Guest Post from NJYPF reader Guleraana Mir

Today's guest blog post is from Guleraana Mir, a theatre practitioner and writer, who read plays for the NJ Young Playwrights Festival in both the first and second rounds. Based in London, Guleraana works with young people from around the world to create new works for the theatre. We thought it would be interesting to hear her perspective on the characters and themes that she sees in this work and how plays by New Jersey young playwrights compare. Enjoy!

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

Working as a teaching artist with young people in New York, London and South America, I have come to realise that teenagers are essentially the same all over the world. Sure, cultures vary, political landscapes are vastly different and young people experience a number of socio-economic climates, but it seems they are moved to write, to create art not by what surrounds them, but by what they feel. I don’t say this to perpetuate stereotypes of shallow, angst-ridden beings steeped in the Hollywood notion of high-school cliques, but because it inspires me that sometimes, what is outside of the teenage bubble is just not interesting enough.

In Brazil, working with students from the favelas, I expected tales of drug lords, in the East End of London I presumed my first-generation immigrant families would regale me with stories of how they came to be in this bustling metropolis, in deepest Brooklyn I waited for recollections of gunfights on doorsteps. What I actually received could easily have been transplanted from one area to another.

Young people write about struggles in love and friendship, they write about relationships with their families, they write about school, about being human. There are linguistic differences, the towns and cities they describe are worlds apart but the themes remain the same. I’m always struck by the honesty that teenagers portray in their dialogue, not yet realising that we don’t always speak the way that we think we do. They pay particular attention to colloquialisms and often demonstrate a blissful naiveté that adult writers are too jaded to find.

This year I read the plays for NJYP alongside a number of full-length plays for a producer friend of mine searching for a new project in London. I can honestly say that I would rather have pitched her a number of the short plays written by junior-high school students than the over-ambitious, poorly executed plays I was forced to reject.

Schemes like the NJYP nurture creativity when it is as it’s brightest. The imagination and enthusiasm is apparent in the writers’ words and I’ve been wholly inspired this year. I look forward to seeing the shortlist of winners and reading the strongest plays in the competition. To all the young people who submitted, well done, and please, continue writing. The future of engaging and exciting theatre experiences is in your hands!

Guleraana Mir is co-founder of London Playwriting Lab, a brand new script development initiative created for writers, by writers. She was previously Artistic Director of First Foot Theatre Productions in New York City. Guleraana currently delivers a mixture of curriculum enrichment through drama, applied-theatre, and nutrition workshops whilst desperately trying to finish her first full-length play. Her writing credits include:

Merry ******* Christmas- Drayton Arms, London, December 2013

Dossier- Camden Peoples’ Theatre, London, November 2013

If I had a Hammer- Camden Peoples’ Theatre, London, February 2013

Betty- Pless Hall Black Box Theatre, New York, NY, March 2010

Mannequin Mount Carmel Theatre Company, Brooklyn, NY, March 2010

Voodoo Child Pless Hall Black Box Theatre, New York, NY, September 2008

Entering the Final Round!

Both the Elementary and High School divisions have now entered their respective final rounds of judging. The Junior HS division, always the largest of the three, is going to take a little more time before it is ready. However, I will meet with the Selection Panel on March 21 to discuss each of the finalist scripts and to select the plays from each division that will be presented at the 2014 NJ Young Playwrights Festival in June.

Stay tuned!

Playwright bio - Philip Anastassiou

Our final playwright from 2013 is Philip Anastassiou.

Philip Anastassiou
11th grade, Bergen County Academies

1) What inspired you to write Good News!?

Good News!, like a lot of my plays, is an absurdist farce, exploring materialism, wealth, and etiquette. I was definitely influenced by the aesthetic of playwrights I admired at the time (and still continue to love,) such as Samuel Beckett and Eugene Ionesco. I was also fascinated by the idea of gallows humor and making an audience laugh at otherwise terribly depressing subjects. It was actually initially written for an annual student-run 24 Hour Play Festival at my high school that I helped produce several years ago, so it's also the product of a whole lot of fatigue and a whole lot of coffee.

2) You have won awards for your acting as well as your writing. Which do you prefer more: acting or writing?

