to share my story especially if anyone could be helped by it. My journey of forgiveness has taken me to Canada, London, England and Washington, D.C., where I have made great friends and have met a lot of fine people. After reading the story on the “Forgiveness Project Website,” a man came from Belgium to include our story in his book called “Hotel Pardon.” I share the story in Prisons, Churches and Universities wherever I am invited to share the story of Forgiveness. My hope is that through my story of forgiveness that they can find healing and forgiveness not only for others that may have harmed them but for forgiveness for themselves as well. Oh the places forgiveness will take you if you will allow it to.

Lynette D. Grace lives and works in Columbus, Ohio. You can email her at: Doorkeeper90@gmail.com

DETAINED BY SOLITUDE (thoughts on quarantine)

Jenni Munday — Sat, 04 Jul 2020 22:03:24 GMT

By Christine Emmert

I retired some years ago from the work a day world. My husband has more recently done so. We hoped for time to do our creative season – my writing and theater, his visual artwork. We lived modestly at the edge of a national park. We traveled once or twice a year, lunched and dinnered with friends, and went to selective concerts or plays. Rarely did we answer the phone. Even more rarely did we talk of joining clubs and organizations. To some people we might have seemed halfway to quarantine. Time was draining away now. We were officially “elderly.” The coronavirus reminded us of our mortality. We wanted solitude, not solitary.

In the medieval world epidemics and pandemics must have been more frightening. There was no easy way to know what was going on beyond your immediate life. In this pandemic we could be both well-versed and well-informed. When it struck our state, our county, our township we did not have to take it personally. Is the virus punishing us? Are we confined to solitary or endowed with a time of solitude in which to reflect?

Although I love my home and my husband, I see the pitfalls of having no safety valves when tensions are ready to blow. I see the longing to travel without getting into a car or train or airplane. I see what the Buddhist called Impermanence. I see the possibility of death without warning. This is what real solitude offers me. Doesn’t matter if I want it. I am pinned in place by the invisible handof a virus that did not exist in my vocabulary six months ago. I cannot move away. I am detained by solitude.

Christine works as a freelance writer and educator in addition to her theatre credits. She has been published and performed throughout the English speaking world. Most recently she was premiered on Cape Cod this summer in PETER PAN'S MOTHER. Her play, FROM OUT THE FIERY FURNACE, has been touring the last four years for the National Park Service. She recently published THE NUN'S DRAGON, a novel, on Amazon Kindle.

Toolkit Sharing Chats Reveal Helpful Practices of ICWP Members

Tue, 30 Jun 2020 14:18:52 GMT

by Patricia Milton (USA)

Our Toolkit Exchange chats are virtual sharing sessions where ICWP members share practices, tools, books, apps, and more, that aid them in their craft. It’s a fascinating process to tune in to others’ artistic journeys, and it’s a pleasure to offer this recap of our latest Toolkit Exchange session.

Dale Griffith Stamos (USA)

says that she uses focus music on iTunes. “I put on headphones for a specified writing time, and as I become immersed, it enhances my writing.” She recommends Lajos Egros’ book, “The Art of Dramatic Writing.” Dale says, “Sometimes completing the character profiles (in the book) seems arbitrary, but as you go forward, they start to actually dimensionalize your characters.”

Dale is a writing teacher and leads workshops on Story Structure for all genres. She urges, “Fill the notebook. Before I ever put anything into a form, I fill a notebook with character bios, structure questions, the inciting incident, notes, and dialogue. If I follow my protagonist down one path, and I don’t like it, I choose another path.

When I get stuck, I write down the reasons I think I’m stuck.” Dale also recommends the book by Buzz McLaughlin, The Playwrights Process. “It’s a nice framework to use when starting work. Write what you know, and write what you can imagine. Plot is story, story is plot; you have to externalize the internal.”

Mayura Baweja (India)

came to writing after being an actor and director. “These other aspects of the craft can be obstructions, as I tend to overthink the writing,” Mayura says.

“To overcome that, I use a box of wooden children’s blocks. I set them up like a stage, or a space where I can create a structure.

This gives me a sense of the world of the play. I create the space and ask, ‘Where could this action happen? What could happen here? Who could be standing here? Where can it lead?’

It’s exciting to think that anything can happen in that space.”

Tavi Juarez (USA)

devotes one hour every day to creative practice – which can be writing, painting, or dancing. “I listen to people on the train, eavesdropping, letting my imagination go wild. It’s giving myself time devoted entirely to the creative process.”

Tavi also utilizes NYCPlaywrights.org, a useful board with production and publication opportunities for playwrights. When writing dialogue, Tavi says she writes the people she knows. “I try to hear their voices and use their words. How would Steven say this? It’s a great tool for authenticity.”

Vivienne Glance ( Australia)

reports that, “All theater is Theater of the Mind, and what happens on stage is an illusion. Our minds ask ‘What’s the story?’

There is a moment when the audience is there, in silence, in the dark, and what do we as playwrights offer in that moment? ” Vivienne continues, “At the beginning of a project, I turn off spell check and grammar check and change the font to white, so I can’t see what I’m typing.

Trust yourself, you will misspell things, but don’t look, don’t edit.” As a former actor, Vivienne writes character sketches. “I need to know who they are. Character is action, as Aristotle says. I need to understand what choices they’ll make. I believe if you write about something that only you can write about, it becomes universal.”

Donna Gordon (USA)

recommends a book by Jeffrey Sweet, “The Dramatists Toolkit”: the author writes about the shape of the story, how to work out a plot, and more. She says she always creates an outline, though she doesn’t always follow it.

Donna says, “I’m a bits and pieces writer. I put together plays like a quilt. I tie the pieces together – things I’m passionate about. I take topics from the news, too, and develop those.”

Camille Worrell (USA)

notes, “Physical activity rejuvenates me: running, or working out. And there’s something about taking a shower, or a bubble bath, that motivates me. Attention to the writing space is also helpful. I set up a space, with the right lighting, and classical music or light jazz. I have a writing partner; we write together and it’s motivating. I meet with another friend who is a poet, and we critique each other’s work.”

My own contribution to the group session was my use of a tomato timer. It’s a little plastic wind-up timer that ticks down the minutes. It helps encourage me to contain the time in which I am writing, although often I reset it and go for more. There is a technique called the Pomodoro Method that I often use to create intense short bursts of concentration, punctuated by “intermissions,” or breaks.

As I learn from these generous artists in our virtual Chats, my own craft grows and flourishes. Heartfelt thanks to all who have joined me in these Toolkit exchanges.

If you missed the first post in this tool sharing series read it here

To join in future online chats with ICWP Members, become a member here:

https://www.womenplaywrights.org/membership-application

Dear Bev

Jenni Munday — Wed, 17 Jun 2020 01:56:34 GMT

By June Guralnick

Dear Bev:

Damn, it’s getting f*ing weird out there! Agent Orange is singing the praises of guzzling bleach, Etsy’s hawking hot COVID jewelry, and today’s headline, “Lobbyists and strip clubs fighting to get PPP Loans,” is a shoe-in for a Lifetime TV movie. Girl, I SO need a dose of your appassionato for the absurd and your demonic sweet smile - like a big carnival sign flashing “Welcome to Beverle’s Funhouse!”

Hell, no, we didn’t use Zo(o)m-bie to catch up a few weeks back, just the good ol’ fashioned phone (thank you, Mr. Bell). We exchanged our theatre ‘what’s up’ news; you finally got to see Hamilton ‘Before the Pandemic’ (B.P.) and I bitched about the fate of my new play, Little ♀. Can you believe I finally summon the chutzpah to write about my less than merry childhood and the blasted drama gets Covid Coitus Interruptus at dress (yeah, I can muster a wry smile at my play’s doomed fate).

I don’t want to go all Now Voyager on you - but your faith in and support of my work these many years have meant more than you’ll ever know.

There’s a scene in Little ♀ where three sisters (Jo, Marge and Aimee) discover the headstone of Beth, the sister they never knew they had. Aimee movingly recites El Maley Rachamin (the Jewish prayer of loss) at her sister’s grave.

At your funeral last week, when the cantor chanted El Maley Rachamim, my gut spilled out. NO, I’m sorry, I can’t follow those orderly six stages of grief, and yes, I’m still angry at you for leaving. If ever there was a time this world needed your enlightened, Theatre Shaman spirit, it’s now.

Theatre and life, Bev…such a thin line.

It would be great to hear a few of those macabre theatre tidbits you always had waiting in the wings. Maybe the one about Shakespeare performing Lady Macbeth when the boy playing the role suddenly died - or how about the permanently bolted seats at the Palace Theatre left empty for ghosts (ostensibly to spook bad actors)?

“You were intellectual – but common,” the cantor told us. For anyone who didn’t know you, that would sound like a putdown. But when I knocked on your college door for advice on how to create a neon Vegas effect on stage (with zero moolah), you took me to the five and dime for Christmas light tubing. Brilliant! Yeah, you were erudite - but you also knew how to make a purse from a sow’s ear (or a sword from a garbage can lid).

You would have gotten a kick out of the costumes, singing and stories at your funeral. But the cantor wore dayglow-green gloves and a mask, and most of us were far away, watching as they lowered your coffin into the ground. Dying during a pandemic – well – you know.

At a virtual “Theatre on Zoom” workshop I barely survived last night, you would have gone ape shit (hell, it was all I could do to not bludgeon my laptop to Microsoft Kingdom Come). Disembodied heads can never replace live theatre! It’s the blood, sweat and tears, bodies listening, laughing and crying TOGETHER, that make theatre powerful and transformational (along with the spit flying from an actor’s mouth on lines like “to be or not to be,” projecting what it means to be a human being on this crazy, spinning planet we call home).

One thing I’m glad you missed - the fifty plus page PACC Guide to Reopening Theatrical Venues I forced myself to read this morning before my head imploded.

Dozens of red, yellow and green charts blinked one message– live theatre is up shit’s creek until this virus has a vaccine. Although the image conjured in my mind of socially distanced audience members dressed in clothing fashioned from garbage bags, sporting ancient Greek tragedy masks painted on their N-95’s, is something I would pay money to see. Masque for a Pandemic, methinks?

A lot of the time now I sit at my desk, jabbing at my frozen-in-fear pen, pretending I still know what day it is - and that stupid things, like not having soft toilet paper (heh – I’ve got Crohn’s so cut me some slack) really matters. One bright spot is that my next play has become crystal clear. In 1919, during the Spanish Flu’s second wave, dissenters in San Francisco formed the Anti-Mask League and held a mass public meeting with over two thousand people. A hundred plus years later – ain’t it grand! – some folks haven’t changed. It will be two acts, each taking place during a pandemic a century apart, and death-gallows-laugh-out-loud! (There’s ‘laughter on call’ now, Bev – people are desperate for comedy.) What other response can a writer have to the insane and dangerous stupidity around us? “There is more stupidity than hydrogen in the universe, and it has a longer shelf life” (Frank Zappa).

Oooooh, you’d love this – drive-in movies are popular again and they’re showing musicals! “Even the darkest night will end and the sun will rise” (Les Miserables). Merci bien!

Better run. The wind is howling up a Tempest – prime time to stand in the street and scream without attracting the paddy wagon.

You know I love and miss you, right?

“Thou who dwellest on high, grant perfect rest beneath the sheltering wings of Thy presence, among the holy and pure who shine as the brightness of the firmament unto the soul of Beverle Bloch.” (El Maley Rachamim)

I’ll write again soon, dear Bev.

XOXO June

“For the story is not ended

And the play never done …” (The Fantastiks)

June Guralnick has created plays, performance projects, and large-scale community cultural projects for four decades. Her works have been performed throughout the U.S. – and beamed to the Space Station! Awards include the Silver Medal-Pinter Drama Review Prize, Second Place-Judith Royer Award for Playwriting Excellence, North Carolina Arts Council Literature Fellowship, Southern Appalachian Repertory New Plays winner, Virginia Center for the Creative Arts Writing Fellows, Hambidge Center for the Arts Writer-in-Residence, and Sewanee Writers’ Conference Tennessee Williams Scholar (University of the South). This spring June looks forward to facilitating creative writing workshops for veterans through The Joel Fund as well as serving as program coordinator for the Sally Buckner Emerging Writers’ Fellowship. Her new full-length play, LITTLE ♀, will hopefully receive its postponed premiere staged reading at Burning Coal Theatre in partnership with Justice Theatre in the not too distant future. For more info, visit https://juneguralnick.com/

Grace with Grief

Jenni Munday — Tue, 02 Jun 2020 03:18:26 GMT

By
Collette Cullen

5/1/20

Bless us oh Lord…

There are some graces in this sheltering time of the quarantine. I am going to lots of online 12 step meetings. I’ve been zooming with a writers group called Watch Me Work. As a writer, I've run out of excuses they anchor me in getting pen to the page.

With no Air BnB guests, I do not have to tip toe about my own home. Some days, I dance.

The kitten, the one that the kids left behind in their exodus from the predator pandemic, the one they call Duck, who I have rechristened Dali (in honor of these surreal times,) is a blessed distraction.

I've been walking every chance I get, a pilgrim on an unchartered path.

I've had some healing time with family.

The times have made my efforts at reading Tolstoy’s War and Peace, less daunting. With his prose, he teaches survival, “Life did not stop, and one had to live.” Leo Tolstoy, War and Peace

An unexpected grace is that having lived a singular life the isolation is not unfamiliar. My previous 17 medical convalescences serve as apprentice to a skill set that sustains me during the Pandemic.

But much, too much is unbearable. Masks and media, loved ones floating in a vaporous far away land. The individual crosses endured. Loss of home, work or a loved one. The stressors multiply. And me, seeming to live in a gilded cage of comfort yet, like in the lyrics of hotel California, I am a prisoner of my own design. The things that challenge me pre-Co-Vid are magnified. My daughter's fears become a soundtrack of a scratchy record I unable to erase from my minds turntable. On my own, by myself without anyone’s assistance, I've managed, to get in to riffs with loved ones. At the same time, I feel like I'm cleaning out other refuse of my life. Sorting out those that which does not serve me.

The worst days are when my own noise and stressors of my own little life quiets. Overcome with sorrow and powerlessness about the big bad world, I feel as though I'm sitting in one of those elite suites at an arena. Powerless as the gladiators are slayed, dropping to the earth in droves. The lions consume them. On those I seek solace in music to free my tears. Then, I weep. I weep like the hired wailer at a wake. Weeping for my friends who cannot see their grandchildren. Weeping for the healthcare professionals whose lives are on the line. Weeping for the collective, a sirens wail to tragedies of these time.

Collette Cullen is actor/author/educator with a vision to create opportunity for all voices to soar.

Her career as a special educator with differently abled, marginalized children, influenced her writings. These children became her muses for the essential question “How do we access and embrace all voices? “

ICWP Sharing Chat Provides a Wealth of Playwriting Tools and Practices

Tue, 26 May 2020 21:30:00 GMT

By Patricia Milton

In a recent Online Chat, ICWP Sisters and a Mister took turns speaking about their favorite useful playwriting tips, techniques, tools, and practices. It’s my pleasure to share an edited version here with the entire ICWP membership, with the intention that we all benefit from one another’s wisdom.

Diane Rao Harman shared a writing tip that came from a costume design professor. She recommends using photos, images, and pictures… not as literal inspiration, but to examine the raw form and be inspired. View the colors: how are they similar or different? Look at the negative space. Is the image of something anchored and heavy, or light and delicate?

Then, complete these three statements

This is a play about x. Diane said, “For me, x was ‘yearning.’”
This play feels like x. For Diane, x felt like ‘eating a birthday cupcake in a motel,’ a personal image
Therefore, the visual solution will be x. Diane came up with x as a chicken coop.

The visual solution is not literal, but prod to get to something new. For Diane, the visual of a chicken coop nudged her to consider all its aspects: pulling something in, protecting something, and the concept of hope as represented by the eggs. Diane recommends we try using these statements, and visual anchors, to offer inspiration.

Alan Woods shared several ideas. He recommends we consider writing plays specifically for older casts. His own short plays for senior actors have been widely performed. His suggestion to seek inspiration: go to the website meetup.com. You can join different groups representing all kinds of interests.

A book Alan recommends is “The Year of Lear,” the history of British theater in 1606. Alan says he’s learned about other playwrights that were writing at the same time as Shakespeare, and he’s been inspired to write a whole series of sequels and prequels to Shakespeare's plays.

Collette Cullen’s background is in Special Education. She told us, “These are kids who have trouble getting their voices heard, or who have had their voices stolen from them. I'd write with my Special Ed kids. They taught me. I set a timer that makes a noise, a ticking, and we’d write together.”

Collette recommends using Text Edit or Google doc to listen to your work. You can also use Google Translate, which can read your script back to you in the original language. The other members on the call all agreed that listening to one’s work read aloud is important. Most smartphones can record your own voice reading a scene.

Another suggestion of Collette’s is: Create Your Village, and make it a playgroup. She said, “When I steward others; it nourishes my voice. Play make believe. I create a party to read my work: we do a reading with actors.

Let the baby go out into the world.” Collette said she finds writing very hard, so she makes rules and sticks with them. “Sometimes I don't write till 4 pm, but it's my rule that I must write. Suzi Lori Parks’ ‘Watch me Work’ (a regular writing session at publictheater.org) keeps me in the room longer.”

“Put yourself out there. I printed up a card that said I was an actor, author, and educator. So I was. Honor your own voice. When you apply to fellowships and grants, you honor your work. I made an online portfolio of my work on my website. Hold your work in high regard,” Collette said.

Carol Libman described for us her process, very early, before she has even a draft. She reports, “I don't write in sequence, I jot down my ideas. I do research. Sometimes I don’t know the characters; I have to find them and develop them. I write everything that comes out. It’s messy, and that’s fine.

When I go back later, I read it out loud. I use ‘markers’ on the pages I’ve written on the word processor to indicate what I want to keep and what I want to delete, as well as notes for further development. Yellow for deletions, red for what stays. The notes and markings are great when I’m working with a dramaturg.”

Carol recommends that playwrights become affiliated with a development group so that your work gets developed through a number of stages. Writing a play is a long process, and putting your work through multiple stages of a development process will get it in shape to be produced onstage.

Donna Gordon uses journaling. She recommends two books, “Writing down the Bones,” by Natalie Goldberg, and “Bird by Bird,” by Anne Lamott, that illustrate its value. Donna said, “With journaling, you write every day. Journal prose is more transparent and personal, and you can use the material for monologues, taking out topics that interest you.”

Donna also likes the editing tool in Google docs as a means of sharing your play with someone else. People can read and add comments and questions to your draft, in color. Finally, Donna urged us to make connections between the bits and pieces in our minds, and bits and pieces from our journals. “Write a sentence about x. What interests you about x? Can that be a play?” asked Donna.

Domnica Radulescu writes every day, in several genres. Domnica told us, “It can be hard to find motivation and inspiration these days, so I turn to what I call “Travels through the Darkness to Get to the Light.” I always go to three periods in history. The bubonic plague in Italy and the work of Giovanni Boccaccio (‘The Decameron’). The country was devastated, but wonderful storytelling emerged, including great humor. I also turn to the Holocaust in WWII, and the work of Albert Camus, including ‘The Myth of Sisyphus,’ and ‘The Plague.’

This is motivating me to sit and write. It's what I can do even when the world is collapsing. I also turn to my own strategies of survival growing up during a dictatorship. I believe in the power of creativity: it's my life vest, and it’s what I do best. I give myself permission to explore, and write in all the genres: prose and plays, essays, storytelling, and crossover genres. In March, I started "The Crown Diaries": plays, monologues, essays, short stories, and I’m up to 150 pages. It’s very satisfying, telling the same story in play and story form.

“Promoting other people's work helps me,” Domnica said. “I created the Play Slam. Focus on others: it's life- affirming to be part of writing communities. Giving themes to the group, I also give myself the same challenge. I enjoy (ICWP member) Emma Goldman's workshop, which offers readings by professional actors. There’s a caveat, though. We may have a tendency to join too many groups right now. It’s a danger to spend a full day in Zoom meetings. Devote one hour a day to write. It doesn't matter when.”

Rahmat Zakari couldn’t join the Chat live, but offered this recommendation by email. “What works for me is having to beat deadlines; like the zoom meeting on (ICWP Chat) Writing from Isolation. Knowing that I need to meet up on a group task inspires me. Being part of a group and doing things together is a strong motivation for me.”

Everyone on the call mentioned gathering in community with other writers, even while isolated, online, by phone, however we can. Rahmat added, “Taking inventory of life or events around me especially when I retired for the night is the best quiet and personal time with myself; that is the time that I listen to myself and form my stories.”

I hope you’ve found something useful from this generous group of ICWP playwrights! If you have something to share, we’re enjoying another Tool Exchange Chat 10-11:30 PM EDT , Thursday, May 28. We’d be delighted if you’d register to join us.

After you register, you will receive a link to the Zoom chat. You can join Zoom chats on a desktop computer, tablet, or phone. You can choose whether or not to have video on or off.

Register here https://www.womenplaywrights.org/event-3839033

Staying (somewhat) SANE during this Pandemic

Jenni Munday — Fri, 22 May 2020 04:52:04 GMT

by Sharon Baker

Growing up, everyone in my family was unhealthy, unhappy, AND deranged. Go ahead, laugh. But it’s True. So thanks to our global pandemic, I’m again wrestling with the same issues that plagued me as a kid: loneliness, anxiety, confusion, panic attacks, and eating at 4:30am. Usually, I sneak into the kitchen for yogurt and bananas, instead of Dunkin Donuts. Well, maybe just one little chocolate glazed?

My heart goes out to anyone sick in a hospital, fighting for their lives. And to all the doctors and nurses risking their lives to save others.

I’m blessed that my problems aren’t serious. So here’s a lighthearted list of tips for anyone restless and bored.

HANG OUT WITH OPTIMISTS

My comedic husband Kenny begins every morning with “the funny of the day.” Here’s this morning’s joke: “There will be a Weight Watchers meeting Monday evening at 7pm. Please enter through the Wide Double Doors.”

Ha Ha. And yes, I’ve put on four pounds. But it helps to laugh, yes?

Then there’s my always sunny artist friend Missy Gentile. When her art classes were cancelled, she launched a new business called “Be Well.” She finds and paints river rocks with encouraging statements like “Do Small Things with Great Love,” “Trust the Timing of Your Life,” and my favorite, “Keep your Attitude in the Altitude.” Her day glow pink, turquoise, and lime rocks decorate every room and keep me smiling.

Other friends who uplift me are author Carole Longmeyer and artist Caroline Carpenter, gal pals living in Beaufort, South Carolina. Every Friday, we meet on a gorgeous riverfront bluff, and relax six feet apart in beach chairs. We sip cocktails, share positive happenings from our week, and eat homemade sandwiches. I’ll bring brownies, Carole brings red velvet cake, and Caroline bakes pecan pie. (Why I’ve gained those four pounds.)

Our “Fabulous Friends Friday,” is the only social occasion, and the highlight of my week. But two upbeat hilarious friends are better than fifty “downer” buddies, so find your Optimist Tribe. If you can’t meet in person, there’s Face time and Zoom.

HANG OUT WITH MOTHER NATURE

Having killed hundreds of flowers, I’ve never considered myself a gardener. But Kenny dragged me to a country garden center, where we looked like bank robbers in our masks and rubber gloves.

Next thing I knew, the back seat overflowed with magenta hibiscus, white Mandeville, and the most adorable yellow gerbera daisies. Now I’m mother to needy flowers who beg for expensive fertilizer, water, and endless pruning. But what else am I doing?

Our exquisite flowers attract cardinals, blue birds, emerald hummingbirds, monarch butterflies and double winged dragonflies. I‘ve become quite addicted to my garden and you might too.

The other place I steal away is to the beach. Twenty minutes from my front door, is the soothing Atlantic Ocean. Last Sunday we watched toddlers building ornate sandcastles, willowy teens sporting bikinis, and a grandma flying an orange long tailed kite, next to a squadron of pelicans. Mesmerizing. Hope you’ll discover Mother Nature near you too.

HANG OUT WITH MYSELF

Too much time during the day, gave me the courage to throw away a bad one-act play and revise it into a two-act comedy called “Birthday Party at the Dalai Lama’s Palace.” I’m submitting this play via all the playwriting websites. I also wrote a 10-minute play about teenagers addicted to social media, because I’m addicted to social media. And a radio play about two women who find healing at the beach, because that’s my healing place too. That play is called “And Now for Some Good News from Pollyanna” because well, you know my nickname is Pollyanna.

I’ve found a new best friend: YouTube. I can watch documentaries on everything from where to dive with manta rays to how to paint like Matisse.

I’m also practicing self-care: giving myself bad manicures, and blow-drying my Diana Ross curls into a strange grey rooted hairdo. And just because it’s 2pm, can’t I luxuriate in a lavender bath? Some days I throw on a bit of eyeliner and lip-gloss so I don’t scare myself in the mirror.

Yesterday, I tried on my favorite lace cocktail dress, added pearls, and sparkly pink flip-flops. As I waltzed into the living room, Kenny asked: “Well, pretty lady, just where do you think you’re going?”

“Over to Dunkin Donuts,” I flirted. “ Picking up one little chocolate glazed.”

“Bring two,” he smiled.

Stay sane, my Friends.

Sharon Baker lives in Bluffton, South Carolina with her golfer husband Kenny Baker, their white cat Sage, and a ridiculous number of flowers.

She’s writing new plays and glad to be alive.

Email her: sharonspencelieb@gmail.com

We Still Have Time...

Jenni Munday — Mon, 27 Apr 2020 01:40:14 GMT

by Jenn Weatherall

Here we are living day to day in this strange, upside-down world that we all thought at one time we knew...We had all figured out a certain level of comfort or at least familiarity with it to be...well, ok.

I used to look forward to Friday and Saturday nights. Once I got the girls tucked away in their beds, and the kitchen cleaned, I would sit down at the living room table to step into whatever world I was writing about at the time. It was my escape, my reward, my vice. I looked forward to a couple of drinks and a date with the characters I was creating on this keyboard in the quiet comfort of candle light. You see, I was very unhappy in my marriage. He would walk off to the pub and I would walk into my imagination. It was a sane and easy way to cope with things that I wasn’t satisfied with. No one needed to know. It was just my way.

Before this pandemic smacked us all right in the face I got out. The details are messy and unnecessary for you to know...but I moved myself and my children (fifty percent of the time) out into a beautiful little house with a pool. There’s something lovely about a new home that is not bogged down with years of memories, clutter, and piles of unnecessary stuff. So here I am, in my new home with lots of storage but not too much stuff to fill it with...and I get to enjoy a clean break. During a pandemic when we are all forced to remain at home, my home is a beautiful new space that allows me to be...me.

I have to admit, that because of my own personal circumstances, I find myself rather grateful for this forced break of reality. I have been able to use this time to rediscover, to reconnect with ME. And I’ve written many blogs, and I’ve drawn many portraits and written a couple of songs...but I’m not yet ready to step into another world. I’m consciously avoiding it. Perhaps it’s because I’m already living an alternative life right now...or maybe it’s because I no longer require the escape the way I used to...or maybe I’m just not yet ready to open myself up to meeting and developing new characters and worlds outside of what I find comfortable within my new home. Whatever the reason, it is what it is. I’m accepting this play writing dry spell for what it is. In fact, I have put together a fantastic idea for my next play. I’ve laid it out, and solidified the characters, and even some of what the characters do...but I can’t bring myself to write it. Not yet. And I think that that is ok.

We can’t lay pressure on ourselves to produce during this very confusing and alien time. Although we may find ourselves with more available time to create, it doesn’t mean that we are ready or able. And that is ok. I‘m not a big supporter of self-care. I find it to be hokey...and maybe that’s my own problem because I was always brought up to just ‘buck up’ and deal with crap as I needed to. But in this particular situation...I don’t believe that any of us should push ourselves, put pressure upon ourselves, or feel forced to produce in a time in which even the intelligent, balanced adults are struggling.

If it flows for you...then relish and enjoy. If it doesn’t...then be patient and understanding. These are strange times for all of us and as much as I want to take advantage of the time and space I am privileged with, I am not ready yet to write my next play. And I’m ok with that. I am restless and probably drinking more than I should...but I’m ok. I’m getting through these days one day at a time...my ideas are flowing at their own pace, my creating is welcomed when it comes...but I refuse to force anything.

Although we don’t have all the time in the world...we still all have time.

Jenn Weatherall, who has recently returned to the theatre after an almost two-decade hiatus, has had her plays performed in the DarkCrop, HamilTEN and Unhinged Festivals. As well as writing and directing her shows, in some cases she has had the fortunate/unfortunate opportunity of stepping into and breathing life into some of her characters. Besides her family, Jenn lives for the opportunity to create stories that allow her to bring life to the stage in ways she hopes is both intriguing and different from what has been seen before.

Centre Stage Podcast Launch for International Women's Day

Fri, 06 Mar 2020 21:47:41 GMT

Former Presidents of ICWP, Jenni Munday and Paddy Gillard-Bentley, launch the ICWP Centre Stage Podcast .

Jenni ( pictured left) Interviewed Paddy about her play " Accidental Fish" (subtitled Coping With Life Badly).

Paddy reads an excerpt from the play and talks about what inspired her to write it.

Listen now - click the arrow to play the Podcast.

Click the icons in the podcast player ^ to download the sound file, get an embed code, or share on social media

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Check out Paddy's Theatre Company on Facebook:
Flush Ink Productions on Facebook

She Speaks Events

Theatre Creates Community. So Can Playwrights

Jenni Munday — Fri, 07 Feb 2020 01:20:19 GMT

Playwriting: From Lonely Art to Creating Community

by Amy Oestreicher

I strive to create plays to find the commonality as much as the distinctiveness, inherent in all of our “life detours” – finding that universality is what makes me “tick!” The community aspect of theatre has always been tremendously important to me. A month after being discharged from the Columbia Presbyterian Surgical ICU, I joined a local theatre’s production of Oliver, to once again immerse myself experience of being part of a community ensemble, and creating theatre together - a driving passion that anchored my childhood.

When I was a child, the arts were my passion and identity. Later, when my traumas occurred, they became my lifeline. I grew up all my life in theatre. For me, singing and acting were ways I could connect with the world around me. When I took a deep, grounded breath from my gut, I sang what my heart longed to express. I found comfort in the words of my favorite composers. I read scripts like they were novels. I would play with my playbills from various shows I had seen like they were my Barbie dolls. Through theatre, I had a place in this world. I could make believe by inserting myself into characters from every era, situation and mindset, while still expressing my own individuality. Theatre was my language I could access to truly know who I was, no matter what was going on in my life, and I was singing, dancing, acting and creating from the time I could talk. I lived my life believing I would carve a beautiful career out for myself in the world of musical theatre, be on Broadway, and conquer the world.

My community experience as a playwright would come years later through an unexpected detour, which started as purposeful isolation. For years, I was seeking to find that universality within the confines of my bedroom, barricaded from the outside world, while I waited six years for my digestive system to be reconstructed. My creativity was spawned from an abnormal period of medical isolation. Only after I regained my health, and ability to digest food, could I re-experience the magic that comes from working with others. Playwriting granted me creative ownership, launching me back into society as a storyteller, rather than a victim, and storytellers thrive in community. I realized that creating theatre could facilitate healing for both the artist and audience, as they engage with the story. Theatre was a “great equalizer” which created a common language, and bridged divides.

Because of my coma, I ended up attending college as a 25-year-old, and just graduated at age 30. My senior year at Hampshire College, I had the opportunity to apply to the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center’s National Theatre Institute, where I studied devising performance, playwriting, stagecraft, puppetry, composition, and a range of skills that were new to me. But the greatest new exposure was devising theatre with other artists, from a range of backgrounds, passions and perspectives to create theatre based in found objects, reimagined texts, collaboratively generated themes and other group-formulated prompts, given a steady focus through a shared love of creativity and theatremaking.

Studying through the National Theater Institute, forming comraderies and connections through this guiding passion which aligned all of us, made me feel more connected to myself, my world, and theatre’s possibilities. Our company told stories through mixed media art, movement, music, and text to make reimagined meaning from our own personal detours.

Being part of this community was an extraordinary opportunity to bring ideas to fruition, generate new ones, and collaborate in a risk-taking, supportive environment. I’ve lived and breathed theatre as my own life force through the ups and downs of my traumas– but this air was richer and much easier breathed when with others! Becoming a part of NTI, where I could develop this passion in the company of like-minded artists, was the greatest gift. Never had I felt so part of the world.

Now, I’m passionate about creating theatre that keeps this channel of communication open, challenging ideas, and cultivating compassion. I’ve learned that, just as healing, and cultivating this compassion, cannot take place in a vacuum, neither can true theatre, and that I could greatly benefit from the chance to both give and receive feedback on new work, as I did at National Theater Institute. It became a privilege to share and hear excerpts of work with peers, and to learn from the O’Neill staff and guest artists. With no end to my overflow of ideas, the months spent at the prolific theatre-making hub provided the time and support to not only cement them, but fuse them with the ideas of others, creating a final theatrical product that none of us could have anticipated. Coming away from this experience, I gained connection, collaborative tools to further focus my vision, and the diversity to add perspective to my artistic intentions.

Within this group of passionate young artists, I felt comfortable taking the risks needed, to discover that theatre must be lived and worked through, not lying dormant on a laptop. I witnessed firsthand how theatre can challenge ideas, create compassion and bring out the stories that unite us all. Through the transformative power of writing and theatre, we feel heard, gain clarity and can problem-solve. As creators and audience members choose to create and interact with the space and one another through theatre, they engage in a vital conversation on how we view obstacles.

I learned that, just as Patty sings in my play, LEFTOVERS, “The Only Time That I’m Real is When I’m Singing,” the only time that I’m real, is when I am creating in the presence of others.

Spending several months at the Eugene O ‘Neill Center was one of the first times since my coma that I had the privilege of experiencing the joy of collaboration and the connection that comes from group devising. Now, I’m eager for to maintain that sense of community spirit in my work. I’ve always felt that creativity and connection were vital survival strategies, and frankly, the only way to live a really fulfilling life. But having the privilege of meeting so many amazing people – the students, staff, and every person I came into contact with inspired me to learn so many things about myself, and know the most talented, generous, warm-hearted people.

I got to be surrounded by this unfathomable creative energy I’ve never felt with such intensity. At the O’Neill, we did everything, literally all day long and sometimes through the night – playwriting, composing, directing, acting, singing, devising, sharing, moving, feeling, and creating some more. It’s amazing how collaboration, and connecting with the hearts, minds, souls, and passions of others can make you feel like you’ll never run out of creativity, energy, stimulation or time. My favorite part of being at NTI was participating in a theatre lab every week. Every week, we would be assigned an excerpt from a play or musical, new, old, or in between. Although eventually our schedule became too jam-packed to keep it going, upon arriving, I tried to journal as much as I could.

Here’s what I wrote the first day:

“This is going to be amazing. It took nearly three hours to introduce everyone, because everyone is so amazing and wonderful to get to know. These were passionate, connected, present, truthful stories of why theatre was so important to all of these people – and all for extremely diverse reasons. Who knew this would be a spiritual experience. The grounds are so gorgeous here, and we’re surrounded by a quaint, New England town. I see the pianos hooked up to composition software, and I immediately get roused with that spark in me that wants to try composing again...and everything else! I feel home, with a family I’ve always sensed, somehow, but have never actually experienced.”

Collaboration forced me to surrender my preconceived notions of what I felt my play “should be about.” Community brought clarity to my work, and let others into a play that started out as “dense fruitcake.” I learned that I didn’t have to always be the “lone survivor” that made it through unimaginable hardship. It was okay to collaborate – in theatre and in life. This community experience ended as the greatest lesson of all: Theatre grants us the clear space to spark new ideas with others.

