A second response:
I was really excited about seeing Impression: Sunrise performed at the NJ Young Playwrights Festival and for weeks I was really looking forward to it. But when I walked into the theatre the Tuesday morning of the performance, I couldn't believe how nervous I was. When I saw the easel standing on one side of the stage I nearly fainted because I realized that was for my play. Fidgeting and hyperventilating was how I passed the time waiting for everyone to get there and for everything to get started. I was extremely anxious, panicky and worried as the play started. What if it flopped? What if no one got it? What if it was boring and dense, just talk, talk, talk? I relaxed as the play started. The actors were remarkable. The rapport between the brother and sister is key to Impression: Sunrise. The actors immediately developed the quick back and forth of the dialogue and they perfectly embodied what I had envisioned. I tried hard to sit back and enjoy, but I did find myself saying the lines along with the actors in my mind. I tried to let go of how I had pictured the pace of the conversation and how the actors moved. I knew the play had been well directed and the actors were well prepared. The best moment of the entire experience came near the end of the play when the brother's injury is revealed and the people sitting around me, who did not know me, let out audible gasps. That moment was so powerful. I felt like I could have floated out of the theatre.
I guess I was lucky to have been the first play because then I could relax and enjoy the other three plays which were terrific. They were so different, so beautifully written and so inspiring. The feedback and comments I received from the judges were also inspiring and really helped me think about the whys of my writing and not just the whats. At this moment, I am not sure if I have another story to tell. Perhaps another idea will find me.
- Ben Muzi, author of Impression: Sunrise
Monday, July 14, 2008
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
Reflection from Julie Earls
I asked each of the High School playwrights to send me their thoughts and reflections on the NJ Young Playwrights Contest and Festival process. The first response is below:
"So, I guess that means I'm going to need to get a violin case for Michelle..." said the stage manager as I walked into the rehearsal space one weekend morning. A violin case? I had pretty much forgotten that the character I had written, Michelle, even played the violin and these adults, who had volunteered to work on my play, saw significance in this prop. This was only the beginning of my wonderful experience with the NJ Young Playwrights Contest.
The first day was the rough reading of all the plays and, to be honest, I was so intimidated. The first play was read and there was such symbolism with the artist and his colors. Then, there was "Treading Water", a delightfully clever play about an affair and a boy who had drowned. There was such profundity in her writing in the most subtle ways that I started to look at my play and say, "now, how did you win?” Next, my friend and fellow winner's play "Sorry Allie" was read. Oh man, what a tearjerker that was. Finally, it was my play's turn to be read and I was a little nervous. Mine sucks compared to everyone else, I thought, my true worst critic coming out as all artists find at some time. But, as the reading went on, I started to smile. The actors found so many different things with my writing that I didn't know it had. I didn't know my play was so funny! Their dedication to my work and their intellect with the piece brought my confidence back in a heartbeat.
But, that's what this experience was all about: real actors taking my real work very seriously. This was invaluable to a young artist like myself. It made me feel like I wasn't just some kid who wrote some play about moody teenagers and their moody rings -- it made me feel like I was a real dramatic force that had something to say and they were there to cultivate that. Adults. Real actors. My own play's stage manager. It was unreal. I clearly remember the director asking me to change the wording of something in my play and the actor saying, without hesitation, "How do you want to change ‘father’? Do you want to make it ‘dad’? ‘Pop’?” I was a little surprised at first when I quickly remembered, "oh, that's right, I'm the writer." I was so touched that he took my opinion seriously! I paused, then grinned and said "Old man".
It wasn't just about me either -- there was a great collaboration between me and the director. In my original ending of the play, I had a spotlight on each character go out as they said their last line. (As a side note, looking at my play again during this process, I became really proud of this visual aspect of my play. I realized that I had a good eye for the stage and that I liked to incorporate images.) But, Dania, the director wanted to try something a little different for the ending. I remember her describing it, how she wanted the characters to look at each other, realize that what they learned about themselves is a lot more than an essay their teacher assigned, and just drop the papers and walk away. The actors started to giggle at me because they saw how I was absolutely beaming when I heard this ingenious direction. I loved it so much that I put it as an alternate ending for my play. She was always willing to listen to my suggestions and I was very supportive of her vision. Dania found such a deep layer to my play and I'm so glad that she did.