I fell in love with theatre through performance first. It still is an extremely important part of me and I can't imagine ever letting go of it. However, since high school, I've become more intent on pursuing dramatic writing as a career. I'm currently an intern at the Off Broadway theatre company Playwrights Horizons, where I've been exposed to a huge amount of excellent (and not so excellent) plays by the young writers who are out and about living my dream as we speak. I've also had an invaluable glimpse at how new play development works at a professional level. This experience has greatly inspired me to follow writing to the next level and see where it takes me. Acting is enormously fun, but there is something exhilarating that can't accurately be put into words that comes with creating story. Writing gives me the opportunity to share my ideas and opinions with the world in a way that acting simply does not. Ideally, I'd like to be able to do both professionally and simultaneously. So basically, in a perfect world, I want to be Tracy Letts when I grow up.

3) You went to the Atlantic Acting School's Summer Teenage Ensemble program this past summer. What did you gain from this experience?

Through the sequential acting curriculum at the Bergen County Academies, I've been introduced to a few different schools of thought on performing. As a young actor, I'm still interested in experimenting with as many different techniques as possible and was attracted to this program because of Atlantic's own technique known as "practical aesthetics." It postulates that method acting is utter bull (for example, one needn't pretend to be Abraham Lincoln for the entirety of a filming, even when off-camera, to give a sincere performance) and what the actor must really expend their energy on is playing an action to achieve an objective despite obstacles. It's a modern spin off on Stanislavsky. I used to be very romantic with the idea of being method (whatever that means) and trying to put myself through similar conditions to somehow replicate the exact emotions that my characters were feeling in a play. This program really helped me realize what style of acting I prefer for myself and has simplified the process for me. 

4) Tell us a little about your responsibilities as co-artistic director of Studio 216, the student-run theatre company at Bergen County Academies.

I've been involved with my high school's student-run theatre company Studio 216 since freshman year. I became one of the two co-artistic directors the following year and have found the experience to be very worthwhile. Our mission is to provide the students of BCA with an environment where as artists they can explore, experiment, and showcase their work to the rest of our community. As everything we do is entirely student-produced, I help brainstorm and coordinate events for the future, manage our social media, design advertisements, and correspond with school administration while planning a show. The most recent example would be our 2013 Winter Playweek, where a student-written play was given a staged reading each day of the week during school hours. Anyone who was free during the same hour was welcome to see our daily performances for free. Ultimately, these responsibilities are shared between many of my friends who are also a part of Studio 216 and it has been a lot of fun over these past three years.

5) If you could have any super-human power, what would it be and why?

Flying would be pretty neat! Think of all the things you'd see! Then again, I guess that's what Google Maps is for. 

You can find Philip's bio, as well as bios for the other high school playwrights from 2013, on the NJ Young Playwrights Festival at http://www.ptnj.org/miscpage/2013-new-jersey-young-playwrights-high-school-bios

National Playwriting Competition at Young Playwrights, Inc. in NYC

If you haven't done so yet, be sure to submit your play to the national young playwrights competition produced by Young Playwrights, Inc in New York City. For more info, click the image below.

Happy writing!

Call for Readers and Actors

We're looking for READERS and ACTORS for the upcoming young playwrights festivals at Playwrights Theatre of NJ. Please contact us if you are interested via the following online survey: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/2014FestivalParticipation

Any questions? Send an email to njypf@ptnj.org.

Thanks!

Results of the 2013 NJ Young Playwrights Festival

We are proud to present to you the winning plays/playwrights of the 2013 New Jersey Young Playwrights Festival! The following plays will be presented during the Festival in May.

High School Division

• You Definitely Got All That from Your Mother by Emma Iacometta, 11^th grade, Bergen County Academies
• Mirror by Kelsey Garrett, 11^th grade, Middletown High School South
• Blues-Berries by Philip Peker, 11^th grade, Livingston Senior High School
• Good News! By Philip Anastassiou, 11^th grade, Bergen County Academies

Junior High School Division

• We’re Sisters by Christine Vapsva, 9^th grade, Union County Academy for Performing Arts, Scotch Plains
• Untitled by Emma Ohlig, 9^th grade, Union County Academy for Performing Arts, Scotch Plains
• An Obstacle Worth Facing by Lindsay Gerrato, 8^th grade, Columbia Middle School, Berkeley Heights

Elementary Division

• A Tale of Two Kitties by Matthew Sidorovich, 5^th grade, Lafayette Elementary School, Chatham
• Bully Days by Zachary Vincent, 4^th grade, St. Vincent Martyr School, Madison
• It All Happened in 24 Hours by Anna Gregory, 4^th grade, Lafayette Elementary School, Chatham

Congratulations to all of the playwrights who submitted their work to the Festival this year. We received a large number of good plays and had a great time reading them, but a difficult time selecting those to be performed.