Amy Oestreicher is a PTSD peer-to-peer specialist, artist, author, writer for Huffington Post, speaker for TEDx and RAINN, health advocate, survivor, award-winning actress, and playwright, sharing the lessons learned from trauma through her writing, mixed media art, performance and inspirational speaking. As the creator of "Gutless & Grateful," her BroadwayWorld-nominated one-woman autobiographical musical, she's toured theatres nationwide, along with a program combining mental health advocacy, sexual assault awareness and Broadway Theatre for college campuses and international conferences.

https://www.amyoes.com/

GETTING YOUR SHOW UP OFF BROADWAY

Jenni Munday — Fri, 10 Jan 2020 01:26:10 GMT

By Amy Drake

You’ve worked really hard to hone your craft and set your sites on reaching the next level. Now what? You need a game plan. Even when we playwrights have gotten a play accepted at a theater we often find ourselves cast in the role of producer. My play, SOMEWHERE I CAN SCREAM, is going up at The Players Theatre in April 2020. It is now late December and I have many things to do before opening night, but I will share with you my steps to getting there, current tasks, and work to be done.

Ask yourself if your script is really ready. Even if your play has already been produced you may want to look for ways to improve the script before submitting it to the theater you really, really want to have stage it. SOMEWHERE had a successful run in Ohio, where it is set, but I had my sights set on a New York run. So, I sent the script to trusted colleagues, script doctors if you will, Clifford Lee Johnson III before the Ohio run, and Eric Webb before submitting the play to The Players Theatre in New York. The critique and suggestions of both improved the play significantly, and as I work with the director it is still undergoing changes.

Look to your contacts to make a connection with the theater of your choice. Who do you know who could arrange an introduction for you with the artistic director? Set a meeting for coffee to find out what types of plays the theater is looking for and consider how your play might be a good fit before making a pitch. Another approach is to contact an ally at the theater who could read your play and make a recommendation to the artistic director. A third approach is to get involved with the theater and let them know that you have plays available for production. What all of these methods have in common is a personal connection. Theater, like any other business, is about people working with people.

Go within your professional networks to build your creative team. I am in the early stages of this process, but have already found a wonderful director, Kevin Davis, through mutual membership in Ken Davenport’s Producer’s PRO Inner Circle, now called The Theater Makers Studio. Think of the recommendations of your colleagues as testimonials of professionalism for those who could work together harmoniously. I believe it is a good idea to work collaboratively: when professionals come together on a project, the project improves, often in unexpected ways.

Marketing is essential to building your audience and now there are so many ways of promoting a show. Begin with creating a Facebook page and building a website. Not a graphic designer? Hire someone to build the web site for you. It is your online business card and essential for professionals in today’s business world. Build an email list, post on Facebook and Instagram, which has a substantial user base.

Create content to take your followers on the journey of producing your show through videos, blogs, articles, and posts. Get the buy-in of everyone on the project to taps into their own social media platforms to promote the show: the reach to potential ticket buyers grows rapidly. Consider buying Facebook ads. Don’t forget traditional methods, such as print ads, distribution of hot cards, and cross promotion with related businesses, such as dinner packages with restaurants including tickets for your show.

Coordinate efforts with the theater: Michael Sgouros and Brenda Bell at The Players Theatre have been enormously helpful and supportive. Look for promotion opportunities such as writing guest articles and blogs for theater groups with a large following, give interviews and do podcasts. Consider radio and television advertising. When you’ve gotten your show to this level and need some help with bookings you may consider it worthwhile to hire a press agent or marketing agency to arrange bookings for you.

As we look toward holding auditions in a few weeks, there is much work to be done and we only just getting started. It’s very exciting. Position yourself for success by putting together the right team to bring your play to life.

Amy Drake is a playwright and author. Please join her arts marketing Facebook group, Toot Your Own Horn, to share your ideas and suggestions for promoting plays and musicals.

https://www.amydrake.com/

Drake Theatrical

Draketheatrical@gmail.com

A KAMA SUTRA MANUAL FOR PLAYWRIGHTS

Jenni Munday — Mon, 30 Dec 2019 03:56:49 GMT

LOVING OUR CHARACTERS (Part I)

By June Guralnick

Cupid’s arrow “pierced my heart like a red-hot dagger.” (Touché! I’ve wanted to use E.T.A. Hoffman’s sizzling cliché since I first learned how to spell ‘metaphor’!) And the cause of my lovesick state, you ask?

Kilt-wearing, sword-wielding, “Jamie” MacKenzie Fraser in Diana Galbadon’s Outlander books (played by Sam Heughan in the heart-palpitating Starz series adaptation). Even as I write this, I feel an avalanche of roiling emotions (embarrassment, self-disgust, amusement, and oh my – lust!) for committing the unpardonable sin of falling in love with a fictional character.

Society tolerates – in fact, encourages – children’s adoration of imaginary characters (called fictiophilia). Proof? More than five hundred million Harry Potter books have sold and Little Women has been in print since 1868. But fictiophilia-afflicted adults? Tagged “sick losers” - and bundled in with the porn addicts!

Eager to avoid that sticky purgatory ☺ - I decided to investigate just how abnormal it is to fall in love with a fictional character, and explore what types of characters commonly tug on our heartstrings. (Bear with me, friends – I am wending my way to playwriting.)

After exhaustive research (some internet ramblings, fast flips through dog-eared psych textbooks, and mocha java infused chats with gal pals), what did I learn?

1)   Falling in love with an imaginary character is a hell of a lot easier than loving flesh and blood beings who often break our hearts.
2) We seek out fictional characters whose struggles mirror our own in some way – or, on the flip side, we embrace characters who live a life we want!
3)    Loving fictional characters probably won’t f*ck us up – although if obsessive, may prevent healthy interactions with ‘real’ people.
4)    “Whether or not characters are ontologically ‘real,’ our familiarity with them renders them very emotionally potent.”

Potent indeed. I’ll be running to a meeting and boom! – Jamie pops into my head and my heart momentarily stops!

I can hear some of you thinking (ok, shouting): “Get a life - it’s not real love! You’re just (fill in the blank) daydreaming, horny, lonely, avoiding ‘real’ relationships, and looking for love in all the wrong places!”

Je confesse! But just maybe there’s something else happening here too.

Experts tell us the emotion of empathy (if I understand the science correctly) is part of our neurobiological makeup and enables us to fall in love with a fictional character.

I recently returned to civilization after being shipwrecked on an island to discover the world of fan fiction, defined as: “Fiction written by a fan of, and featuring characters from a particular TV series, movie, etc.” There are literally millions of people who are so utterly in love with a character that they have created stories, poems, films, etc. imagining into the life of their amour. (Check out the online Archive of Your Own where you’ll find 2,205,000 users and 5,436,000 fan fiction works!) So - we are not alone!

If I had to hazard a guess, I’d lay odds that larger-than-life, heroic, complex – yet ultimately empathetic and seriously conflicted characters – are the types that capture people’s hearts. I fell in love with Jamie (and upon occasion, other men and women characters) because he is compassionate, courageous, capable of deep, abiding love, (and yes, sexy!) – but also flawed and vulnerable, driven by compelling contrasts (for example, Jamie unabashedly engages in violent battle, yet can’t bring himself to give his wife an injection because it might cause her pain).

Which brings me to plays (ha ha – you thought I would never get here)! Which characters in drama demand our love and affection? In Aristotle’s Poetics, the ancient Greek philosopher claims characters must be good (I interpret this to mean living by a moral compass), true to life, and acting consistent with their own nature. Are those qualities still important for our dramatis personae?

The bottom line? Even though many thousands of plays are being written every year, how many people outside our profession are passionate about the characters we create? In fact, when was the last time YOU fell in love with a particular character in a play (as opposed to a character in a book, film, television series, or animation)? And if your answer falls into the “not since disco was king” drawer, are we somehow failing in our job as playwrights to create characters that can elicit this kind of passion?

Sharpen your pens and arrows, because I want to hear from you! Tell me if you’ve ever loved a fictional character and why – and what qualities they possess that touched your heart? After I receive your comments, my next blog will ruminate on how we might inspire audiences to fall in love with the spirits we create that haunt our minds and plays – and ultimately take flight on stage.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Photo by Teresa Pigeon

June Guralnick has created plays, performance projects, and large-scale community cultural projects for four decades. Her works have been performed throughout the U.S. – and beamed to the Space Station! Awards include the Silver Medal-Pinter Drama Review Prize, Second Place-Judith Royer Award for Playwriting Excellence, North Carolina Arts Council Literature Fellowship, Southern Appalachian Repertory New Plays winner, Virginia Center for the Creative Arts Writing Fellows, Hambidge Center for the Arts Writer-in-Residence, and Sewanee Writers’ Conference Tennessee Williams Scholar (University of the South). June’s new full-length play, LITTLE ♀, will receive a staged reading at Burning Coal Theatre in partnership with Justice Theatre in 2020, and her one-act play, SPACE INTERLUDE, will be published in early 2020. For more info, visit juneguralnick.com.

ICWP at the Statera Conference, New York, 2019

Fri, 13 Dec 2019 16:59:40 GMT

by Wendy Marie Martin

On October 26^th and 27^th the Statera Arts conference was held at the City College of New York (CCNY), and brought nearly 200 participants together to focus on parity and equality in American Theater.

For those of you not familiar with Statera Arts, Melinda Pfunstein and Shelley Gaza founded it in 2015 with the mission to take “positive action to bring women into full and equal participation in the arts.” This was the 4^th annual Statera conference to date and “offered individual artists, arts administrators, academics, and students the opportunity to innovate around unique strategies for manifesting gender parity in our work, our organizations, and our institutions.”

There were over 65 speakers and panelists and attendees “from all over the country as well as international guests from Prague, Nairobi, South America, and Toronto.” Workshops topics ranged from “Bridging the Inequality Gap with Improv” to “Culture Bending with the Bechdel Project” to “Writing Gender: Tools for Playwrights” and beyond.

There was a SWAN day panel on supporting woman artists as well as a Parent Artists Advocacy League (PAAL) panel on “Parenting/Caregiving on the Road to Parity” and some fantastic performances. The Keynote speakers were May Adrales, Associate Artistic Director of Milwaukee Rep, and Broadway star, Joanna Gleason.

I was thrilled to attend the conference with my co-workshop presenter, Namrata Jain, and lead a breakout session on “Collaborations in Global Feminist Performance.”

Wendy-Marie Martin, left. Namrata Jain, right

One of the absolute highlights of the weekend, however, was the opportunity to meet two of my ICWP sisters, Elana Gartner and Sophie Dowllar Ogutu. Having only see their names on the connect serve or as part of the 3-Minute play submission process, it was wonderful to meet these amazing women in person and get to know them and their work a bit better.

LL to R. Wendy Marie Martin, Elana Gartner, Sophie Dowllar Ogutu.

Not only was I able to attend a couple workshops with Elana and Sophie, but Elana and I were able to watch Sophie receive the Visionary Woman in Leadership Award, which is given annually to “a visionary woman* who uplifts, amplifies, and advances women in the arts.”

Sophie was honored for her activism for women in the arts, specifically for her work creating and continued to fostering SWAN day in Kenya. According to her nominators, “Everything Sophie does is WOMEN-centered. She introduced international grassroots feminist women to us here in Kenya. She also introduced SWAN Day Festival. She believes in empowering women. She truly is a believer of women's advancement and true empowerment.”

The weekend overall was inspiring and deliciously exhausting and gave me hope for the future of gender parity in American theater.

It’s an experience I continue to carry into my work as an educator, arts activist, and playwright. Experiences like this are the reason ICWP has created the educational opportunity Development Fund, and I am beyond excited to see our ICWP representation grow at conferences around the word moving forward.

Wendy-Marie Martin
ICWP Board Member

Fundraising Committee Member and 3-Minute Play Contest Coordinator

Is history more important than memory? Part 2

Jenni Munday — Thu, 28 Nov 2019 01:36:49 GMT

by Amy Oestreicher

A World Becomes a World…

Auschwitz. A camp I heard so much about. In books and stories in history. But what I crave was more than history. I wanted to know what it must’ve been like for my grandmother, as she survived, but all that followed, and how she pieced her life back together after such life shattering trauma.

It was my Uncle Morris, whom the rest of my family told me was more passionate about playing bridge than telling stories, that finally came to my rescue.

I interviewed my uncle for nearly a year, and for someone whom I hadn’t even met yet, we developed an indescribable closeness through our vulnerable exchanges on life, love and loss.

“We never thought of the fact of whether we would see them again or would not see them again, I just don’t think we thought that way, you know, every day was a survival day, and we lived for that day. Thank God we all joined up after the war.

It’s funny that you mention it, that I never thought to ask Hannah what it was like to be liberated from the camps. I’ve often felt that pain from all of this – the war years, that she went through as – the worst possible thing that a woman could go through.”

Through my relatives, I found a way in. I found that just by asking, their words opened up new worlds not only for me, but for them.

“Besides her lemon bars which my mouth waters every time I think of them, I remember that she always loved me and made me feel important. It was your grandma that gave me the confidence that I have always had. That’s what I enjoy remembering about her. I will continue tomorrow because right now my tears blind me. Love you, Morris.”

The Family Detective

I learned how to be strategic with my oral history interview questions. We only remember something that we have recorded or encoded at the time we experienced it. Something may trigger or jog our recollection. One vivid memory might take us back to a whole series of events. A photograph can trigger a memory, response, or arousal. Once the event is recalled, it is ordered and shaped by the narrator. Memories are not just stored, they are newly constructed, combining information to support the immediate situation.

I started a weekly dialogue with Morris and could never have anticipated what I’d learn.

Uncle Morris:

“I can’t even imagine how life would be different without the war, and all of those millions who perished and were tortured.

It’s always been a puzzlement to me, for my survival, because I was such a sick child, knowing that many of my friends did not survive after the war, or my oldest brother. Unfortunately, everyone is gone right now, except myself.

My view of heaven is being together with family from the past who have passed away, and still getting the care and love that I felt from each one of them. when I look at an old picture of my family, I just remember especially how… special they made me feel. They were so wonderful to me, and I don’t know if I ever told them and I am sorry I didn’t, how special they were all to me.

What would Grandma be like today?

She would have been so very proud and happy to see you Amy, that you have survived your own ordeal, as she had survived hers, and so proud of what you went through now, connecting, organizing and getting all of this information about her, and her family.

I hope all of this comes together eventually, and perhaps, wishful thinking, I’m hoping that you and my son can write a book together when this is all finished. I will try to gather whatever photos I have and make copies, and whatever I can send you, I will send you directly to your house, myself.

I guess the only time I really think of Hannah now is when I look at the pictures in the house and I see her. And it’s the same as the rest of the family – my dad, my brothers – but I guess that is why you have pictures, so you can remind yourself once in a while, of the past.

I don’t know who said this, but I think I remember someone saying that as long as we carry our loved ones in our heart they are never truly gone. You and I and the rest of us, when you were, cannot possibly imagine the excruciating pain and suffering she has – she was forced to endure in concentration camp – oh yes we have all even pictured it and know her stories, so we think we know, but we don’t.

I know you personally have survived your own very tragic and painful time in your life, and I am sure you continue with this pain to this day. But you have grown to be a survivor and heroically tell your story to all who will listen so they can also learn about human suffering. It is important for them to know. Especially people who are fortunate enough not to have walked through those gates, but even the ones need to know that they are never alone.

(clears throat)

Cherish your gifts and talents to spread the news. It is how civilization survives. We all learn from it.

I personally do not agree with those who say, “As they come in, they come out.” How would that be possible? Some people are born very poor and get very rich, and vice versa. Life is constantly changing and giving you opportunities.

For example, my own life story is…. difficult for me to believe. From a small town in Europe, we came to the greatest country in the world, and have been blessed with many brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, children, grandchildren and great grandchildren and cousins and…. many others who are now in all fields of human endeavors, touching so many lives as they go along the way. What we learn most from your grandma is to carry on and do the right thing, and to set a good example for others to follow. I think that is the best way to honor their legacy.

Anyway, I will try to continue later on. Thank you.”

“Re-Viewing” Family

These words opened up worlds. They opened up my heart. They opened up a family to possibilities that no one knew existed.

I put together hundreds of these transcribed words and created a solo performance piece, “FIBERS” in honor of my Grandma, whose skillful sewing saved her life in the concentration camps.

When I performed FIBERS in public for the first time, not only was I giving voice to Uncle Morris, the story of my Grandmother, and her eight siblings, all but two who had passed on. I was giving voice to an entire era that is threatened every day to fade from history if we don’t keep asking questions.

Stories can not only give a voice to the powerless in society, but can help the individuals find their own power and move forward in their lives. In telling the story, for example, of my great uncle Morris, his family members told me he had never been happier, and was opening up for the first time. I was allowing my family members to tell their stories, and allowing them to move on after such a horrific past in surviving the Holocaust.

I have high hopes for my docudrama, FIBERS. For 90 minutes, I’m embodying 12 family members’ accounts of what they could remember. But what makes for more fascinating material, is what they couldn’t remember. Writing this play was about putting these puzzle pieces together and allowing a powerful story to be fully realized in the process.

A Detective Becomes the Family Playwright

Those that argue that oral history is not “reliable” are countered by those who believe the experiences of ordinary people, and their anecdotes are truer than written document. In order to write FIBERS, my job as a playwright was to facilitate remembering. I became fascinated with the stories that the subjects create to hold the memories together – not just the memories themselves. Without memory, there are only cold, hard facts. Theatre is about heart. So is life, and so is the family I came to know in the process.

FIBERS was inspired by the literal sewing my grandmother was forced to do in the concentration camps in order to stay alive. And by telling stories, asking questions, and not giving up our innate capacity to stay curious, we reconnect the fibers of our past, our legacy, who we are now, and the future we can create.

I’ve always known theatre has been about collaboration. But this was the greatest collaboration of my entire career.

Of course, I’m only 30.

But as I learned from interviewing my great-great-uncle Isi in Belgium, keeper of the family’s genealogy…we’ve been around for centuries.

Now THAT’S a long-term collaboration!

AirPlay Presents: Amy Oestreicher's Fibers: https://podtail.com/en/podcast/airplay-1/airplay-presents-amy-oestreicher-s-fibers/

Is history more important than memory?

Jenni Munday — Thu, 21 Nov 2019 04:27:16 GMT

Questioning meaning, Holocaust legacies, and "questions" through Theatre, Part 1.

Amy Oestreicher

“How could you not remember when you found out Grandma was a Holocaust survivor?”

Marilyn: I don’t remember.

Amy: Well…[getting frustrated] okay. But like –

Amy: Well when did you know what the Holocaust was?

Marilyn: I might have blocked it out. Who knows. Ask my brother.

Amy: I’m wondering why you don’t remember –

Marilyn: I just always knew it. No, I probably – probably heard it when I was younger and just didn’t understand it.

Amy: Well…having always known it – how did that make you feel then?

Marilyn: What do you mean? I just accepted it.

Amy: But it’s not a fact like your eyes are blue – it’s –

Oy. That’s how it all started.

I wanted to know my more about my grandmother who had passed away while I was in a coma at 18 years old. I had always looked to her spirit for strength, through my own dark times.

I decided I wanted to ask other relatives – people I only had seen in old wedding albums and on Facebook feeds.

At first, I was discouraged to delve into my family history. Why didn’t anyone think this was worth the pursuit?

I called my uncle. His response?

“You’re not gonna get anything – unfortunately I reached out to all of the relatives, everybody, and I’m telling you and nobody knew any of the story – just so you know, when I was going to write my book, after a while I realized there was so little information, like accurate information, that it was gonna have to be a fiction based on historical events. None of this is non-fiction. It’s very frustrating.”

The more relatives I asked in my family, the more I resonated with my uncle’s frustration.

My grandmother, a Jew in Czechoslovakia during World War Two, had been married just 5 weeks when she was taken by the Nazis to Auschwitz, separated from her 8 siblings and saw her husband shot and killed. She survived the war. She made it to Brooklyn, NY, on a ship that marked the rest of her life with an overwhelming fear of the ocean, married a tailor, and together, they established a successful sewing corporation in the garment district. She, and others like her, never really got to talk about all they had seen, and having endured more pain and felt more fear in those few years than most people in a lifetime, their generation raised children while trying to keep so much bottled up inside. She did her best to keep this fear and pain from her daughter, my mother, and while my mother remembers her as the most loving, sweetest mother, she also remembers feeling a real sadness and fear in her home.

Was that why my mother had “blocked it out?”

When “Nothing” Becomes Everything

According to my mother, my grandmother never spoke much about anything.

“She never talked about the atrocities. She would talk about bread, pieces of bread, people stole from people, she said there were all kinds of people in the camp – good, bad, generous, they lived off potato peels. She said that when they first got there, they had to go in lines, and Dr. Mengele – the crazy “doctor” who did all of those experiments – he told them which line to go on. And Grandma always said that one nurse talked to Mengele, and while she was talking to Mengele, Grandma pulled her friend to the other line, and that is what saved their lives. Grandma also had an abortion. After I was born – she felt like she was too sick to have another baby, and she went to a terrible abortionist in someone’s living room – who almost killed her with a hanger – you know, that’s how they killed them in those days, and she felt guilty forever – you know, a lot of guilt about a lot of stuff…”

One question was leading me to traumas I didn’t even know I should be asking about. Was I ready for that?

The Power of Asking

I realized that one, unassuming question (combined with a bit of gentle prodding and persistency) could open up a stream of remembrances and possibly unjam Lethe’s river of forgetfulness. Perhaps every “I don’t remember” and “They didn’t tell us anything” was simply a deceptive curtain. I read books on history and memory, the generation of postmemory, dug through oral history archives and Jewish history databases, and I searched through oral history archives, called museums, libraries, and old diners in Brooklyn where I knew my grandparents had frequently dined. I went on to create twelve comprehensive oral history guides for family members I hadn’t even met. I was determined to follow the trail of (or lack thereof) memory, too see where it may lead.

One relative connected me to another, and soon, I was getting emails and Facebook Messages from people I didn’t even know I was related to. I introduced my quest with one question:

“Do you remember my Grandma?”

Mostly, the answer was, “A bit. She was sweet. Quiet. Great cook.” But the more questions I asked, the more discoveries I made… including the passionate longing my grandmother always felt for her first husband.

What? A first husband? Before my Grandpa?

One relative recalled, “That’s what she seem to have trouble talking about, just that she loved him a lot . But not much else… like, you knew that the Holocaust had taken a toll. You’d ask her about what it was like, in the old country, and she would make little asides and not even know it? Maybe nothing specific, but you could just tell there was something.”

Between the “I can’t remembers” and “I don’t knows,” the more I asked, the more people seemed to remember about my Grandma’s first husband – the mystery man with no name, photo, or documentation. Another relative revealed, “When they separated the two of them, they were hiding in a tobacco farm. She and her sister were playing outside. Nazis came, and they grabbed her and beat her. Her older brother ran out of the house, and said “Don’t touch my sisters, take me.” First they put him in a jail, and Grandma and Aunt Betty would sneak to the jail, where they saw him tied up in chains, and grandma always felt guilty. Her brother went to the camps and died there, but everyone else in the family survived. Everyone got separated, they were separated for months – it was a miracle they all met back in America. Sad – Hannah [my Grandma] always thought she would die and her husband would live because she always said, he was so strong. Same with her brother.”

Wait, Grandma’s brother died?

“You’ll Never Find Enough Facts”

Every “answer” led to more unresolved questions, which opened more gaps in what I thought I knew. Soon, I was prompted to ask about events, places and people I never had heard about in my entire childhood from a family I thought I knew inside out.

An aunt then warned me as I dared to tread further, “It was kind of an unstated rule when you’re with Holocaust survivors that you don’t go there. and nobody comes out and says it, but it’s true for all of us that are first generation – you just grew up knowing you didn’t go there.”

But I went there.

I went “there,” just to end up in a maze, in search of facts, dates, and places with no “finish line” in sight. Throughout this tireless pursuit, my relatives were sure to constantly remind me that I’d never find enough facts.

“It’s like the telephone game. The story changes the more people you talk to.”

“All you’ll get is memory. No history.”

Re-Thinking Success

But in the end, what was I looking for that was really important to me? History or memory?

What I discovered was an even greater gift than history. I found precious family anecdotes that even my own mother didn’t know. I discovered that every family member had a personal piece of history and in stringing them together, I was creating the family narrative.

I interviewed nieces, nephews, great aunts, uncles, grandparents, distant cousins, and far distant cousins from Belgium, France, Prague, Israel, and San Francisco. I went to research and history archives and uncovered photographs and old documents from my past, including the ship that my grandparents came to America on. I logged hours transcribing tape upon tape and discovered that a word can become a whole world.

Humans claim to love facts, but I think we truly, in our hearts, treasure stories and memories more. What I uncovered were greater truths than I ever could have found in a history book. These words of my family members – many of these words just telling me “I don’t know anything,” opened up an entire world for me.

Part 2 to be published soon...

https://www.amyoes.com

Top 10 Tips for Cold Submission of Scripts to Theatres

Fri, 15 Nov 2019 08:16:16 GMT

Cold Submission Advice from a Literary Intern

My Master’s Degree is in Theatre Arts, but it was my time from 2018-2019 as a literary intern and script reader at San Diego Repertory Theatre that taught me the most about theatres’ script selection processes.

At the REP, I gained key insights into the behind-the-scenes processes that drive season planning and script selection. In this article, I will use this inside knowledge to list a few simple ways playwrights can increase their chances of being noticed by a theatre or literary manager. I will focus on cold submissions: scripts sent to a theatre company that weren’t prompted by an event, call for submissions, or request from the company.

These are submission tips, not writing tips. Some of the tips may seem like common sense, but my time at the literary department proved just how many playwrights did not follow them. If you do, you will automatically have a leg-up on your competition.

HOW NOT TO GET BURIED IN A PILE OF SCRIPTS

The majority of the scripts San Diego REP read each season were requested by the Literary Manager or Artistic Director (a big part of my job was to research and contact literary agents or publishing houses to request scripts that my LM and AD wanted to read). We scouted for scripts by researching recent awards, other theatres’ season lineups, and agency promotions. By the time those scripts landed in a reader’s hands, we already knew such basics as:

● The playwright’s contact information

● The play’s plot

● The play’s genre

● The play’s cast size and demographic

● The play’s production history (if any), and

● The awards or reviews a play had earned (if any).

These plays had an edge because we already knew how they could fit into the next season (ie. if we were planning a season with an emphasis on social class, and might line up Uncle Vanya as a tragedy, A Raisin in the Sun as a drama, Les Miserables as a musical, and search for a comedy/dramedy with similar themes).

This is important to understand, because it informs how you can best distinguish your script submission from a sea of scripts. The following are simple tips on how to keep your script from sinking to the bottom of the pile.

● INCLUDE YOUR CONTACT INFORMATION

This might seem like a no-brainer, but I too often picked up a script that had no return address or confusing contact information. It went to the bottom of the pile, because even if I read and liked the script, there was no guarantee that I would be able to contact the writer to discuss production.

When you submit a script, make sure to include your:

● Full name (legal or stage name)

● Current email address

Consider also including your:

● Phone number

● Short biography

● Professional website

● Resume, awards, reviews, and other references

Remember that an envelope or business card can be damaged in the mail or accidentally thrown away. Including your contact information on the cover of your script is a much safer way to ensure that it doesn’t get lost.

● HAVE A WEBSITE OR ONLINE RESUME

Most script research is done online these days. Having an online presence such as a professional website or an online resume increases your visibility. It can bring you vital exposure.

Even if a script you submit does not fit the theatre’s mission that season, they might visit your website and find another one of your script that does. You might also fit the profile of a demographic the theatre wants to promote; the literary manager won’t know unless they see a biography on your website. The website should, again, include your contact information so the company may get a hold of you easily (see the point above).

● FOLLOW THE THEATRE’S SUBMISSION GUIDELINES

Some theatres have clear submission guidelines. Research whether the theatre has specific rules regarding submission format, length, information, and other requirements.

Regional theatres like San Diego REP sometimes reserve cold submissions exclusively for local artists. This was clearly stated on the company’s website, yet I still received out-of-state scripts from time to time. It did not paint the playwright in a good light, and those submissions went to the bottom of the pile if not eliminated completely.

Respect both the theatre’s time and your own by following the theatre’s submission requirements.

● KNOW THE THEATRE’S PRODUCTION HISTORY AND MISSION

In the same vein as researching submission guidelines, you should understand and familiarize yourself with the theatre’s mission and history.

Every theatre has an explicit or implicit mission statement that informs the type of plays that it selects. For example, San Diego REP explicitly supports Latinx stories and Southern Californian playwrights; if you fit the demographic and/or have a story focusing on Latinx identities and experience, you have a better chance of catching the REP’s attention. If you are submitting a musical, then New Village Arts produces up to three musicals per season as compared to one musical at the REP. MOXIE, on the other hand, calls for submissions exclusively from female-identified playwrights.

Acknowledging a theatre’s mission and history accomplishes three things. First, it shows that you have thought out your partnership with the theatre. Second, it shows that you understand your own work enough to fit it into the larger narrative promoted by a season or a theatre’s culture. Finally, it also allows you to make a better “pitch” to the theatre about why it should pick up your work.

● AN EFFECTIVE BLURB GOES A LONG WAY

A blurb is your “30-second elevator speech” for your script. It is similar to a synopsis but withholds any spoilers and offers production information. An effective blurb should reference:

● The protagonist(s)

● The central theme

● The main conflict/intrigue

● The genre

It should be short and representative of the tone and genre of the play. An example would be the blurb for Famous Last Words by Tom Moran:

George has a strange hobby – he collects people’s last words. He's also got his own picked out, and a chance encounter at a hospital will give him an unexpected chance to use them. (Comedy, 2F, 1M.)

In three sentences, the blurb introduces the protagonist (George), the central theme (last words, death, preparation for death), and the main conflict (an unexpected event at the hospital). It doesn’t give away how the conflict is resolved, but clearly indicates the direction the conflict is headed.

This blurb itself doesn’t reference the genre (although the tone implies it), but the format labels it clearly at the end with information about the cast. The script reader goes in with reasonable expectations and context for the script. When there are dozens of scripts waiting on the desk, scripts with good blurbs float to the top.

● CAST DETAILS AND CHARACTER LIST

I left this for last. It seems like a minute detail, but as a script reader, it could seriously hold me up. This is also the most common problem I encountered with cold submissions. Sometimes I might not be the one to read the script, but I was the one to sort out submissions and log the information into the system. I would delay entering the submission in the system if I had to go through the entire script counting the number of characters, their gender, and race.

As a literary assistant and script reader, I sorted information for executives such as the literary manager, artistic director, and casting director. They look for information such as:

● Cast size

● Gender ratio

● Ethnicity, and

● Age.

Putting a character list at the beginning of the script, including the character’s gender, is a simple but important step in presenting your script. At the very least, you should include the cast size and gender ratio.

CONCLUSION

I hope I have helped shine some light on the script selection process and offered some useful advice. My tips essentially boil down to presentation and getting the information to the right people.

Cold submissions are hard and often feel like shouting into a void. However, it is still a worthwhile endeavor. I’ve remembered playwrights because they sent in new scripts with persistence, and I’ve hold onto scripts that I couldn’t recommend for this season but thought might be good for the future.

Finding a network like the International Centre for Women Playwrights and other communities and advocates for yourself is also a good strategy.

· HAVING AN AGENT HELPS

The biggest benefit of having a literary agent is that it moves you from the cold submission to the solicited script category. At San Diego REP, we made general script requests to agents asking for “new comedy,” “drama with a small cast,” “scripts like so-and-so,” etc. An agent will be an advocate for you when they receive these inquiries. It is also an agent’s job to know which theatre is looking for playwrights and scripts that match your profile and actively sends out recommendations for you.

If an agent is not an option for you, there are other ways to increase exposure. I’ve mentioned the importance of a professional website, online biography and resume. You should also try to optimize search engine results for yourself: leaving breadcrumbs for companies to find you.

· GETTING LISTED ON ONLINE DATABASES

The internet nowadays creates more opportunities for playwrights to showcase themselves. There are two main online databases that I used to look up new scripts at San Diego REP. You do not need an agent in order to join, although you may need to pay a member’s fee:

· New Play Exchange: https://newplayexchange.org/
· Doollee: http://doollee.com/index.php

In the next installment, I will go into more details about these two databases as well as an international organization called the Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of Americas (LMDA). Like the International Centre for Women Playwrights, these organizations create resources and support designed for playwrights, and offer a community to support what is often solitary endeavor.

Eli Chung

Remember Your Beginnings

Jenni Munday — Fri, 08 Nov 2019 05:21:45 GMT

My First Time from Page to Stage by Associate DGA Member Sharon Baker, Travel Journalist, Artist, and Emerging Playwright--Bluffton, South Carolina

For twenty years, I was a fearless selfish Jaguar, prowling Planet Earth. On assignment with HarperCollins, Birnbaum, and Fodor’s travel guides, I wrote books on Seoul, Chicago, Florida, Santa Fe, and Grand Cayman.

I also crafted first person travel essays about terrifying experiences: kayaking with ten-ton orca killer whales, swimming with giant whale sharks, and getting face to face with ferocious wild polar bears. I scaled snow-covered mountains, collapsing with altitude sickness. I swam in Hudson Bay Canada with beluga whales and almost drowned. In Trinidad, I nearly stepped on a fer-de-lance, a poisonous snake. The more scared I got, the better the travel tale. My editors were thrilled. I won travel-writing awards for being crazy. I was ridiculously happy.

You know what’s coming next, right? Happiness screeched to a halt.

My husband and business partner, filmmaker/ photographer Warren Lieb, was stricken with cancer, Parkinson’s, and incontinence. Our life changed from enthralling adventures to life threatening procedures, surgeries, and emergency room visits.

I resigned from my newspaper and magazine contracts, staying home to Nurse my Beloved. Warren declined, transforming from a courageous handsome “Indiana Jones,” to a desiccated old man stuck in a wheelchair.

One morning he tenderly smiled, then said “I will always adore you Sharon, my Love.” Gently, slowly, he exhaled his last breath. Watching his soul floating upward out of his disease ravaged body, I cried: “Goodbye my Love. Please don’t leave me alone.”

Travel inspires plays, paintings and articles. Google “Jungle Eyes” to read Sharon Baker’s new adventure essay on how Costa Rica changed her life.

All of us who have mourned beloveds, know the Terror of being Alone.

Curled up in bed for weeks, I succumbed to lethargy, ambivalence, and self-pity. Why eat? Why bathe? Why do anything? One rainy afternoon, I had this Dream:

“Why should I stay alive?” I asked no one.

“Why should you die?” a gentle energy replied. “Don’t you realize more is coming?”

“More what?”

“Everything you need and desire is within you.

Don’t you believe me?”

“ Absolutely not.”

I woke up. I hate touchy feely Spirit Guides stalking me.

I called four girlfriends for help.

“Ya gotta help me. I’m so screwed up, Spirit Guides are telling me to think positive,” I complained.

But I got out of bed, ready to reclaim my Jaguar self.

Sharon writes plays about endangered wildlife. Her Polar Bear painting is titled “Looking for Ice”.

Shortly after that dream, I started getting myself together. Friends buffed and fluffed me, and one posted me on dating sites. I endured a few awful dates and gave up.

But one handsome man from a nearby town courted me by email, phone, and finally, an in person date. We both loved theater, music, movies, food, travel, and laughter. Who was this rainbow guy? Kenny Baker, a retired businessman, passionate about golf and living joyfully. “I’ve been looking for you for 12 years,” he smiled. I moved to his vibrant town, Bluffton, South Carolina, met new gal pals, and gave thanks for my blessings. We were married a year later, in a joyous celebration.

