 On Tuesday June 4th at 7:00pm, Round House Theatre presents Faraway and Close to Home as part of the Heyday Players performance series. Enjoy six short plays by esteemed local playwrights Kathleen Akerley, Bari Biern, Jacqueline E. Lawton and Stephen Spotswood. Performances are free and open to the public. They will take place at Round House Theatre Silver Spring, located a 8641 Colesville Road, Silver Spring. Click here for directions. The Heyday Players performance troupe is composed entirely of older adults who participate in the direction, rehearsal, and staged-reading performance of theatrical work at a variety of seniors groups and community centers in Montgomery County and the metro DC area. Every year, professional playwrights write plays for the Heyday Players based on a theme. This year join us for an evening of theatre dedicated to celebrating the great outdoors– campfire stories that draw you in and warm your heart. Conversation with playwright Katheleen Akerley How did you become a playwright? I was working in the lab late one night . . . and was bitten by a radioactive Harold Pinter. What is it about this medium that appeals to you? The fact that ideas will be expressed in action: the sagittal attack on the transverse line. What made you choose to work in the DC area? What do you like about working here? Inertia as to your first question; as to what I like about working here, I'd say the fact that so many DC theater-goers want to have conversations about the work after the show. It's like the play gets re-expressed in another medium. What is your Heyday Players play about? I have two: one about The Goatman and one about Hook-Hand. Why should folks come out and see the Heyday Playwrights performances? The enthusiasm of the actors. What are you working on next? Where can we follow your work? I'm working on an open-ended road trip that will start on the first of July. I don't know where and when it will end. Conversation with playwright Bari Biern How did you become a playwright? I've been writing poems and lyrics since I could hold a pencil, but I didn't start writing plays until high school. What is it about this medium that appeals to you? I think this medium appeals to me because my parents gave me such a thorough and invaluable introduction to the theatre from a very early age. They took me to countless plays and musicals. They bought me original Broadway cast albums for every birthday, and complete Gilbert & Sullivan operetta recordings every Hanukkah. Who could ask for anything more? What made you choose to work in the DC area? What do you like about working here? I came to DC because a fulltime acting job in Boston fell through, leaving me scrambling like a poodle on the linoleum. I came here to visit some friends, decided I liked it and moved here a month later. The best thing about working here is the strong, vibrant and supportive theatre community. It's like a great big wonderful dysfunctional family! Also, opportunities abound. I've so enjoyed my collaborations with different theatre companies, each bringing a unique vision to the DC theatre scene. I've even had the opportunity to work with the Washington Ballet (to die for). What is your Heyday Players play about? My play, The Old and the Zestless (title suggested by the HD Players!) is about an aging soap opera actress who, upon being released--unexpectedly--from her contract, seeks refuge in a secluded cabin in the woods. She may "vant to be alone," but that's just not in the cards. Why should folks come out and see the Heyday Players performances? The Heydays are always a treat to watch. They bring their own personalities to the characters they play. They have a lot of fun when they perform--and that means the audience has a lot of fun, too. What are you working on next? Where can we follow your work? My next production is Gianni Schicchi, half of a pocket opera double bill presented by the In Series at GALA Theatre, starting June 15th. (www.inseries.org) I'm also completing an English libretto for Mozart's Abduction from the Seraglio, commissioned by the In Series and set to premiere this September at the Source Theatre. I'm turning the story on its ear and setting it in the old west. It's gonna be a hoot. (www.baribiern.com) Conversation with playwright Jacqueline E. Lawton How did you become a playwright? I've considered myself a writer since I was about eight years old, when I started writing plays, poems and short stories to entertain my sister and to escape a sense of loneliness. I’ve been writing professionally since 2003 when I received my MFA in Playwriting from the University of Texas at Austin. What is it about this medium that appeals to you? I love the magic of theatre. I love that it's live. I love that it's ephemeral. I love the suspension of disbelief that captivates our imagination. What made you choose to work in the DC area? What do you like about working here? I moved to D.C. to learn how to be a Dramaturg at Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company. From there, I got a job working at the Folger Shakespeare Library and the next year, I went to work at Arena Stage. What I like about working in D.C. is that the