We encourage everyone to attend the Festival readings on May 20 (Junior HS and Elementary plays) and May 21 (High School plays) in the University Center Little Theatre on the campus of Kean University in Union, NJ. Performances will begin promptly at 7:00 pm. While the events are free, reservations are highly suggested, due to limited space available. Please contact the Education Office at Playwrights Theatre to make your reservation today - 973-514-1787, ext. 21 or njypf@ptnj.org.

Stay tuned for updates about the Festival throughout the next four weeks!

Opportunities to submit plays to national festivals

While waiting for the results of the 2013 New Jersey Young Playwrights Festival, it would be a great idea to submit your work to a few national competitions and festivals! See the links below for more information.

Eugene O'Neill Theatre Center's Young Playwrights Festival
Deadline: February 25, 2013
http://ct.broadwayworld.com/article/Eugene-ONeill-Theater-Center-Opens-Submissions-for-8th-Annual-Young-Playwrights-Festival-Deadline-225-20130130

The Blank Theatre's Young Playwrights Festival
Deadline: March 15, 2013 
http://losangeles.broadwayworld.com/article/The-Blank-Theatres-Young-Playwrights-Festival-Seeks-Submissions-20130130#

Almost done?

You're almost done with your play? Great! Then let us offer you some...

Advice for young playwrights, Part 6

The final installment of our advice series comes from playwright/teacher/NJYPFestival script reader, Kelby Siddons. Enjoy!
-----------------------------------------------

What makes a strong play?

At least two of the following, usually all three: compelling characters, strong structure, poetic language and/or action.

What types of characters do you like to write?

I like to write characters in a state of becoming, which leads me to teen characters who are smart, funny, caring, and driven but have doubts, (in)experiences, and relationships that challenge them.

What do you look for when choosing a play to work on?

As a director, I look for a play that fascinates and rewards me, and by extension, the audience. Sometimes the reward is big laughs, sometimes it's important, unresolved questions. I'll always gravitate more towards the play that gives me both those things.

Please describe the best experience that you had working on a play.

I directed an ensemble in Shakespeare's As You Like It, and it was wonderful because of how clearly complicated things become and the fact that each actor had an integral role to play in all those comic complications. In terms of structure, Shakespeare is the ultimate to borrow from.

Please describe the worst experience that you had working on a play.

As a Kangaroo in  Peter Pan, I was completely expendable. To paraphrase Jose Rivera, write parts that actors want to play.

What advice would you give to a young playwright currently working on a new play?

Ask yourself where the Fear and Love are in your play and your characters' lives. If you have one without the other, there's no conflict. Drama is created when these two dance.

Advice to young playwrights, Part 5

Continuing our advice series with comments from playwright and NJYPFestival script reader, Kirk Woodward. Enjoy!
------------------------------------------------

What makes a strong play?

For me the most important element of a strong play is a good idea. A solid idea makes everything else possible. A weak idea means the writer is constantly playing catch-up.

What types of characters do you like to write?

The answer to this question varies with the play, of course, but I like characters with spunk. Also, as a male playwright I set myself years ago the challenge of writing at least as many female as male characters, and I like that.

What do you look for when choosing a play to work on?

I know this comment is terribly subjective, but it has to excite me. There are many excellent plays that will do better if someone else writes them or directs them, because they don’t stir my imagination.

Please describe the best experience that you had working on a play.

I once wrote the entire score for a musical for children during one working day, while sitting at my desk. (Didn’t get much other work done, however.) That was fun!

Please describe the worst experience that you had working on a play.