So happy. And yet restless. I tried mahjong. Tried tennis. Listened to other senior women wax ecstatic about their grandchildren. I wandered through Publix, Target, and the Library.

I missed my globetrotting life. Yet the 24/7 merry-go-round schedule of a travel journalist was more for an energetic workaholic in her 40’s and 50’s, than me at 65. Was there anything left for me to accomplish?

Missy Gentile, an astonishing Artist and wise Art teacher got my creativity flowing again. “Throw paint on your canvas, Sharon. Don’t be afraid to mess up. The only rule: there are no rules.” So, like a blissful kindergartner, I created whimsical colorful paintings of, you guessed it: Polar bears, whale sharks, coral reefs, and mountains. Dozens of paintings and two gallery shows later, I could feel the ferocity and fearlessness of my old Jaguar self.

During art classes with Missy, I realized my life as a travel journalist is a cornucopia of stage worthy stories.

In addition to plays, Sharon Baker creates whimsical nature paintings. Title: My Beloved Seahorse.

Remembering my life changing experience at the Dalai Lama’s Palace in Lhasa, Tibet, I wrote a one act play: “Birthday Party at the Dalai Lama’s Palace.” About ambition, confusion, and unexpected blessings at the world’s coolest palace. Sort of Monty Python meets the Wizard of Oz….

The two leads ask: Does my life matter? Will I ever see my dead family/friends again? This play enabled me to become an Associate Member of DGA and I’m following all the incredible opportunities we members are offered.

I wrote a ten-minute play, “Love and Death in Eden, Australia.” A strange tale from a visit to Eden, Australia: about orca killer whales rounding up humpback whales, and delivering them to humans who harpoon them to death. The play is about murder, passion, and a woman’s discovery of her bizarre identity.

Eden Australia, the setting for my bizarre comedy, “Love and Death in Eden Australia “.

On Monday July 28, my dream of becoming a first time Playwright came true. Sitting in the audience at the Aventura Arts and Cultural Center in Aventura Florida, I was thrilled and terrified. My ten minute play was about to go from page to stage as part of “Stages of the Sun,” an evening of 8 new innovative short plays, presented by The South Florida Theatre League.

My play, “Love and Death in Eden Australia “ was presented in Miami Florida. Near the theater, I met another inspirational writer. Keep writing he said!

As a DG Associate Member, I’m grateful for all the support and mentoring on this new journey. I’m 65 years young, still a glorious Jaguar.

Sharon Baker is a new Associate member of The Dramatist’s Guild of America and The Playwright’s Center, Minneapolis.

Google her travel essays, under Sharon Spence Lieb.

Contact: sharonspencelieb@gmail.com

SMALL ACTS OF KINDNESS

Jenni Munday — Wed, 23 Oct 2019 04:18:32 GMT

By ICWP lurker, Bara Swain

This is my favorite photo. It was taken on my balcony overlooking the East Village on a hot August afternoon in 2012. I'd just returned home from the hospital after ten days in the Neurology Unit. The brain bleed didn't kill me. One aneurysm was coiled. I fell in love with several doctors. My family and friends stayed by my side. They dazzled me. They showered me with gifts and small acts of kindness: a Scrabble game, a new nightgown, coffee with half & half, warm socks, an i-Pad. Oh, I was happy to be home. My survival made me feel ... radiant!

Even before my sister posted "Diary of a Stroke" on Facebook, illness informed my writing. Several months after exchanging wedding vows at City Hall, my husband was disabled by an aortic aneurysm. When John died in 1995, our daughter was eight years old. Jessie and I learned a valuable lesson: You can mourn and still experience joy.

https://qz.com/986054/sheryl-sandbergs-experience-of-grief-in-option-b-looks-nothing-like-my-own/

Today, many things give me joy. Babysitting for granddaughters Tallulah John and Ellery Connor tops the list. I serve as the Creative Consultant at an Off-Broadway theatre, expanding opportunities for theatre artists through an initiative, "Urban Stages New Pages." I’m a member of several theatre companies (Articulate, T.A.R.T.E., and FAB @ Barrow Group), and a spanking new member of the 44-year old American Renaissance Theatre Company.

Daily, I walk 10,000 steps (often with my dog; sometimes with my oldest sister). I eagerly open my email for good news and bad news. I celebrate my playwriting successes with a pint of ice-cream or any menu that includes bacon, and I use my rejections to work harder at my craft.

https://urbanstages.org/urbanstagesnewpages/

Monthly, I attend collegial and professional playwriting groups, fiddle with my website, and update my resume. Actually, I have two of them. One resume is for public use; the other is color-coded by year. It's called "Since I Had Brain Surgery." Since my life-threatening illness in August 2012 to date, I've had 21 publications, 69 productions, 41 readings, and 51 honors/awards. Five films were shown in NYC, several Florida venues, and Ireland; three webisodes just wrapped shooting in LA. I produced nine short play series at Urban Stages; co-produced nine one-act and ten-minute play festivals at Abingdon Theatre; and facilitated the "Pencils Down: FAB's Monologue Mania Workshop" and reading at The Barrow Group. I also directed eleven short plays (Abingdon, Artistic New Directions, Urban Stages). I am fiercely proud of these accomplishments.

Weekly, I browse through the Playwright Forum listings, the Official Playwrights of Facebook blog, the DG Regional Digest, Go Fund Me requests, and the ICWP connect list and eblasts. The latter caught my eye. Without hesitation, I donated to ICWP’s new Development Fund to help provide women playwrights with opportunities for women around the world.

http://patricialmorin.com/development-fund-for-icwp/

In fact, this New Yorker was the recipient of a SWAN Day grant from ICWP in 2009 for my work with recovering drug addicts at Women-in-Need. The weekly workshop, “Communicate Sober,” was co-taught by Jan Buttram, former AD at Abingdon Theatre Company. While we’d planned to teach the playwriting course for ten weeks, we offered the weekly class for an entire year, until the outreach site closed and moved to Harlem. The ICWP SWAN Day grant enabled us to present a reading of our work, performed by professional actors at an Off-Broadway theatre. Subsequently, we received an Honorable Mention for our collaborative work by the NY Coalition of Professional Women in the Arts & Media in Jan. 2011 and a Poets & Writers Grant Teaching Artist grant. Our program was also featured in a Care Management Journal (Springer Publishing), entitled "Who Said 75 is Old?" However, my proudest moment was when two of our students passed their GEDs (high school equivalency test), and received honors in their writing! It was a humbling experience.

In addition to this integral funding, ICWP has also promoted my personal work: "Raison d'etra" in Mother/Daughter Monologues, JAC Publications (2009); "Unconditionally" in Diverse Scenes for Actors, JAC Publications (2013); and Honorable Mention for "Planned Obsolescence" in the 3-Minute ICWP 3-minute contest (2018) I completed the play and had a production in January 2019.

https://www.womenplaywrights.org/monologues-for-women-from-plays

In summary: Over the years, my life has been enriched by small acts of kindness. And while I’ll never look like this seven-year old photo again, I want to FEEL like it as often as possible. So here’s the bottom line: If you haven’t done so already, please consider donating to ICWP’s Development Fund. This small act of kindness can support and enhance more than one playwright’s life – possibly an entire community! Just … consider it.

Bara swain, Playwright

Bara Swain's plays and monologues have been performed across the country in more than 120 venues in 25 states and abroad. NYC theatres include The Barrow Group, Urban Stages, Abingdon Theatre, Articulate Theatre Company, Athena Theatre, Sam French OOB Festival, Artistic New Directions, Project Y Theatre, Symphony Space, Players Theatre, Rising Sun, Ego Actus, Kaufmann Theatre, Gallery Players, Turnip Theatre, NY Madness, Stage Left, Polaris North, T.A.R.T.E., Aching Dogs, and Greenhouse Ensemble. Other venues include NJ Repertory, TheatreWorks (TN), Lyric Theatre (FL), New American Theatre and Open Fist (CA), Old Opera House (WV), Potluck Productions (MO), OnStage Atlanta (GA), and Short+Sweet Festivals (Hollywood, Canberra, Sydney, Dubai).

http://www.baraswain.com/

Feedback Thoughts

Jenni Munday — Sun, 15 Sep 2019 06:17:24 GMT

By Hanna Akerfelt

I’ve been thinking about feedback lately. About the fact that there are a lot of different feedback situations and constellations. We’re all very different, both as givers and receivers of feedback. I’ve been given some tips about different feedback models and as soon as I have the time I’m going to read about them. However, at the moment I find that I need to sort out my own thoughts on the subject. So that’s what I’m doing here. All of this is about theatre and playwriting. That’s the context.

Feedback can come at different points on the writing process:

A. While you are writing, but before there’s a production.

B. During the production process, so during the planning stage or during rehearsals.

C. After the run of the play is over. This might include the run itself. I’m having trouble placing that part of the process at the moment.

At all these different points the premise and the reception of feedback are different. That’s what I’d like to write about now, but I realise that I haven’t really thought this through yet:

Feedback can happen between two people, one-on-one, or in a group.

D. One-on-one with someone who isn’t directly involved in a production of the play.

E. One-on-one with someone who is directly involved in the production of the play, like the director.

F. In a group of people who aren’t directly involved in a production of the play, like a writers’ group.

G. In a group of people who are directly involved in a production of the play, like the ensemble who are going to perform it.

The relationship between the person, or persons, giving the feedback and the text matters. If it’s a designated feedback talk or a casual conversation.

Yet another aspect of this is on the basis of what feedback is given:

H. A completed full draft of the play.

I. Parts of the play (which might not be written in full yet).

J. The playwright’s presentation of the play, or their idea for the play.

This is important too. Important because it represents different phases of the writing process.

So, this are my thoughts at the moment. I’ll keep thinking about them. At times like these I notice that I find it easier to think if there’s some sort of framework for me to think in, or through.

If there is already somebody else out there that have thoughts about these things and written a brilliant article, or dissertation or book – please tell me! I want to read them!

Hanna is a playwright, translator and dramaturg living and working in Swedish in Finland. Current projects include an opera libretto based on a children's book, a series for radio and a stage play.

Hanna has two websites:
http://hannaheartfelt.blogspot.fi/
Website 2
https://pjasbanken.labbet.fi/pjasbanken/view_author-126677-5

HOW NOT TO WRITE A PLAY ABOUT YOUR LIFE: A PLAYWRIGHT’S JOURNEY BACK TO HER PAST AND LITTLE WOMEN by June Guralnick

Fri, 06 Sep 2019 23:28:45 GMT

I write to run away from myself. Perhaps some of you do as well. A flag-waving member of the “Writers’ Escape Club,” I’ve pledged life-long allegiance to characters and events far away from my own life and time.

In the saddle of doppelgangers (riding through my fourteen plays), I’m a shrewd prospector bilking miners in the California Gold Rush (In Gold We Trust); a star-struck ‘linthead’ (cotton mill worker) dreaming of escape while caught in a tragic 1929 labor uprising (Finding Clara); a stoic German immigrant challenging 1800s sexist mores to become a lighthouse keeper (Women of the Light); and a deeply religious American female soldier returning home from the Iraq War, making unfathomable choices after losing faith and family (Across the Holy Tell).

It’s a well-worn trope that writers put themselves into their work. I’ve forcibly locked the door behind me when I write, taking refuge in a towering paper parapet to map the echoes of distant stories below.

It’s why I’ve never managed to keep a diary (Lord knows I’ve tried). Cowering in my office corner is a carton stuffed with notebooks – a few feverish paragraphs in each book, penned in valiant, yet aborted attempts. Late at night, the orphaned pages taunt: “Coward, coward!” disgusted by my failure to soldier on.

After my mother died, something shifted inside me. I had, till then, excused my avoidance out of a desire to shield her from hurt. But this false narrative has been a frail veil hiding my inability to process the painful dynamics of my family life – and the fear (irrational or not) that excavation of this embittered battlefield would catapult me into lifelong depression.

It would be comforting to believe that bravery has propelled me to undertake, finally, this herculean task. But the truth can more honestly be found gasping for air in a river of rage flooding the banks of my pen.

The past year I’ve been digging channels inside my play’s cave. Exploratory tools include yellowing family photographs, food-stained letters, saved emails, frayed birthday cards, crumbling birth certificates and stained medical records. This Pompeian avalanche has left me suffocated and overwhelmed. Trying to forge a path through the chaos, I rolled out a 25-foot roll of brown paper to chart my family’s timeline, taping my relics to the mud-colored papyrus in search of order and clarity.

It didn’t help.

Sardonically, my Muse chose to arrive not via trumpeted fanfare or a bright beam of light. Rather, she blew in on a cold, rainy night as I sat in a theatre watching a cloying adaptation of Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women. My most beloved book as a child - perhaps Little Women was yours too? - what young girl has not been breast fed on Alcott’s fantasy of a loving mother and four sisters triumphantly surviving hardships and even death? And what girl wanting to become a writer has not imagined she is Josephine March?

Anger can be liberating. I vividly remember the day – I was fifteen – when we parted ways. Surviving a particularly harrowing family wrestling match, I sought safety in my room – only to be confronted by Louisa’s tale mocking me. “Fucking, fucking lies!” I screamed at the cruel pages. It would be forty plus years before I would seek solace again in her story.

Leaving the theatre that evening after seeing Little Women, a tsunami of emotions coursed through my veins. When the storm subsided, floating to the surface were bits and pieces of my new play, and by the time I returned home, I knew I would write a radical retelling of Little Women, using the Alcott book as a frame to tell the very real, turbulent story of my tribe of women - my mother and sisters.

The irony – that to write about my life, I had to return, at least on some level, to fiction as a source of inspiration – I’ve found perversely gratifying, given my year-long struggle battling ghosts in the Trenches of Truth.

Also ironic - my discovery that Louisa May Alcott had no interest initially in writing Little Women and penned the books primarily for the cash. Her writing passions – which were varied and radical for her time – lay elsewhere.

If all writers are like Icarus, fated to fly into the light,then it has always been destined that a young girl, seeking refuge from her family’s raging storm, would grow up to one day write a play about her life.

So. Yes. I am Jo in my new play. And my play is called Little .

----------------

Epilogue: June's new drama recently received an unstaged reading and she has been awarded two artist residencies in the fall to continue her journey writing about her life. An apparition of Louisa May Alcott plays a prominent role in June's new work :) .

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

June Guralnick has created plays, performance projects, and large-scale community cultural projects for four decades. Her works have been performed throughout the U.S. – and beamed to the Space Station! Awards include the Silver Medal-Pinter Drama Review Prize, Second Place-Judith Royer Award for Playwriting Excellence, North Carolina Arts Council Literature Fellowship, Southern Appalachian Repertory New Plays winner, Virginia Center for the Creative Arts Writing Fellows, Hambidge Center for the Arts Writer-in-Residence, and Sewanee Writers’ Conference Tennessee Williams Scholar (University of the South). For more info, visit https://juneguralnick.com/ and see a YouTube clip at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NPEScKwkL4o&feature=youtu.be

#juneguralnick #guralnick #icwp #womenplaywrights #womeninTheatre #theater #womeninTheater

Creative Collaboration as a Radical Act: Illuminated Dresses

Jenni Munday — Thu, 29 Aug 2019 04:43:09 GMT

by Debra Kaufman

I will use the Illuminated Dresses project that I produced as an example of creative collaboration, and will draw on some other experiences I've had along the way, to illustrate why I consider collaborating a radical act.

I've been involved in creative collaborations for decades. These include modern dance and poetry, fiber arts and poetry, co-designing and facilitating writing workshops, co-managing a division of a university press, directing and producing plays, and being a member of writing groups. I've also served on committees and boards of directors, which can be opportunities for collaboration, if the desire and willingness are there. Most of these collaborations I consider successes, despite the inevitable human failings and I have learned from every one.

My current collaborative project and the biggest production I have undertaken is Illuminated Dresses, which is written, directed, produced, and acted by women. There are fourteen short monologues on the theme of a transformation while putting on a dress or other garment, and collectively they explore life, clothing, and identity. It opens Oct. 25, 2019, in Raleigh, N.C. https://m.facebook.com/Illuminated-Dresses-294778108065059

I call creative collaboration a radical act because when we collaborate with open minds, we are upsetting the patriarchal paradigm of hierarchical decision making, the boss-man and the workers. My most successful collaborations have been with women. I have found women more willing to take personal/emotional risks, listen closely to others, question our own egos and motives, and not insist on our p.o.v. above all others.

Certainly women can fall into the same ego traps as men. We still don't have an abundance of models for positive female leadership. We might bend over backwards to accommodate, be more conflict-averse, tone-check or moderate our comments, or, conversely, employ the tactics of what the poet Adrienne Rich called “power over” to prove our place at the table. When we collaborate, we are going against the culturally entrenched model, where the one with the most power or who talks the most or loudest directs the actions of others. Most women are familiar with the labels: assertive, you are a bitch; insistent, you are shrill; contemplative, you can be walked over.

The patriarchal structure also tends to favor extroverts. The faster-paced our world, the more expedient the work. No time to ponder, get to it. Collaboration is the opposite of that. It often is more like slow cooking than stir fry, but that does not mean that we are endlessly processing, wheel-spinning—the stereotype used to denigrate a more thoughtful approach. Too much wheel-spinning usually is due to losing sight of the vision, poor communication, difficult personalities, or lack of stepping up. Collaboration may take more time but the end result is more fulfilling because those involved feel listened to, respected, and are an integral part of the overall vision, rather than being “assigned” a task or staying silent.

Major ingredients in a successful collaboration are 1) a clear and compelling vision, 2) good communication, 3) personal integrity in word and deed, and creating a safe space.

1. Vision. The project has a clear vision/mission. Are you all creating a vision together or does one person have a vision who is enlisting help in shaping it and making it a reality? Everyone involved should buy into that vision, and collectively stay focused as it lives and breathes and morphs with one another’s input.

2. Clear and prompt communication. Know who is in charge of what. Assume best intentions rather than ill intent. Set aside your ego. Say what you think but don't be entrenched; allow yourself to be challenged, surprised. Listen closely. Respect and give space for personalities—an introvert and an extrovert process differently at a different rate. Follow through on what you agreed to do, and communicate accordingly. Have good boundaries. Be flexible—shit happens. Someone's family member will get ill or die, someone will go through a divorce, etc., but don’t go silent.

3. Personal integrity. These qualities work well: Generosity. Curiosity rather than reaction. Mindfulness. Do not coerce, even if you really want something done a certain way. Breathe, take five. Forgiveness. If someone is not holding up her commitment, find out why and see if she wants or needs to continue to be part of the project. Curb the storytelling in a work session, save it for drinks afterward.

This is a good time to talk about council, as described in The Way of Council by Jack Zimmerman and Gigi Coyle. It is an ancient process that allows everyone to have a voice and be listened to, which encourages creative thinking and problem solving. In the council process, the opportunity to speak is given one at a time to all. Members speak only when it is their turn and are encouraged to listen intently without comment while others are speaking. Any member can keep silent or pass when their turn comes. A facilitator is charged with maintaining the boundaries of the circle to protect the process.

Council uses four simple intentions:

1. Speak from the heart, not only with your head. Use your feelings as honestly as you can trust in the moment.

2. Listen from the heart, with an open mind, without judgment.

3. When it is your turn, speak spontaneously rather than planning ahead what you are going to say. This allows you to truly listen to others, not be distracted by your own thoughts.

4. Be lean of speech. Use only the words necessary to get your point across.

It sounds simple, but how often are council guidelines used, even in a modified way? More often we talk impatiently, strive to get our opinion across (sometimes insistently), talk over one another—or, if we are introverts, stay silent, waiting for an opening. Although council has been around for centuries, it is still radical in that it subverts the dominant paradigm.

Just as a successful play is 95% good casting, a successful collaboration is 95% good partners. You want people who want to be there and who will do what is agreed upon. Some personalities are exciting and creative but hard to work with in a sustained way. Know your own temperament. Ask people you trust for recommendations. It is hard enough to get a project off the ground with good intentions and good chemistry; you do not need any toxic personalities or flakes that can derail the work.

This is not to say throw away the organizational chart, that there is no hierarchy. One of the good things about producing a play is having clear roles that have been understood historically. Playwright, producer, director, stage manager, lighting designer, actors, publicist. Even so, personality issues can blur or trammel boundaries and make the project a real pain (e.g., a playwright interfering with a director, an actor who is chronically late, a publicist who does not communicate in a timely way). Each of these roles is a piece of the whole and moves the project forward. Good collaboration is a kind of dance—know who is leading whom and when, know whether it is a pas de deux, a square dance, or an improvisational free-form movement.

So, now, to the Illuminated Dresses. I’ve long been disturbed by the lack of productions by women in the theater. Only about 30% of productions in the US and the UK are by women. Besides writing plays that are predominately women-centered and working with other women playwrights, I wanted to do my small part in remedying this. When the Women’s Theatre Festival (WTF) came into being a few years ago, I wanted to be part of it. I contributed some plays to their summer festivals. Around that same time I saw a graphic by Tim Walker of dresses hanging in a tree, and I thought immediately that it would be a terrific theater set. It had magic in it. Yet I couldn’t decide what exactly the play would be. Three playwright friends and I tried to cowrite a play that sprang from this image but we couldn’t make it work.

https://www.newyorker.com/culture/photo-booth/frames-from-fiction-tim-walkers-fantasies

After spinning out various scenarios, I decided that rather than writing a full-length play, I would see if other women playwrights were interested in doing short pieces on a dress-related theme. Because I see theater as an opportunity for community building and collaboration, and because I wanted diverse voices represented, I asked playwrights I know and also put out a call for monologues on social media to reach others: It read: “We are seeking monologues about a transformation while putting on (or taking off) a dress. (“Dress” can be a uniform, costume, smock, etc.) This experience could be connected to a ritual, magic, an awakening, an everyday epiphany. A few questions to consider: Why this dress? Why now? What does the person want to do in or to the dress? Are there regrets? Expectations? What doors might open or close?”

But before doing the call, I needed to have a goal as to what would happen with the pieces—otherwise, why would anyone submit to me? I contacted the Women's Theatre Festival to see about doing a staged reading as part of the summer festival, and they were enthusiastic. I sent out the call, mostly through social media, seeking out groups such as LGBTQ Writers, the National Association of Black Storytellers, writers with disabilities, veterans, writers meet-ups, etc. (I didn’t know about ICWP then, regrettably!) I received over seventy submissions, and I was pleased with the variety of voices and situations. I had the challenging task of choosing fourteen.

We hear from an executive constrained in a suit, a black woman surrounded by white dresses, a Girl Scout whose family couldn't afford the uniform, a trans woman recalling a pivotal moment in her youth, a mother persuading her daughter to wear a sacred garment, a waitress instructing a newbie, and many more. The characters range in class, age, ethnicity, and gender identity, and the pieces explore various moods and experiences.

Next was to find a director for the staged reading. My first choice was Lori Mahl. I'd been in a group with her and admired her insights and fearlessness as an actor and director. We talked and emailed back and forth to get clear on our expectations of one another. Not just our producer/director roles, but the role of the playwrights, many of whom would attend the reading.

https://burningcoal.org/the-ideal-speaker/lori-mahl-2/

Because the main purpose of doing these monologues for the first time was to benefit the playwrights, Lori had the idea of doing the monologues in a process-oriented way rather than a straight-ahead staged reading. That is, the first several monologues would be read as if she were directing a first rehearsal. That meant stopping the actress at times, inquiring as to what was happening in the moment, what her motivation was, etc. (The rest of the monologues were read as a staged reading.) In rehearsal the actresses all had agreed enthusiastically to this approach, which meant they would be extremely vulnerable. The audience were to be silent observers, flies on the wall. It was a charged, honest presentation, which the audience felt part of, due to its intimacy. It felt like we all were holding sacred space. The playwrights saw new things in their scripts or noted where they’d like to make changes based on the acting and directing.

So regarding my list of what makes a successful collaboration, this hit all the notes.

We are now in full production mode—we open October 25, 2019—with even more collaboration needed among members of the creative team. Again, everyone understanding the vision and adding her own expertise to it and communicating effectively is crucial to the play’s success. I recognized that as producer I would need excellent partners, so in addition to the creative team, I reached out to OdysseyStage to help with marketing, fundraising, and other related tasks.

Collaboration, with all its challenges, can be rewarding and even illuminating. I do believe to collaborate is to work together in a radical way to create something new, and that it is greater than the sum of its parts. Diverse voices, new ideas, challenging interactions, a project bigger than one’s own perspective, a rich and multi-layered vision, a way to be with others in a shared purpose. It is a useful practice to challenge our own assumptions and open ourselves to other ideas of race, gender, age, class, not just for artistic projects, but in our everyday exchanges, enriching our work, family, and play lives.

Illuminated Dresses runs from Oct. 25 through Nov. 3, 2019, at Burning Coal Theater in Raleigh, NC. See https://m.facebook.com/Illuminated-Dresses-294778108065059 for more information.

Poet and playwright Debra Kaufman has written over three dozen short and four full-length plays. She produced her play Harbor Hope in 2015 and is producing Illuminated Dresses, a collaborative monologues project, in the fall of 2019. The author of three full-length poetry collections and three chapbooks, she received a North Carolina Arts Council playwriting scholarship and two grants from the Central Piedmont Regional Artists Hub Program. www.debrakaufman.info

How to Marie Kondo your writing

Jenni Munday — Fri, 16 Aug 2019 08:05:49 GMT

by Mary-Terese Cozzola

We could have saved sixpence. We have saved fivepence. (Pause) But at what cost?

—Samuel Beckett, All That Fall

What happens when you lay your playwriting out on the bed, hanger upon hanger, sweater upon mismatched sock of complete play drafts, half-written monologs, title ideas, snatches of dialog? What happens if you hold and thank each item, let go of the ones that don’t bring you joy, and store the rest in a way that truly serves you going forward?

To tidy a home, Marie Kondo works a category at a time: clothing, books, etc. So if you’re up for this adventure, start by identifying the big categories that make up your playwriting. For me, it’s Digital and Paper.

Day 1. Digital.

Step 1. Lay out your digital writing on the bed.

To do this, I opened my local drive and my Dropbox folder to display as much of my writing as I could on my big iMac screen. What a mess—a motley assortment inconsistently named files, some placed in folders, others not. When I’m actually looking for a file, I usually search on a text string because browsing through all these windows succeeds only in making me feel like a loser for having so many versions of so many files.

A challenging thing about digital writing is that often there isn’t one final, unchangeable version of a piece. Even if a play has been produced, you might continue to tinker with it, thereby creating new versions of the file. And even if you have a “perfect” draft, what about all the previous ones? Part of me wants to delete them, so that I have just one file per play or story. If some scene or line got cut along the way, I probably don’t need it, right?

But then I remember my first playwriting teacher, the late Fred Gaines, saying that at a certain point you should go back to the first draft of a piece, to reengage with your original idea, before you “perfected” it. That’s one of the most useful pieces of writing advice I’ve ever heard. As you change and grow as a writer, you might come back to an early draft and see it differently, a process that could take you in a different, more exciting direction.

Then again, you don’t need to keep every single version. Sometimes that feels too heavy. Argh, how to decide? Luckily, we have a plan that supports making the keep-or-toss decision quickly and decisively.

Step 2. Create a beautiful storage cabinet.

This is one main folder that will hold your biggest category of playwriting. I’ve created a folder called Writing. I created it in my main Dropbox folder so it’s accessible from everywhere. I also created separate main folders for Teaching and Plays from Others, because those are important aspects of playwriting, but I don’t want to confuse them with my writing, which deserves its own beautiful cabinet.

We’ll build shelves for this cabinet in a minute. First, we need to make it easy to toss what we don’t want.

Step 3. Create a Compost bin.

This is a folder named zzzCompost (the zzz keeps it at the bottom of the folder list). This is where you toss files that don’t bring you joy, but it’s better than your computer’s trash bin.

In a month or a year, you can open zzzCompost and pull something that sparks your interest (watch out for worms), or you can make permanent deletions. For now, it allows you to remove files and folders with abandon. One of the perks of digital writing is that it doesn’t take up much space, so you can afford a nice big zzzCompost bin.

Step 4. Create another bin for ideas you haven’t written yet.

I called this zzUnassigned so it sits just above the Compost bin. This is for ideas and web links and anything else that’s interesting but hasn’t found a home yet. I like the name Unassigned because it makes those ideas feel important. They are wanted and valuable, they just haven’t been given a mission yet.

Step 5. Create a limited number of shelves in your cabinet.

Each shelf is a subfolder for one type of creative writing. I experimented a lot here. First I tried detailed subfolders like 10-Minute Plays, Full-length Plays, Stories for Performing, Stories for Reading. But this gave me too many shelves. So I ended up with something much simpler: one folder for each medium, like Plays, plus my two bins.

Step 6. Hold each document...

In your mind’s eye. Thank and release the ones that don’t bring you joy. Remember you’re just moving them to the zzzCompost folder, so this doesn’t need to take forever.

Step 7. For each piece you keep, create a folder on a shelf, and place all drafts of that piece in it.

From all 57 drafts of your novel to one draft of a one-minute play, each piece gets a folder. Otherwise, files get crumpled in dark corners instead of standing up in neat vertical folds. A folder also gives you a great place to put notes, research, and anything else related to the writing of this piece.

If you’re not already using a consistent file-naming system, now is a great time to start. I’ve started naming my files Title_of_piece.dd.mm.yy—for example, Bolshoi Bathtub.091619. If the piece is a related document, reflect that as well—eg, Bolshoi Bathtub.cut scenes.091619. I’m not going back and renaming everything, but going forward this makes the contents of each folder easier to survey.

If you come across a file that’s not truly part of your playwriting process, like a lecture on dialog or a quote you love, plop it into a separate main folder and deal with it later. Maybe set a different date for Marie Kondo-ing your teaching.

Day 2. Paper.

Once you tidy your digital writing, it’s time to move to the physical stuff. For me that’s an overwhelming number of binders, loose papers, dozens of diaries, countless blank books friends have given me “to write in” that are too pretty to actually write in, loose notes, playbills, newspaper clippings, and more. Most of it is crammed into a grim oak bookcase in my office, jammed into a filing cabinet, and stacked at the back of my desk.

Step 1. Pile everything on the bed.

Or, in my case, on the floor. At first, I resisted this step, because a few years ago I created a binder for every full-length play I wrote, every class I taught, and every category of shorter writing. Old drafts, notes, contact sheets, programs, feedback, everything was filed into these binders. I spent countless hours making tabs for different kinds of writing exercises. I bought document sleeves to put programs and cast notes in. I labelled each binder on the spine.

I was really proud of these binders. I didn’t want them on my floor. I wanted to cheat this step and extract one item at a time because my floor is not that big and I need it for yoga. But as soon as I dropped the first notebook, I realized two things:

Binders have no touch appeal. In their plastic-i-ness and random colors and Sharpied spine labels, they don’t shout, “creative synergy!” but instead mutter, “windowless computer lab.”
I almost never use them. When I need something, 99% of the time I pull up the most recent digital draft instead.

But I’d put so much work into hole-punching and Sharpie-ing. Was it all for nothing? And what about all the journals and notes that have no digital equivalent?

Step 2. Sit down with an expert.

For advice, I turned to writer and producer Jill Howe, who has been posting beautiful photos on Facebook of her tidying process all year. Over corncakes, Jill confided, “Before, with storytelling I did everything on paper. And I would keep every draft, so I’d have like 20 drafts of a story. I mean, it was kind of fun in the beginning, like, ‘Look at all the work I’m doing!’ But if you’ve told a story now and then you tell it again in two months, you look back and go, ‘I ended the story like that? What the eff was I thinking?’ So now, when I do a piece for a show, I have the final draft, and that’s really the only paper I keep. I don’t need the 20 drafts that got me to that point.”

Jill admitted that there’s the stuff that’s easy to toss, the stuff that’s easy to keep—and then there’s everything in between. Luckily, she also had a solution for this, the largest category in most of our lives.

Step 3. Get some apps. Or not.

Jill uses the notes-app-on-steroids Evernote and Evernote’s free Scannable app to digitize and organize all the in-between stuff. “The app takes a picture, immediately crops it to the frame, and turns it into a high-quality image,” she explained. “You can make folders in your Evernote for all the different categories, and scan directly to those.”

If you already use Dropbox, like I do, it includes a built-in scanning feature that I’d never noticed until Jill showed it to me. Just click that plus sign icon on the phone app and start scanning.

Jill also has a WiFi scanner that she keeps on her desk, along with a tray for day-to-day stuff like bills and receipts. “When the pile gets deep, I pull out the scanner,” she said. She recommends the Doxie, which runs about $200, handles multi-page documents pretty well and promises to sync easily with all major cloud services including Evernote and Dropbox.

Step 4. Hold each document…

Once you’re set up with a scanner or two, you’re ready to:

Pick up a notebook or stapled pile of something.
Turn each page.
Decide whether to keep the whole thing, toss the whole thing, scan selected pages, or scan all the pages.
Put the binder in a donation bin.
Thank and then trash every page you can possibly live without.
Trash sacred words? Like, in an undignified recycle bin?

Step 5. Have a bonfire.

About that whole written-words-are-sacred thing I was feeling? Jill’s been there, too. “I’ve been carrying around journals since I was in college,” she told me, “you know, repressive, horrible poetry. And you know, that whole corny thing about, does it spark joy? It just reminded me of things I didn’t want to remember. So I asked a friend, ‘hey, can we build a fire in your backyard?’”

So instead of tossing my outgrown scribblings in the recycle bin, I’m collecting them for a bonfire, first day it’s warm enough to sit outside around the fire pit and toast some marshmallows.

Step 6. Stay motivated.

Jill advises taking before and after pictures to remind you of why you’re doing this, and to help fine-tune your work. “There’s something about taking pictures,” she said. “I would declutter a space, take a picture of it, and—I couldn’t see this in real life, but when I’d look at the picture I’d say, ‘that’s still too much.’ And I’d go back and get rid of more.”

Warning that if you do pile everything on the floor, you may kick yourself or curse this post. Going through everything will probably take longer than you planned and the mess may haunt you. But that’s exactly why the pile is brilliant. You’ll be extra-motivated to move quickly so you can get what you want: a beautiful, uncluttered space to write in, and a digitized library of documents, journal entries, and notes you can access from anywhere without ever having to dust.

MT’s plays have been produced by Piven Theatre, The Side Project, Chicago Dramatists, The Fine Print Theatre, Working Women's History Project, and elsewhere. She has received awards from the Illinois Arts Council and Heartland Theatre, and residencies at The Ragdale Foundation, Playa, and Hawthornden Castle. MT has taught playwriting and story development at Carthage College, The Second City Training Center, and in private workshops. Her dramatic writing has been published by Applause Books, Hippocampus Magazine, Crawdad Literary Journal, and Original Works. She lives in Chicago, and is represented by the Robert A. Freedman Dramatic Agency. https://mtcozzola.com/

What? More Submission advice? Notes from the Trenches

Jenni Munday — Fri, 02 Aug 2019 01:12:34 GMT

by Roberta D'Alois

I’m a playwright and Artistic Director of a small theater company, and I've also been reading for theaters, workshops, and grants opportunities etc. for the past few years. There’s some overall notes I’ve compiled so I wanted to pass on some observations and even some advice.

Some plays are really obviously seriously flawed – flabby dialogue, no conflict, unclear structure - but many of the plays I've read are just… okay. They're well-crafted, have some snappy and interesting dialogue, and are clearly structured with rising conflicts. But they're just okay. They don't expand my worldview, engage me in ways I'm surprised by, show me a new perspective about an issue I've thought about, or otherwise command my attention. It doesn't mean that they are bad plays - they just don't… sparkle.