My play wasn't the only one that grew from this experience -- I did. Though I see myself mainly as an actor and singer, I realized that writing opens a new and very different door of expression. As an actor, you are somewhat limited to express yourself through an already formed character. On the other hand, if a person wants to discuss an issue, bring life to a character they've had in the back of their mind for ages, or even make a statement, all they have to do is write it. And, I like knowing I have that door available to me. Being in the performing arts field, you want as many doors as possible. The most uplifting thing was feeling like my play could really go far. Seeing my play up on stage for my peers and other people to see made me feel like it could be seen at other venues, other places, for other audiences, Broadway, who knows.
Jim DeVivo had told me that he was thinking of getting blogs/reflections from the winners. Being the organized dork I am, I made sure to take notes because there were so many wonderful thoughts and emotions that I was feeling that I didn't want to leave out. Looking at my notes now, the one phrase at the bottom of the page, written big and in caps that perfectly sums up this experience is: I LOVE BEING AN ARTIST.
- Julie A. Earls, author of The Moodring Monologues
"So, I guess that means I'm going to need to get a violin case for Michelle..." said the stage manager as I walked into the rehearsal space one weekend morning. A violin case? I had pretty much forgotten that the character I had written, Michelle, even played the violin and these adults, who had volunteered to work on my play, saw significance in this prop. This was only the beginning of my wonderful experience with the NJ Young Playwrights Contest.
The first day was the rough reading of all the plays and, to be honest, I was so intimidated. The first play was read and there was such symbolism with the artist and his colors. Then, there was "Treading Water", a delightfully clever play about an affair and a boy who had drowned. There was such profundity in her writing in the most subtle ways that I started to look at my play and say, "now, how did you win?” Next, my friend and fellow winner's play "Sorry Allie" was read. Oh man, what a tearjerker that was. Finally, it was my play's turn to be read and I was a little nervous. Mine sucks compared to everyone else, I thought, my true worst critic coming out as all artists find at some time. But, as the reading went on, I started to smile. The actors found so many different things with my writing that I didn't know it had. I didn't know my play was so funny! Their dedication to my work and their intellect with the piece brought my confidence back in a heartbeat.
But, that's what this experience was all about: real actors taking my real work very seriously. This was invaluable to a young artist like myself. It made me feel like I wasn't just some kid who wrote some play about moody teenagers and their moody rings -- it made me feel like I was a real dramatic force that had something to say and they were there to cultivate that. Adults. Real actors. My own play's stage manager. It was unreal. I clearly remember the director asking me to change the wording of something in my play and the actor saying, without hesitation, "How do you want to change ‘father’? Do you want to make it ‘dad’? ‘Pop’?” I was a little surprised at first when I quickly remembered, "oh, that's right, I'm the writer." I was so touched that he took my opinion seriously! I paused, then grinned and said "Old man".
It wasn't just about me either -- there was a great collaboration between me and the director. In my original ending of the play, I had a spotlight on each character go out as they said their last line. (As a side note, looking at my play again during this process, I became really proud of this visual aspect of my play. I realized that I had a good eye for the stage and that I liked to incorporate images.) But, Dania, the director wanted to try something a little different for the ending. I remember her describing it, how she wanted the characters to look at each other, realize that what they learned about themselves is a lot more than an essay their teacher assigned, and just drop the papers and walk away. The actors started to giggle at me because they saw how I was absolutely beaming when I heard this ingenious direction. I loved it so much that I put it as an alternate ending for my play. She was always willing to listen to my suggestions and I was very supportive of her vision. Dania found such a deep layer to my play and I'm so glad that she did.
My play wasn't the only one that grew from this experience -- I did. Though I see myself mainly as an actor and singer, I realized that writing opens a new and very different door of expression. As an actor, you are somewhat limited to express yourself through an already formed character. On the other hand, if a person wants to discuss an issue, bring life to a character they've had in the back of their mind for ages, or even make a statement, all they have to do is write it. And, I like knowing I have that door available to me. Being in the performing arts field, you want as many doors as possible. The most uplifting thing was feeling like my play could really go far. Seeing my play up on stage for my peers and other people to see made me feel like it could be seen at other venues, other places, for other audiences, Broadway, who knows.
Jim DeVivo had told me that he was thinking of getting blogs/reflections from the winners. Being the organized dork I am, I made sure to take notes because there were so many wonderful thoughts and emotions that I was feeling that I didn't want to leave out. Looking at my notes now, the one phrase at the bottom of the page, written big and in caps that perfectly sums up this experience is: I LOVE BEING AN ARTIST.
