Did you get your tickets yet? I sure hope so! It's a rare and wonderful occasion that such a rich, diverse and talented group of playwrights can be experienced on one bill. I'm telling you, this isn't an event you're going to want to miss! Here's a recap for those just checking in: Tonight, at 8:30pm, eight DC playwrights -- Kathleen Akerley, Bob Bartlett, Mary Stone Hanley, Kristin LePine, Steve Spotswood, Danielle Mohlman, Anu Yadav and Laura Zam—will respond to unanticipated events. They question: is there anything that is truly beyond our control? Join this intimate gathering of some of DC’s most vivid voices, reading their own work, in a program curated by Gwydion Suilebhan and Paul Douglas Michnewicz. Interactive discussion with wine follows the performance What: DC-Area Playwrights Group presents 360º of America: Force Majeure When: Saturday, March 2nd at 8:30pm Cost: $15 General/$10 Student. Click here to purchase tickets! Where: Atlas Performing Arts Center, 1333 H Street, NE, Washington, DC 20002. Still not convinced? Well, check out these great playwright interviews: JACQUELINE LAWTON: If you only had three words to describe the DC Area Playwrights Group, what would they be? BOB BARTLETT: Supportive - Diverse - Community JL: What excited you about taking part in 360º of America: Force Majeure, which is being presented as part of the Intersections Festival? BB: The challenge, as much as anything. I enjoy writing to a random prompt like Force Majeure. And writing monologues isn’t a strength of mine – and I rarely have them in my plays. But in the fall I participated in Laura Zam’s workshop on creating a one-person show, so I’m having more fun with them these days. I don’t see monologues creeping into my work, however – especially 360 second ones. And I’m not an actor, but try to do things which frighten me and force me to grow, even when I don’t want to – like reading this piece in front of a packed house. Ugh. JL: Tell us about your play and what inspired you to write it. BB: It’s about a man who doesn’t speak. Ever. And a force which compels him to. I know – a 360 monologue delivered by a character who doesn’t speak?? That’s a high bar. But there are days I don’t speak much. Not many, since I’m a teacher. I remember once as a kid, I tried to go an entire day without speaking. I failed. JL: Why should audiences come see 360º of America: Force Majeure and participate in the postshow discussion? BB: Well, to see eight terrific and diverse explorations on a theme, and glean some insights into monologues, writing and performing them. And to see playwrights reading their own work, something which terrifies many writers (like me!!) And for the wine. JL: What’s next for you as a playwright? BB: In March I’ll have a reading of my new play THE ACCIDENT BEAR at id theatre in Manhattan. They’re the folks who bring us Seven Devils Playwrights Conference. And I’m currently doing a rewrite of my play WHALES for some pretty important people. JACQUELINE LAWTON: If you only had three words to describe the DC Area Playwrights Group, what would they be? MARY STONE HANLEY: Openings. Community. Difference. JL: What excited you about taking part in 360º of America: Force Majeure, which is being presented as part of the Intersections Festival? MSH: I am exciting about sharing my work and hearing the diversity of voices, perspectives, approaches and techniques. I also look forward to the audience discussion. I am forever intrigued by what people hear and understand when they experience art. JL: Tell us about your play and what inspired you to write it. MSH: My 360 minutes is actually a monologue from a one act called The Lemonade Stand. It's the story of 6 street kids 5 of whom live together in a run down studio apartment. They build community, take care of each other--sometimes for good, and sometimes not--and create their own culture with rules and boundaries. The monologue is by Langston, a 17 year old wordsmith who spends most of the time in the library or playing flute and drums on the street for spare change. As the oldest of the group he is sometimes the spiritual leader. In this monologue he describes his relationship to the cosmos. JL: Why should audiences come see 360º of America: Force Majeure and participate in the postshow discussion? MSH: Each playwright brings a different story; with differences in perspective, language, style all from different lives and experience , a festival really of difference. Audiences get to share the smorgasbord, savor the differences, momentarily live in whole new worlds, and be amazed by the beauty of it all. JL: What’s next for you as a playwright? MSH: Writing, writing, writing. I want to complete The Lemonade Stand and begin public readings. Submissions, submissions, submissions. I have two 90 minute one acts, The Name Game and Street Life that I will be submitting to various places. I intend to submit Street Life to the DC Black Theater Festival for a reading. JACQUELINE LAWTON: If you only had three words to describe the DC Area Playwrights Group, what would they be? KRISTEN LEPINE: Supportive, generous, and talented. JL: What excited you about taking part in 360º of America: Force Majeure, which is being presented as part of the Intersections Festival? KL: I am thrilled and humbled to write and perform alongside writers that I respect in a festival that celebrates artistic thought and creation. Performing my own play is a challenge, and I am grateful for the opportunity to explore my craft in a new way. JL: Tell us about your play and what inspired you to write it. KL: Knowing that I needed to perform what I wrote was both a stumbling block and an inspiration. I have never written something for myself to perform and haven’t been on a stage for 20 years! I wrote and trashed several monologues before I decided to get over my performance jitters and narrow my focus to show a single, personal, and relatable moment of terror and grace. JL: Why should audiences come see 360º of America: Force Majeure and participate in the