I would also say that for most of the theaters and competitions I've read for, there is wider agreement than you might think even in blind ratings of what makes a play sparkle. ( This statement presupposes that the readers are intelligent theater practitioners, not random volunteers who don't have much experience even viewing plays much less reading and commenting.)
That said, for development opportunities, one challenge is finding a play that needs development but isn't a first draft or completed play. Some plays that are otherwise quite good don't make it to finalist status because they are obviously a first draft and need a lot more work than a development opportunity can offer, or conversely, they've been read and semi-staged before and seem very complete. So ALWAYS read the notes on the opportunity of what kind of work they are looking for.

And about those instructions – I know we all struggle with writing about our work almost as much as we struggle with our work. But if an opportunity wants you to say what you would like from the opportunity - spend some time on that. I can't tell you how many letters I've read over the years that say "I would like the chance to hear my play read by actors." For most competitions, you should ALREADY have done that, and now want to explore specific questions about the play. If you don't know, that might be the time to talk with your writers group or a trusted theater friend about what the play needs that can be offered by the specific opportunity you’re applying to.
And again about the instructions –OMG, I can't tell you how many plays I've read for opportunities that call for a 10 minute play and the playwright has sent a play that is half an hour or more. Or vice versa - calls for full-length dramas and I read 20 minute comedies. Or a request for a play with cast of no more than 4 and I’m sent a trilogy on the Punic Wars complete with battle scenes. As many of us have discovered, even big theater is a small world, and readers remember that you didn't bother to read any instructions when you sent in your play. And if the call is for something specific – one-act plays about the #me too movement, or 10 minute plays about the funniest person you ever met – don't just send what you have happening now. If you have a play that you think fits, make the case that it fits. Organizations putting out specific calls really do want plays that fit the length, theme etc.

This may be obvious, but one or two small typos won't necessarily negatively affect the reading of your play. But massive typos, character names spelled differently in different scenes, wonky formatting (like nine point font to make sure your 25 page play fits in 10 pages) really won't help you. And a small note – take that "copyright 2008" off the first page of your play. If you're really sending us your underwear drawer play, don't call attention to it.
Specifically for theater production opportunities - believe it or not theaters want good plays. Yes, we read work submitted by agents first, but unless it's a theater that only solicits work that is represented by agents, readers like me go through the plays and make recommendations. It's not super common, but if a play by an unknown matches the theater’s mission, is well written, and the playwright has given us some information about who they are, that play certainly has a chance to be noticed, and in the best of all possible worlds, a good chance to be passed on to a theater that might produce it if we can’t.

I don't read for regional theaters, so for those of you who are trying to crack that nut I don't have much to say about them. What I do want to say about local opportunities, specific opportunities, development groups etc. is to advise you to write the play you want to write. Unless there is a SPECIFIC call regarding length, theme or number of characters, I've never heard from my cohort of readers "this play has too many characters" or "oh my God, we could never have a swinging chandelier." Especially for development opportunities, create the world you want the readers to see and we'll follow you.
But of course be judicious – your three-hour play with scads of special effects that are necessary for the play to have maximum impact is probably not going to be seriously considered by a 99 seat black box theater. If the only plays you write are 15-character spectacle plays, search the theaters and opportunities that want to see those kinds of plays.
And finally, while this also may be obvious, unless the opportunity OFFERS feedback as part of the experience, don’t demand feedback or send a whiny or nasty email if you are not chosen. As noted above, Lit Managers, AD’s and panelists have long memories and it’s a small world.
The odds are long – we all know that. But since I've been reading scripts, I've been so delighted to see how much really good work is out there and how thoughtful playwrights are about discussing their work.

Roberta D'Alois is a playwright, performer and director. All the above images come from her website: http://www.robertadalois.com/

Moon Landings and Mentors

Jenni Munday — Sun, 21 Jul 2019 23:49:56 GMT

By Linda Evans

My bio does not tell the story. And I think how many of us have a disconnect between reading our own bio and our writer’s life lived between the dots.

“You have serendipity on your side,” my mentor said to me. He is Grayson Hirst in his 80’s, Tenor opera singer from the Metropolitan opera (who sang with Beverly Sills). I told him how I met Gary Garrison, Dramatists Guild of America, on a park bench in front of the Ft. Wayne, Indiana public library; then Maestro Crafton Beck in a park in my hometown in Ohio who told me I was writing symphonies.

It is Grayson who told me a few months ago to form my own 501(c)(3) to support the symphony orchestra I am creating to perform A YAQUI SPRING. “Do what I did. Form your own non-profit and I will help you.” And he has!

Mentorship is a serious thing in the arts taken from old European tradition. I am just now putting these bio dots together. Wealthier families have taken advantage of this system for generations but my own Grandfather was born in a log cabin in NW Ohio. It takes years sometimes to connect dots and to take giant leaps.

How did I transform from writing full-length plays into writing musicals and opera? In 2010 Brad Lyons, Artistic Director, of Timber Lake Playhouse (west of Chicago) gave me some awards and then the Lee Blessing Award and asked me to turn my full-length play about the Yaqui tribe in Tucson into a musical, A YAQUI SPRING. The next year I returned and gave a small workshop with my new libretto and about 6 songs. This began this entire entry into the world of the musical theatre and opera.

Last summer I wrote many songs from May 15 to about July 1, forgetting to eat and sleep. Now I have over 30 works with lyrics and orchestrations. BUT during that time I lost some good high school friends and my boyfriend of 12 years in the process. He finally “lost it” when once again I took off to Manhattan; this time Friday Night FOOTLIGHTS at the Dramatists Guild on Broadway. No, I’m not ready to settle down! I have a brain change like a propulsion lab formed inside my brain and I am compelled by inner forces to hear new sound and to write down harmonies from my inner spaces.

Well, now I am alone. But more “myself” than I have ever been! I think most of you understand about this. Sometimes it takes a long time to connect the dots. I am writing this to you on the 50th Anniversary of “Man Landing on the Moon.” Neil Armstrong was born and raised in Waupauk, Ohio, population 12,000 about 30 miles from my hometown, population 10,333 where I am blogging to you right now. Around me is perfectly flat black soil farm country where it takes years to take giant leaps.

I say take your own “one small step for a woman” and see what happens. Take little steps seen and unseen, but keep on taking them. We are applauding you on this home planet in our world of International Center of Woman Playwrights!

Linda Evans is a US PLAYWRIGHT living and writing in NY, NY; Ohio; and Tucson, AZ: director, MFA in Filmmaking.

A YAQUI SPRING Musical Opera: https://www.lindaevans.org/

America Regional Touring ART, non-profit, 501(c)(3)

Interview with O'Neill Finalist Charlotte Higgins

Mon, 15 Jul 2019 22:14:15 GMT

How did it feel to be awarded as a finalist in the 2019 O'Neill conference for CRAZY BETTY? Was this the first time you had submitted to the O'Neill conference?

I was stunned when I got the email that I was an O’Neill semi-finalist and then got the next email that I was a finalist (67 out of more than 1400 submissions).

It was absolutely thrilling to be acknowledged by the O’Neill, which is such a prestigious and competitive playwriting conference. It was my first submission to them. I had had a New York reading of CRAZY BETTY, which went very well, and afterwards a playwright friend urged me to submit it to the O’Neill, which had never occurred to me.

CRAZY BETTY was only my second full-length play after years of writing and performing monologues and prose. It seemed a bit audacious, but I am obviously glad I did it.

CRAZY BETTY has been a semifinalist in Bay Area Playwrights Festival, Bechdel Test Festival, and Austin Film and Writers Conference. Would you submit to them again? Any feedback on these festival awards or conferences?

I had submitted before to the Bay Area Playwrights Festival and CRAZY BETTY was my second time as a semi-finalist. Having worked in the Bay Area for a long time, I was very familiar with the BAPF and its people, and the way they create a supportive “family” for their playwrights.

It’s a very creative, nurturing environment. I will continue to submit my work to them. The Austin Conference and Bechdel Test were very nice validations of my work, and I will submit my work to them again.

What is next for CRAZY BETTY in its development?

CRAZY BETTY is out there in the world now, being read by numerous artistic directors, directors and other theater people. Obviously, I hope to see Betty and her friends on the stage soon.

Are you currently working on any other submissions, writing, or productions at this time?

Although writing is my passion, submitting my work is an essential part of the process as a playwright. So I make time for both. Right now I am preparing to go back to NYC because my short play “Mama Won’t Stay Dead” is being presented in the 44^th Annual Samuel French Off Off Broadway Short Play Festival in August -- another wonderful opportunity and honor.

I am working on revising a new play, “Speak Ill of the Dead” and have submitted the work to various play development opportunities (it was selected as a finalist for Berkeley Rep’s The Ground Floor development program).

I also have begun a new work about five women caregivers gone bad – it’s irreverent, profane, darkly humorous and poignant (I hope). I think I am in the throes of my golden age of creativity and trying to take it in and savor it.

My work is on the NPX and I also have a website: charlottehigginsplaywright.com.

#charlottehiggins #icwp #newplayexchange #newworks #crazybetty #oneill #jessiesalsbury #womenplaywrights #womenInTheatre #theatre

Henley Rose Playwright Competition for Women - Staged Reading

Mon, 10 Jun 2019 20:39:39 GMT

To see the first part of this series, please visit https://womenplaywrights.org/news/7323525

For the 2018 Henley Rose Playwright Competition for women, Elana Gartner's play, Before Lesbians, won the second place award. The top three winners in the competition are performed in a staged reading in Knoxville, Tennessee (USA). Elana's play was performed this summer, so we followed up with her to get her thoughts.

Did you find the experience worth the expense?

As it so happens, I was down in Louisville for my low-residency MFA program at Spalding University just before the reading so it made it much easier to get to. The staff at Henley Rose were very gracious and shuttled me back and forth to the airport and showed me and my parents around Knoxville. We had a tight window of time to experience Knoxville but Kerri made sure that we got to walk around and learn things, in addition to having the reading. As I had never been to Knoxville before, I truly appreciated the extra effort she put in to make me feel welcome and to make the experience positive.

Are you going to do any rewrites of the play based on what you saw?

There are a few nitpicky things that I noticed when we were rehearsing that I will probably fix but no big overarching changes, no.

Would you submit and travel to see it again?

Absolutely! I had a great time meeting Jocelyn Meinhardt (1st place winner) as well as the board members, Damon Boggess and Sara Venable, founding director Kerri Koczen and artistic director, Jessie Gulley.

Was it well organized and well performed as an organization?

The actors performed the piece with great emotion and brought the characters to life in ways that really impacted the audience. I was glad that I was able to sit in on a rehearsal before the performance and invited by the director to voice any concerns or notes.

Did you learn anything new about yourself, your work, or you as an author?

I was curious to see how this particular script would play in Knoxville, given some of its subject matters, dealing with the Civil War as well as lesbian relationships. However, with a title like Before Lesbians, it also seemed unlikely to have agitators attend and we didn't. I have realized that, as my work evolves, I have to start characterizing it a little differently when I am speaking about it. I used to characterize it as simply drama dealing with inner conflict but I have a lot of pieces now that are breaking that mold and playing with time and fantasy.

Do you have any words of wisdom for anyone who may submit to this opportunity?

Submit your best work. Move people. Make sure that you have strong roles for women.

Anything new you've won or had performed since the last time we spoke?

Before Lesbians was a semi-finalist for the 2019 Wordsmyth Theater Company's Reading Series.

For more information on the competition, and to keep an eye on future opportunities, you may sign up for their mailing list at: http://yellowroseproductions.org/henleyrose/

I remain honored to be a guest male member of this group of important and inspiring writing artists.

Jenni Munday — Fri, 07 Jun 2019 00:08:48 GMT

by Alan Woods

“Real knowledge is to know the extent of one’s ignorance” — Confucious is given credit for this. For me, it is always my starting point in writing. Discovering I know nothing or very little about a given topic, or group, or object, or anything, is humbling. I feel compelled to face that ignorance, rectifying it by research and learning about the subject that has suddenly caught my attention. Thus, when faced with beloved aged relatives’ increasing senility, I wound up writing “I’m Herbert,” a short piece that’s received multiple readings/performances, and is set for the Women’s Theatre Festival of Memphis in mid July (www.womenstfmemphis.org).

A competition for a local company resulted in the fantasy “Escaping Ayesha,” while a challenge to write a piece with no complete sentences inspired “In the Mall,” and hearing about people who had been made pen pals in elementary school only meeting physically decades later made “Pen Pals” inevitable. At one point, finding myself wondering about Shakespearian characters before and after the plays, I wrote a series of short Shakespearian prequels and sequels. One, “Twentieth Night,” a sequel (set some eight years later) to “Twelfth Night,” received a reading locally at Stonewall, Columbus:

Karla Rothan and Linda Schuler, who starred in Twentieth Night

Another, “Wishing Witches,” brings the characters from the Scottish Play into the present, where one of the sisters demands they replace the cauldron with a slow cooker.

Still another Shakespearean take-oﬀ has Ophelia at the used chariot lot, having persuaded Osric to take her father’s place behind the arras. “Rosaline’s Nurse” has the nurse inform Romeo’s jilted lover, Rosaline, of what has taken place, to her incredulous response.

In “Downstairs at Elsinore,” Ethel, the daughter of the King of the Penzance Pirates arrives, the Pirates having been hired as entertainment for the wedding feast of Claudius and Gertrude. In “What Shall We Do About Daddy?,” Lear’s three daughters work out a plan to deal with his increasing dementia. And in “Viking Hamlet,” Hamlet is in prison; Fortinbras keeps him incommunicado and has put out that he’s dead so as to prevent any eﬀort to put him on the throne. He’s visited by Horatio and learns that he’s to be set free so that he can raid England and Scotland, to try to prevent them from uniting. One small thing: he has to dye his hair red and take on a new persona, as “Erik the Red” so that Fortinbras can deny that Denmark has anything to do with the raids.

Concern about the nuclear arms race early in the present century led to “Last Call,” set in a Canadian bar —the nuclear holocaust having raised radioactive clouds that have already begun wiping out all life —as two guys take in one last drink as they consider impending doom. It was performed as part of the Asphalt Shorts Festival in Kitchener, Ontario, in September, 2006. Great thanks to Paddy Gillard-Bentley, the Artistic Director of Flush Inks Productions, producer of the Festival.

“The Danish” premiered as part of “Family Foibles” at the Heritage Theatre Company in Bend, Oregon, and as part of “Dessert Plays” at the Maple Grove Players in Columbus, both in 2008, and was included in rotating repertory by the Soup’s On Players, Lubbock, Texas, March through September 2011. It treats an elderly man who discovers his accustomed breakfast of 60 years is about to change because his wife has heard that longevity can be increased through diet. And memories of being in a method-acting class while I was in college inspired “At Madame Rastinovina’s” — sitting in class watching fellow first-year folks exploring sense memories and thinking to myself, “We’re all 18. The worst thing that ever happened to me was that Helen Mansfield wouldn’t go to the prom with me. Don’t think that’ll help me much with finding the subtext in Hamlet.”

In the 1990s, I also got involved with Senior Theatre USA, a now defunct but inspirational group dedicated to creating work for older performers that avoided the standard cliches — pieces where older characters were either somebody’s senile grandfather, awfully bitchy mother-in-law, or saccharinely incompetent uncle or aunt. “Not the Delany Sisters” came out of that sensitivity, after working on a local production of “Having Our Say,” a very good play, but one whose sentimentality just got to me. That relationship grew into hosting a festival for senior theatre folks here in Columbus, with writers’ retreats and local performers reading works-in-progress, which proved very popular. “Senior Cruise” was written for that festival; it involves a group of seniors all on the hunt for new relationships on a cruise down the Mississippi. The Eileen Heckart Competition for plays featuring older performers, named for the Columbus native who inspired many with her performances of senior characters (https://library.osu.edu/collections/spec.tri.ehdfsc), also involved readings of the winning plays.

“Limbo, Ohio,” a sequel to that famous play about a dying salesman, places Willy in Limbo; arguing against the premise that suicides can’t make it into paradise.

Limbo, Ohio 2008

All my scripts are available at www.alanwoods.org; I’ve been fortunate, having works performed as either readings or staged productions on every continent with the exception of Antarctica — so if anyone knows any penguin theatre troupes, send info.

That’s pretty much it, except for this final note regarding wonderful experiences I’ve had over the past decades. It has been terrific working with both writers and students. Pairing honor students with playwrights in an intro to theatre class, for example, where the students got to explore all the usual subjects with an actual writer; it was exciting for the students, while the playwrights were ecstatic to have an eager young mind hanging on their every word — and thought! So glad I got into education after my service in the military! I had been working oﬀ-oﬀ Broadway theatre in New York, and could see a future in it, when I was drafted. But since the live theatre wasn’t very interesting by the time of my discharge (things change!), I opted for graduate school (USC) and wound up in Columbus, teaching and running a research collection, and working with theatre legends convincing them to leave their collections — among them, Jerome Lawrence, Robert E. Lee, and Twyla Tharp — but that’s all another story, for another time. I’ll just include this one special moment in connection with the Dramatists’ Guild’s Margo Jones Award when, in 2008, I got to escort Janet Waldo, Lee’s widow, known in her own right as the voice of Judy Jetson and Penelope Pitstop (among many others in her career as a preminent voice artist).

Janet Waldo and Alan Woods at the presentation.

Alan Woods is a playwright, dramaturg, and teacher. He can be contacted through his website: www.alanwoods.org

Common Threads

Jenni Munday — Fri, 24 May 2019 08:36:24 GMT

by Hanna Akerfelt
All photographs by Hanna Akerfelt

During the past few days I’ve been catching up with the second season of the Royal Court Theatre’s Playwright’s Podcast. Even though I’m not familiar with (i.e. haven’t read or seen the work of) all the playwrights on the podcast I find it both inspiring and liberating listening to them talk about their work, about theatre and writing, about how they got there.

It‘s similar to the feeling I had when taking part in World Interplay in 2007 and for the first time met people my own age who wrote for theatre. It was a mix of joy and relief. Interestingly both of these experiences are distanced from my day-to-day life, by geography, language and culture.

But perhaps that’s part of that strange feeling of relief, knowing that my baggage (or lack thereof) doesn’t count, people are reacting to me as a person, and to my texts as texts. In a way it’s like being allowed a new beginning. But that wasn’t what I intended to write about.

One of the questions that keeps popping up in this series of the podcast is what the writer’s first and last (i.e. current) script have in common.

Since it isn’t very likely I’ll be invited onto the podcast I’ll just go ahead and ask myself that question, because I think it is really interesting, and it is a different way of thinking about my own writing and the stories I’m drawn to and keep (re)telling.

Giving full time writing a go, until my savings run out, has given me the need to as well as the space to think about my writing and myself as a writer, as a playwright, as a storyteller.

My first play (which isn’t actually the first play I wrote but for different reasons it’s become my “first” play in the story of me as a writer) was a story about suicide.

I wrote it in my teens and it got produced by a local student theatre group when I was 17 years old, it was about half an hour long and had four characters (well, six characters, but two of them were a technical necessity and I didn’t have the tools to solve the problem in any other way than bringing characters onstage).

The play starts with a young girl taking her last breaths and dying and her older sister finding her dead. From there the play follows the two sisters, the younger one stuck in a sort of purgatory, constantly questioned and almost bullied by a man in black (cliché, I know, but I’ve forgiven my 16 year old self for not knowing that at the time), and the older sister who goes through a series of session with her psychologist.

The younger sister is questioned about her suicide while the older sister tries to come to terms with the younger sister’s decision to end her own life. In the end they both move on, in different ways, and one perhaps towards a more calm future than the other.

My most recent play, the play I’m working on at the moment, is a play that’s been with me for years and years. It’s a story about a women in her 30s losing both parents and having to deal with the inheritance left her, her own emotional connection to the place she grew up in and starting her own family.

I can’t really say anything else about it because I don’t really know, and it might all change in the current re-write. But what struck me when I started thinking about what these two plays have in common is that they are about dealing, successfully or unsuccessfully, with trauma, about moving on with your life, or trying to.

What’s even more interesting is that when I think about other plays I’ve written the same theme seems to be present there too. Not in all plays, by no means, but enough of them for me to think that maybe that is one of the stories, or questions, problems, I’ve been coming back to again and again since I first started writing plays over 15 years ago. Writing this I’ve realised that another thing they have in common is issues with time, but that’s for another time.

Now, if somebody had asked me “What do you write about?” or “What are your themes as a writer?” I probably wouldn’t have come up with this answer, I probably wouldn’t have come up with an answer at all to be honest.

It just goes to show that sometimes you need somebody to ask you the right question.

And that it isn’t always the answer that’s the point, sometimes looking for it is more rewarding than finding it, as nothing is ever permanent but keeps shifting as you move through life while the world around you moves too.

Hanna is a playwright, translator and dramaturg living and working in Swedish in Finland. Current projects include a opera libretto based on a childrens' book, a series for radio and a stage play.

Website

http://hannaheartfelt.blogspot.fi/

Website 2

https://pjasbanken.labbet.fi/pjasbanken/view_author-126677-5

Winnie in the Attic or My Never Ending Love Affair with Feminist Theater

Jenni Munday — Thu, 09 May 2019 23:09:10 GMT

Domnica Radulescu

I tell this story often and from different perspectives – the story about how theater saved my life in the early 1980s, during my last years in my native Romania, then a brutal dictatorship.

How it lifted me above the oppressive grayness filled with terror and myriads material and spiritual deprivations and it gave me a sense of purpose and even joy. This episode of my life never loses its relevance and over time it has acquired almost a life of its own.

Now I want to give it a different twist and look at it from the perspective of feminist aesthetics and connect it to some aspects of the American theater scene that I believe to be lacking.

Exile Is My Home. A Sci-fi Immigrant Fairy Tale, by Domnica Radulescu. The Theater for the New City, New York, NY. April 28-May 22, 2016. Directed by Andreas Robertz. Original music score by Alexander Tanson. pictured clockwise from left: Nikaury Rodriguez, Mirandy Rodriguez, Noemi De la Puente. Photography – OneHeart Productions

In my second year as a student at the University of Bucharest, I joined a theater called The Attic, because it was housed literally in the attic of the headquarters of the Romanian Communist Youth, and whose artistic director modeled the practice on the work of Polish director Jerzy Grotowski and his Poor Theater.

I played several small parts in different plays, some Romanian, others in translation. But the one experience that changed my life in profound ways and has stayed with me throughout both my personal and professional life as teacher and creative artist is a production of Samuel Beckett’s Happy Days whose female protagonist, Winnie, is buried to her waist in a mound of earth during the first Act and up to her neck in the second Act.

This was supposed to be a women’s project that the artistic director had entrusted his assistant director to develop with a group of the women actors in the theater, including myself. However, we were four women actors, and there is only one female protagonist.

That didn’t prevent our female director, to divide Winnie’s character into four different characters, each representing a different facet of the role. We did away with the mound of earth both from practical and artistic reasons. We made the play our own and attempted to suggest Winnie’s entrapment through other stage means, such as stacking chairs around the actors at different times.

Foreign literature in translation trickled into our highly censored state at a pretty good pace, escaping the scrutiny of the party and secret police particularly if it was in the genre of the absurd, or the surreal which Beckett’s play certainly is.

However, no other details of production from Western Europe reached us, so we had no idea of Beckett’s fierce strictness in terms of respecting his text to its last diacritic and stage direction. We wouldn’t have cared anyways. Living under so many rules, of which most were more absurd than the theater of the absurd itself, we delighted in breaking them any chance we had.

We practiced long hours into the night with irrepressible passion and engaged in what today would be called devised feminist theater, as actors and director, we all collaborated in bringing the final show to its premiere. To me the opening night and the shows we had afterwards were incandescent, freeing, transformative and they touched me for life.

Working with a group of women actors and a woman director in complete artistic collaboration, searching through our own personal experiences as women and bringing them to our different sides of the role, devising innovative stage actions allowed me to grow both as a woman and as an artist.

Now fast forward some three and a half decades later, to the person I am now: a university professor of Comparative Literature, theater director, playwright and novelist in the United States where I arrived as a political refugee in 1983. Theater has remained a constant and a life savior throughout all my years in this country.

I do not live in New York, considered the Mecca of American Theater, I no longer live in Chicago from where I moved 25 years ago to the small town in Virginia for a university job that I still hold to this day, but I have traveled copiously throughout the United States and different parts of the world.

Wherever I go I always look for theaters, shows, performances. I always carry Winnie with me in my carry on suitcase and I often use that experience as a measure of comparison to the other theatrical experiences I have, be it in New York, Paris, Chicago, Minneapolis, Belgrade, in my native Bucharest where I have been returning on a regular basis, or in smaller cities in the US or abroad.

I usually ask myself the same questions whenever I see a new show: is it theatrically innovative in ways which bring out to its fullest the potential of the actors’ bodies on stage, is the space used creatively, are there interesting, complex, multilayered female roles in it, are women’s bodies, voices, stories center stage?

I have of course assimilated much feminist and performance theory, since the Winnie in the Attic days when we couldn’t have cared less whether our show was feminist or not, as feminism was not even part of our daily vocabulary.

And much as Rita Anderson has beautifully articulated it in the previous blog article, “Fighting for a Female Sentence,” I too am always struggling to find, promote and/or create myself theater that not only brings center stage women’s experiences and voices in intersectional ways, but that equally embodies these voices in new aesthetics, a feminist aesthetics.

How a story is told is at least as important as what the story is about. Feminist theater aesthetics, with non-linear narratives and plots, with discourses emerging from woman “writing woman” and woman “writing her self,” and her body which “must be heard,”as Helene Cixous beautifully puts it in her “Laugh of the Medusa,” theatrical forms and languages quivering with feminist humor that subverts and bursts the self important bubbles of sexism and “upstage Big Daddy” of canonical discourses as Gay Gibson Cima has shown, languages which in the apt words of Judy Little “carnivalize the sentence,” and that choose “the margin as a space of radical openness” in the inspired words of bell hooks – all this is largely absent from main stream American Theater or an oddity at best.

The revered New York theater scene of the Broadway and off Broadway shows and musicals, or the main stream theaters of say Chicago, Washington DC, the likes of Steppenwolf or Arena Stage Theater still largely indulge in traditional theatrical forms, linear plots, stages filled to excess with a ballast of realistic sets and objects.

Exile Is My Home. A Sci-fi Immigrant Fairy Tale, by Domnica Radulescu. Pictured clockwise from left: Vivienne Jurado, A. B. Lugo, Nikaury Rodriguez, David van Leesten, Mirandy Rodriguez, Noemi de la Puente, Mario Golden. Photography – OneHeart Productions

There are a handful of New York theater spaces that have satisfied my appetite for such feminist innovative aesthetics and that are also affordable for most regular people, including the many striving artists of the city: Ellen Stuart’s brilliant creation of the La MaMa theater, the New York Theater Workshop, the Women’s Theater Project, or the Theater for the New City where I had the honor of having my own play Exile Is My Home. A Sci-fi Immigrant Fairy Tale produced under the startlingly creative and feminist direction of Andreas Robertz.

But these spaces and theater practices are still considered by the masses of theater goers as the “weird” shows, the “political” in the bad sense of the word shows in opposition to the “entertaining” ones. Their actors and directors are barely or not paid at all.

We All Have the Same Story, by Franca Rame, directed by Domnica Radulescu. National Theater of Cluj-Napoca, Romania, January 2009. Diana Rosca

To each Lynn Nottage, Paula Vogel or Susan Lori Parks that makes it to the top or in the center stages of American Theater, and very deservedly so, there are however scores of women theater artists whose works never get past a first round of readers who might consider their plays not “well-constructed” enough, or ‘strident” or “confusing,” and such readers, sadly often include women too.

It is not the playwrights and the theater artists that drive the market, it is the market that too often drives the art. And it is the same market that thus drives the public tastes and the theater education. Too often students’ only idea of theater when they first arrive into one of my theater or women and gender studies classes is either a Shakespeare play or a Broadway musical.

They are startled to discover lesser known, American or International theater works or forms of theater making: women’s monologues by Franca Rame, plays and performances by Deb Margolin, plays of Sarah Kane, the feminist DAH theater in Belgrade that emerged as a response to the genocidal war of the nineties, or one of my own plays.

At first they may be reluctant, shocked or even uneasy to enter into such disruptive, or zany universes which they sometimes call “all over the place” or “confusing.” With discussions and collaborative, devising work and techniques, they invariably end up inhabiting these universes with the joy of discovery.

The Presence of Absence; DAH Theater, Belgrade, directed by Dijana Milojevic; devised by DAH Theater Ensemble photos by Dijana Milojevic, October-December 2013.From left to right, clockwise: Maja Vukovic, Sanja Krsmanović Tasić, Nemanja Ajdačić (man with violin, also composer of violin music). An example of DAH Theater’s ability to create visually startling moments and even beauty while bearing witness to the grief caused by the disappearance of people and the need of survivors to tell their stories.

In the darkest years of Communist Romania, we created our Winnie show with only a few of the chairs that were our only movable set pieces in the theater, with sheets, props and costumes we found among our own meager possessions.

Yet, the entire experience felt rich, enriching, incandescent and glorious. Andreas Robertz, directed my play in the smallest basement theater space of the iconic Theater for the New City, on “a shoe string,” as the saying goes, with minimal set, but with extraordinary actors and inventiveness, bringing out the best of the feminist theater languages of my play.

He made sure the cast embodied the very diversity of my characters and created a universe in which the margins became “spaces of radical openness,” as my two protagonists, a lesbian couple, traversed the galaxies and dystopian landscapes, some very similar to our own earthly spaces, in desperate search for a home.

When the play opened, three years ago almost to the day, I was the same age as the Winnie I had played as a young woman. I would have never imagined then that our production would remain a model of theatrical inventiveness, and feminist art, or that one day my own play would be produced in a very similar manner in no other than New York City, but that such experimentation is to this day more of a rarity than a common occurrence in the theater world.

Were we ahead of our time out of desperation, or is the American art world slow if not stagnant in terms of allowing ex-centric forms and voices to have a full seat at the table?

I honestly do not know how to answer these questions in ways that would not lead me to either hopelessness or anger. But I do know that if I keep listening to Winnie’s urges I can at least get solace and by achieving even temporary solace, I can keep going, fighting, singing in my own voice.

"No, something must move, in the world, I can’t any more. A zephyr. A breath. I hear cries. Sing. Sing your old song, Winnie. Ah well, what matter, that’s what I always say, it will have been a happy day, after all, another happy day.” (Samuel Beckett, Happy Days!)

Domnica Radulescu is an American writer of Romanian origin, living in the United States where she arrived in 1983 as a political refugee. She has chosen English as the language of her written expression in all her nonfiction, fiction and dramatic works.

She lives, functions and writes in the hyphenated spaces between cultures, languages and artistic universes. She is the author of three critically acclaimed novels, Train to Trieste (Knopf 2008 &2009), Black Sea Twilight (Transworld 2011 & 2012) and Country of Red Azaleas (Hachette 2016) and of award winning plays, of which Exile Is My Home was produced off off Broadway, at the Theater for the New City in New York, in 2016 and received the Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble Cast Award from the Hispanic Organization of Latin Actors.

Her first novel Train to Trieste was translated into thirteen languages and received the Best Fiction Award from the Library of Virginia in 2009. She is twice a Fulbright scholar and winner of the 2011 Outstanding Faculty Award from the State of Virginia.

She is Distinguished Service Professor of Comparative Literature at Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia.

http://www.domnicaradulescu.com/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domnica_Radulescu

Henley Rose Playwright Competition for Women - Two Perspectives

Sun, 05 May 2019 18:24:29 GMT

The Henley Rose Playwright Competition for Women was founded by Yellow Rose Productions, with permission of Beth Henley, to encourage and recognize the new works of female playwrights. The Henley Rose Playwright Competition seeks to honor both the writings of Pulitzer Prize winner Beth Henley and those of future winners of the Henley Rose Award.

Submissions are received July 1st of every year and capped at 200. It is a submission with a fee, but it is waived for Dramatists Guild members. You can find more information on the competition here: http://yellowroseproductions.org/henleyrose/

Ellen Wittlinger was a finalist in the 2018 competition with her play THE SUMMER DRESS.

How did you hear about the Henley Rose Playwright competition?

I first heard about it through the Minnesota Playwright’s Center where I’m a member.

Is it something you would submit to again?

Absolutely.

What types of plays or work do you write?

I started out as a poet, I segued to fiction, started writing plays in my late 20s. But soon I had two young children and it didn’t seem possible to do the kind of unpaid travel all across the country that was the prerequisite for getting a career going in playwriting….But I'm older now and can afford to "retire" from writing for children, so about 4 years ago I went back to writing plays. That was always my first love and still is.

At this point I'm trying lots of things, some traditional 2 act comedies, full-length dramatic pieces, a hybrid of those two, some one-acts, and some 10-minute plays. These have primarily been more traditional kinds of plays, but I'm hoping to try writing something more experimental now as well.

Are there any other conferences or competitions that you have been a winner or finalist for that you have enjoyed or been a part of?

I've only been sending things out for about a year and I'm just figuring out what to send where. I was a semi-finalist with a 10-minute play at The Actor's Studio of Newburyport in Massachusetts last year. In my earlier playwriting days I was also a finalist for Ensemble Studio Theatre's one-act competition.

I just found out another of my full-length plays, LEFTOVERS, is a finalist for the New Works Festival at the Garry Marshall Theatre in LA. I'd love to be able to go to that!

Melissa Bell’s play LADY CAPULET was a Henley Rose finalist in 2017.

How did you hear about the Henley Rose competition? What led you to submit?

I saw the Henley Rose competition on a listing of submission opportunities. I had spent the year writing, workshopping and revising LADY CAPULET and felt that it was in a good place, so I began submitting it for various opportunities. With the Henley Rose Competition for Women I felt I had a level playing field. There is an incredible bias in the theatre world for plays written by men with men as the central character and women in supporting and subjugated roles. I often don’t submit to competitions with fees, but the fee was waived for members of the Dramatist Guild, which I am. As emerging playwrights, we need to submit to competitions, not just to win, but to have our work read by the judges, who then become familiar with us and our work.

As a finalist, you had to beat out 200 submissions. What do you think is captivating about your script that got you to the finalist level?

For a play to work, the stakes must be high. The characters need to have skin in the game. No one in LADY CAPULET is passive, everyone is active; each character wants or needs something from another, especially the lead character, Rose. The play begins with a sexual betrayal, and Rose is driven by a tremendous secret as we follow her journey from budding country girl to powerful Lady of Verona. Rose is more like Richard III than Juliet in her actions to get what she needs.

Moreover, the premise of the play, “what caused the feud” of Shakespeare’s most well-known play, peaks people’s interest. They know there is a feud in Romeo and Juliet, but no one knows what caused it--he doesn’t say. Once Rose makes up her mind to be a player rather than to be played, the audience knows they’re in for a rollercoaster ride.

Would you encourage other playwrights to submit to this competition?

There are few opportunities for women playwrights that provide a forum for our unique voices to be heard. The Henley Rose competition is one. I would encourage women to submit a play that has had some early developmental work, such as a reading, dramaturgical feedback and several rounds of revisions. Submit something that is well-cooked. With only 200 submissions, you have a pretty good shot.

What types of plays do you write?

I create new works for the stage grounded in plot-driven storytelling, featuring a strong yet flawed woman as the central character. These women are active participants in their world who want something more than their current social or gender experience allows them. I am interested in re-imagining and responding to classic themes and texts. I don’t write straight adaptations; I use a source text as a jumping off point and respond to it, pushing it forward rather than looking backwards.