Fairly typical: I worked a long time on a draft of a play, and when I finished it I re-read it and realized it was a total bomb from beginning to end. NOTE: if that happens, you have to either rewrite it entirely, or discard it. Don’t try to breathe life into a dead play. You’ll write others. If you don’t like it, no one else will, that’s for sure.

What advice would you give to a young playwright currently working on a new play?

Don’t listen to advice too much. When it comes down to it, your job is to write. Let other people do the evaluating. Write what you feel you’re called to write.

Building... suspense!

“There is nothing more frightening than a closed door.”

Imagine that you are watching a play or a movie in which a character approaches a closed door, but has no idea what he or she is going to find behind it. Maybe this is Alice in Wonderland and Alice is facing the small door through which the White Rabbit just disappeared. She is curious to follow the rabbit, but uncertain what is going to happen on the other side. What should she do? What is going to happen on the other side? Alice doesn’t know and, if we as an audience are invested in the story, we share in that moment with her because it is familiar to us. We have all been in a position where we are faced with something that is unknown. In that moment we might think: What do I do? What will happen when I do that? We may feel any number of emotions at that point – anxiety, adventure, fear, excitement, or maybe all of those at once! Creating that tension for a character can create a sense of suspense within the audience. That draws them in and leaves them wanting to know more. This is called “suspense”.

At the heart of suspense is the idea put forth in the quote above: when a character is faced with something that is unknown, the audience’s imagination will create a scenario that makes the situation personally suspenseful to them. That is probably why the quote above is often attributed to Alfred Hitchcock, a filmmaker who created some of the iconic horror and suspense movies of the 1950s and 60s. (However, it is not clear that Hitchcock is actually the speaker of this phrase giving the phrase its own unknown quality!) Radio plays have also used this idea to trigger an audience’s imagination. This was important because the audience could only hear the story and had to “see” it in their minds. The audience for your play will be able to both hear and see the action, but using suspense and the idea of the unknown can be useful to keeping them (and in some ways, your characters) invested in the story.

This is related to the idea of “raising the stakes”, which was talked about in a previous post (linked here). When you raise the stakes for a character, you are challenging him or her in the quest to get what they need/want. As I discussed before that might including doing things that a character doesn’t think is possible, but it might also mean having to face something, or someone, whom they are not sure about. That leads me to another thought about silence…

… which I will share in the next post!

And now I have you thinking: What is he going to say about silence? You don’t know, or maybe you might now. Either way, your imagination is running and the thoughts are flying. The suspense is building, but you’ll just need to tune in again next time to find out…

Until then, happy writing!

Advice to young playwrights, Part 4

Our advice to young playwrights continues with some thoughts from a few of the actors and readers who have worked on the New Jersey Young Playwrights Festival.

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

What makes a strong play?
A strong play has great characters and a moving/interesting plot.

A strong play is not necessarily a traditional story, but like any good story, it has a reason for being told here and now. A play's sole purpose can be entertainment, but that does not diminish the importance of the question: Why this play now?


What types of characters do you like to portray/write?
I love to play the comic relief most of the time. The character that can do no wrong and everybody loves him. Though playing a villain is also fun… playing a character that is not who I am.

I like to portray characters that are complicated. In real life, people are not stock characters. Real people have different layers to their character and sides of themselves that they don't always show the public, but are still inside. Stock characters are great in some genres of theatre (such as Commedia dell'arte), but realistic characters are complicated.

I find the most success writing characters whose actions are firmly based in the circumstances of the play. I always try to make sure that a character's actions spring from his/her surroundings or from other characters. Every action should be justifiable, even if it isn't logical (or sane).


What do you look for when choosing a play to work on?
I look for a play that has strong character relationships and a great conflict that those characters encounter.

I look for a play with language that makes the room buzz when it's read aloud. This can be dialogue in the form of a fierce, biting argument, or monologue in the form of a soulful soliloquy. This language seems to come from sincere and causal circumstances.


What advice would you give to a young playwright currently working on a new play?

To keep a positive and open mind. Believe in your work and give it your all.

Writing a play can be difficult, but it does not have to be sequential. Writing the last scene first, a middle scene last or a random scene with no definite place can ease the difficulty of writing scenes in order. Write the part you're dying to write!