entire theatre community feels like one big company of artists and administrators. There is a palpable hunger and passion to create and it's exciting when artists collaborate across theater companies. What is your Heyday Players play about? My play is called, Cadette Troop 227. It's about the 50th reunion of a Girl Scout Troupe. I imagined what might happen if some of my closest girlfriends: Shirley Serotsky (Associate Artistic Director, Theater J), Helen Pafumi (Artistic Director, The Hub Theatre), Erin Nugent (Costume Designer) and Jojo Ruf (General Manager, National New Play Network) and I had all been in the Girl Scouts together. It's such great fun. Why should folks come out and see the Heyday Playwrights performances? They Heyday Players are so passionate and talented! I love writing for them and love seeing perform. What are you working on next? Where can we follow your work? The world premiere production of my play, THE HAMPTON YEARS, just opened to previews at Theater J. Click here to learn more and purchase tickets. I'm also working on a new play, NOMS DE GUERRE as part of Playwrights Arena. It’s a coming-of-age socio-political drama that follows the evolution of a friendship between two women. It also addresses the war on women, the challenges of PTSD and the ever-changing role of women in society. Conversation with playwright Stephen Spotswood How did you become a playwright? I started off writing poetry and short stories. At the same time, I was also very involved in theatre in high school and college. It took several years for those two passions to combine themselves into playwriting. What is it about this medium that appeals to you? What I love most about the form is that it's writing and it's art, but it's not art that lives on a page. It's art that gets transformed by other artists (and I enjoy working w/ other artists very much) into a four-dimensional work. What made you choose to work in the DC area? What do you like about working here? I followed my girlfriend (now wife) here about ten years ago, but I'm not looking ot leave anytime soon. Or ever. DC not only has a very vibrant theatre scene, but it has a community with room to grow. There are lots of opportunities to partner with other independent artists to create new work. What is your Heyday Players play about? I have two in this year's collection. The first, THE GREAT OUTDOORS, is about a group of friends who have gone camping every year for half a century, and how they react when age threatens to curtail their annual tradition. The second, OLD MONSTERS, NEW TRICKS, deals with a group of senior citizens who run a haunted forest Halloween attraction and how they handle it when teenagers no longer find it scary. Why should folks come out and see the Heyday Playwrights performances? In theatre, we talk about underserved populations a lot. When we do, it's usually in terms of socioeconomics and regionality. But senior citizens might be the most widespread underserved population when it comes to art. Not only are their stories rarely seen on stage, but they don't get nearly as many artistic outlets. And, because of lack of mobility and fixed incomes, they don't get to see as much art. The Heyday Players tackles all of these disparities--its theatre written for this age group, being performed by them, and being taken to places where people their age have access to it. Not only should people support these performers and their work, but they should expose themselves to that work of their own benefit--it's stories you don't necessarily get elsewhere. What are you working on next? Where can we follow your work? I have a short play, THE MAN IN THE POWDER-BLUE SUIT, being performed as part of this year's Source Festival, which runs through June. This fall, I have two premiere productions--IN THE FOREST, SHE GREW FANGS (produced by Washington Rogues at Flashpoint in the Chinatown area of D.C.) and SKIN AND THE NOVEMBER SKY (produced by The Theatre Project at Player's Theatre in NYC)  One of the largest and most acclaimed professional theatre companies in the Washington, DC metro area, Round House Theatre is led by Producing Artistic Director Ryan Rilette, who joined the company in August 2012. Based in Montgomery County, Maryland, Round House Theatre produces nearly 200 theatrical performances each season at its 400-seat Bethesda theatre and 150-seat black box theatre in downtown Silver Spring. In addition, the company operates an education center in Silver Spring and annually reaches thousands of patrons there and across the region with strong education and outreach programs.
Round House Theatre is a member of LORT (League of Resident Theatres), TCG (Theatre Communications Group), and LOWT (League of Washington Theatres). The theatre is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization with major support from Montgomery County, the Maryland State Arts Council (an agency funded by the State of Maryland and the National Endowment for the Arts), and the Arts and Humanities Council of Montgomery County.
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I'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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