I am increasingly aware that as playwrights we need to differentiate our work in theatre from that of film and television, and that is through “theatricality.” To that end, I belong to a physical-theatre group, Farm Arts Collective, which devises short performance pieces on conservation and social issues, touring at festivals and conventions in the Catskill region. This type of work goes against my inclination to write scenes with “three people in a room.” Writing a scene for a group of people walking on stilts teaches a lot about theatricality.

How do you feel the Henley Rose competition help your play in its development to this point?

When I saw that LADY CAPULET was a finalist, besides being thrilled, I felt incredibly validated as a writer. The Henley Rose Competition's only agenda is to support women playwrights.

The competition is about the work and whether the play is good on its own terms. I knew that people enjoyed LADY CAPULET, but I didn’t know if it was a good play. Being a finalist means I have one unbiased confirmation that LADY CAPULET is stage worthy and worth an audience’s time to watch. Luckily, Emily Gallagher, Artistic Director at Barefoot Shakespeare, agrees. It will be presented free and open to the public at Summit Rock (W 83rd St & CPW) in NYC’s Central Park by Barefoot Shakespeare, August 22nd to September 1st 2019, and is available to download on the New Play Exchange. Additionally, I was an honored Finalist for Women in the Arts & Media Coalition’s 2019 Collaboration Award for COURAGE, produced by NACL Theatre.

On Gender Parity in Theatre and What Might Be Broken, Part II:

Jenni Munday — Fri, 26 Apr 2019 00:36:27 GMT

Fighting for a Female Sentence, by Rita Anderson

Recently, I ran a theatre salon in Cincinnati where one of the participants—an academic and an aspiring playwright—told me a disturbing experience she had had in a writing class. “One of the gentlemen, mind you, wrote about women who had been left behind by their fishermen husbands and brothers. The instructor told him (and the class), ‘You’ve missed the boat. The story’s out there,’” pointing, I assume, to where the men-of-action lived offstage.

This story now comes to mind when I hear women who select plays for theater seasons and competitions criticize female playwrights for “not writing like their male counterparts” or for “failing” to create female characters that are “active,” only “reactionary.” It’s not that these female artistic directors are trying to pick all male writers—but they are trying to pick a “solid” season that comes together in a thematic or unified way. This approach will, yes, identify and reward women writers who are good mimics, amongst other things, writers who have perfected the male sound, the male play, the male sentence.

Photo by Fancycrave on Unsplash

In the first part of this discussion on why achieving gender parity in theatre continues to be so problematic, I argued that women have been conditioned to adopt male patterns of thinking, reading (i.e. the world as well as texts), and writing. Assuming a male writer’s primary crisis is a tendency to emulate his favorites and that women writers search for such heroes in her own likeness but don’t find them and so suffer an “anxiety of authorship,” with so little women’s writing preserved or cherished as literary legacies who could her heroes be and where might they be found?

If a woman traditionally “surrenders” her natural forms to comply with institutional male models (and by this, I mean the metaphors, language, and structure women might have used instinctively to shape her stories), then how does “she” recover that, after assimilation? Can she? Having learned how to codify: to decode her female nature and encode male logic, language, and strategies, can she return to an informed innocence—in order to re-shape her experience? [As girls, we had to code through the universal “he” to share in much of the written word.]

Photo by Bohdan Maylove on Unsplash

“Herstory,” then, is really about trying to un-imagine the damage of that impact and, as stories are made of smaller units called “sentences,” this re-imagining must include a valuing of a female sentence. Not only must the culture deem “her” stories important, but also it has to recognize her way of telling a story--the words she chooses and how rhythmically or circuitously she strings them together to form meaning. What if her style isn’t linear?

What, then, might her sentence look like—had it lived freely to spawn female libraries and literary canons to influence us? This is what I’m asking. This is the sentence I am after, hers. What is her sentence and how is it different from the standard stock and trade? Will you recognize it, if and when you hear it? Is it a welcome addition to what should be a growing lexicon, syntax, and pallet of voices, voices and words, words and ways of speaking and storytelling? Or will the Otherness irritate because it goes against all that training, consciously or unwillingly, you’ve internalized?

Photo by Daniel Adesina on Unsplash

If we’ve debunked the myth that female playwrights are rare and if women comprise 52% of the world’s population, then why aren’t women’s plays, naturally, selected at least half of the time, even now? Are her stories consistently subpar—or could it be her sentence or storytelling blueprint that is different? Will her content and the structure she comes up with to carry her message alienate you, if she deviates from the “norm”? They may—but couldn’t you learn to “hear” it her way, adjusting to her storytelling methods? Her style may not be simple or clearly straightforward but comprised of sentences that curl into a story that circles. Curling sentences and circling stories that repeat to redefine and reinforce through repetition.

We love to discuss diversity (over uniformity) and a multiverse (instead of a universe) but, seriously, what if her sentence isn’t his economy of words? Or if her style “fails” to replicate his focus on action—making her stance a “reactive” posture, which thereby “reduces her characters to inert followers”? And if her concerns for community aren’t things the standard models value?

Photo by Artem Maltsev on Unsplash

Who hasn’t memorized--into the fiber of our consciousness--what that aesthetic is in literature? Perhaps not the novices, emerging playwrights who aren’t yet expert impersonators. This notion is confirmed when “Bitter Gertrude,” whose posts I enjoy, blogs that 75% of the playwrights her theatre produces are men and how hard it is to find new, female playwrights who don’t make the same “beginner’s mistake. Their characters suffer a lethal passivity and don’t have active desires. This is only a problem [with] emerging female playwrights. [V]eteran, more established women writers write active main characters, just like their male counterparts.” There is no incentive then for women to try and think outside this box so how will “she” find more organic ways to produce meaning? Will we ever achieve accepted and esteemed “alternative discourses”?

More Than a Room, We Need a Sentence of Our Own

Virginia Woolf wrote, “However much we may go to the work of male artists for pleasure, it is difficult to go to them for finding a voice,” and I’m not sure how much has truly changed on this front in the century since. I’ll need to write my dissertation, however, to develop this argument into its truest potential, but I will finish here with these thoughts. My frame of reference changed 20 years ago when I read Luce Irigaray (“This Sex Which is Not One”), Ann Rosalind Jones (“Writing the Body”), Helene Cixous (“Why so few texts? Because so few women have as yet won back their body”) and others. Ideas about “renversement” as a process and as a worthwhile, final product. That it’s important to keep blowing up an idea with questions, not always aiming to answer them—and I don’t mean that dismissively or to suggest that art can just be a hot mess with no craft involved.

My argument for learning to identify what a woman’s sentence might look like isn’t one in support of an anything-goes approach devoid of merit, artistic method, or a stylized talent. It is about multiplicity, building up, including. How? I don’t have those answers. Why? Because we can’t just release young women back into the wild and tell them that, after years of acculturated evisceration, “It’s okay to throw like a girl now. Take it back. Reclaim those words and what they mean.” We have to show her the ways she can #FightLikeAGirl and #WriteLikeAGirl. But first? First, we must help her find her sentence. Why? Because to cure rot you must diagnose it from its point of origin. Culturally, we can slap down new linoleum but the floorboards will groan until we rip them up and replace them—maybe even go so far as to reconfigure the floor plan. In a less-linear fashion.

Photo by Samantha Sophia on Unsplash

Rita Anderson is an award-winning playwright and poet. She has an MFA Creative Writing and an MA Playwriting. Contact Rita through her website: http://www.rita-anderson.com/index.html

Read more about Rita in her member profile.

The Transformational Power of the Dynamic Duo

Jenni Munday — Wed, 10 Apr 2019 23:54:23 GMT

Playing Fate

by Coni Koepfinger

When Dr. Jenni Munday of the International Centre of Women Playwrights, asked me to share thoughts on my newest work for the stage, Playing Fate, I smiled and thought this really is fate. For I was just thinking about how fortunate I was to meet my director and witness the miraculous transformation of this ever-growing dramatic work. We only met a few months ago, but since collaborating with Cailin Heffernan, my writing has hit a whole new level. We started first working on the Eve of Beltane with my writing partner and master composer, Joe Izen. A process which we all felt was frankly easy and wonderful. So you can imagine it was amazing to me that my writing life was yet to get even better. This incredible experience, being able to lock into a relationship beyond the page, yet before the stage, has been truly enchanting. Why? Because it has made me actually look forward to revising! A daunting task most writers, including myself, dread. Why? Because, as we all know, it is hard work!

Coni Koepfinger

Allow me to access metaphor for a minute in order to better explain myself… Imagine you were hosting a dinner party with some of the world’s most distinguished guests. That is, when one writes for the theatre audience, especially in New York City, one never knows who is sitting out there…. Right? Anyhow, you first plan your menu, you gather the ingredients, then you start protocols and then cook. But how would this procedure change if you had a chef in the kitchen. Just imagine… Someone there to check the temperatures, to clean the utensils as you go, and to taste your dishes as they come into form. Wouldn’t that be nice?

Cailin Heffernan

Well, that is exactly what happened with this particular play. It started as a one-act called Fate, and during rehearsals, it suddenly spiraled into a full-length. Much like the occasion where you have asked a few friends over and suddenly you have a big event. Exactly. It’s a whole different animal. I was still dealing with the one-act, a perhaps trite love story to illustrate the hand of fate in our lives… But my director, Cailin, ever so gently kept suggesting that this was no longer the case. That the characters, that were now emerging, were not willing to hang locked against the stage walls for me to make a point for a generalization on the theme. These characters were willing, ready and able come center and show that they had living words to share, and they weren’t happy being silenced.

Just as I opened up the process of working on the play with my director, I now feel it is appropriate to let her share in this article about our work. So I will move from singular voice to dialogue. Please meet, my amazing director, Cailin Heffernan.

CK: Cailin, tell us how you got involved in the theatre?

CH: I came from a dance family, so I started dancing when I was three - that was just that. After I segued from Ballet to Theatre, I spent about fifteen years as a performer. I couldn’t imagine a life not in the arts and as my mentor, Vivian Matalon, liked to say - “If you’d pay to do it, then you should be in the theatre.” When acting was no longer making me content, I decided to become a director and for the first time in my life, felt completely at home in my skin. I went back for training from The New American Theatre School, HB Studios and Actors Studio. I was fortunate to be mentored by the aforementioned Vivian Matalon, Stephen Porter, Salem Ludwig, Bob Kalfin and Danya Krupska (Thurston). I had the pleasure of observing Sir Peter Hall as well.

CK: When you start to collaborate with a playwright as director, how is it different from say, working on your own dramatic writing?

CH: Well, it is great because it actually makes me do the work. And the collaboration makes you pick and choose battles. It can’t go all your own way as you are both compromising to create a shared vision. I have to be clearer and more concise in shared writing time. And, I have to really listen to what my collaborator is saying and translate it as best I can to marry my ideas. I guess you could say we create a new baby together.

CK: Now, for something specific about our collaboration… When you read the original text for Playing Fate, what made you see the depth of the work that caused its transformation revision?

CH: Must be noted, you give me too, too much credit. You’re an intrepid writer with an open hand, open heart and open mind. When I read your work, I like to first glean what is at the core of the piece. I tend to ask a plethora of “why” questions. Once I’ve picked out what is new (a character, a thought, a situation, a restatement…) and what is appealing; then I set forth to divine what is impeding that play - always with the writer’s intention clearly in mind. The characters themselves showed me the way in Playing Fate through their universal need to atone for their transgressions and forgive each other. In this instance, what was once a love story had evolved past that and become something else entirely. Playing Fate in its extended form harkened back to a family story of reconciliation akin to something from the American Classical Canon, for instance an Arthur Miller play. The characters of the father and two brothers shouted to me that this was their story and they would not be ignored. Since you agreed, the arc of this New York family came to life.

Thank you Cailin for sharing your insights. I hope it will inspire other playwrights who find themselves in similar circumstances. This business of making theatre, of creating something worth savoring, is vital today more than ever. I sense that audiences are hungry for something, not only to sate them for the time being but something that will give lasting nourishment, like the classics we all feed on. And we need plays that our collaborators- directors, actors, designers, can really sink their teeth into simply to sustain our sense of art on earth - Bon Appetit!

Playwright, Librettist, Artist and Educator, Coni Ciongoli Koepfinger is a playwright - in - residence at both Manhattan Repertory Theatre and Cosmic Orchid Theatre Company.

Cailin is a member of SDC, Dramatists Guild, AEA and SAG-AFTRA. She is an Associate Artistic Director with Boomerang Theatre Company.

IMAGES VERSUS WORDS: Screenplays writing vs. Playwriting

Jenni Munday — Fri, 29 Mar 2019 03:21:01 GMT

by Penny Jackson

Dialogue is what separates a screenplay from a play. I learned that lesson the difficult way when I took my first screenplay class in Los Angeles. There were two playwrights in the class, me and a lovely woman named Natalie, and the rest were screenplay writers. The teacher picked on the playwrights. “NO MONOLOGUES IN SCREENPLAYS!” he would yell at us when we submitted our scripts. “THERE IS WAY TOO MUCH DIALOGUE HERE LADIES! MAKE YOUR CHARACTERS SHUT UP AND USE THE CAMERA!!”

That was two years ago. Last April I had the opportunity to co-write a short screenplay with Melissa Skirboll who is also a playwright, screenplay writer and film director. We were adapting a short story of mine that was published in a literary magazine. At first, I wanted it to read as a play with dialogue and stage directions. Melissa and my film editor Evan Metzold showed me that many of my words could be visual images caught by the camera. Still, as a playwright, I was resistant. Okay, I was jealous of the camera. I wanted my words to rule the film, not a lens.

Well after at least twenty drafts, I learned I had to give up ownership. Yes, the story and the dialogue were important, but so were the images. We have one beautiful shot of the Manhattan skyline and a silent interaction between two characters and a rabbit at the end. The playwright in me would have shouted: speak at the end of the film! but the silence is so lovely and fills in so many gaps. Our film was a semi-finalist in a very competitive international film festival. And I’m proud to say that we were an all-female team from director, cinematographer, producer, assistant director and writers.

I asked fellow screenplay writers what they thought was a major difference between plays and screenplays. One mentioned that FENCES which works so beautifully in theater was just too talky on film and lost some of its dynamic power. With film it’s more what you see than what you say. Naomi McDougall Jones, one of my favorite female screenwriters, described the difference so poetically: “One of the things I love about screenwriting is the level of nuance and subtly you have available. I always think about the fact that an image of a teacup breaking, if lit right, with the right music underneath could be the moment of greatest drama, the turning point of your movie. “

I am currently preparing my play THE BATTLES OF RICHMOND HILL for a production at HERE Center for the Arts this April. And I have to admit I feel much more comfortable writing the script and working the director and actors. I don’t have to worry about sound or color or what cameras to use or which angle. I also don’t have to feed the crew which to me was one of the most intimidating parts of filmmaking. Try finding a restaurant opened at 11:30 in downtown Manhattan for a crew with so many food preferences. You don’t have to feed your crew in theater, and you can have regular hours. We shot MY DINNER WITH SCHWARTZEY from 3AM to 4PM for two day because the bar which was our setting had to get back to work by 4:30 pm. At least with theater there are regular hours.

I love a stage and how you can fill it with movement and words. Every single line of dialogue counts. In a film, if one line of dialogue isn’t perfect, the camera can cover it. A good editor can even make a bad performance good. You can’t hide in theater.

And then there’s the audience. I always say that an actor in a film doesn’t care if you’re laughing or crying. To me, to be applauding along with Mark Rylance dancing on stage is one of my greatest theatrical experiences.

But… I keep returning to but. Theater is ephemeral. Film is final. My play will last for twelve performances and unless someone publishes it the work will vanish. My words for MY DINNER WILL SCHWARTZEY will not disappear and we hope to continue to submit it to festivals for at least another year.

Will I write another screenplay? Maybe. I’m still nervous that my words will always be secondary to the cinematographer. The film editor. There are films I see at film festivals that are almost wordless. They can be powerful and provocative but the playwright in me desperately misses people speaking. Will I write another play? Absolutely yes.

www.pennybrandtjackson.com

I am a playwright who lives in New York City. My play, I KNOW WHAT BOYS WANT, was chosen as one of the best plays produced in an off off Broadway theater. My play, SAFE, was produced at The Edinburgh Festival Fringe. Other plays have been produced in New York, Chicago and Seattle. I am a member of The Dramatists Guild and The League of Professional Theater Women.

A Room of My Own by June Guralnick

Tue, 26 Mar 2019 17:41:50 GMT

Like many of you, I’ve struggled for much of my life to find “a room of my own.” Growing up in a shoe box size Manhattan tenement apartment, my first writing sanctuary was the shared family bathroom. With a clamorous household crammed with sisters, my grandmother and a working mother, it was impossible to have more than five undisturbed minutes before the desperate hordes advanced on the porcelain bowl’s pearly gates.

Lacking the advantage of my own room, I anointed treasured New York hideouts as ‘June’s Dens’. My favorite refuge was the Cloisters – a medieval castle perched at the tip of Manhattan on a hill overlooking the Hudson River. On Sunday mornings, as Gregorian chants wafted through the castle’s cavernous chambers, I sat between sun-warmed marble columns pouring the secrets of my soul onto a child’s lined schoolbook.

My pattern was set – if not in stone, at least on dog-eared paper – that to write, I needed to leave home to find myself and explore creative visions.

It wasn’t until college, when I first encountered Virginia Woolf’s status quo busting A Room of Her Own, that a thunderclap of recognition struck; I was not alone needing to be alone to write!

"In the first place, to have a room of her own, let alone a quiet room or a sound-proof room, was out of the question, unless her parents were exceptionally rich or very noble….”

The idea of class and privilege as it relates to a writer’s process (and available opportunities) was something I was just beginning to understand. Raised by a single mother in a class typically referred to as working poor, I felt a failure (and lacking in discipline) because of my inability to write at home.

Historically, women have been denied access to space other than their tightly contained domestic spheres. Breaking out of her home’s confining walls, Virginia Woolf wrote in a converted toolshed. What refuge have you found to compensate for the dearth of creative space in your home? Perhaps, like me, you have sought the quiet of a library, the peace of a house of worship, or the rickety back table of a deserted coffee shop to hear your Muse.

A discovery I made in the late ‘80s opened an exciting new avenue in my quest for creative space. One harried, grey day in New York as I rushed from Teaching Job #2 to Teaching Job #3 - with an hour-long trek on the subway between the two – I opened a journal to pass the time.

An article about a new residency program in North Carolina hiring artists from around the country caught my eye; right then and there I decided to apply, and was accepted a few months later. Journeying to the American South and serving as a North Carolina Visiting Artist (for three years) was an extraordinary, life-changing experience!

Over the past three decades, I’ve explored different types of residencies in a plethora of places; many short-term (a few weeks), some, a couple of months, and a few, spanning years. Although I am fortunate now to own my own home with an attic-shaped office and an antique oak desk which I adore, writing habits are hard to break; I continue to seek out residencies to start or finish a new work.

There has been an explosion of artist residency programs around the world the last twenty years. Are you inspired by nature? Select national parks offer residencies! Would you enjoy writing in a deceased famous person’s house? Heritage sites (literary etc.) have programs.

Do you crave working in a collaborative environment? Yep, those residencies exist too. As I write this blog post, I am happily ensconced in a mountain cabin in Georgia at one of my favorite residency sites (Hambidge Arts Center).

Why do I love artist residencies (let me count the ways)! The best programs offer unique environments to explore and be inspired (whether on top of a mountain or in a vibrant urban setting); a place of one’s own to think and write; and – the super-fun part – the opportunity to meet incredible artists from around the globe.

“If we live another century or so….and have five hundred a year each of us and rooms of our own; if we have the freedom to write exactly what we think; if we escape a little from the common sitting room and see human beings not always in their relation to each other but in relation to reality...then the opportunity will come….”

Well, it’s been close to a century since Woolf’s revolutionary essay was published, and the challenges facing women writers unfortunately persist. If your writing journey is similar to mine, and you long for a room apart from your ‘real’ life to connect with your Muse, beg, borrow, or steal a room of your own, because the plays and stories you have to author are important! (FYI, a terrific resource for residency opportunities is the Alliance of Resident Communities.) Happy residency hunting!

ABOUT JUNE GURALNICK

For three decades, June has created works (plays, performance projects, multi-media installations) melding fact with fiction and portraying individuals caught – sometimes comically, sometimes tragically - in the intersection of politics and personal dreams. Her work has been performed at venues including the Kennedy Center (Washington, D.C.), Abrons Arts Center/Henry Street Settlement Theatre (NY), Spirit Square (NC), Equity Library Theatre (NY), Bethany Arts Center (CA), Burning Coal Theatre (NC), Southern Appalachian Repertory Theatre (NC), AS220 (RI), North Carolina Museum of Art – and beamed to the Space Station!

Plays include MEMORIES OF CHILDHOOD, CONTAINMENTS: THE HOME PROJECT Part II, IN GOLD WE TRUST (with Guy Nickson), ART TALES OF THADDEUS, WOMEN OF THE LIGHT (with Cynthia Mitchell), SPACE INTERLUDE, FINDING CLARA, ACROSS THE HOLY TELL, ON THE DREAMHOUSE SEA, and most recently, BIRDS OF A FEATHER: A COMEDY ABOUT DE-EXTINCTION. Selections from her plays have been published by North Carolina Literary Review, Playwrights’ Center (Monologues-Heinemann Press), Blackbird Press, Smith & Kraus and Left Curve; ON THE DREAMHOUSE SEA was published in 2017 and monologues from BIRDS will be published in Applause Books’ upcoming Best Women’s Monologues.

Awards and residencies include the Silver Medal-Pinter Drama Review Prize, North Carolina Arts Council Literature Fellowship, Southern Appalachian Repertory Theatre New Plays winner, Virginia Center for the Creative Arts Writing Fellowship, Hambidge Center for the Arts Writer-in-Residence, Writer-in-Residence at Wildacres Retreat, Artist-in-Residence at the Rensing Center, United Arts Council of Raleigh & Wake County Regional Artist Grant, Piedmont Regional Artist Grant, and Sewanee Writers’ Conference Tennessee Williams Scholar. In 2019, June has been awarded a writing residency at Hambidge Arts Center for rewrites on her work-in-progress (LITTLE ) as well as Runner-Up for the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts Tyrone Guthrie Writer-In-Residence Fellowship (Ireland).

The patriarchal order is the default position. No parity for women on the British stage.

Jenni Munday — Thu, 14 Mar 2019 04:08:58 GMT

by Julia Pascal

Notes from the 1984 Conference of Women Theatre Directors and Administrators reveal that little has changed for women in British state theatre seeking equality of opportunity.

Questions asked then were:

Why is there no parity for women on the English subsidized stage? Why is the male-only narrative considered the human one? Why are women shoehorned into a category called ‘diversity’? Why are women forced to compete for subsidy with other groups and therefore perceived as a minority? Why are women the majority on the fringe where their work is unsupported by any infrastructure. Why is women’s work unfunded or underfunded compared to men who run national theatres? Why are women under-represented in the English theatre canon? Why are women ghettoized because they have a vagina and not a penis?

In 2019, I invited Chris Campbell, former Literary Manager of the National Theatre, to talk to my Theatre MA students at City University. How did you get the job? I enquired. He told the group of students and me I was an actor at the NT and keen to play all the roles that Simon Russell Beale was given. I was not a very good actor and I was not given these parts. One day the Artistic Director, Nicholas Hytner, invited me in to his office and asked me if I wanted to join the Literary Department. That’s how I became Literary Manager. The job was not advertised which goes against the spirit of the law. Jobs for the boys is not supposed to happen in the state theatre. But the funding body, the Arts Council, does not check this and so it happens and nothing is said. The role of the Literary Manager is crucial. He, and it is always he at the National Theatre, is the gatekeeper. A writer must be approved by him to get her work read. When Hytner was National Theatre Artistic Director, and rewarded for it with a knighthood, he never directed a play by a woman. Therefore, the Literary Manager knew in advance that he must favour male writers. When Hytner was asked why so few women were produced under his watch, his response was in twenty years women will have equality.

https://www.thestage.co.uk/news/2012/nicholas-hytner-predicts-gender-equality-among-theatre-makers

Had he said this about a black person he would have been sacked. Hytner has now left the National Theatre but is still considered one of the ‘great and the good’.

In 2014, Sam Potter asked if the National Theatre had a problem with women when blogging in The Stage. Of 206 productions in the 12 years of Hytner’s directorship only 15% were written by women. Peter Hall, another knight of the British establishment, programmed four women playwrights in 15 years.

https://www.theguardian.com/stage/theatreblog/2013/nov/07/national-theatre-problem-with-women

This is how it is run in Britain.

In 2018, I wrote in The Guardian about this human rights injustice.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/apr/24/women-theatre-quotas-stage-gender

After pulling together a petition of a hundred women protesting about lack of parity, I went to see the Director of the Arts Council with a core group of professional theatre practitioners, among us was Equity’s President Maureen Beattie. We discussed this with Sir Nicholas Serota, Chair of the unelected quango, the Arts Council. The Arts Council is the distributor of state money. Its funds come from the taxpayer, over half of which are women. Those women rarely see the complexity of their lives onstage. At the Arts Council meeting my colleagues and I revealed that this lack of parity was a human rights issue and one which we have been exposing as a problem in theatre for over thirty years. Sir Nicholas declared that he was shocked by our revelations. I asked about the monitoring of jobs for the boys in the Literary Departments. Arts Council officers said that there was none.

The patriarchal order is the default position. Questioning it has resulted in intimidation. When I wrote in 1984 in the London magazine City Limits, that the national theatres were marginalizing women’s work, I received a personal letter from the Director of the Royal Shakespeare Company. Sir Trevor Nunn was so outraged at being held responsible for lack of parity that he wrote this ‘somehow I doubt that you will be experiencing much of what we do at first hand.’

What is the answer? Perhaps The Guerrilla Girls have got it right with their demonstrations outside which shame art galleries that show male-only work.

https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/guerrilla-girls-6858/who-are-guerrilla-girls

If the majority of theatre audiences - women - went on strike, this would provoke panic among the ruling self-proclaimed elite. I suggest that we should refuse to visit theatres that do not practise parity. If the Arts Council is afraid to take on the clients it funds and refuses to withdraw funding from theatres that refuse our equal right to work as playwrights, performers, directors and practitioners, we must take action ourselves. A theatrical demonstration outside theatres would provoke unwelcome publicity and highlight this sexual apartheid to a wider audience.

Julia Pascal’s new play Blueprint Medea opens at the Finborough Theatre 22 May 2019.

https://www.finboroughtheatre.co.uk/productions/2019/blueprint-medea.php?spektrix_bounce=true

Julia Pascal is a playwright and scholar in the UK focusing on politics and war. Plays explore multi-ethnicity, the transmission of trauma, mothers and daughters/fathers and sons. Family conflict through a political prism.

You can check out her member profile in the member directory as well as:

www.juliapascal.org

www.pascal-theatre.com

Interview with Grant Winner - Pernille Dahl Johnsen

Fri, 08 Mar 2019 16:56:43 GMT

In 2018 Pernille Dahl Johnsen was granted a 2-year Work Grant from the Norwegian Government Grants for Artists. We decided to ask her additional questions about this prestigious award as part of our ongoing series of highlighting our members’ awards, grants and recognition.

Is there a particular play you have been commissioned to write as part of this grant? No, I haven't been commissioned to. You apply, and if the application and the idea is better than most of the rest, and you have a certain production behind you, you may be picked as one of the approximately 2 percent that is granted. But getting 2 years is rare, most playwrights get only one.

Any other details on what you did to win the grant? Did you have to submit a play or a writing sample? Yes, you have to submit samples from the play you are planning to write, and a project description, like a synopsis, character development
and such. And also other scripts you have written, as proof of quality.

What kind of work will you do? I write in my own form which I call "a staged reasoning", in which one follows a line of thought to its extremes, and where the characters represent inner traits or viewpoints or driving forces within human beings rather than human beings of flesh and blood - it's all quite philosophical and existential. And in a way absurdist, although I strive very hard not to alienate my audience: I very much want to communicate and be understood. I rarely write plays with strict realism, but sometimes like to do that, too.

When will your play be performed - is it commissioned to be performed at the end of the grant period? I don't know. I have to take it to theatres and ask if they're
interested.

Any other information about you that we should include in the interview? My play "A Remarkable Person" has just been selected to be published in The Oberon Anthology of Contemporary Norwegian Plays (by the publisher) Oberon Books Limited

Also, here's my credo: "I believe theatre magic arises when the artistic project emanates from an authentic need within the artist herself, and strive for courage to comply with this belief in all my plays."

Anything else about Norwegian theatre that you would like ICWP readers to know? Well, I feel there's too little diversity of opinion within Norwegian theatre, we're too much like one great pack hunting the same prey. Makes it less interesting and less challenging, unfortunately.

#jessiesalsbury #icwp #PernilleDahlJohnsen

An Interview with Shellen Lubin

Jenni Munday — Mon, 25 Feb 2019 02:20:04 GMT

By Coni Koepfinger

on the anniversary of

UNTOLD STORIES OF JEWISH WOMEN

A Festival of Plays, Music, and Conversation

March 20-22, 2018

Museum of Jewish Heritage

A CALL TO INSPIRATION

Early in 2018, esteemed playwright, director and theatre festival producer, Shellen Lubin asked me to be involved in UNTOLD STORIES OF JEWISH WOMEN. She commissioned me to write a play about activist and politician, Bella Abzug, for Caroline Aaron to perform. I was very honored to be asked and, lo and behold, a most magical thing happened.

Feminist and National Organization for Women (NOW) founder, Bella Abzug was known for her line “ This woman’s place is in the house- the House of Representatives.” She was a lawyer and U.S. Representative from 1971-1977. In 1976, as a freshman at Penn State University, I met women from NOW who asked me to write a scene for them that was to be performed nationally at PTA meetings across the country. A young teacher had lost her job because she decided to solve gender issues with her kindergarten students- the boys made fun of girls at the carpentry table forcing the girls to play in the kitchen. The teacher decided to split up the boys and girls and assign days in kitchen for boys only. One angry dad did not want his son to play in the kitchen but the teacher would not back down, so he had her fired. My play about Bella, PLAYING HOUSE, brought it together for me and made me realize why I am still writing about women’s issues even in the 21^st century. I am truly grateful to Shellen Lubin for that opportunity.

CK: Shellen, again, thank you. It was truly a wonderful project. Could you tell us what inspired you to begin the Untold Stories project?

SL: Women’s issues? Still, you say? Because we’re still in a ridiculously under-known place. We’re still 9-25% of the voices heard. We get 9% of the venture capital funding (people of color get 2%), and, depending on the size of the budget and the reach of the project, somewhere between 10-25% of the productions. It’s pathetic. We still too often see women through men’s eyes, and as appendages to their stories.

Susan Merson and I have co-produced a few festivals of short plays primarily from 365 Women a Year: a Playwriting Project. These are plays that are inspired by and/or about moments from the lives of women who should be known, or famous women who are only known in a particular context and there is so much more to know about them. As shifting perspective has always been one of my benchmarks as a writer and director, it has excited me greatly to work with this project, begun by Jess Eisenberg on facebook and including hundreds of writers from around the world, trying to write women back into the history of the world through plays.

When I made a terrific connection with the Museum of Jewish Heritage - A living Memorial to the Holocaust, and with their resident theatre company, NYTF, the National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene, we decided to do a three day festival completely devoted to historical Jewish women, from the bible through to the transgender Martine Rothblatt--an incredibly incomplete history of Jewish women, but all untold stories--or old stories told from new perspectives--a panorama of Jewish women over the centuries. Susan and I are both Jewish women and have both been actively involved with struggling for shifts in perspective in theatre, both in form and in content.

CK: Who all was involved in the project?

SL: There were over 40 playwrights and plays involved in this project, some that were written or excerpted for us and many that were already written. The 'piece de resistance' was an evening of songs and monologues from various places including an opening poem about Lilith in both English and Yiddish, an excerpt from Indecent (with the permission and delight of the creative team), an appearance by Luna Kaufman--a Holocaust survivor who still writes and speaks so eloquently, your monologue, and a song written and performed by Christine Toy Johnson (with Bobby Cronin) in the voice of Rabbi Angela Buchdahl, the first Asian-American Rabbi (who attended the evening!). Performers included Estelle Parsons, Roberta Wallach, Ilene Kristen, Tia de Shazor, and so many others. It was a spectacular evening, both in its theatrical accomplishment and in its portrayal of the breadth of female perspectives that are available to us.

CK: What was the overall response from the artists involved?

The artists were so pleased to be involved in a project that was such a huge and collective undertaking of women-centric voices.

CK: Any plans for a project like this for the future?

SL: NYTF is pretty consumed with their Yiddish Fiddler on the Roof right now (which really should be seen by all), and the museum has taken some different turns in their focus, but Susan and I are now in deep discussions of what might be the next venture for this project. One thing we have discussed and may try to make happen is a podcast of these pieces and more. Although that would only be audio, it would be a way of bringing these voices and perspectives to a much wider audience.

CK : Tell us about your work right now... what have you done and what’s coming up—-

SL: I am working on a number of projects right now, directing/developing a few projects with some terrific playwrights--primarily Stuart Warmflash and Amy Oestricher--and working on re-writes for a few of my own plays as well as some new songs. And on Monday, March 11, I will be directing the Bistro Awards for Sherry Eaker for the seventh year in a row--a fabulous night celebrating the best in cabaret, jazz, and the NYC nightlife scene.

ABOUT SHELLEN LUBIN:

PERFORMING

Shellen has been onstage—as both a singer/songwriter and an actor— for years, both in and out of New York City. She and her songs have been featured on radio (Woody’s Children on WQXR-FM, a one-hour special on WBAI-FM, and various shows on WABC, WOR, and WEVD-FM), cable television, and in Milos Forman's first American film, Taking Off. Mother/Child, her one-woman musical, was called by WBAI-FM: “a dynamite show about the joys, agonies, conflicts, and concerns of combining new parenthood, person-hood, and artist-hood.” Other performing credits include stage (most recently "The Flood" in The Vagina Monologues at Here Arts Center directed by Andrea Bertola), screen (including principal roles in the films Green Card and Taking Off, and Amanda Cole's High Falls).

PLAYWRITING

Shellen recently completed Without a Title, loosely based on Federico Garcia Lorca’s Play Without a Title and Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Her play, Imperfect Flowers, played to rave reviews in Omaha, Nebraska, as part of SNAP!Fest (“a night when acting and lights and music and a glorious script all come together into something bordering on magic,” Omaha World-Herald.) The first act of the play, a one-act entitled Anthesis, also received raves in L.A. when it played at the West Coast Ensemble. Her first musical in NYC, Molly's Daughters, was commissioned by American Jewish Theatre. Other plays and musicals have been performed in productions and staged readings at the Public Theatre, Henry Street Settlement, Manhattan Class Company, Hubbard Hall, 13th Street Theatre, and many other venues.

DIRECTING

Shellen has directed numerous plays, musicals, and cabaret acts in productions, workshops, and readings, most recently the 28t h-34th Annual Bistro Awards, Tyler’s Theory of Love by Stuart Warmflash in the E.A.T. Festival, This Year’s Model by Donna Hoke at NJ Rep’s Theatre Brut, Buck Naked by Gloria Bond Clunie at Ivoryton Playhouse, Door Opens Walk Thru by Susan Merson at 13th Street Repertory Theatre, Between Pretty Places (a musical Ghost Story by Susan Merson with music and lyrics by Shellen Lubin and additional music by Matthew Gandolfo) at Pacific Resident Theatre in Venice, CA and at Here Arts Center in NYC, and many more.