postshow discussion? KL: It will be exciting to see how each of the eight playwrights tackle the subject, FORCE MAJEURE, in diverse and provocative ways. Also, this event is a “Date Night for Playwrights.” If you are a DC playwright, producer, actor, director, or theatre go-er, this is going to be a fantastic night to meet and mingle. And, there will be wine! JL: What’s next for you as a playwright? KL: I am in the midst of a major rewrite of a Greek inspired saga about working mothers titled Leto Legend. JACQUELINE LAWTON: If you only had three words to describe the DC Area Playwrights Group, what would they be? DANIELLE MOHLMAN: Why I moved. (Sure, I had an apprenticeship at the Studio Theatre, but I knew that was a one-year deal and that I needed to move somewhere that had a community of playwrights. Gwydion would probably blush if he knew DC-Area Playwrights was the kick-in-the-pants I needed in order to get myself out of Boston.) JL: What excited you about taking part in 360º of America: Force Majeure, which is being presented as part of the Intersections Festival? DM: This is going to sound corny, but I'm most excited about the fact that I was chosen to do this. The fact that a group of people thought that my words were valuable enough to be heard means the world to me. JL: Tell us about your play and what inspired you to write it. DM: My monologue is about the Zombie Apocalypse and someone's decision to not break up with their deadbeat boyfriend because they're just going to be torn apart by zombies anyway. I had just written a piece based upon victims of the Station Nightclub fire in Warwick, Rhode Island when I was asked to do this and as meaningful and cathartic as that was, I didn't want to revisit such real catastrophes so soon. I choose zombie apocalypse to lighten the very real feeling of loss. JL: Why should audiences come see 360º of America: Force Majeure and participate in the postshow discussion? DM: Well, for one, I'll be monologuing about zombies, so what can be more awesome than that? And also, there's wine. I feel like I should mention something about the importance of supporting local playwrights and local work, but everyone who reads this blog is already aware of that. So...zombies and wine! JL: What’s next for you as a playwright? DM: Artists' Bloc is producing a movement workshop of my play Dust at the end of May. Also, Field Trip Theatre is doing a staged reading of my newest play Nexus on June 9 at the Wonderland Ballroom. JACQUELINE LAWTON: If you only had three words to describe the DC Area Playwrights Group, what would they be? Stephen Spotswood: Supportive, Uplifting, and Active JL: What excited you about taking part in 360º of America: Force Majeure, which is being presented as part of the Intersections Festival? SS: Well, Gwydion did a great job selling it. I'm also making a pointed choice to try things that scare or intimidate me. And a playwright-specific performance piece? When I haven't performed in, oh, we'll say a long time? That's intimidating. JL: Tell us about your play and what inspired you to write it. SS: I won't spoil what specifically the piece is about, but when I was told the monologue had to be about a "force majeure" I immediately started thinking about things that weren't giant catastrophes, that weren't huge worldshaking events. I started thinking about the tiny, personal inevitabilities that we all face sooner or later. Tiny, but equally unstoppable. JL: Why should audiences come see 360º of America: Force Majeure and participate in the postshow discussion? SS: I'm sure other people will cover the appropriate answer of "it's a universal, timely topic" and "it's something worth talking about." But I'm going to go with: Myself not included, there's a cast of really talented artists and I'm really excited to see where they went with this. Also, I am told, there will be wine. JL: What’s next for you as a playwright? SS: My play SKIN AND THE NOVEMBER SKY (originally commissioned by Theater J) is being workshopped by a company up in NYC for a short production sometime this year. Possibly as early as April. I'm also working with Pinky Swear Productions on marketing for their three-show rep in April, which includes plays by Renee Calarco an Ally Currin--both fantastic local playwrights. And in June I've got a 10-minute play (THE MAN IN THE POWDER-BLUE SUIT) included in this year's Source Festival, which was just announced this week. I'm a big fan of that little play, so I'm excited to see it getting on its feet JACQUELINE LAWTON: If you only had three words to describe the DC Area Playwrights Group, what would they be? ANU YADAV: Hopeful, engaged and percolating. JL: What excited you about taking part in 360º of America: Force Majeure, which is being presented as part of the Intersections Festival? AY: Gwydion and Paul's excitement excited me! And the synchronicity that I am currently developing a larger play about God. The timing for where my mind is right now was really perfect. JL: Tell us about your play and what inspired you to write it. AY: The play I'm working on is called Meena's Dream, and I'll be performing an excerpt of it. I presented it as a work-in-progress for my thesis at University of Maryland's MFA in Performance program. It's about a young Indian American girl named Meena, who is raised Hindu in the US. Meena feels powerless about the fact her mother, Aisha, is very sick so she uses her dreams and imagination to feel powerful. Along the way she meets Lord Krishna and goes on a hero's journey, to face her deepest fears of her mother's potential death. I was inspired by my own upbringing in Iowa and Kansas, dealing with racism, culture clash, and jumping between segregated worlds of Indian and white. My father passed away when I was about 12, and while the play is not exactly autobiographical, it is about a young girl grappling with the reality of a parent's mortality. I really wanted to write the story of a young and powerful girl, and her relationship to her mother -- a story of strong females