- Julie A. Earls, author of The Moodring Monologues
Thursday, June 5, 2008
Festival Recap – Performance Day 2
TUESDAY, May 20
High School readings
We presented four very strong plays during the High School performance:
- Impression: Sunrise by Ben Muzi
- Treading Water by Kate Douglas
- Sorry, Allie by Bennett Kirschner
- The Moodring Monologues by Julie A. Earls
It is always interesting to witness the first performance of a play with an audience present. A director guides a play with a vision of how to present the story and all of its intricacies. Blocking, technical aspects, and every detail are approached with an idea of how the audience will or should perceive them. The thing is that you just never know how an audience will react until they are there experiencing the piece. This is an excellent experience for the writer as each laugh, breath, and silence from the audience informs the playwright about each of those moments in the play. The audience’s engagement with each of these plays was strong and clear and was very exciting to observe.
As with the readings on Monday, the high school playwrights and their schools were presented with certificates to mark the achievement. We also presented an Honorable Mention to Brianna Delfs for her play Some People Never Go Crazy (What Truly Horrible Lives They Must Lead).
High school playwrights and some of the cast.
The directors of the high school plays forwarded me the following words of congrats and advice to the playwrights whose work they directed:
“Congratulations to all the young playwrights on a job well done! To Bennett and Julie -It was a thrill to take part in the process that brought your creative work to life. Keep writing! Big smiles,” - Dania Ramos
“I had a great time working on the high school scripts. The plays were well-written, complex and explored some very interesting subjects. I was excited by the talent I saw, and encourage all the writers to keep working and honing your craft. You will be the voice of the next generation of theatrical artists. Fine job!” – Jim Ligon
Congratulations again to all 13 winners of the NJ Young Playwrights Contest. We hope you will continue writing and look forward to seeing your work in the years to come.
And to all young playwrights out there… keep writing! The Contest will begin again in the fall. The submission deadline and guidelines will be available in early October at our website – http://www.ptnj.org/ - and on this blog. In the meantime please keep coming back to this site for playwriting advice and information. We hope to have reflections on the Festival from playwrights, performers, and crew as well as playwriting tips and exercises from many of our teaching artists and staff. So, come on back and see us then!
High School readings
We presented four very strong plays during the High School performance:
- Impression: Sunrise by Ben Muzi
- Treading Water by Kate Douglas
- Sorry, Allie by Bennett Kirschner
- The Moodring Monologues by Julie A. Earls
It is always interesting to witness the first performance of a play with an audience present. A director guides a play with a vision of how to present the story and all of its intricacies. Blocking, technical aspects, and every detail are approached with an idea of how the audience will or should perceive them. The thing is that you just never know how an audience will react until they are there experiencing the piece. This is an excellent experience for the writer as each laugh, breath, and silence from the audience informs the playwright about each of those moments in the play. The audience’s engagement with each of these plays was strong and clear and was very exciting to observe.
As with the readings on Monday, the high school playwrights and their schools were presented with certificates to mark the achievement. We also presented an Honorable Mention to Brianna Delfs for her play Some People Never Go Crazy (What Truly Horrible Lives They Must Lead).
High school playwrights and some of the cast.
The directors of the high school plays forwarded me the following words of congrats and advice to the playwrights whose work they directed:
“Congratulations to all the young playwrights on a job well done! To Bennett and Julie -It was a thrill to take part in the process that brought your creative work to life. Keep writing! Big smiles,” - Dania Ramos
“I had a great time working on the high school scripts. The plays were well-written, complex and explored some very interesting subjects. I was excited by the talent I saw, and encourage all the writers to keep working and honing your craft. You will be the voice of the next generation of theatrical artists. Fine job!” – Jim Ligon
Congratulations again to all 13 winners of the NJ Young Playwrights Contest. We hope you will continue writing and look forward to seeing your work in the years to come.
And to all young playwrights out there… keep writing! The Contest will begin again in the fall. The submission deadline and guidelines will be available in early October at our website – http://www.ptnj.org/ - and on this blog. In the meantime please keep coming back to this site for playwriting advice and information. We hope to have reflections on the Festival from playwrights, performers, and crew as well as playwriting tips and exercises from many of our teaching artists and staff. So, come on back and see us then!