ADVOCACY FOR WOMEN & THE ARTS

Shellen is 1st Vice President & Past President of the Women in the Arts & Media Coalition, Inc. which brings together many unions, guilds, and associations, to work for women in the industry, expanding their voice, their vision, and their clout. She is also a past VP of the League of Professional Theatre Women, for which sheCo-Chairs the Mentoring Committee. She is also a member of the National Theatre Conference, where she chairs the Women Playwrights Initiative.

Shellen is a proud member of most writers’, directors', and performers’ unions in our industry

PLEASE NOTE: the below event is happening in 2019!

African American Women Playwrights and the Empowerment of Black Women

Jenni Munday — Sat, 16 Feb 2019 03:14:58 GMT

By Sharon Wallace

Pioneering Black Women Playwrights: The Early Plays

(excerpt from dissertation chapter 3)

The politics and creativity represented in the African American struggle in the works of pioneering African American women playwrights who prolifically wrote plays concerning the Black struggle that informed the Black community on the politics of social issues that influenced their everyday existence.

Specifically, this chapter explores the early plays that gave African Americans the opportunity to hear their story being told by people who looked like them. These plays were written by the mother dramatists and were more prominent than their Black male counterpart at the time. Thus, the early plays of Black female playwrights were influential on the Black community because the news as it pertained to Blacks at that time slanted the truth to one side.

This injustice of inaccurate information kept Blacks ignorant to the truth of a situation or conflict. Therefore, the pioneer African American women playwrights illuminated information that was hidden from them.

Additionally, the mother playwrights wrote about what some Black writers feared to address, such topics as religion and abortion. They were bold and bright and set the standards for contemporary Black female dramatists to follow.

As a contemporary playwright, I am inspired by pioneer African American women playwrights such as Angelia Weld Grimké, born in 1880. James V. Hatch and Ted Shine write in Black Theatre USA: Plays by African Americans—The Early Period 1847-1938 that,“Grimké was the only daughter of Archibald Grimké and Sarah E. Stanley.

This was an interracial marriage that was unique in that it was a legal marriage. Grimké, a well-known poet, had written a play, her first, Blessed Are the Barren during the time the NAACP published a request for race propaganda plays. She had hoped that this play would tug at the heart of white mothers. It might eliminate racism. Grimké re-titled the play Rachel.

It was submitted and accepted by the Drama Committee of the NAACP. Produced originally in Washington, D.C., in 1916 at the Myrtill Miner School . . . the play remains a major classic by a Black playwright, and it is the earliest extant full-length drama written by a Black female” (Hatch and Shine 133).

Grimké’s play, Rachel, was the first play by a Black woman that was presented on stage to inform the American public of the plight of the Black race. “Rachel was the first attempt by a Black woman to use the stage for race propaganda in order “to enlighten the American people relative to the lamentable condition of the millions of Colored citizens in this free republic” (Gloria Hull, qtd. in Hatch and Shine 134).

Grimké’s play Rachel speaks up about the civil injustice and racial abomination Black people encounter living in America. The staging of Grimké’s play was the first time a play written by a woman of color was used in the theatre to educate the masses on the state of affairs of millions of Black people. The theatre was used to tell the story to a White audience about the struggles of a Black family to succeed in a racist an oppressive society.

However, plays about a Black family received limited reviews, and of course the play’s theme may have kept White audiences away from the theatre. As Eulalie Spence noted, “The white audience didn’t wish to be reminded about their sins, and Black audiences already were very well aware of the lamentable condition of the million of Colored citizens” (Eulalie Spence qtd. in Hatch and Shine 134).

The story that Rachel tells is not a happy tale about a Black family content with the life they’re living. Grimké’s goal is to show the audience the reality of Black life. However, the theatre is a space of escape for some audiences, a place to be entertained. The harsh realities of Black life were not what the White or Black audiences wanted to see.

Whites wanted to avoid the arrows of blame directed at them for causing the suffering of the Loving family, and Blacks knew all too well what Blacks had to wrestle with. Grimké’s attempt to use the stage to inform her audience was not well received.

Nevertheless according to Hatch and Shine, “With the play’s 1920 publication, however, Rachel reached a larger female audience and became the subject of the ongoing debate among critics of the theatre and other literary forums.

In particular, the original Drama Committee that produced the work had already divided opinions on the function of drama: should drama be propaganda or art” (Hatch and Shine 134). Female audiences were intrigued by Rachel’s decision to live an independent life without marriage or children. The theatre offered few women figures that took such a strong and feminist role during that period.

Grimké’s play was used as propaganda to inform the audience of the suffering of Black citizens. However, both Black and White mainstream audiences did not attend the performance. This raises the question if the theatre should be used for art or propaganda.

I maintain that the theatre does a combination of both on most occasions. It showcases art and propaganda, a message is always factored into the story to inform the audience about how to live. The art of the story makes the teaching that takes place in a play easier to accept.

The public does not feel that they are being lectured to if they are entertained while being educated. I acknowledge that Grimké’s play was ahead of its time, and audiences were not ready to face themselves on the stage. Because they were in the midst of living the experience of the play; the reality of the play was too close to personal emotions and too soon to view in a performance.

The lynching of the father in Grimké’s play was a new tenet in theatre that the theatre going public had not been exposed to, so it was shocking to hear it discussed by the mother. Perkins asserts that, “Grimke’s outrage over the lynching of African Americans in the United States is reflected in her early activism as well as in her drama. . . .Rachel is traditionally considered a drama of new beginnings.

Samuel Hay notes that drama depicting the horrors of lynching began with Grimké, and Claudia Tate identifies Grimké’s work as the location of ‘a new point in African American literature,’ where depictions of racial protest start satisfying the expectations of twentieth-century Black readers . . . Grimké’s Rachel represents the foundation of a unique American dramatic genre which continues to develop on the contemporary stage” (Perkins 25).

Certainly, Grimké’s Rachel was a trailblazer for future playwrights writing plays as an act of protest against racial injustice. Clearly literature in the form of a play is a powerful genre that can raise awareness on an issue and bring about change. Most assuredly, Rachel was the emergence of American literature that cast light on issues important to African Americans.

Judith L. Stephens underscores in “Lynching Dramas and Women: History and Critical Context” that, “As a body of work, plays written in the anti-lynching tradition represent an important community of consciousness between Black and white Americans and reveal an artistic tradition that both preserves and transcends Black/white racial separation in the unity of dramatic form” (Stephens 4-5).

Remarkably, protest plays have the potential to enlighten the consciousness of Black and White Americans. By the nature of the genre, plays inform the public about matters of interest to the community. Thus these anti-lynching plays is a creative form that archived division between Blacks and Whites and goes beyond those disconnections and connect through a play.

Black female women’s leadership in the anti-lynching movement was prominent, and they demonstrated their objection to the lynching of Blacks through their dramas. Stephens asserts about “. . .dramas written by women because women played a unique role in the anti-lynching movement and in the development of lynching drama.

Given this particular history, these plays can be seen as a source of womanist/feminist drama. The compound ‘womanist/feminist’ is used here to represent Black women’s leadership in the anti-lynching movement and to recognize the tradition of Black and white American women working together toward common goals” (5). Thus, both Black and White female playwrights contributed to the genre of anti-lynching plays, which place attention on the issue of lynching of Black men.

Kathy Perkins asserts in “The Impact of Lynching on the Art of African American Women” that, “The lack of representation of women as direct victims of lynching is remarkable when one recognizes that women were consistently subjected to the same brutality as men … Of all the known plays by women—both Black and white—none focuses on the lynching of a woman” (Perkins 16).

It seems that gender equality was not a factor in the anti-lynching plays. In order words, the lynching of Black women was not documented in dramas, although Black women suffered brutal attacks of violence. Nevertheless, these plays fulfilled a purpose that presents stories of the atrocity Blacks experience with the barbarity of lynching.

African Americans have used theatre ritual as a venue to share stories of the community through oral storytelling. Africans have a rich history in that early form of theatre. Therefore, because of that history we should not be surprised by contributions of the pioneer mothers to African American theatre and the plays that are available to us.

Hatch and Shine note that, “Since ancient times the people of Africa have celebrated life and death in theatre ritual. Much of this was oral drama, passed on by tradition but never written down” (334). However, as the culture evolves so does the theatre, and African Americans began to write plays that reflected their experiences.

In the past and like today’s plays written by Black playwrights, they can teach the history of the Black community in our own words. Moreover, Hatch and Shine stress that, “African American students could not learn about themselves from history texts, concerned artists such as May Miller. . . decided that plays could be an entertaining and effective tool of enlightenment” (326).

The African American story has been diluted and absent from history books from south to north. Arguably, African American students learned about their history and culture through early plays written by Miller and her contemporaries She was conscience of the importance and value of education and saw education as a means to progress and prosperity for Blacks. May Miller wrote mostly one-act plays to provide her students with images they could identify with and reflected themselves and not the stereotypes commonly presented. (Hatch and Shine 334).

The failure of history texts to inform African American students about themselves led playwrights, such as May Miller to write plays about Black culture. They believed that plays could educate and entertain all the while bringing awareness to students. Hence, audiences attending theatre production of plays written by Black playwrights could identify with the story and the characters on stage and shared similar experiences.

Theatre in the Black community served as a place where Blacks came together to examine through the lens of entertainment issues that affect Black life, teaching them how to problem solve elements of conflict with creative solutions presented through the play.

Thus, May Miller recognized the strength in using plays to confront issues within the African American community. Samuel A. Hays underscores in African American Theatre: An Historical and Critical Analysis that, “May Miller’s Graven Images (1929), one of the best plays of the period, was just what Bible-toting southerners needed:

God punishes Moses’ sister Miriam for defaming the Ethiopian Eliezer” (Hay 84) Moses’ sister Miriam slanders his son Eliezer and exposes racism thoughts and words to the child. These actions were shown in Biblical times as she tells her nephews’ friends that Eliezer is not the image of God because he is Black like his mother” (38).

Hay stresses that, “The Du Bois Era was significant, then, because it compelled African American dramatists to address the political and socioeconomic issues of race” (84). Thus, Du Bois commissioned plays for his Crisis magazine, creating a platform for Black playwrights to be produced and that made a way for the African American to publicly have a discussion on racism in the political and socioeconomic arena.

Moreover, those political plays would be used to encourage African Americans’ activism as active participants in the community. The theatre was that place where Blacks could speak freely on issues that impacted their future. For that reason, Du Bois saw plays as tool to teach African Americans on the issues of race and how it affects every aspect of their existence.

Black dramatists, most importantly, wrote plays about Black culture in a vernacular African Americans understood. Miller’s Graven Images shows the audience that Black people have always been a part of the developing world we live in and that we did not only happen or appear on the scene by accident.

In her play, Miller uses a Bible verse as an example of racism occurring B.C. Hatch and Shine point out that, “Graven Images is inspired by an Old Testament verse: ‘And Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Ethiopian woman he had married.’ (Numbers 12:I).

It was written around 1929 for eighth grade children and shows how the Black man is woven into the fabric of the universe. ‘We belong,’ this play exclaims, ‘we have always been, and we will always be’” (334). Miller’s play illustrates to Black audiences that African Americans have purpose in the world. That we are contributors to humanity and that contribution is equally as important to the building of the nation.

Therefore, African American dramatists gave voice to the political and social concerns of Black audiences. Because of that, early African American women playwrights saw the opportunity to use plays as a weapon Blacks could use to enrich their knowledge on how to take action against the injustices that shrouded African Americans in perpetual struggle.

Furthermore, Alice Dunbar-Nelson, like Grimké and Miller, was a dramatist and wrote plays that reflected the life and times of African American culture. Theatre was an outlet for the Black community, a space where they could see themselves as human beings.

----------------

Sharon Wallace is on the Board of Trustees for ICWP

Playbill Articles on Gender Parity - Some Gains, Some Stagnation, Some Defeat

Wed, 13 Feb 2019 22:42:13 GMT

There have been some strides in gender parity, with some recent polls and information confirming that parity is being reached with some theater art positions, but staying stagnant in others.

The newest report in the League of Professional Theatre Women's Women Count, compiled by Martha Wade Steketee and Judith Binus, reviews 515 unique productions, ranging from the 2013-2014 season to 2017-2018. 47% of the productions had female directors, an increase of 7%, while the most recent season had the most female playwrights, a report of 41% up from 36%.

In 2017-2018 season, however, women had the lowest amount of representation in the fields of sound and lighting design, with 21% and 23%.

Though the pool of theaters could be considered a small sample size for comparison, it is indicative of what we all see in theaters across the world. For more information and a great summary on the report, Ryan McPhee has written an exceptional article for Playbill.

In another take by Playbill, Women in Theatre, Resetting the Stage, a panel interview with 5 female theater directors , Margot Bordelon, Kathleen Marshall, Leigh Silverman, Rebecca Taichman, and Whitney White all agree that parity "is a fantasy" as expressed by Silverman.

Whitney White expressed similar frustrations, that she is not allowed to fail, as there is a feeling of 'scarcity' as a female, black director.

The video embedded in the article reinforces the passion these women have for their art and their craft, and how hard they must work to have their seat at the table. It is definitely worth a watch.

Whichever opinion currently held, that there is great progress, or stagnation, or defeat, it is worth reviewing the recent work Playbill has written on gender parity, and taking a break to celebrate the bit of progress, however small.

#playbill #parity #icwp #womenplaywrights #womenwriting #theatre #theater #writing #jessiesalsbury

On Gender Parity in Theater and What May Be Broken

Jenni Munday — Thu, 31 Jan 2019 22:31:45 GMT

by Rita Anderson

In 2014, I bought an anthology of Contemporary Plays by Women: Outstanding Winners and Runners up (1978-1990) for the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize (prize deadline was September 15^th). In its preface, Editor Emilie S. Gilgore wrote what is now a damning statistic: “We got in touch with Lillian Hellman and asked her to join us as a director. . . At that time, in 1978, only 7% of the plays presented across the United States were written by women. A similar situation existed in the UK. Today, 12 years later, that figure has approximately tripled.” Today, women playwrights only experience 17-19% representation, but in 1990 women’s plays were produced almost 21%. How have we lost ground in the decades since, in this, the fourth wave of feminism?

With a needed push from the theatre world for changes, “50/50 by 2020” (a little over a year away), it is refreshing, finally, to discuss the obvious: women’s right to be equally represented in contemporary American theatre and her odd absence from it. --For female playwrights the present is critical because historically she’s barely mentioned in the ranks of “classic” theatre, a sacred albeit-male canon. Today, I hope to begin a discussion on why I think parity hasn’t happened and why the issue remains problematic. Through events like Arena Stage’s The Summit, and The Kilroys, we now know women playwrights exist [*wink*] and that there is a waiting “pipeline” of talented women interested—so why aren’t women playwrights playing in theatres near you?

We inherited the culture we inhabit and clues to a deep-seated gender inequality are everywhere. Take, for example, the recent ad which pointed out the perceptual differences between strong men (“BOSS”) and strong women (“BOSSY”). While many of us fight for change, more are invested in maintaining status quo, but these are complex issues for another time. To focus on the topic at hand, suffice to say that, psychologically and socially speaking, men and women may act, speak, and even write differently, but women are not, as Freud suggests, “imperfect men without penises.” [This is not to say that all women are the same, either.]

One tenet of my argument, however, is that, in terms of decision-making styles, men statistically think in “absolutes,” while women are “situational” thinkers (decisions are made on a case by case basis). From here it is no stretch to see how, for self-preservation, a patriarchal system needs uniformity: There is one correct way to run businesses, make laws, love, and to art. This longstanding mindset and patriarchal power structure is our brick wall and it won’t be undone with polite discussion, a wish, or a prayer.

Individual giftedness aside, gender differences aren’t imaginary. In April, The Atlantic Monthly ran an article about “The Confidence Gap,” showing how men and women promote their work and themselves--and asserting that “confidence” is as important as “competence.” Rather than deconstruct Nature vs. Nurture or “why” I think men excel in this area (which the article takes a stab at addressing), I will heap more facts on the fire to show why parity will be an Olympic-sized nut to crack.

Washington D.C. theaters did band together this year to produce 44 female playwrights but, despite industry claims for big changes coming, these heavy-hitting lists still posted showcases with 0 or 1 female playwright, often out of 9 or 10 selected: The Changing Scene Theatre Northwest’s Summerplay 2014 (1 out of 9), Manhattan Theater Club (2 women to 6 men 2013-2014 and 2012-2013), Pipeline PlayLab (last year 1 of 7), Steinberg Trust (“Emerging Playwright Award,” founded in 2009 and runs every two years, first year all males to include Bruce Norris), and Summer Shorts (59E59, NYC), in 2013 1 woman, in 2014 0.

The list above fell in my lap and it makes no pretense about being exhaustive. It’s just one of those tip-of-the-iceberg glimpses that makes you despair. I cannot wait for when America becomes a “post-racial” and a “post-gender” society, but that day is not today. Gender parity makes everyone uncomfortable but it’s more than because it’s “the elephant in the room” issue. The real question isn’t, Where are all the female elephants? but Why aren’t they in the room?

The 17% Solution

While the temptation of an “easy solution” for gender parity might entail (a) a mandate that theaters contract 50/50 female/male playwrights, and (b) boycotting or (c) cutting funds for theatres that don’t comply, these measures don’t extinguish the underlying conditions that helped create female invisibility in the arts. Until these “norms” (we’ve been bombarded with and have steeped in for so long they’re absorbed) are brought back to the surface and acknowledged, the cultural lens will remain skewed and inequality will persist. We must learn to look at or “read” plays differently and to see other ways in which to “see.” Otherwise, even with “blind” submissions and with female literary managers at the helm, scripts that fit this ordained writing-style tradition will continue to be selected.

As an undergraduate psychology major, we learned that women use different conversational styles than men: we apologize more, face each other, touch, and rely on eye contact to communicate. Men’s preferred style for communication is side to side—as in from the driver’s and passenger’s seats of a car, or sitting together on the couch. There’ve been controversial studies about differences between the sexes on everything from physical strength, sexual preferences and performance, and intelligence and brain size. What’s important is whose style is being favored. . . Foucault said, “Knowledge is power,” and it follows that whoever runs the board room or classroom (writes the text books, serves as artistic directors and literary managers) dictates what is “good” and sets the agenda for what that looks like.

When feminism began, the most successful women fit in by becoming female men, laughing at jokes which were aimed at their own sex’s expense to assimilate and to show that they were “good sports.” Once inside the golden doors, those women felt privileged to listen to (if not to memorize and to copy the styles of) the sermons and lectures of journalists, novelists, and poets who operated from a foreign set of metaphors and a male-centric way of thinking. “She” learned to read (i.e. decode and encode) the male pronoun “he” as the universal referent for “mankind,” while her models—all male—sponsored phrases like, “Cold as a witch’s tit,” “Take one for the team,” and “Grow a pair.”

Until recently, women were the sole object of the gaze—and everything fell in around that worldview. It is mindboggling how all-encompassing a worldview can be, and how nearly impossible it is to change the sights on that rifle, male habits “she” accommodated and forms “she” learned, after surrendering her own, more natural way of expressing herself to blend in and feel less foreign. If unfettered, what might “her” writing style look and sound like?

(Stay tuned for Part II: “Fighting for a Female Sentence” to be posted in a few weeks)

Rita Anderson, a published and an award-winning playwright, has an MFA Creative Writing and an MA Playwriting. A national winner at Kennedy Center (KCACTF), she went on scholarship to the O’Neill.

Her plays are widely produced and she has 100 publications to
include Final Conversations, and Early Liberty, a “Top 10 Selling Play” for the international publisher (www.offthewallplays.com), and two books of poetry: The Entropy of Rocketman, and Watched Pots (A Lovesong to Motherhood), both of which have been nominated for the Pushcart Prize. Contact Rita through her website. www.rita-anderson.com

Reaching Parity is a Team Sport

Fri, 28 Dec 2018 17:19:46 GMT

Reaching parity in the world of theatre takes everyone's engagement and involvement. Organizations and decision makers must be deliberate in producing female-driven work.

There are a variety of organizations that support women in theatre and female playwrights to make parity and equity a reality, and we all must support one another in this endeavor. As playwrights, we can purposely submit our work to organizations that will celebrate our voices.

Works by Women, now merged with VH Theatrical Development Foundation to create Parity Productions, still houses a wealth of information on their former website. Looking through the participating companies can give insight on where submissions would be welcome.

Little Black Dress INK takes an extremely proactive approach to getting more women playwrights heard. The organization explains their mission as the following:

Little Black Dress INK is an experiment in support, inspired by recent revelations in numbers on the subject of just how few female playwrights actually get produced. Through outreach, education, and producing opportunities, Little Black Dress INK strives to create more production opportunities for female playwrights while also strengthening the female playwright network.

The International Centre for Women Playwrights (ICWP) 50/50 Applause Awards was founded in 2012 to increase awareness and applaud theatres that produced a season with an equal or greater number of plays written by female playwrights.

In reviewing the past winners since its inception, there have been a few theatres that have continued to show up on the list multiple times, and should be commended for their dedication for parity. Playwrights Horizons of New York, NY has been featured repeatedly, as has The Factory Theatre in Ontario, Canada and the Latino Theatre Company/Los Angeles Theatre Center (LATC).

Sphinx Theatre's Sue Parrish, in her breakdown on why parity is taking so long, advises how it must be intentional and be supported by the numbers. As she explains:

There needs to be a proactive approach to increasing women’s representation within the theatre industry. Working from the ground up, we must change the way we write female roles for theatre, and the way we support, train and develop female writers, directors, actors and other women working within the theatre. We need to create a level playing field right now as well as in the future.

As we move towards gender parity, let us be proactive and intentional, and let us remember it is a team sport in which we all must participate and support one another in our ultimate goal of gender parity and representation.

Let us not only create our own groups and drive our own visions, but support those organizations already out there doing the work.

Tags: #ICWP #Parityprodcutions #VHTheatricalDevelopmentFoundation #worksbywomen #JessieSalsbury #femaleplaywrights #womenplaywrights #LATC #PlaywrightHorizons #FactoryTheatre #LittleBlackDressInk #365WomenAYear

Playwright to Opera Librettist

Jenni Munday — Thu, 20 Dec 2018 06:28:17 GMT

A posting from Sandra Seaton

In 2000, I was asked by composer William Bolcom to write a libretto about the relationship between Sally Hemings and Thomas Jefferson. Growing up as an African American in the South during the era of segregation, I heard many family stories about relationships between blacks and whites outside the law. Some were love relationships; others were exploitive–some were probably both. I couldn’t help thinking about these relationships, when I read the chapter appropriately titled “Haunted Legacies-Interracial Secrets From The Diary of Sally Hemings,” in Naomi Andre’s new book Black Opera: History, Power, Engagement. Andre states that the effectiveness of From The Diary of Sally Hemings is that it allows the conflicting emotions, such as the ones I describe above, to exist simultaneously.

When I stepped into that world of 18^th century America, that time machine, I brought some of my own world with me. What did I bring? Part of it was the result of exhaustive research about that era. Of course, once I started to write, most of the research was unnecessary baggage that had to be set aside. Aspects of my own past stayed with me. It always does. I was fascinated by stories whispered about my great grandmother, a woman who wouldn't go to see her white father, a wealthy man, when he called for her on his death bed but who would stay and visit all day with the family after she was a married woman living on her own. A family secret. Her birth certificate says "father unknown."

My libretto of From the Diary of Sally Hemings is ultimately a work of the imagination, an imagination constrained by historical possibility. So far as anybody knows, the historical Sally Hemings left neither a diary nor any other writings. The words and ideas of Thomas Jefferson have been preserved in his voluminous writings but the thoughts and feelings of Sally Hemings cannot be recovered through research. The “diary entries” I created that make up the libretto are my attempt to give a voice to Sally Hemings, to allow her to speak for herself.

Sandra Seaton is a playwright and librettist. Her plays have been performed in cities throughout the United States, including New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles, and her libretto for the song cycle From the Diary of Sally Hemings, set to music by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer William Bolcom, has been performed at such venues as Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center.

Inclusion, Writing, and Their Reason Why - ICWP Members Reveal Their Thoughts

Tue, 11 Dec 2018 22:22:55 GMT

We interviewed our ICWP members on current topics of Inclusion, Writing, and their Reason Why.

The most common theme from any question was that there still aren’t enough deliberate actions taken by theaters and artistic directions to give writing opportunities to playwrights that identify as female, are of color, or are LGBTQ.

We have quoted the best excerpts from our questions here.

What do female playwrights bring to the theatre? Why are female playwrights important?

Elana Gartner: Female playwrights bring unique voices and perspectives to the stage…It is important that female playwrights serve as role models for those younger women behind us.

Lisa Grunberger: I think female playwrights like Carol Churchill, Susan Lori-Parks, Margaret Edson (Wit), Marsha Norman, Wendy Wasserstein can tell stories that place women at the center of the story. We need a diversity of stories that tell us about how women negotiate the world.

Sandra de Helen: It is important to have a diversity of voices in the theatre. Women’s voices are heard far less than 50% of the time, and consequently, the established canon of plays resulted in the belief that the male point of view is the “correct” and universal point of view.

Karen Howes: We need the female playwright who can not only show us women characters who are individuals, and who not only tell us narratives sprung from female experiences, but we also need female playwrights who can help us broaden our understanding and acceptance of dramatic structure. I look to playwrights like Susan Glaspell and Ntozake Shange to see how plays can work very successfully while not adhering to male structure.

Why do you write plays?

Christine Emmert: I started as an actress, and then I realized I had more to say than just what others wrote.

Elana Gartner: It is part of the fabric of who I am. I have also gotten very depressed when I am not writing plays.

Elin Hampton: My imagination can be triggered from a prompt, a photograph, a commercial or a conversation.

Julia Pascal: To see the work that nobody else is writing. To tell women’s histories as they will otherwise vanish. To explore the world’s action from a woman’s view point.

Lisa Grunberger: I write plays and poems and stories because I have to…it’s a compelling, ineffable force inside you that you hear and sometimes, if you are fortunate, you get the opportunity to tell these stories and to share them, on the page or the stage with other people.

Aphra Behn: To push out a woman’s narrative. All of my plays are stories of women.

If you could talk to your 13-year-old self about playwriting, what would you say?

Emily Adler: “It’s really easy to make this about ego and proving how wonderful you are and constantly needing to hear it…and that temptation will always be there…but when you fall in love with the process, you’ll feel it on a whole other level. And that is where the good stuff really happens.”

Cynthia Wands: It is okay to take risks and talk like you’re the only one who knows what you’re talking about.

Julia Pascal: Listen to old people. Capture their stories. This is your source material. Get older women to talk to you about their lives in great detail.

What can the theatre world do to be more affirming to female playwrights?

Judith Pratt: Teach young women how to navigate the politics of theatre; how to manage their careers.

Penny Jackson: They need to commit to including at least two or three female playwrights in their season. They need to commit to an outreach program for female playwrights. Above all, they need to reach all female playwrights of every nationality, race and age…Ageism is an unspoken issue with theaters chasing playwrights.

Cynthia Joyce Clay: From reading business articles about how some corporations work ….. it seems the task is multidimensional, that problems arise from layers of discriminatory ideas that have to be peeled back and dealt with.

Ibadete Abazi: America [must] give more space to female playwrights because I think even here in many cases …. we are not treated equally.

Debbie Ann Tan: I hope that productions will be open to diverse voices, experimental writings by women…I hope that they can be open to supporting current and living female playwrights by choosing our plays and paying the proper fees so that we can somehow earn from our writings.

Cynthia Wands: Make more female directors and artistic directors available at the theatres. All male staffed theatres don’t seem to be able to incorporate women’s voices as much as when there are women on board.

Laurel Wetzork: Blind submissions. Read more plays by women. Schedule at least half of a [season] with female playwrights.

Aphra Behn: Produce plays by women. Hire women directors. Involve their audiences in the progress.

Farzana Moon: …It still lags behind in lending opportunities to indigenous voices, in US especially, Native Americans.

Karen Howes: The change has come from within. It’s been through the slow movement of women into the entrenched male dominion of theatre management, education and criticism that women artists have been allowed entrance.…. The momentum that has sprung up to support women could easily slip away. It is not entrenched. It is fueled by anger and resentment which are fleeting emotions.

The International Centre for Women Playwrights seeks to support women playwrights around the world by bringing international attention to their achievements and encouraging production of their plays. As an organization, they provide an affirming community of female-identifying playwrights that support one another to advance their craft. Their hope is to achieve parity by empowering women playwrights across the world.

For more information on statistics on women playwrights, please see the League of Professional Theatre Women Women Count report published in February of 2018 or the Dramatists Guild the Count 2.0 - on who is getting produced in the United States, encompassing seasons from 2011-2017.

Tags:

#ICWP #WomenPlaywrights #womanplaywright #femaleplaywright #jessiesalsbury #theatre #theater #women #playwrights #interviews

Since nobody asked I'll tell you

Jenni Munday — Wed, 05 Dec 2018 23:45:30 GMT

A posting from the blog of Hanna Akerfelt

ICWP member in Finland

For the first time in my life I’m in the incredible position of being able to write full time for the coming year and a bit. It’s thanks to both a commission and a grant from Svenska Kulturfonden. I’ve dreamed about this, to write full time, for almost fifteen years. It’s a privilege, no question. So, like a cold on the first day of the summer holiday I’m struck by doubt and questions and hopelessness. How am I ever going to do this? How am I going to get those ideas out of my head and onto paper in a form that anyone else understands? And why do I think that the stories that fascinate me are going to interest anyone else in the slightest? And it’s just Monday.

When I’m struck by these moods, because this isn’t the first time it’s happened it’s just worse this time, one of the things I do is look to other playwrights and writers. It feels comforting to read what they’ve said about their work, their processes, and their ups and downs. There’s a special section of my bookshelf dedicated to books with texts by and interviews with playwrights about writing. I listen to as well, among others to The Royal Court Playwrights Podcast as well, where Simon Stephens interviews playwrights. That’s where I turned this time, listening to interviews with a range of female playwrights. One of the questions he asks in at least a couple of the interviews was “Who do you write for?”.

I’ve never consciously formulated an answer to the question of who I write for, but right now it’s a great question to sink my teeth into. Because it’s not about me, the question is about something outside myself, and I really want to get out of my head. The interviewed playwrights give their different answers, which can lead to different discussions about how you think about writing, about theatre, about your audience. I start thinking about the last play I’ve written, a passion project I’ve worked on for over five years, in between jobs and projects. It’s a play that’s not going to be produced, not necessarily because it’s bad or irrelevant, it just doesn’t fit an easy model. Too small in its scope to be suitable for a big stage, but it needs too many actors to be done on a small stage.

So who is it I’m writing, and continue to write, this doomed play for? I do if for my own enjoyment, I can’t deny that. If I didn’t want to do it there would be absolutely no reason for me to do it. But. On another level I keep writing the play for the people in the story, so that they won’t be trapped inside my head, so that they can come out and exist in a world outside of me, even if that world is just the drawer of my desk. For my sins I have to tell their story, because nobody else knows them. If I don’t do it nobody else will. And I can’t have that.

As I continue listening to playwrights talking about why they write, how they got started and share their experiences of directors, rehearsals and life, the storm inside me starts to subside. Because I’m not alone with any of the things I’m struggling with. Everything you do or write isn’t great, not even after you’ve done fifteen drafts, not everything succeeds, not everything has to succeed, you can still learn from the work and the process. That thought feels good. It feels good to give yourself permission to fail, both as a writer and as a human being. So I’ll just keep writing. It’s the only thing I can do, the only thing that helps when it comes to doubts.

Take a deep breath and write.

Hanna's blog can be accessed at: http://hannaheartfelt.blogspot.com

An Interview with Yvette Heyliger: A Theatre Artist Responds to #MeToo

Jenni Munday — Fri, 23 Nov 2018 04:57:31 GMT

By Coni Koepfinger

Women’s History Month 2018

A CALL TO INSPIRATION

Earlier this year there was lots of breaking news about sexual assault and misconduct in the film, television and radio industries, as well as in politics and blue collar work force. #MeToo stories abounded but no one was talking about the theatre industry. We have our own “casting couch” stories to tell! I posted a tweet disclosing my own #MeToo story and wondered why weren’t other theatre people posting, or identifying themselves as theatre people. I decided to organize an event specifically bringing out #MeToo stories from theatre women during Women’s History Month (March) 2018 and put out a call for #MeToo tweets, scenes and monologues in the theater industry. To my knowledge, I was the first to put out such a call specifically to the theatre community in New York, if not nationally.

WHO, WHAT, WHERE

In response to my call for #MeToo tweets, scenes and monologues, I received not just stories from the theatre industry, but also dance, music, and visual arts. Entries came from states outside of New York, as well as an anonymous posting about misconduct occurring at a theatre company that I spotted on Facebook. Dominique Sharpton-Bright, daughter of Reverend Al Sharpton, contacted me asking if she could be a part, offering the National Action Network’s House of Justice to hold the event. The event was live streamed for those who could not physically attend.

#MeToo Theatre Women Share Their Stories was a reading of tweets, monologues, music and scenes on the subject of sexual assault or sexual misconduct within the theatre industry. Some notable stories include those of Tedx’s Amy Oestreicher; (James Toback victims) Karen Sklaire Watson, Shani Harris, and Selma Blair (one of the “Silence Breakers” and Time magazine’s People of the Year). Rounding out the writers sharing their stories were: Raquel Almazon, Anonymous, Nora Cole, Farzana Datta, Emma Goldman-Sherman, Yvette Heyliger, Prudence Wright Holmes, Penny Jackson, Coni Koepfinger, Martha Patterson, Jane Schlapkohl, Susan Shaffer, and songwriter Germaine Shames. These readings on the subject of sexual assault or sexual misconduct within the arts industry were followed by a power point presentation on harassment prevention in the artistic workplace, as well as preventative action steps led by Akia Squitieri of Creating Safe Spaces. Rehearsal space was made possible by a grant from League of Independent Theatre.

At the National Action Network's House of Justice

RESONANCE AND RESPONSE

The response was tremendous and immediate. All who were gathered seemed bonded together in a common concern and desire to create safe spaces. As a result of the success of this event, I was invited to present a workshop at National Action Network’s National Conference at the Sheraton New York Times Square Hotel held during National Sexual Assault Awareness Month (April). #MeToo: From Testimony to Prevention featured selected monologues written by yours truly, Raquel Almazan, Anonymous and Janet Schlapkohl; a power point presentation about sexual harassment in the workplace by Aimee Todoroff of League of Independent Theatre; a distinguished response panel including: Rachel Dart of Let Us Work Project, Jenna Chrisphonte of the Dramatists Guild and Lillian Gallina of Actors Fund of America; followed by open sharing from the audience, a Q & A, and handouts with contact information of agencies and service organizations working in the area of harassment in the workplace.

At National Action Network's National Conference at Sheraton New York Times Square Hotel

LOOKING FORWARD

I have been invited to participate in New York City’s first #HealMeToo Festival founded by Artistic Director Hope Singsen and presented, in part, through Kori Rushton and IRT Theater’s Residency Season. “From March 27 to April 14, 2018 (Sexual Violence Awareness Month) the #HealMeToo Festival will present multi-disciplinary works in development, creating an intersectional space for conversation, learning and laughter that sparks resilience and growth. Workshops and live panel podcasts will raise critical questions about cultural change and explore many approaches to healing: from activism, to bodywork, to the latest therapeutic advances, to creative writing, art, music and dance.” Contact me (Yvette Hiliger) for more information about this festival which answers the question, “What’s next?”