Be open-minded. It is perfectly fine to have a clear vision for what you wish to accomplish with your piece, but be open to new ideas from people who haven't been working tirelessly on the script for months. Sometimes outsiders can offer ideas that you never would have thought of before! Try some ideas out and if they don't work, there's nothing wrong with scrapping them.

Advice to Young Playwrights, part 3 - Summer Hortillosa

Our next installment of Advice toYoung Playwrights comes from Summer Hortillosa, a 2007 NJ Young Playwrights Festival winner for her play, The Not-So Lovely Tale of Strawberry Fructose. Summer is a journalist, playwright, and director whose recent work can be found on her website http://www.summerization.com.

Enjoy!
---------
What makes a strong play?

I think strong plays have a clear direction in multiple areas -- character development, plot and audience experience. Strong plays feature relatable, consistent characters with believable dialogue that make their needs clear and drive the story. A strong play is one that has many movable parts that are pieced together in a way that the beginning can't help but eventually result in the ending and the ending seems to have only been possible because of the beginning.

What types of characters do you like to portray/write?

I like to both portray and write fantastic characters with fantastic needs. I like unique characters who are almost entirely figments of imagination but who have strong emotional cores that make them completely relatable. I like strong characters, strange characters and characters capable of witty, fun dialogue. Argumentative and honest are some of the best things a character can be.

What do you look for when choosing a play to work on?

Generally logistics play a large role when selecting a play for production, but otherwise I try to select plays I feel I have written well or, when doing someone else's play, that they have written well. I like to choose plays that explore a fair range of emotions, that would be fun to produce and watch and that I feel are strong and have interesting characters.

Please describe the best experience that you had working on a play.

My most recent production, a one-woman show in the SO LOW Theater Festival in Jersey City called Kookspeak, was one of my favorite experiences so far because production was easy. I wrote, directed and performed the piece and used very few props or effects, so I did not have to worry too much about budgeting, aligning schedules or a lot of other stuff that happens when I have to produce/stage manage/do everything for my shows. In this case, I mainly focused on promoting my show and on rehearsals.

Directing one's self can be a challenge and requires a lot of self-awareness (or, if possible, a video or mirror as an outside eye), but was a lot of fun for me. I was able to make myself work whenever I wanted to, and while I had a general rehearsal schedule that I set up for myself and tried to stick to, I had a lot of freedom to rehearse more or less than planned depending on my needs. I was free to push myself as hard as possible and make all the executive decisions, which is always great.

Also, it made the final product very pure -- I will perhaps never have a work as fully representative of who I am as an artist. The words, thoughts and emotions were all mine, as were the staging, direction, acting choices -- it was liberating and fully satisfying, especially when I received a great response from my audience and peers.

Please describe the worst experience that you had working on a play.

The worst -- or rather, most difficult -- experience I had working on a play was a full production of Shakespeare's As You Like It involving about 32 high school students. Having to direct over 30 teenagers with various levels of commitment and talent as well as oversee the entire production -- with very little control over the groups in charge of lighting, sound, costumes and props -- was mindbogglingly tough.

I had to double-cast our leads, Rosalind and Orlando, which lightened the load for four generally equally talented actors who weren't very accustomed to memorizing lots of Shakespearean speech, but made it difficult to make the characters consistent throughout the play. Also, as a requirement for the class, we had to have every student -- even those who were terrible at acting -- play a role. Lastly, as any director can imagine, coordinating the schedules of over 30 people and having to deal with egos, lateness, forgetfulness, mistakes, irresponsibility, and all the other possible vices any group of 30 could have was a monumental task in itself.

Overall, however, we were able to pull it all together and put on several great performances. As any director will quickly discover, learning to roll with the punches and press on to put on a good show is possibly the most important skill they can have.

What advice would you give to a young playwright currently working on a new play?

Make sure every effect has a cause and every cause has an effect when you revise. Tying up loose ends, making sure that important facts are established (in a natural way and at the right time) and keeping characters consistent will strengthen your play. Read dialogue out loud and make sure everything sounds natural; cut what you can. Don't fall in love too much with your favorite characters or with your ability to write, because you might end up dragging out scenes and tiring your audience or worse, finding yourself disappointed when your work is produced and the performance doesn't live up to your expectations.