fighting for the biggest vision of their own lives in a world that doesn't often hold that out for them. JL: Why should audiences come see 360º of America: Force Majeure and participate in the postshow discussion? AY: Because it will a fun and provocative evening with a host of diverse characters, ideas and perspectives on how we deal with 'acts of God' or things outside of our control. And who wouldn't want to catapult themselves into an exciting conversation about that? JL: What’s next for you as a playwright? AY: To grow more as a writer by continuing to write. I will finish writing Meena's Dream and perform it as a solo actress at Forum Theatre next January as part of their upcoming season. Through that, I'll be collaborating with three incredibly talented and skilled musicians -- Anjna Swaminathan, Rajna Swaminathan and Sam McCormally -- who are composing a live score to the play. Beyond that, I'd like to start writing shorter pieces more frequently to keep developing that muscle. A playwright is an athlete, and I'm looking forward to training! JACQUELINE LAWTON: If you only had three words to describe the DC Area Playwrights Group, what would they be? LAURA ZAM: Community. Fabulous. Support. JL: What excited you about taking part in 360º of America: Force Majeure, which is being presented as part of the Intersections Festival? LZ: I loved the idea of creating an evening of theater with 7 other playwrights. I rarely get to do something so collaborative in a writerly sort of way. When I was in grad school (Brown), we did something a bit similar called Once Upon a Weekend (the brainchild of Paula Vogel). On a Wednesday we'd get a handful of elements that had to be included in a play; then, we had to write that play in 48 hours. On Friday, we presented these pieces as an evening of theater; it was a blast! 360º of America felt a bit like that, only thankfully we had more time! JL: Tell us about your play and what inspired you to write it. LZ: My play is called INTRODUCING DEBBIE DEMOCRAT. It's a monologue in which a woman goes on Youtube in order to talk passionately about why we need gun control--in the wake of the Newtown shootings. However, during her rant, she finds out that her political position is not as clear-cut as it seems. The inspiration for his play is this moment in time, when the country is so split on the issue of guns. I wanted to explore this polarization. JL: Why should audiences come see 360º of America: Force Majeure and participate in the postshow discussion? For the past year or so (since the inaugural Locally Grown Festival at Theater J), there has been a buzz around DC playwrights: Who are we? What are we writing? Where we're going, individually and collectively? I'm hoping that audiences are still interested in checking us out and being a part of the pieces we create because their comments allow us to grow these works. They are an integral part of our success! I also invite the public to provide feedback about how our plays reflect their lives as Washingtonians. I think audiences should attend our event because we are writing these plays specifically for them. JL: What’s next for you as a playwright? LZ: I got a piece of good news concerning my play MARRIED SEX, but I can't reveal it yet. I'm waiting to see where that goes regarding my intent to bring MARRIED SEX to New York for an Off-Broadway run. I'm also working on two other projects: (1) a memoir, based on MARRIED SEX; and (2) a kind of web series, featuring Ken Johnson, a flawed motivational speaker who is my alter-ego. In closing, I'd like to publicly thank the fabulous Jacqueline Lawton for writing about these DC-Area Playwrights and this evening of theater. Jackie, you yourself are a beautiful force of nature--a Force Majeure. The DC-Area Playwrights Group was established with the sole mission of creating a platform on which playwrights can connect with and support one another artistically and professionally. The group was established on behalf of playwrights with all levels of experience living in the DC metropolitan area, which we have considered in the broadest possible terms. Anyone who has self-identified as meeting those criteria is welcome to join the group. Currently, the group is being co-moderated by Brett Abelman, Renee Calarco, Danielle Mohlman, and Gwydion Suilebhan, who are working collaboratively to keep the platform living and working for everyone. Imagine: Art that encourages compassionate listening and provocative questioning. The best professional, emerging, community and student artists from DC and beyond. Theaters filled with diverse, dynamic audiences. Conversations over a glass of wine in the café with a someone new who has just had the same experience as you. Chances to perform, discuss, party! All this and more awaits you at the INTERSECTIONS Festival at the Atlas from February 22 - March 10, 2013. Now in its fourth year, this unique all-arts festival brings together more than 100 performing groups over twelve days to offer music, theatre, dance, film and spoken word that captures a kaleidoscope of perspectives on our ever-evolving community and world. All five of our performances spaces will be alive with world premieres and innovative collaborations among artists of all ages, races, cultures and art forms. From Family Saturdays featuring performances and events for children to late-night parties and jazz jam sessions, INTERSECTIONS seeks to connect the broadest possible audience with the most exciting new ways of making community-inspiring art. We invite you to join us -- to be delighted, energized and maybe just a little transformed. --Mary Hall Surface, Festival Artistic Director
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My BlogI'm a playwright, dramaturg, and teaching artist. It is here where you'll find my queries and musings on life, theater and the world. My posts advocate for diversity, inclusion, and equity in the American Theatre and updates on my own work. Please enjoy!
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