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
Festival Recap - Performance Day 1
MONDAY, May 19
The Festival moved from Playwrights Theatre to Kean University in Union, NJ. Premiere Stages and Kean University provided space in the Little Theatre located inside the University Center. This was the first time that many of us saw the space and we were all very pleased it. The Little Theatre is much smaller than the enormous Wilkins Theatre where the Festival was held in the past. However, the Little Theatre provided a more personal setting with the audience seated closer to the action. The directors, crew, and cast had a wonderful time working in such an intimate environment.
Junior High School / Elementary School readings
A company of seven actors and one director (Stephen Davis, a teaching artist with Playwrights Theatre and adjunct professor at Kean) presented the eight plays of the Junior High School and Elementary School divisions as a reading. In this format, the actors read from scripts placed on music stands, which also display the character name and a brief description of the character played by the actor at that stand. (You can get a sense of how things were set up from the pictures included in this entry.) The reading structure is certainly not the picture that a young playwright has in his/her mind when writing the play. However, we find that presenting the work in this format allows the story to maintain the focus of the event and brings the audience to use their imagination to fill in the gaps – much like a storyteller’s performance.
The stage being prepared.
Each actor took part in nearly every play of the reading. Playing a variety of characters in such a short period of time is not easy, especially while using only small props and costume pieces – glasses, hats, and a few props – to indicate something about the character’s physical presence. The actors’ vocal and physical performance and the audience’s imagination filled in the rest. There were a number of complements from the audience on how seamlessly and effectively the cast achieved this task.
Junior High and Elementary playwrights and cast.
The playwrights and representatives from their school were presented with certificates to mark their achievement. The cast signed the display cards that were used during the reading to announce the title of each play and these were given to the playwrights, too.
High School tech rehearsal
After a quick lunch break, the High School casts and playwrights took the stage to work through a brief tech rehearsal. In a staged reading like this, the stands are removed and the actors perform blocking and use a few props. There are more technical aspects like light and sound, but the actors use their scripts and the setting is largely indicated. This technique provides more of the playwright’s original vision while still maintaining the story at the forefront, like in the Junior HS and Elementary reading.
There was enough time in the afternoon for a tech rehearsal and another run-through in a separate space – a last opportunity to work with rewrites and polish certain aspects before Tuesday’s presentation!
The Festival moved from Playwrights Theatre to Kean University in Union, NJ. Premiere Stages and Kean University provided space in the Little Theatre located inside the University Center. This was the first time that many of us saw the space and we were all very pleased it. The Little Theatre is much smaller than the enormous Wilkins Theatre where the Festival was held in the past. However, the Little Theatre provided a more personal setting with the audience seated closer to the action. The directors, crew, and cast had a wonderful time working in such an intimate environment.
Junior High School / Elementary School readings
A company of seven actors and one director (Stephen Davis, a teaching artist with Playwrights Theatre and adjunct professor at Kean) presented the eight plays of the Junior High School and Elementary School divisions as a reading. In this format, the actors read from scripts placed on music stands, which also display the character name and a brief description of the character played by the actor at that stand. (You can get a sense of how things were set up from the pictures included in this entry.) The reading structure is certainly not the picture that a young playwright has in his/her mind when writing the play. However, we find that presenting the work in this format allows the story to maintain the focus of the event and brings the audience to use their imagination to fill in the gaps – much like a storyteller’s performance.
The stage being prepared.
Each actor took part in nearly every play of the reading. Playing a variety of characters in such a short period of time is not easy, especially while using only small props and costume pieces – glasses, hats, and a few props – to indicate something about the character’s physical presence. The actors’ vocal and physical performance and the audience’s imagination filled in the rest. There were a number of complements from the audience on how seamlessly and effectively the cast achieved this task.
Junior High and Elementary playwrights and cast.
The playwrights and representatives from their school were presented with certificates to mark their achievement. The cast signed the display cards that were used during the reading to announce the title of each play and these were given to the playwrights, too.
High School tech rehearsal
After a quick lunch break, the High School casts and playwrights took the stage to work through a brief tech rehearsal. In a staged reading like this, the stands are removed and the actors perform blocking and use a few props. There are more technical aspects like light and sound, but the actors use their scripts and the setting is largely indicated. This technique provides more of the playwright’s original vision while still maintaining the story at the forefront, like in the Junior HS and Elementary reading.
There was enough time in the afternoon for a tech rehearsal and another run-through in a separate space – a last opportunity to work with rewrites and polish certain aspects before Tuesday’s presentation!
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