Advice to Young Playwrights, part 2 - Constantine Ligons

A few weeks ago, I asked some of the actors, directors, playwrights, readers, and teaching artists who have been associated with the NJ Young Playwrights Festival for their advice for young playwrights like you. This advice comes from Constantine Lignos, a NY-based actor/playwright who also was a NJ Young Playwrights Festival winner in 2006. Here is Constantine's response below... enjoy!

------
A strong play is universal. Anyone can relate to any character at any moment in the play. No matter how personal it may be for the playwright, audiences want to see something that they feel they have a visceral connection with, not just one writer's one-hour psychotherapy session. The writer needs to distance himself from the subject matter. To do this, he must delve so deeply into the experience that it is no longer about his own personal and emotional relationship to the matter, but how the world is affected by that aspect of human-ness.

I almost exclusively write strong roles for women. Women who are so down in the dumps that their ascension must be an act of power and control. To portray this in a way that would seem universal, I always add some abstraction to them. We can always universally relate to the abstractions of the imagination. Imagination is something we all share.

As an actor, I look for a fun challenge. A play that lets me push the boundaries of how a character should be played. It's never fun to do what you should do. We're allowed to break the rules as artists, so why don't we?

As a writer, I write plays that I know I won't get sick of in a few weeks. I almost always do get tired of them, though.

My advice would be to keep a journal. Always. And write in it every day. Write everything without hesitation. Also, never be afraid to write a scene, or a few bits of dialogue, instead of a whole play. You'd be surprised how those 4 lines you wrote can turn into a three-act play a few years down the road. When you're feeling down, write. When you're feeling great, write.

Advice to Young Playwrights, part 1 - Arthur Wilson

A few weeks ago, I asked some of the actors, directors, playwrights, readers, and teaching artists who have been associated with the NJ Young Playwrights Festival for their advice for young playwrights like you. Specifically, I asked the following questions:

• What makes a strong play?
• What types of characters do you like to portray/write?
• What do you look for when choosing a play to work on?
• Please describe the best experience that you had working on a play.
• Please describe the worst experience that you had working on a play.
• What advice would you give to a young playwright currently working on a new play?

From now until the winter I will be posting some of these responses for your consideration as you work on your play for this year. We begin today with a response from Arthur Wilson, one of our master teaching artists, who was not only involved with the NJ Young Playwrights Festival during its earliest stages, but also with the first years of the national playwriting competition run by Young Playwrights, Inc out of New York City. Here is Arthur's response below... enjoy!

-----

ADVICE TO YOUNG PLAYWRIGHTS

A strong play is based on something you the playwright has burning inside you

and you want to share it

(Catharsis, Dream, Imagination Sat On its' Head, Experience from something learned)

Characters that are not one dimensional and transform so the audience

experiences human growth, development, or stagnation

Poetic language moves a play beyond common language

but be careful -- the poetic language must communicate and not simply be a frill

A STRONG STORY IS MANDATORY

BUT DON'T BE FRIGHTENED NOT TO MAKE A PLOT LINEAR

The best experience I had working on a play

Having a team of Historians from Princeton University work collaboratively with the research

Rehearsing with a small cast capable of honesty for cuts, bridges, and clarity

Rewriting without having a need to hold onto every word or phrase

simply because I wrote it -- FLEXIBILITY

LISTENING

ALLOWING THE ACTORS TO SUGGEST CHANGES & TRYING THEM

The worst experience I had working on a play was not having enough time to rehearse

Often budgets require miracles

Young Playwrights working on a play RIGHT NOW

BE PREPARED TO REWRITE, REWRITE,

RE-DREAM A SCENE

TAKE RISKS

DON'T TRY TO BE CONVENTIONAL OR SO EXPERIMENTAL

THAT MEANING AND POINT OF VIEW ARE LOST

BOOM!

Life's mysteries

History is full of stories written to explore and explain some of life's mysteries. How was the world created? Why do birds fly? If a tree falls in the woods, does it make a sound? These questions, and others like these, lie at the heart of our cultures, religion, and philosophy, and have inspired experiments in art and science.