ON THE HORIZON

Bridge to Baraka, my solo show was selected for the United Solo Theatre Festival, “the world’s largest solo theatre festival”. Emboldened by the 1960s Black Arts Movement yours truly, Yvette X, stakes her claim as a female dramatist coming of age during the ongoing fight for parity for women in the American Theatre. The play empowers artists of all stripes to tell their own stories their own way, and to get those stories to the masses “by any means necessary.” One audience member sent me an email saying, “Good job! The combination of your fine craft of writing, your open-hearted and captivating delivery... the performance had me engaged from start to finish”. I received such a great reception to the show; I decided to try my hand at setting up a tour! To this end, I enrolled in Theatre Resources Unlimited (TRU) Producer Development and Mentorship Program’s Master Class with Broadway producers Jane Dubin and Rachel Weinstein. A long-time producing artist, my actionable goal for the class is to set up a viable tour of Bridge to Baraka to begin during the 2019 – 2020 season.

What a Piece of Work Is Man! Full-Length Plays for Leading Women, a collection of plays written by yours truly and edited by Alexis Greene, delivers a power-packed collection of plays for leading women (and the leading men who love them!). Ideal for professional actors, directors, designers and producers seeking new projects, as well as students of the theatre and lovers of politics, drama and activism! Artistic essays, critical reviews, production cast lists, as well as selected photographs and lead sheet music by composer Larry Farrow, illuminate the work of this producing artist and educator. The book is available in paperback or e-book from your preferred bookseller. Mine is the Drama Book Shop which has signed copies!

And finally, I am pleased to announce that I have been named the official representative of the Founding Alumni of Duke Ellington School of the Arts, a premiere performing arts high school in Washington, DC. This is a full-circle moment for me, as I was honored to server as senior class president and was valedictorian of the first graduating class (1977) during the school’s formative years.

YVETTE HEYLIGER is a playwright, producing artist, educator and activist. She is the recipient of AUDELCO Recognition Award for Excellence in Black Theatre’s August Wilson Playwright Award and Dramatic Production of the Year. She received Best Playwright nomination from NAACP’s Annual Theatre Awards. Author of What a Piece of Work is Man! Full-Length Plays for Leading Women, she has also contributed to various anthologies including, Performer’s Stuff, The Monologue Project, Later Chapters: The Best Scenes and Monologues for Actors over Fifty and 24 Gun Control Plays. Selections from her play, Autobiography of a Homegirl, appear in Smith and Kraus’ The Best Women’s Stage Monologues 2003 and The Best Stage Scenes 2003. Other writings: The Dramatist, Continuum: The Journal of African Diaspora Drama, Theatre and Performance, Black Masks: Spotlight on Black Art, HowlRound, and a new blog, The Playwright and The Patron. After many years in front of the footlights, Heyliger returned to the stage as a solo-artist in her first one-woman show, Bridge to Baraka. From this one woman show came two spin-offs, The Pen Instead of the Gun and I Am That Bear. Memberships: Dramatist Guild, AEA, SDC, AFTRA-SAG and League of Professional Theatre Women. A partner in Twinbiz™, now celebrating its 30th year, she is the co-recipient of the first National Black Theatre Festival Emerging Producer Award. She has a BA and MA from New York University; an MFA in Creative Writing - Playwriting from Queens College; and a Master of Theatre Education from Hunter College (pending). She was an Obama Fellow and is a founding member and longtime volunteer with Organizing for Action. As a citizen-artist, she has worked on many issues including: gun violence prevention, equal opportunity and pay for women artists, and most recently, the #MeToo movement. Yvette lives in Harlem, USA.

Are You Ready to Rumble?

Jenni Munday — Thu, 08 Nov 2018 20:16:04 GMT

Amy Drake talks about theater with playwright Patricia Rumble

What inspired me to become a playwright? I was pregnant with my son, talking to the head of the children’s theatre program at Main Street Theater in Houston. I mentioned that I was reading some folktales and one that interested me in particular was a Russian folktale “Go There I Know Not Where, Fetch That I Know Not What.” He said, “That would make a great children’s show, can you write that?” I said, “sure.” Of course, I had never written a real play in my life. But I was interested in writing.

Although I had no official training in writing plays, I had taught German and wrote stuff for my students. In fact, the first thing I ever wrote was in German, “Goldilocks und die drei Baeren.” My students got first place for the German competition with the Goldilocks sketch. It was also my first time directing, which I discovered is not something I really like to do.

Back to Main Street Theatre. So, I turned in my play, which now was called The Archer and the Princess. Main Street said yes that they would produce my play but not for nine more months. Three days after Main Street said yes, I had my son and while waiting those nine months for my second child I wrote A Mother Goose Comedy and Aesop’s Funny Fables.

My degree is in Biology and German, but I have read many, many plays and gone to the theatre often. I taught myself how to write comedy sketches by taping the Carol Burnett show and then transcribing the funny sketches in a teleplay format. For a year I wrote for the late Comedy Workshop in Houston in 1988.

How did I get my work to the stage? A lot of cold calls in the beginning, which meant I was always on the outside looking in. In order to motivate myself to finish a project, I would find competitions and use the deadline for the competition as my deadline for writing the piece. I won a few children’s play competitions in the beginning of my writing career.

I don’t think of myself as a woman playwright, I think of myself as a playwright. I also think of myself as a business person. Go where you’re not. By that I mean, join business groups. You will be the only playwright and people will be intrigued. Do readings of your work but work with good actors. Enter competitions and submit to competitions and workshops. Also, help others. Take care of yourself physically, emotionally and spiritually. I hope that helps. This is my sage advice from my thirty years of writing. Break a leg.

Patricia’s play, BREAKING OUT OF SUNSET PLACE, runs Jan 24 and runs thru Feb. 10, 2019 at the Queensbury Theatre in Houston. Tickets are available at https://www.queensburytheatre.org/ She also has five published plays and five works in progress: Stuck in RV Land to premier in Port Arthur Texas at the Max Bowl August 16 and 17, 2019, Crazy the Musical premiering in San Angelo TBA in 2019 A Shamrock in Vietnam premiering at the Bastrop Opera House TX in March 2020 Cowboy and Cajun drama Au Revoir Cher Bébé (Goodbye Sweet Baby). In 2019 her publishing and production company Check out Patricia’s PlayItStore here: https://playitstore.com/about/

(Images above are 1. Patricia Rumble with Donna Cole; and 2. Patricia Rumble with one of the staff at Dramatic Publishing)
You can contact Amy Drake at: amydrake1018@aol.com

Gender Parity: A Road More Traveled

Jenni Munday — Wed, 24 Oct 2018 19:25:14 GMT

By Patricia L. Morin

I was drawn to the relationship between gender parity in theatre and publishing through my work with the International Centre of Women Playwrights (ICWP), of which I am the president. We had just completed our 2017-2018 50/50 Applause Award honoring theatres that promote women playwrights around the world on an equal or greater basis to male playwrights. ICWP’s mission is to connect, inspire, and empower women playwrights to achieve equity on the world stages.

Let’s take a short look at what has happened in gender parity over 2017 and 2018 thus far.

In January, 2017, the first Women’s March, one of seismic proportions (over 4,000,000 women), created a tsunami of awareness and solidarity that flooded major US cities, as well as other cities throughout the world. Women were taking a unified stand.

Actress America Ferrera, during the march, said, “We stand together in solidarity with our partners and children for the protection of our rights, our safety, our health, and our families.” January, 2017 https://www.womensmarch.com/

This march was repeated again in January, 2018

The #MeToo movement spurred on more resistance by women. What began in October 2017 rocked the film, media, publishing, and theater industries across the world–when actresses started using the #MeToo hashtag on social media to demonstrate the widespread prevalence of sexual assault and harassment. It followed on the heels of the Harvey Weinstein sexual misconduct allegations.

Leigh Anne Ashley, writing in Writer’s Digest said, “There seems to be no genre that has not been impacted by women finally feeling able and welcome to tell their stories. A recent Google search with the words “#MeToo articles” returned 6.6 million results. To those of us who have been paying attention, seeing the internet filled with so many women’s voices, including so many new voices, is a remarkable thing. I’ve noticed a shift in my writing; I feel gutsier and less apologetic.” “The #MeToo Movement and Its Impact on Women’s writing.” March 29, 2018

Yet, women playwrights struggle …

Industry still has a long way to go, Centre for Women Playwrights finds.

Internationally:

The Playwrights Guild of Canada reported that for the 2017 season in that country, productions by male playwrights continued to dominate — 64%, which was the same as 2016.

The National Voice, a publication of The Australian Writers Guild, reported that, of 95 shows surveyed for 2017 that included Australian playwrights — including those staged by state theater companies — 56% were written by men.

Women are uniting worldwide, walking side by side on a road now more traveled, a path that is growing longer and touching many countries. At the urging of feminist and journalist Caroline Criado Perez, a statue of Millicent Fawcett was placed in London’s Parliament Square in April. In the foreword to the Fawcett Society report “Sex & Power 2018″, Perez writes: “Finally, we have to stop pretending that the path to equality is out of our hands. Power is never given freely. Liberty is never achieved by chance. It is achieved by design. So let’s start designing it.”

YEAH.

Dawn of the Female Playwright

Fri, 19 Oct 2018 13:14:33 GMT

Alex Ates on October 10th, 2018 has proudly proclaimed that the 'Dawn of the Female Playwright is Upon Us' in their article for backstage. The most recent list of the most produced playwrights is decidedly more female than it has been in past years. As the article states:

American Theatre magazine, the trade publication for Theatre Communications Group, released its statistics for the most-produced plays and playwrights working in the United States today.

This year’s list features work that is largely female-powered. Out of the 11 plays listed, eight were written by women. And even the most-produced play, Lucas Hnath’s “A Doll’s House, Part 2,” features almost all-female characters. With only three male playwrights on the complete list, the publication reports a historic proportion. Further, on the list of most-produced playwrights in the country, there are six playwrights of color—another notable advancement for a field which has often been criticized for being predominantly white.

Though this is a banner year for women produced plays and female protagonists, the celebration feels short lived. In an article from American Theatre from September 2017, Rob Weinert-Kendt writes that the more things change the more they stay the same.

The long arc is bending towards gender inclusion and gender parity, but we would have reason to despair. Writers are still majority male and cisgender. In researching gender parity, there is limited numbers available on gender inclusion outside of cisgender males. The production list is still very long on male driven work.

The breakdown is greater than zero, and the breakdown of female playwrights continues to grow, but we are far from gender parity, and far from a range of gender expression in plays being produced.

If this is a dawn of the female playwright, we are slipping out of the night, and just beginning to see the fruit of our labor. Our work that we do, the fight to see an increase of female writing, is in its infancy.

It is not midday, it is not afternoon, it is simply the dawn of equality. There have been strides and improvements, but a long way to move towards equality.

On Twitter, I have made the call that for 2020 all theatres and organizations must commit to promote only female playwrights.

If it is truly the dawn of the female playwright, it's time for theatres and decision makers to put their money where their mouth is. Let's push for women to be produced, and not stop where we are now.

Everyone knows there is a problem, but it's difficult to fix when no one wants to take a risk to fix it.

Imagine it. If in one cycle, during one theatre season, we only saw female written work around the world, how would that change the landscape?

A new dawn indeed.

50/50 Applause Awards 2018 Announced

Tue, 12 Jun 2018 16:02:09 GMT

We are thrilled to be announcing the recipients of the 50/50 Applause Awards of 2018.

62 theatres in Australia, Canada, Finland, Scotland, Singapore, South Africa, United States, and Wales received awards. 103 theatres were nominated.

See the full Press Release here:

http://womenplaywrights.org/press-releases2

The Celebration video has been posted on Youtube.

https://youtu.be/y_CadAxHZJw

Many thanks to the volunteers who helped to research, vet and check eligible theatres around the globe and who provided proofreading assistance.

Rita Barkey

Sandra Dempsey

Amy Drake

Maureen Gustafson

Lawrence Morin

Patricia L. Morin

Sharon Wallace

Karin Williams

English stage is devoted to worshipping male narratives.

Wed, 06 Jun 2018 08:53:55 GMT

Women are being excluded from the stage. It’s time for quotas

Julia Pascal

Theatre is devoted to male narratives, and only a fifth of artistic directors are female. We need to impose a 50/50 gender split.

t’s a century after some British women were allowed to vote, and a statue of the suffragist Millicent Fawcett is being unveiled in Parliament Square, so why is women’s presence on the English stage still unequal to men’s?

In a recent survey, the Sphinx theatre found that just a fifth of English theatres were led by women, who between them control just 13% of the total Arts Council England (ACE) theatre budget. This week, the feminist campaigning organisation the Fawcett Society called for quotas to get more women into key positions, after its Sex and Power Index revealed startling gender disparities in the public arena. The situation in theatre, where I have worked all my life, is a startling gauge of the marginalisation of women.

The Conference of Women Theatre Directors and Administrators began auditing the number of females on stage in the 1980s. That we are nowhere near equality, almost 40 years later, was only too evident at the Olivier awards this month, when the prizes for best director and best new play went to men. When women do not have equal representation in theatre, it is impossible for them to have an equal chance of winning prizes. The Equal Representation for Actresses campaign group is among those pushing for change, but the male ruling elite refuses to share power.

Postwar British theatre declared itself to be the vanguard of a more equal society. From 1956, a new wave known as the “angry young men” celebrated working-class playwrights, directors and actors. Male rage was hailed as a revitalising force. Women’s rage was not. However, this working-class male movement never gave women equal opportunity. Sixty-two years later, female talent remains un-nurtured.

Even today, female playwrights and directors are atypical. Shakespearian gender-swapping has been mooted as a partial solution. One example is Michelle Fairley playing Cassia at London’s Bridge theatre. However, such theatrical novelty only serves to distract from the main issue – the absence of contemporary dramas reflecting the complexity of women’s lives. Cross-gender casting fails to question the over-representation of dead and living male playwrights. It does not address the fact that half our contemporary creative world is missing.

Why aren’t more women active demonstrators against this injustice? One reason is a justifiable fear of blacklisting. Some of the privileged theatrical knights who have led our flagships, the National Theatre and the Royal Shakespeare Company, have opposed gender parity. Consequently, women, who must seek male directorial approval to be employed, have dared not speak their name.

There are structural reasons for marginalisation. Drama schools educate female graduates to expect lower employment levels than their male peers. The actors’ union, Equity, the majority of whose members are female, rejects calls for equal representation. Most important of all is the position of ACE. This unelected quango crushes female ambition by boxing women into a category called diversity. This term reduces women – the majority of the population – to a minority. This promulgates the lie that females are diverse and males are mainstream. Orwellian double-talk maintains male dominance.

The exclusion of women from equal employment at all levels flouts both civil and human rights. The theatre is a serious, international political platform. It is a parliament of the arts, a form of soft power and a cultural territory as important as any physical land mass. With this abnegation of female flair, audiences are robbed of the full human story. These audiences are 65% female. There has never been a female artistic director of the National Theatre or Royal Shakespeare Company. Sir Nicholas Hytner, artistic director of the National Theatre for 12 years, until March 2015, never directed a play by a woman during that time. Women may occasionally appear as actors, directors and playwrights, but the English stage is devoted to worshipping male narratives. Where are the histories of our mothers, sisters and grandmothers?

In December 2017, the recently appointed chair of ACE, Sir Nicholas Serota, announced a 50-50 male-female split on its national council. What we need now is 50/50 employment for female actors, directors, playwrights and creative artists.

We may hate the concept of a quota system but decades of disenfranchisement mean that female artists and audiences have been cheated. When women’s human rights are acknowledged on the English stage, and when theatres are equally shared among expert professionals of both genders, only then can we say that our theatre is truly national and democratic.

Via the Guardian

ICWP 50/50 Applause Awards Nominations Are Coming in

Sat, 03 Mar 2018 10:23:04 GMT

Nominations are coming in for the ICWP 50/50 Applause Awards.

Theatres and theatre fans are nominating theatres around the world that are achieving 50/50 gender equity for female playwrights.

We are encouraging everyone who enjoys live theatre and wants to see that plays by women playwrights are given the same ratio of productions, promotion and reward as plays authored by male playwrights.

It is not only important for the female playwrights themselves that their work is shown on main stages of theatres around the globe, but it is also important for society that the stories, points of view and aspirations find a place in the cultural landscape of every nation.

Lauren Gunderson introduced the 2018 Awards with this encouraging video.

The Deadline for Nominations for the 50/50 Applause Awards is March 15. Guidelines and nomination form can be found here

All Women "Twelfth Night" Should Be A Political Statement

Mon, 04 Sep 2017 06:03:46 GMT

In the news, the policy directive on reinstating the ban on transgender soldiers from serving in the military was issued to the Pentagon from the President of the United States. Add to that the recent White House fallout regarding the violence in Charlottesville by white supremacist and neo-Nazis, race relations and equality for the LGBTQ have been set back from progress. Theater should be a powerful voice to counter these dangerous regressions. Geva Theater Center with the Blackfriars Theater's current production of Shakespeare's "Twelfth Night" boldly showcases the casting of women for all roles even for the male characters. The set and atmosphere is a speakeasy in the 1920's with flowing background jazz music and five original songs for the play.

From Jeff Spevak's article in the Democrat & Chronicle (D&C), Blackfriar's artistic and managing director Danny Hoskins said that the line-up of productions "paid attention to the social and political climate we live in." He wanted to give voice and empower the women in the community.

From Susan Trien's article in D&C, she quoted "Twelfth Night" director Alexa Scott-Flaherty explaining her idea, "In Shakespeare’s time, men played all of the female roles, like Cleopatra and Juliet, and (audiences) accepted it." She wanted to make the story more accessible to their patrons with a fun atmosphere and Shakespeare's role reversals with women running the show.

Everyone who once studied or are studying in all girls' and all boys' schools do surely know that in stage productions, they play all roles, they don't go out and just hire the other gender roles. Thus, it shouldn't be a big deal if women play male characters or men play female characters. However, in the face of "encouraged" bigotry and misogyny (by powers-that-be), the voices and exposure of minorities, people of color, diverse women of ages and body types must be at the forefront to spread the messages of tolerance, acceptance and equality. Gender issues in any way or form must again become a political statement.

Women Playwrights of Color in The Kilroys' The List

Sun, 23 Jul 2017 16:15:36 GMT

The Kilroys (a volunteer organization) and International Centre for Women Playwrights (ICWP) have one common goal: the focus on and empowering of women playwrights. If ICWP has The 50/50 Awards, The Kilroys has The List. This 2017's The List recommends 37 diverse plays written by women of color and transgender men and women in the United States; these new plays are either un- or under-produced (once or twice).

According to founder Ms. Annah Feinberg in answer to my email, "... we hope that The List is a tool that they (the playwrights) can use while advocating for themselves, and that their supporters can use while advocating for them. It's a stamp of approval that, at least anecdotally, has helped writers move forward in their careers." It can indeed be a source of pride for the chosen playwrights because the ones who nominated them for The List are artistic directors, literary managers, and other theater professionals. "We try to garner as much attention possible for The List itself, which helps bring attention to the writers on it," wrote Ms. Feinberg.

In the American Theatre article, The Kilroys Are Here With More Plays by Women, The List functions as a resource for directors and producers looking for good writers. The Kilroys also encouraged women and transgender playwrights to list their plays in the New Play Exchange so that their works can be known to theatre professionals and their subscribers. The List began in answer to the impression and remarks of theatre and artistic directors that there were few women playwrights and a dearth of new works.

Upon reading the summary of the 37 endorsed plays, it is striking how interesting and relevant they all are. There are issues set in different countries but their themes are universal; there are re-telling of Greek myths; there are political and social issues, some are based on actual events; and there are diverse family dramas. The effort to come up with a list for women's works is laudable, but it is regrettable that everyone has to wait for theatre companies and/or producers to bring these beautiful works onstage. The Kilroys, composed of 13 very accomplished women, has looked where no one normally looked: into the periphery of women/trans playwrights of color in the US. If only there could be more networking, resources and organizations with sustained plans to publish and produce new works by women/trans playwrights then women's works can gain momentum year after year. -dalt

Sources:

The Kilroy's. (2017). The List. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from http://www.thekilroys.org /list-2017/

Tran, D. (June 23, 2017). The Kilroys Are Here With More Plays by Women. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from http://www.americantheatre.org/2017/06/23/the-kilroys-are-here-with-more-plays-by-women/

Australian Theatre Company Shows The Way For Gender Equity

Tue, 11 Oct 2016 17:39:36 GMT

DTC ( Darlinghurst Theatre Company) of Sydney Australia, has taken steps to ensure that its 2017 Season showcases the works of female playwrights and theatre artists in equal measure with male playwrights. They have also funded a festival of works by female playwrights as a development opportunity.

The findings are reported by Women in Theatre and Screen (WITS) an organisation set up a year ago to monitor the employment of female writers and directors by Sydney Theatres

WITS co-founder Maryann Wright said, " Not only has DTC's changed attitude manifested in their 2017 programming, but DTC also offered invaluable in-kind support to give a platform to Sydney's best Independent female theatre-makers by housing WITS' inaugural women's theatre festival, Festival Fatale, in October this year. DTC has set an impressive example for the rest of the industry, and showed that with initiative, parity can happen almost instantly."

Read the full article here

ICWP Announces Recipients of their International 50/50 Applause Awards

Fri, 16 Sep 2016 00:10:02 GMT

Celebrating gender parity on five continents for our 5th anniversary!

The International Centre for Women Playwrights (ICWP) is thrilled to report that a record-breaking number of recipients will receive the 2016 50/50 Applause Awards, which recognizes theatres that produced 50% or more women playwrights in their 2015/16 season of shows. ICWP defines 50/50 by the number of qualifying performances in a theatre’s season. This allows a concrete measurement of the resources being devoted to women playwrights.

For the awards’ 5th anniversary, ICWP recognized 107 recipients in ten countries on five continents. The list includes theatres in Australia, Canada, England, Italy, Kenya, the Philippines, Scotland, Singapore, Switzerland, and the United States. Approximately 32% of the theatres are repeat recipients, demonstrating gender parity in two or more seasons. Recipients range from community and college theatres to internationally renowned theatres. Meet some of the theatres in the ICWP celebration video. http://www.womenplaywrights.org/50-50-awards-video-2016

For several years, the international performing arts industry has been scrutinized for its underrepresentation of women playwrights as well as women in leadership positions in theatre. According to the League of Professional Theatre Women’s (LPTW) 2015 study “Women Count: Women Hired Off-Broadway 2010-2015”, women playwrights were produced 28%-36% of the time. Among ten Australian theatres, 39% of original and adapted works were by women (The National Voice 2106, Australian Writers Guild). The UK’s Purple Seven study “Gender in Theatre” of 2012-2015 seasons reported 28% of playwrights were female.

Though these numbers are higher than they have been in the past, women playwrights are still not receiving their due, and there are many potential reasons. The LPTW study points out that new works by women are more likely to be produced today than those by women in the past, although there are many classic women playwrights. The AWG cites that commissioned adaptations are where women are making the least amount of headway.

The Kilroys Publish Thier List of Best Unproduced Plays by women

Thu, 23 Jun 2016 21:43:52 GMT

The Kilroys “The List,” features 32 industry-recommended new plays by female and trans playwrights. The Los .Angeles.-based group of playwrights and producers is committed to promoting gender parity for playwrights in the American theatre.

Previous studies over recent years have shown that around 22 percent of productions in regional theatres over the previous three years were written by women.

THe Kilroys surveyed 230 influential new play leaders — Artistic Directors, Literary Managers, Professors, Producers, Directors, and Dramaturgs — who had read or seen at least 40 new plays in the past year

Each respondent recommended 3 to 5 plays each, identifying a total of 569 plays as among the best unproduced work they had encountered in the past year

THE LIST comprises the top 5.6% of those plays — the 32 most recommended plays from this survey, which each received between 5 and 14 nominations

Red the full Kilroy's List here:

http://thekilroys.org/the-list-2016/

ICWP President is Nominated for Emmy International Comedy Award

Sun, 22 Nov 2015 16:02:58 GMT

Karen Jeynes from South Africa, President of the International Centre for Women Playwrights, is in New York to attend the 2015 International Emmy Awards. Karen is the lead writer for the company `Puppet Nation ZA ' which is a topical satirical programme.

From Wikipedia:

ZANEWS (now also known as Puppet Nation ZA) is a South African satirical puppet show first produced in 2008 by Both Worlds, a Cape Town based production company. The show is a daily and weekly satirical news programme in the form of a mock puppet television newscast and features on both the web and TV. ZANEWS features key local and international political figures and celebrities. For eight seasons, ZANEWS has been using its puppet cast as mouthpieces for satirical commentary on South Africa’s public space.^[1]

Inspired by the cult British television series Spitting Image along with the French equivalent, Les Guignols,^[2] ZANEWS has been aired on the web and TV since 2009 on a range of media platforms, the most prolific of these being the show’s online presence.^[3] The show’s motto of 'Make Laugh. Not War’ has perpetuated the show’s portrayal of South African and international politicians and celebrities in its news format. The show is the only South African satirical puppet show, but is somewhat similar to the Kenyan produced The XYZ Show.^[4]

In October 2015 it was announced that Puppet Nation ZA is a nominee for Best TV Comedy in the 43rd International Emmy Awards

National Theatre of Ireland urged to lead the way in establishing equality for women artists.

Mon, 09 Nov 2015 20:41:13 GMT

#WakingTheFeminists calls on the board of the National Theatre of Ireland to lead the way in establishing equality for women artists.

On Wednesday 28 October, the Abbey Theatre, Ireland’s National Theatre, launched its programme to mark the centenary of the 1916 Rising – an event that ultimately led to the founding of the Irish State. The Abbey Theatre and its members were actively involved in both the Rising itself and the debates around the founding of the Republic.

1 out of the 10 plays programmed in the 2016 programme are written by a woman – 3 out of 10 are directed by women. #WakingtheFeminists is a campaign by Irish artists to demand change of the systems that allow for such chronic under-representation of the work of women artists at the Abbey, and by extension in the Irish arts industry. There is consensus that the problem is bigger than any one organization or individual, and so rigorous discussion and action is needed to realize a new artistic landscape that reflects Irish society, and represents ‘all the children of the nation equally’.

THE NEXT PUBLIC MEETING for #WakingTheFeminists will take place on Thursday, November 12th at 1 pm at a Dublin city centre venue to be confirmed.

Women working in Irish theatre are invited to take part at a photo-call at 12.30 pm.

Parents without childcare on the day are welcome to bring young children.

This is open event for people of all genders working in Irish theatre.

The event will be live-tweeted, and we’re looking at other ways of making it viewable from afar. We’re hoping to film/record it too.

Check out their website: http://wakingthefeminists.org

ARTemis delivers its first-ever award to Portland playwright

Mon, 09 Nov 2015 20:34:02 GMT

Portland, OR: ARTemis, a national organization empowering women’s voices and roles in the arts, has presented its first-ever award to Portland playwright Kathleen Tomko. After a year of development, fundraising and planning, ARTemis is now able to provide direct financial support to female artists. Their premiere award enables Ms. Tomko to participate in a new play workshop with Bump in the Road Theatre in Portland, Oregon.

“This was a chance for Kathleen to get feedback on her writing that she’s not received at this point in her career,” says ARTemis co-founder Sam Hull. Read More

ICWP 50/50 Applause Awards Announced

Tue, 22 Sep 2015 21:44:23 GMT

On 21st September ICWP Announced the Theatres who have received the ICWP 50/50 Applause Awards for gender equity in theatre.

60 theatres in 9 countries have qualified for the 50/50 Applause Awards for producing the work of women playwrights 50% or more of the time in their 2014-2015 season.

Read the full list of theatres, plays, and playwrights on the Awards page.

Below you can watch the celebration video.

Critical Dramatist Guild Letter About Rules for New Play Fest -Theatre Responds

Thu, 06 Aug 2015 19:51:43 GMT

The artistic director of a Minnesota theatre group has responded to a letter from Doug Wright, president of the Dramatists Guild, which used the words "arrogant" and "cowardly" to describe guidelines posted by the Words Players Theatre of Rochester, MN, for its planned 2015 Original Short Play Festival.

In an Aug. 4 letter to Daved Driscoll, artistic director of Words Players Theatre, Wright took issue with guidelines that said the theatre's directors and casts reserved the right to change submitted playscripts in any way they chose, while offering the playwrights no money for the use of their plays.

Driscoll told Playbill.com Aug. 5 that he responded to Wright seeking his advice on how to re-draft the submission guidelines "to make clear that we do, in fact, ask for author permission to make changes."

Here is the complete text of Wright's letter, followed by the published guidelines.

Mr. Driscoll,

<a href='http://ox1.playbill.com/www/delivery/ck.php?n=a0b85aad&amp;cb=668730350' target='_blank'><img src='http://ox1.playbill.com/www/delivery/avw.php?zoneid=10&amp;source=news&amp;cb=668730350&amp;n=a0b85aad' border='0' alt='' /></a> I write to you today as President of the Dramatists Guild of America, the national association of playwrights, lyricists and composers, with over 7000 members around the world. We at the Guild were dismayed to read your call for submissions for the Words Players Theater's 8th Annual Original Short Play Festival, in which you announce shockingly errant guidelines for festival submissions.

Women Speak out at Edinburgh Festival - Feministing

Thu, 06 Aug 2015 19:44:28 GMT

Scottish Women's groups will amplify the voices of those women marginalised and rarely heard in world societies.

" SCOTTISH women’s groups are launching a new project called #FeministFest to coincide with the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in a bid to eradicate sexism in entertainment and shine the spotlight on shows which explore human rights issues.

Endgender and YWCA Scotland – The Young Women’s Movement – are working to highlight women’s voices, which they claim are all too often silent at the Edinburgh Festival.

#FeministFest will bring together a group of women from across Scotland, most of whom have never had the opportunity to see a show at the festival before, and offer training to review shows, interview performers, and blog about their experiences.

This year’s Fringe festival, together with the International Book and Just Festivals, offers a host of exciting productions which explore issues of gender, identity, LGBTQI and human rights issues, with many shows explicitly advertising their feminist credentials "

Small Gains Towards Parity for Female Playwrights in USA

Wed, 22 Jul 2015 22:37:34 GMT

"The Count" is a systematic gathering of data regarding the gender of playwrights whose plays are produced on USA non-profit theatre stages. "

Report by Cara Buckley of the New York TImes.

Roughly one-fifth of the productions staged at hundreds of theaters nationwide over the past three seasons were written by women, according to a study to be released Friday.

Overseen by the playwrights Julia Jordan and Marsha Norman, the study, called “The Count,” is to be updated each year. Until now, besides a handful of older analyses, it had been unclear just how many female playwrights were seeing their work staged, according to Ms. Jordan.

“We wanted to create a baseline,” she said, “and to document the change.”

Judging from the numbers, the picture for women is rosier than a decade ago. A 2002 report from the New York State Council on the Arts found that 17 percent of productions across the country had female playwrights. According to the new report, that figure now sits at 22 percent.

“That’s a significant increase,” Ms. Norman said. “If that could continue, we could get to where we need to be, which is parity.”

The report, which will be released and discussed at the national meeting of the Dramatists Guild of America, is the latest salvo in continuing efforts to tackle the underrepresentation of women in theater (not to mention in Hollywood).

While the recent Tony Awards ceremony made history by giving the prize for book and score of a musical for the first time to a team of women (Lisa Kron and Jeanine Tesori), advocates complained that an opportunity to raise awareness was missed because those were not presented on the television broadcast.

“The Count” focused on 2,508 productions at nonprofit theaters, which remain the breeding grounds for bigger productions ......"

Read the rest of the article here.

7 Steps for Achieving Gender Parity in the Theatre - American Theatre

Thu, 11 Jun 2015 23:29:42 GMT

ICWP 50/50 Applause Awards are cited in American Theatre Magazine article written by Martha Richards.

There is a growing awareness of the gender imbalance in almost all areas of professional theatre in many parts of the world, despite the fact that women make up the majority of audiences going to see live theatre.

A proposal for collaboration by the many organisations currently campaigning to change this was put forward by Martha Richards at a conference in Toronto, Canada.

" We have proven that gender discrimination is a persistent problem in theatre; now we need to figure out how to fix it. As we look at the field, we can see that women all over the world are trying to address this issue with various strategies. What would happen if we could find a way to coordinate these efforts and maximize their impact? Could we reach a tipping point where the barriers for women theatre artists would finally come crashing down?"

ICWP received a mention as one of the advocacy organisations with an active program to bring attention and approval to professional theatres who produce the work of female playwrights at least 50% of their season.

A fundamental issue has to do with funding. Public bodies who dispense tax-payers money to subsidise theatres, have a duty to ensure that those funds are spent fairly and not used to prop up the current male-biased programmes that are the norm in many parts of the world.

This article outlines seven proposals to achieve gender equity for women in theatre

http://www.americantheatre.org/2015/06/09/7-steps-for-achieving-gender-parity-in-the-theatre/

Belfast Girls - American Premiere at Den Theatre Chicago on May 16th

Fri, 24 Apr 2015 13:59:36 GMT

ARTEMISIA THEATRE PREMIERES JAKI MCCARRICK’S AWARD-WINNING “BELFAST GIRLS” MAY 16

Artemisia, a Chicago theatre that produces women-driven plays, will

present the American Premiere of Belfast Girls, by award-winning Irish writer Jaki McCarrick

Performances are Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 7:30 pm, Sunday at 6:00 pm, with an additional matinee on Saturdays at 3:00 pm.

Preceding its American premiere are non-stop accolades for Belfast Girls from overseas. McCarrick has been long listed for the Irish Laureate Award and shortlisted for the 2014 Susan Smith Blackburn Prize. Belfast Girls also received a well-regarded staged reading by Artemisia in Chicago last year, which set the tone for this highly-anticipated premiere.

In Belfast Girls, Jaki McCarrick dramatizes Irish history. On the cusp of a great societal revolution, five street women orphaned by the Irish Famine embark on a journey of love, betrayal and adventure, hopeful they will find a fresh start in a new land. The five “Belfast Girls” are dramatized based on the real-life women who sought passage in 1850 aboard the Inchinnan, a ship bound for Australia.

McCarrick is currently in negotiations to adapt the play for film and has recently been long listed for the Irish Laureate Award. “I am thrilled that Belfast Girls is premiering in Chicago, a city whose appetite for cutting-edge stories is legendary,” says McCarrick. “And Artemisia’s vision of bringing female-driven plays to the fore makes it even an even greater compliment. I’m so looking forward to being in Chicago for the opening weekend.”

“This is a terrific story, one that reflects the Irish immigrant experience so deeply rooted in Chicago. It’s an amazing adventure that is packed with non-stop action, great characters and shattering discoveries,” says Julie Proudfoot, Artemisia’s Artistic Director.

Tickets are now on sale on Artemisia’s website at http://www.artemisiatheatre.org/

CANADA - Equity in Theatre (EIT) Announces Recent Research Study

Wed, 22 Apr 2015 23:50:34 GMT

(TORONTO, ON – April 22, 2015) Equity in Theatre (EIT) is pleased to announce the release of its recent research study, “Achieving Equity in Canadian Theatre: A Report with Best Practice Recommendations,” by Dr. Michelle MacArthur.

Equity in Theatre is a multi-pronged and multi-stakeholder initiative designed to help redress and rectify existent gender inequities in the theatre industry.

As a first step, EIT engaged Dr. Michelle MacArthur to generate a preparatory research study, the purpose of which is two-fold:

to provide an update on the current status of women in Canadian theatre; and,
to analyze past equity initiatives and related follow-up actions at home and abroad, in theatre and elsewhere, culminating in a series of “best practice” recommendations.

The idea with this is to ensure that we do not repeat past mistakes or waste time reinventing the wheel, but rather that we capitalize on successful gains and maximize our impact.

The report’s findings will serve as a foundational framework for EIT as it moves forward, for instance, informing the proceedings of the upcoming Symposium, and pointing the way toward possible future actions. It is our hope that the EIT report will serve as a source of inspiration, and act as a catalyst for change, for individuals and institutions, in the theatre sector and beyond.