Some of the most compelling plays that we've received at the NJ Young Playwrights Festival have explored mysterious questions like these - sometimes on a grand, global scale; sometimes in more familiar surroundings. In fact, some of my favorite submissions have explored the questions: What would happen if I could stop time? What exists in the water under Niagara Falls? What happens behind the faculty room door?

Questions like these give a great starting point for you to begin a story, but can also be useful to move a story forward. What mysteries are you curious about? Maybe there's a story in your answer!

Happy writing!

Challenge yourself

Wow! Where did the last two weeks go? I can't believe it has been so long since the last post. We're busy, busy, bust creating new plays every day with the students at the Summer Theatre Camp at Playwrights Theatre. I had planned to write every 7-10 days, but must've gotten wrapped up in the fun. It can be easy to loose track of time like that, which is why it is helpful to put aside some time each day to spend on your writing. Even a few minutes can make a difference, which is why I'd like to share a writing challenge begun today by young adult lit author, Laurie Halse Anderson. I thought this might be a great way to stay inspired to write your play through these last few weeks of summer and even into the school year!

Ms. Anderson is the author of books for teens like Speak, Fever 1793, and Wintergirls, among others. On her website this morning, she launched her 5th annual Write 15 Minutes a Day Challenge. You can find more information here - http://madwomanintheforest.com/wfmad-day-1-welcome-to-the-write-fifteen-minutes-a-day-challenge/. As she says on the site, there will be a new post each day meant to inspire writing. You can follow along with her posts, or you can simply make the commitment to write for 15 minutes (or more... or less...) a day!

Please feel free to share your progress in the comments section for the blog posts here at NJ Young Playwrights. If you've already begun, it would be great to hear what you have been working on so far.

Happy writing!

Performance of work by students at Madison High School

On May 11, we presented a staged reading of selected works generated during a playwriting residency conducted by Playwrights Theatre at Madison High School. Carolyn Hunt, who led the residency, also directed the presentation. Here is a link to the article in the Madison High School paper about that event and some of the playwrights whose work was performed.

http://www.madisondodgeronline.com/student-life/2012/05/17/playwrights-theater-comes-to-madison-high-school/

Second rehearsal and Junior HS/Elementary performances

Another fun day yesterday with a split rehearsal schedule. The first couple of hours were spent blocking out the high school plays, but the main focus of the afternoon was the Junior HS/Elementary presentation.

The junior high and elementary plays are presented as a reading with actors performing at music stands at the front of the stage. The biggest challenges in staging this type of presentation are deciding what stage directions are needed to tell what can't be shown and then managing the traffic of actors from their seats to the stands. It's nice to have a little movement to accentuate the work the actors' vocal and physical performances.

Some pictures from the tech rehearsal for the Junior HS/Elementary performance are to the right.

The evening performance was very well attended. We were fortunate this year to have the opportunity to recognize not only the playwrights whose work was being produced, but also the other playwrights who plays made it to the final round of judging. Certificates were presented to all of the division finalists and to the schools of the winning playwrights. Pictures of those groups are at the bottom of this post.

Today we'll wrap up rehearsals for the High School plays and present those at 7:00 pm. There is still some room left if you haven't made a reservation yet. Please come out and join us to support the incredible work of these playwrights!

The Junior HS Division finalists with their teachers and the cast.

The Elementary Division finalists and the cast.

First day of rehearsal for the 2012 NJ Young Playwrights Festival

Yesterday was an exciting and very busy day of first rehearsals for the New Jersey Young Playwrights Festival. We began with a read through of the plays from the Junior HS and Elementary divisions and spent the afternoon with the high school plays. It is always fun to meet the playwrights and connect faces and personalities with plays. We also enjoy having the chance to talk with the playwrights about their plays - the inspirations behind them, the subtexts, etc.

We're back at it again this afternoon. First, we will continue blocking the high school plays and then transition into a very loose tech for the Junior HS and Elementary plays ahead of the readings at 7:00 pm tonight!

We have received a number of requests for reservations for tonight. Still a good amount of seats, so please do join us! 7:00 pm at the University Center Little Theatre at Kean University.

Here are just a few pictures from the high school rehearsal. Additional pictures can be found on our Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/njypf. We have a few from the earlier read through as well, but don't have them downloaded yet. Should do so soon. In the meantime, enjoy!