Are you wondering how women fare in the current climate, and what can be done to help improve the situation? Check out the EIT report to find out! You can view the study in its entirety, or peruse a four-page Executive Summary with Study Highlights, by visiting the EIT website at: http://www.eit.playwrightsguild.ca/achieving-equity-canadian-theatre

With this report, and a new online presence, Equity in Theatre will continue to foster dialogue on an (inter)national scale, develop social actions that will help effect change, and generate greater awareness of and exposure to Canadian women in theatre. To find out more, visit the EIT website (www.eit.playwrightsguild.ca).

Our heartfelt thanks to the Canada Council for the Arts, the Ontario Arts Council, and the Ontario Trillium Foundation for making EIT and this report possible!

Attachments area Preview attachment EIT Research Report Press Release Apr 22 2015.pdf

Dramatist Guild Magazine Reports on 50/50 Applause Awards

Fri, 21 Nov 2014 17:17:34 GMT

The Dramatists Guild, USA, devoted a full page of the ir November 2014 issue to this year's ICWP 50/50 Applause Awards announcement.

The Awards are presented to professional theatres around the world which produce the works of women playwrights at least 50% of their season.

The 50% calculation covers number of productions and length of run.

You can download and read the Dramatists Guild Issue at this link.

http://www.dramatistsguild.com/media/DramatistMagazine/DramatistNov2014.pdf

LPTW International Awards Week – October 25 - November 3, NewYork, USA

Wed, 15 Oct 2014 15:21:34 GMT

The League of Professional Theatre Women in New York, USA are extending an invitation to a week of amazing events.

When: Saturday, October 25 - Monday, November 3

What: As part of the Gilder/Coigney International Theatre Award, honoring the 2014 awardee Patricia Ariza from Colombia, South America and celebrating the work of 20 other nominees from 18 additional countries around the globe.

Hosted by:
Joyce Maio/Sophia Romma, International Committee Chairs.

Melody Brooks/Gwynn MacDonald, Award Chairs.

Please note the schedule will be frequently updated check back before each event

All RSVP’s to mbkulick1@aol.com

Event Poster Read more on the LPTW Website

ICWP Announces 50/50 Applause Awards to 67 Theatres Worldwide

Tue, 16 Sep 2014 01:28:23 GMT

The International Centre for Women Playwrights is thrilled to report the extraordinary level of international support that is represented by the recipients for this year’s 50/50 Applause Awards, which sets out to recognize theatres that produced 50% or more women playwrights in their season of shows.

For the first time in the history of the awards, ICWP invited the public to nominate theatres that had produced the work of women playwrights throughout the world.

We are proud to announce 67 recipients from nine countries for the 2014 awards. The list includes theatres in Afghanistan, Australia, Canada, England, France, Germany, Italy, New Zealand, and the United States.

The full list of theatres , plays and playwrights can be viewed here.

There are fourteen repeat recipients who have demonstrated gender parity in more than one season. Meet some of the theaters in our multi-lingual video.

http://www.womenplaywrights.org/award-video

Women’s Project Theater Intrigue Deepens: Was Julie Crosby Fired?

Sat, 26 Jul 2014 23:42:59 GMT

Julie Crosby, who had served as the producing artistic director of the Women's Project Theater, gave an exclusive interview to Playbill.com about the differing accounts of why she left the organization.

"My favorite line this year has been, 'Why don't you just produce hits?'" Julie Crosby said recalling a meeting with the board of the Women's Project Theater. "I thought that was one of the best questions I got this year from a board member.

"I really prefer the flops," she jokingly added. They're really just so much easier."

The board member's question referred to the lack of revenue brought in by productions put on by Women's Project Theater, a 36-year-old theatre dedicated to presenting works written and directed by women, of which Crosby had served as producing artistic director since 2006.

Cleveland Public Theatre 2013-14 Season may attract 50/50 Applause...

Thu, 29 May 2014 20:22:54 GMT

Cleveland Public- Applause on it's way?

http://www.cleveland.com/onstage/index.ssf/2013/07/cleveland_public_theatres_2013.html

ICWP Member Carol Lashof Starts a Theatre company

Wed, 14 May 2014 00:08:26 GMT

Introducing THOSE WOMEN PRODUCTIONS

Posted on April 26, 2014

Director Elizabeth Vega and I have become a producing team: We are THOSE WOMEN PRODUCTIONS, and we make theatre for people who like questions more than answers.

Our first production will be Just Deserts, a comedy about justice and revenge, opening August 29 at the Metal Shop Theatre in Berkeley. Here’s a little more about us:

MISSION

Those Women make theatre for people who love great stories and want to explore big questions. Our plays are rooted in the stories that have made us who we areundefinedthe myths, tales and legends of western culture. We approach these tales from new angles, giving the stage to hidden truths of gender and power and to the unheard voices of women. We practice radical hospitalityundefinedeverybody is welcome regardless of their ability to pay. We only ask that our audiences come to the theatre curious; we promise to leave them more curious still.

Read the full blog post here

Boston Town Hall Meeting on Gender Parity in Theatre

Tue, 13 May 2014 21:38:27 GMT

Boston hosted an inspiring meeting that was live-streamed across the USA, delving into recent statistics, lived reality and hopes for the future of gender parity in theatre.

http://howlround.com/livestreaming-the-defining-gender-parity-town-hall-boston-stagesource-sat-april-26

ICWP & Playscripts Funny Women Playwriting Contest Winner Announced.

Sat, 29 Mar 2014 12:10:47 GMT

WOMEN ARE FUNNY! The facts are in…

An international playwriting competition has delivered the verdict⎯Women are Funny.

Jacqueline Goldfinger & Jennifer MacMillan proved the point as the inaugural winners of a collaborative project between The International Centre for Women Playwrights (ICWP) and Playscripts Inc. Their one-act play for High School students, Enter Bogart, attracts a $1,000 prize, a year membership of ICWP, and publication of the playscript.

The competition was for women playwrights, a move that both organisations are making as one way to redress the gender balance in the world of theatre. Playscripts received all the entries and ICWP judged the finalists with an international panel of judges.

Enter Bogart out-tickled two plays that received ‘honourable mentions’: What Not To Do At The Districts by Samara Siskind and Ella's Magic Garden by ICWP member Shirley King, who were the runners up in this years competition. Winner Jacqueline, is a co-founder of The Foundry, which is an organization that supports the development of emerging playwrights. Jennifer is a professional actor, director, and theater educator. Enter Bogart is the first play that she's written.

The competition forges a positive relationship between Playscripts, Inc and ICWP as both have a mission to make available new plays with diverse voices.

Press release

"Whispers to the Moon" Finalist in Palm Springs, CA

Tue, 18 Mar 2014 16:39:09 GMT

Playwright and ICWP board member, Kris Bauske will have her play "Whispers to the Moon" read by Dezart Performs as part of their 6th Annual Play Reading Series on April 12, 2014 at 7:30 PM. Dezart Performs will hold the reading at the Women's Club of Palm Springs.
Dezart Performs, Downtown Palm Springs (View)
314 South Cahuilla Road
Palm Springs, CA 92262
United States

The play is one of four finalists. The winner will receive a full production during the 2014-15 season. Winner will be selected by popular vote of audience members. If you're in the Palm Springs area, please attend and support this touching romantic comedy!

International Playwriting Contest

Fri, 11 Oct 2013 09:40:27 GMT

ICWP & Playscripts Contest

Hilarious New Play at Bonanza Village Playhouse Sends Shockwaves Through Community When It is Revealed to be Written by a Woman

Bonanza, OR – Audience members that had been rolling in the aisles at Saturday night’s premiere of Aunt Gertie’s Road Trip were stunned into silence when local mother Dana O’Malley took the stage after the 6th curtain call and claimed credit for penning the play.

“I don’t know what to think,” said Bonanza Councilwoman Mandy Heller. “I’ve read those thoughtful articles by Christopher Hitchens and Adam Carolla and they all say women aren’t funny. But during the scene where Aunt Gertie gets stranded at the top of the Washington Monument, I almost fell out of my chair. Could Adam Carolla be wrong?”

Other patrons felt equally perplexed. “I knew the play was written by a Dana,” said business owner, George Sherman. “I just assumed it was a boy-Dana.” Walter Johnson, long-time Bonanza resident, offered another theory, “I think it actually was a boy-Dana.”

The success of the Bonanza production calls into question the veracity of countless studies and Yahoo Answers that, until now, most people accepted as fact. Long time humor experts, Peter Chen and Jim Polaski, stand by their research, however. “Over the years, we’ve shown over 1,000 subjects clips of male and female comedians,” said Chen. “Chris Rock, Meryl Streep, Jerry Seinfeld, Hillary Clinton…Each time, we hope for different results, but everybody laughs harder at the guys.”

Playscripts, Inc. and the International Center for Women Playwrights have joined forces to figure out if what happened in Bonanza could possibly be a global trend. The Are Women Funny? One-Act Play Contest invites playwrights who:

a) are women

b) think they might be funny

to submit large cast, one-act comedies ideal for performance by high school students. The winning play will be published by Playscripts and promoted throughout the world. “If there are more Dana O’Malleys out there, we want to find them.” said a Playscripts representative. “Our goal is to connect those fresh, funny, females voices with the next generation of theater makers.”

Detailed contest information can be found on the Playscripts, Inc. blog. http://blog.playscripts.com/blog/

Contact

Lane Bernes, Playscripts, Inc. Marketing Director

lbernes@playscripts.com

1-866-639-7529 ext 88

ICWP 50/50 Applause Awards Announced

Tue, 24 Sep 2013 06:38:59 GMT

ICWP “applauds” theatre companies for producing women playwrights.

Standing ovation! The International Centre for Women Playwrights (ICWP) is delighted with the increased number of recipients for this year’s 50/50 Applause Awards, which sets out to recognize theatres which produce 50% or more women playwrights in their season of shows. In the spring, members of ICWP nominated theatres that were producing the work of women playwrights throughout the world.

This year there are 29 recipients, nearly 6 times as many as our inaugural awards in 2012. The list includes theatres in the United States, India, Norway, Italy, and Canada. There are two repeat recipients: Playwrights Horizons in New York and Symmetry Theatre in California. President of ICWP, Dr. Jennifer Munday, says, “We are delighted with the response from both theatres and members who see this award as a demonstration of their commitment to women’s writing.”

Even though the indications are promising, ICWP recognizes there is a long way to go to 50/50 status. A study report from the Gender Equity Task Force in Chicago found that “Plays written by women (either one woman or a group of all women) constituted 18.8% of plays produced in Chicago….roughly in line with recent statistics from New York theaters and from Theatre Communications Group member theatres, which found that between 17% and 20% of plays produced by those groups are written by women.” (Chicago Storefront Summit, March 22, 2010) In two studies on the 2012-2013 season, Washington DC productions showed a slight uptick to 21% (DC Theater: A Demographic Analysis, 2013) and women playwrights were faring even better in Canada with 23%. (Playwrights Guild of Canada, 2013).

The 50/50 Applause Awards are now an annual event for ICWP, with nominations being stringently checked by a strong volunteer committee. More information about the awards can be found at: http://www.womenplaywrights.org/award

Contacts: Elana Gartner and Deborah Magid, co-chairs ICWP 50/50 Applause Awards Committee

Contact email address awards@womenplaywrights.org

Congratulations to the Recipients of the 2013 ICWP 50/50 Applause Awards:

Alter Theater (San Rafael, California, USA)
Black Coffee Productions (Bangalore, India)
Children's Theatre Company (Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA)
Clubbed Thumb (New York, New York, USA)
Dreamcatcher Repertory Theatre (South Orange, New Jersey, USA)
Factory Theatre (Toronto, Ontario, Canada)
Haugesund Teater (Rogaland, Haugesand, Norway)
HERE (New York, New York, USA)
Hollins University (Roanoke, Virginia, USA)

Indian Ensemble Theatre (Bangalore, India)
Looking for Lilith Theatre Company (Louisville, Kentucky, USA)
Mixed Blood Theatre (Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA)
New York Theatre Workshop (New York, New York, USA)
Orlando Repertory Theatre (Orlando, Florida, USA)
Playwrights Horizons (New York, New York, USA)
Prairie Theatre Exchange (Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada)
Prologue Theatre Company (Chicago, Illinois, USA)
Ragged Wing Ensemble (El Cerrito, California, USA)
Road Less Traveled Productions (Buffalo, New York, USA)
Shameless Hussy Productions (Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada)
Stage Left Theatre (Chicago, Illinois, USA)
Stageworks Theatre (Tampa, Florida, USA)
Symmetry Theatre (Berkeley, California, USA)
Synchronicity Theatre (Atlanta, Georgia, USA)
Teatro Luna (Chicago, Illinois, USA)
Tennessee Women's Theatre Project (Nashville, Tennessee, USA)
The Cherry Lane Theatre (New York, New York, USA)
The English Theatre of Rome (Rome, Italy)
Theatre Pro Rata (Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA)

ICWP Member Natalya Churlyaeva Passed Away Recently

Tue, 10 Sep 2013 11:34:47 GMT

Members of ICWP were shocked and saddened to learn of the recent death of Member Natalya Churlyaeva, aged 58, from her husband Sergey Yakhimovich.

This extract from Sergey's message to us lists a few of her achievements and expresses an admiration shared by ICWP members.

From Sergey

"She was very outstanding and courageous woman. She was not afraid of death and struggled for life until the end. Besides her many other advantages and talents, she was known both in the theatre world and among academics. In April Jan Ogden, the director, staged in New York her 10-min play "THE MYSTERIOUS SUITCASE" at John Chatterton's Short Play Lab, and one extract from her full-length play was published in «Scenes from a Diverse World. Also, last year she published 5 scientific papers in international academic journals and many more in the Russian ones. She is still a member of 3 Canadian, 1 US, and 1 New Zealand pedagogical journal editorial boards."

Many ICWP members have emailed us to mention her qualities of courage, forthrightness and formidable intellect.

A special Memorial Page will be created with more information and examples of her work.

GIRLS BECOME ACTORS NOT BRIDES - THEATRE FOR SOCIAL CHANGE

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 18:48:41 GMT

Girls in Pakistan are taking up acting and putting on theatre shows in their communities to change the practice of child marriage.
Read more here ....

http://www.girlsnotbrides.org/culture-in-action-street-theatre-raises-awareness-of-child-marriage-in-pakistan/

ICWP Applause Awards in the News

Tue, 05 Feb 2013 20:26:57 GMT

News Coverage of the ICWP Applause Awards for Theatres that meet the 50/50 gender equality for women playwrights.

Board member Elana Gartner answers questions about the award. These links will take you to the named websites to read the articles and interviews.

Samuel French Playscripts Huffington Post (Monica Bauer) Womenarts

:http://www.facebook.com/WomenArts

the Twitter post is up at: www.Twitter.com/WomenArts .

Welcome to Stockholm

Wed, 05 Dec 2012 04:35:57 GMT

Welcome to Stockholm

by Farzana Moon

Stockholm is the stuff fairytales are made of, which made me realize for the first time in my life that most of the fairytales tell the story of extraordinary experience in reality. WPIC Conference in Stockholm was an extraordinary experience. From the first day to the last everything was extraordinaire. Flowersundefinedextra vibrant. Friendly smilesundefinedextra-sweet. Euphoric energyundefinedextra bright. Parlance amongst playwrights flowed, bubbled, spilled over and splashed everywhere amidst long lines on the first day of registration. The lines disappearing as swiftly as they would in Disneyland. And that is true of cleanliness also. Nothing littered the streets or lakes in the entire city of Stockholm as far as I had seen since I arrived a day early prior to the conference.

The reception in City Hall the first evening in Stockholm was a blend of magic and mystery. Magic that such a private and glorious hall could be reserved for the reception of playwrights, and mystery that such a grand feast could be whipped by volunteers alone since WPI had no funds to begin with and not even a bank account to beg or borrow for staging such an evening of opulence and hospitality. Tall floral arrangements in crystal vases on long tables with white table cloths and laden with Swedish delights were nothing short of a gourmet galore. The Gold Hall with eighty billion mosaic pieces of twenty-two carrot gold was a shimmering castle of folklore and scenic splendor, awesome and breathtaking.

The sense of euphoria kept mounting each day. Play readings from morning till noon in different rooms the entire week, workshops and seminars, evening performances, everything worked like clockwork. A great team of volunteers serving coffee and snacks till late afternoon every day at Sodra Theatre. Lunches were served at Sodra Bar by volunteers most happily and efficiently. Swedish actors and actresses volunteered their time and talents to read plays, juggling from one room to the other punctiliously and cheerfully. Sodra Theatre indeed was turned into a global arena, hosting playwrights from all over the world.

Second day of the conference was marked by Key Note speeches from the Arab World. In the evening a playundefineda woman’s journey of creating new meaning and finding autonomy, In the Lost and Found Red Suitcase was performed by Lana Nasser of Jordan, the winner of two thousand eleven Etal Achman Award. There were several workshops during day three, of which I attended Red Riding Hood presented by Cornelia Hoogland. This workshop was a great success amongst the playwrights who attended, due to the creative input which was highly inspiring and enlightening with its new angle of dark underpinnings of the fairytale.

Another Key Note Speech was given on fourth day by Kay Nicole, Theatre Impact on Children. In the evening an awesome theatrical presentation, Afghan Voices, was performed by the Afghani students, coordinated by Lia Gladstone* the former professor of Drama at American University in Kabul. Several outstanding workshops were hosted day five, out of which I attended Performing Words, very enlightening. The evening play Autumn Dance had a stunning performanceundefinedthe story of three Iranian women resisting Iranian Government Pressure and living through incarceration in Tehran’s infamous Evin Prison.

The last day’s Key Note Speech was Women Writing Africa, both enlightening and entertaining. Closing ceremony in Green Room was a bit emotional, an evening of tears and farewells. Tears of joy and emotions running high in remembrance of a perfect week in Eden. As for me I thought I had died and gone to heaven? Before our leave-taking, Swedish playwrights were sharing with us Swedish chocolates/marzipans out of their precious boxes purchased with precious money, happily and generously.

The magic world had ended too soon, yet from many great memories two special ones would always capture the essence of Stockholm with its spirit of joy and carefree abandon. Landing at Stockholm airport my husband asked the man in the booth if we needed to go through Custom Checks?
No! The man laughed, waving merrily. This is Stockholm, not USA. You are free. Welcome to Stockholm. Have fun, enjoy. The first evening of reception in Gold Room at the City Hall there were a host of volunteers impeccably dressed, holding out wine glasses to us as soon as we entered. I declined saying I don’t drink wine.
Go to the next table and get non-alcoholic wine, the volunteer waved genially.

Realization dawned upon me with a sudden wave of joy and gratitude that Swedes want everyone to have a good time, happy to see everyone with a wine glass in their hands for the pleasure of making toasts to the hosts and the guests. On my flight back to USA I wrote a poem which I am taking the liberty of sharing.

Twice adored

Stockholm the land of smiles

And carefree abandon

A tapestry of mosaic

In flowers, bazaars, architecture

Silvery, shimmering lakes

And islands aglow

With the warmth of love and unity

Welcome to Stockholm

The man at the airport exclaims

Waving away the question of customs

This is not USA

He laughs

You are free

His greetings follow us

We enter the lanes of miracles

Not harassed by check-points

Or confronting faces pinched with fatigue

Purity and freshness accompany us

Sodra Theatre, Gamla Stan

Rare wonders of the world

Love in the air

Subtle and perfumed

Profoundly sweet

For more work by Farzana Moon visit her blog and You Tube channel.

* Lia Gladstone is a member of ICWP.

Tammy Ryan Wins Major Award

Tue, 03 Jul 2012 07:53:53 GMT

ICWP Member Tammy Ryan wins 2012 Francesca Primus Prize for her play Lost Boy Found In Whole Foods.

Read More Here....
http://www.womenplaywrights.org/awards?mode=PostView&bmi=982141

SWAN DAY at A.C.T. Seattle USA

Sat, 10 Mar 2012 01:42:00 GMT

SWAN Day Women Playwrights Celebration. Seattle

DramaQueen
presents readings of one-act plays by
Puget Sound-area women playwrights in a two-day event.

Friday, March 30 and Saturday, March 31
A Contemporary Theatre (ACT) in Seattle.
Eulalie Scandiuzzi Space at ACT.

Tickets are $10, available through the ACT box office (206) 292-7676.

DramaQueen is a Seattle-based non-profit theater organization dedicated to promoting women playwrights and their work.

SWAN DAY WASHINGTON DC

Sat, 10 Mar 2012 01:14:10 GMT

5th annual DC SWAN (Support Women Artists Now) Day

on Saturday, March 31

Women Artists from DC and beyond offer
FREE stage performances
music
storytelling
poetry reading
staged reading marathon
film screenings

all in celebration of SWAN Day.

On Saturday, March 31, 2012, The Georgetown Theatre Company and Women in Film & Video will host the 5th Annual DC SWAN Day, an all-day event featuring FREE Music, Theatre and Storytelling Performances, Poetry Readings, Visual Arts and Film Screenings.

For the past 4 years, DC SWAN Day has been a walk-able event in Georgetown featuring approximately 90 artists and serving hundreds of arts lovers. This year, DC SWAN Day is expanding beyond Georgetown.

Events will include:

Staged Reading Marathon at National Museum of Women in the Arts (1250 New York Ave., NW)

13 short plays, culled from over 50 submissions -- by women playwrights from all over the USA, and directed by DC s woman directors

included in the program
Cornacopia
by Tammy Ryan , ICWP member

Storytelling at Mellow Mushroom (2436 18th St., NW)

Performance Art at District of Columbia Art Center (2438 18th St., NW)

Poetry Readings Grace Church: (1041 Wisconsin Ave., NW)

Art Exhibition at Baked and Wired (1052 Thomas Jefferson St., NW ), a solo exhibition by emerging artist Jenny Walton

For More Information see the Georgetown Theatre website
georgetowntheatre.org/current.html

SWAN Day Boston USA

Sat, 10 Mar 2012 00:54:30 GMT

SWAN Day Boston event

March 25

2 PM – 4:30 PM

Boston Playwrights’ Theatre
949 Commonwealth Ave.
Boston
MA

The creative output of 19 area women artists will be presented in staged readings or performances of:

short plays
monologues
stories
poems
dance pieces
music

Light refreshments will be served after the show.

Directions to the Boston Playwrights’ Theater can be found at:
http://www.bu.edu/bpt/directions.html

Admission is free with a suggested donation of $5 at the entrance; proceeds go to support The Fund for Women Artists.

For more information or to reserve seats,
emailswanboston2012 @ gmail.com

SWAN Day - WomenWork/Women'sWork - Louisville Kentucky USA

Sat, 10 Mar 2012 00:43:01 GMT

SWAN Day at PYRO Gallery
Louisville Kentucky USA

Sponsored by WomenWork/Women'sWork
(A collaboration between Kathi E.B. Ellis & Nancy Gall-Clayton, both ICWP members)

A multi-genre showcase of Louisville-area women and girls.

Saturday, March 31, 2011

1-2 p.m.

Free admission

PYRO Gallery, 624 W. Main Street, Louisville, KY 40202 USA

This free one-hour showcase of women artists of all ages includes:

brief readings by writers of

drama

fiction

poetry and essays

as well as presentations by

dancers

musicians

visual artists.

Our event takes place during one of the weekends of the Humana Festival of New American Plays -- and walking distance from Actors Theatre of Louisville.

Kathi and Nancy, who have worked together on numerous projects, call their joint collaborations WomenWork/Women'sWork. So if you're in Louisville on SWAN day catch our event!

13 Plays Selected for 9th WPI Conference

Thu, 08 Mar 2012 00:42:26 GMT

13 ICWP Plays Selected for 9th WPI Conference

The International Centre for Women Playwrights (ICWP) is proud to announce that 14 member playwrights have had plays selected for the 9^th Women Playwrights International (WPI) Conference. The selected members include playwrights from the Turkey, Canada and the United States. The plays are:

Afgan Voices by Lia Gladstone (USA)

Aftermath by Sarah Cole (USA)

Cry After Midnight by Talia Pura (Canada)

Familium Vulgare by Melisa Tien (USA)

Girl Kicks Girl by Jyl Lynn Felman (USA)

Isaac, I am by Mary Steelsmith (USA)

Manhattan Transits by Donna Spector (USA)

Medine by Zeynep Kacar (Turkey)

Osama the Demented by Farzana Moon (USA)

Phoolan is Everyone by Angelina Llongueras (USA)

Remnants of a Liquid World by Bianca Bagatourian (USA)

Talking in Bed by Cornelia Hoogland (Canada)

Venus in Orange by Paula Cizmar and Laura Shamas (USA)

The complete list of selected plays can be found here.

The WPI Conference will be held in Stockholm, Sweden from the 15^th to the 20^th of August. The theme of this year’s conference is the democratic stage. The conference is held in a different city every three years and is organized by Women Playwrights International.

The International Centre for Women Playwrights was founded after the first WPI Conference held in Buffalo, New York in 1988. The organization has worked for the past 24 years to support women playwrights around the world. ICWP is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization incorporated in the United States. It currently has over 300 members in more than 20 countries. You can find our more about ICWP on the web at www.womenplaywrights.org or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/womenplaywrights.

SWAN Day events in Boston

Mon, 05 Mar 2012 11:07:30 GMT

March 25, 2012 from 2 PM – 4:30 PM

The Boston SWAN Day event will be Sunday, March 25th,
at the Boston Playwrights’ Theatre, 949 Commonwealth Ave., Boston, MA,
from 2 – 4:30 pm.

A collection of short plays, monologues, stories, poems, dance pieces and music of 19 area women artists will be presented in staged readings or performances. Light refreshments will be served after the show.

Directions to the Boston Playwrights’ Theater can be found at:
http://www.bu.edu/bpt/directions.html

Admission is free with a suggested donation of $5 at the entrance; proceeds go to support The Fund for Women Artists. For more information or to reserve seats, email swanboston2012@gmail.com.

Playwrights find Friendship and Solidarity at ICWP

Fri, 02 Dec 2011 01:06:55 GMT

"Feel the need to connect with other playwrights? You can't go wrong looking into the International Centre of Women Playwrights organization." One ICWP member details her own experience as a new member - read her full article here.

An Interview with playwright Rosanna Yamagiwa Alfaro -by Charles Haugland

Wed, 05 Oct 2011 13:32:20 GMT

This interview with Rosanna Yamagiwa Alfaro was published on the website of the Huntington Theatre, Boston, USA, after Alfaro became a Huntington Playwriting Fellow, received a MCC Artist Fellowship, and was given a slot in the 2011-2012 Huntington Theatre Season - all at the age of 72!

----------------

contributed by Charles Haugland:

Rosanna Yamagiwa Alfaro

Charles Haugland: What was your first play about? Why did you write it?
Rosanna Yamagiwa Alfaro: My first play was Behind Enemy Lines about the Japanese American internment camps. It was an angry political play that followed the Toda family from the horse stalls in the assembly center to the tarpaper barracks in the camps and the segregation center.
CH: Tell me two big turning points in your career?

RA: Before Behind Enemy Lines (which I wrote in my late 30’s) I had published many short stories and a handful of poems. I was enchanted when stage characters became flesh and blood. I was utterly fascinated by the interaction of director, actors, and audience. It was a case of love at first sight, and I never wrote another short story.

Read full interview...

Celebrated Playwright Who Resists Celebrity

Thu, 26 May 2011 18:44:53 GMT

From the New York Times:

PARIS undefined Yasmina Reza is one of the world’s most successful playwrights, but she wears her fame with discomfort. She can talk at length about her red leather Prada coat. She can relate stories with biting humor about her year on the road shadowing Nicolas Sarkozy in his 2007 campaign for the French presidency. But ask her about herself, and the anxiety of the writerly persona takes over.

A blend of fragility and steel, Ms. Reza wavers between extremes: a determination to be judged by her work alone and a desire that it be understood and appreciated. The publication of her new play, “Comment Vous Racontez la Partie” (“How You Talk the Game”), has propelled her, once again, to face a reporter.
“After I write, I have nothing to say,” she said in an interview in the bar of the Lutetia Hotel on the Left Bank.

Read the rest of the article here ...
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/25/theater/yasmina-reza-on-how-you-talk-the-game.html?pagewanted=1&_r=2

Women as young as 17 are writing plays and winning awards - The Guardian, UK

Thu, 26 May 2011 18:37:54 GMT

This is quoted from an article in the Guardian, UK online.

Where are all the young male playwrights?

Women as young as 17 are writing plays and winning awards. Do their male counterparts no longer have anything to say?

This week Anya Reiss's The Acid Test opens at the Royal Court. It will be fascinating to see whether she can match the success of her debut,Spur of the Moment, written when she was only 17 and lauded by the critics last year, when it also won an award. While, by now, Reiss must be sick of the constant references to her age – she is still only 19 – she must accept that in a line of work where the 40-year-old Simon Stephensis still referred to as a "young British playwright", to achieve such acclaim as a teenager is a remarkable thing...

Read the rest of the article here:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/stage/theatreblog/2011/may/25/where-are-young-male-playwrights

Women Playwrights International Conference - Stockholm, Sweden 2012 - call for scripts

Sat, 23 Apr 2011 16:16:29 GMT

Last day of application: 1 October 2011.

Quoted from the Conference website:

Enter your play to WPIC 2012!

The conference 2012 will be hosted by Riksteatern in Stockholm, Sweden.

We estimate that 400 delegates will attend the conference and we will put much effort into giving women from other lingual areas than English the opportunity of attending. Approx. 100 scripts will be presented at the conference.

We ask for scripts within these six themes:
• The individual and society
• Sexuality
• War
• Social equality and poverty
• Work and career
• God/divinity

The easiest way to enter your play is to fill in the submission form at this site.

http://www.riksteatern.se/templates/Sida.aspx?id=12352&epslanguage=SV

------------------------
For More information
There are other links on that page that will give you more information about these fantastic triennial conferences.

Many ICWP Members have attended these events in the past and benefitted greatly.

You can read reports, see photos from ICWP members who attended the conference in India in 2009.

L.A. Study Shows 20% Plays Written by Women (reposted)

Wed, 13 Apr 2011 22:45:28 GMT

From Study report website:

"The results of the LA FPI Study have given us a figure which represents the percentage of work on stages in the Greater Los Angeles area written by women.

A sampling of theaters who self-reported in the survey portion of the Study revealed that less than 20% of the plays produced or presented in workshops or readings for a ten-year period (2000-2009) were written by women.

Of the 4796 productions in LA STAGE Alliance’s database from 2002-2010, only 993, or about 20%, were written or co-written by women playwrights.

While slightly above the widely accepted national average of 17%, this figure is far from representative of the work that’s being created by Los Angeles playwrights."

Read the full study report here

International Readings in Port Townsend, WA, USA for International Women's Day

Sun, 13 Mar 2011 22:55:37 GMT

International Readings in Port Townsend, WA, USA for International Women's Day

ICWP Member Mara Lathrop organised a readings event for two performances, March 7 & 8, 2011, at Key City Public Theatre of Port Townsend, WA, USA. This was the 3rd Annual "Here, There & Everywhere" in honor of International Women's Day. The program featured nine monologues by women playwrights from the US and India.

1. Me Vs. My Subconscious by Rebecca Goldberg, Seattle, WA
A technicolor dream transforms a woman's waking life.

2. Untitled by Hina Siddiqui, Pune, India
Two very different women; one terrible secret.

3. Nellie's Memory by Rebecca Redshaw, Port Angeles, WA
An old woman recounts the day a steamship blew up on the Hudson river.

4. Belt Loop Man by Barbara Lindsay, Shoreline, WA
Is he the answer to a woman's prayers ...or is he just trying to drive her crazy?

5. The People by Vicki Caroline Cheatwood, Dallas, TX
Eight years white; twenty-eight years Commanche. The true story of Cynthia Ann Parker.

6. The Last Reading of Charlotte Cushman by Carolyn Gage, Portland, ME
In 19th century New York City, an actress studies prostitutes to prepare for a role.

7. Big by E.M. Lewis, Princeton, NJ
Some people are just born that way.

8. Chinese For Dummies by Denise Fleener, Sequim, WA
It's never too late to learn a new language.

9. The Hunter by Gloria Calderon Kellett, Los Angeles, CA
A woman lays it all out at Speed Dating Night.

The 2011 HT&E was curated and directed by KCPT Literary Manager Mara Lathrop. Monologues were performed by DJ Adams, Denise Fleener, Erin Lamb and Amanda Stuerer. 2011 HT&E raised $850 for the Port Townsend chapter of the American Association of University Women's scholarship fund.

L.A. Female Playwrights Initiative Study

Tue, 01 Mar 2011 22:52:35 GMT

L.A. Female Playwrights Initiative Study

Only 20% work on stages in the Greater Los Angeles area written by women

ICWP member Laura Shamas, one of the founding members of the Los Angeles Female Playwrights Initiative (LA FPI) was deeply involved with a study initiated by LA FPI into the percentage of female authored plays presented on LA theatre stages. Laura writes below about how the study came about and her involvement in it.

Starting Out
In September 2009, I met with Jennie Webb and we decided to reach out to others to get data from L.A. about women playwrights, and to organize on behalf of women playwrights and female theater artists. We were very inspired by the push in New York in 2008/2009, and we kept waiting to hear Los Angeles numbers. We, as did many other L.A. women playwrights, soon realized that someone needed to organize to get some Southern California stats. In November 2009, Jennie and I approached theater artist Ella Martin, who is an actor/director/writer/scholar, and asked if she would help us with the L.A. data. Luckily for us, she agreed. We owe Ella Martin, our Study Director, a huge debt!

First meeting

LA FPI had our first official meeting on March 6, 2010, at Theatricum Botanicum, in the middle of a very stormy L.A. downpour. But wonderful people made it out to Topanga Canyon that day, and the movement took off from there.

Development

Ellen Geer made the first donation to the cause. Many talented playwrights, women and men, at that meeting donated enough money to get Survey Monkey going, so that Ella Martin could run a local survey of women playwrights. We began to have quarterly meetings to report our progress and solidify Calls to Action. We received key support from the Los Angeles STAGE Alliance and Larry Dean Harris of the Dramatists Guild.

Study Results

Ella Martin compiled and coordinated all the results in early 2011. Her final report is phenomenal. Thank you to Ella Martin, the theaters who participated in the survey, the women playwrights who volunteered their data, and to all the folks who have supported LA FPI.

Other Volunteers

In the past year, many other people have joined up; we have an e-list of 150+. Volunteers are working on other LA FPI projects now, such as direct outreach to theaters, meetups to see shows by women, our terrific blog which features fantastic L.A. women playwrights each week (so inspiring!); even more L.A. gender parity data which is still forthcoming, and other positive calls to action. We, the collective of LA FPI, offer everything for free to anyone who's interested. Much of this is coordinated through the website and the terrific Jennie Webb. We celebrated the one year anniversary of our initiative by releasing the study results.

More Research Needed

Statistics on this issue need to be gathered from everywhere. Playwrights wrote to us from other major cities in California, asking us to please include their cities in our data, too (such as San Diego, Santa Barbara, and San Francisco). But we had to focus on Los Angeles County and Orange County. It would be wonderful if someone could get funding to 'count' in other places, too, in cities across the world. In New York, after percentages and counts were released related to gender parity and playwriting, there were more productions for women playwrights in the next theater seasons. Consciousness-raising works. We hope the same change will be true in Los Angeles. It is a very difficult time for all theater artists, and we want to support theater-makers. We love theater. We want to participate.

here is the link to the study report:
http://lafpi.com/about/the-study/
Laura Shamas

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