Feb 11 “Musical Theatre Night”
PlayGround-LA continues its 7th season of the celebrated Monday Night PlayGround staged reading series on Monday, February 11, 8 PM at its new home, the Broadwater Mainstage (home of Sacred Fools Theatre Company). The topic for the February “Musical Theatre Night”, announced this morning, is “TWIST OF FATE”.
“Next phase, new wave, dance craze, anyways
It’s still rock and roll to me.” – Billy Joel
Members of the 2018-19 PlayGround-LA Writers Pool have just four-and-a-half days to generate their original ten-minute musicals (each play will include a sung riff from a popular ‘80s rock song) inspired by the topic. The top six scripts will each receive an hour-and-a-half rehearsal and a professional script-in-hand staged reading at the Broadwater Mainstage on February 11. PlayGround writers in the Bay Area are working simultaneously on the same prompt and their finalists will be presented at Berkeley Rep on February 18. Tickets are $15-$30. For tickets or more information, visit http://playground-la.org/monday.
The playwrights of the 2018-19 PlayGround-LA Writers Pool are: Augusto Amador, Amanda Andrei, Marni Ayers, Diana Burbano, Kathleen Cecchin+, Allie Costa+, Jeffrey Fischer Smith, Siobhan Gilbert, Forrest Hartl+, Elayne Heilveil, Dan Hirsch, Howard Ho, Susan Hunter, Daniel Hurewitz, Uma Incrocci, Julianne Jigour+, Starina Johnson, Mark V Jones, Jonathan Josephson+, Chris Karmiol, Arthur Keng+, Mildred Lewis, Roger Mason, David Meyers, Scott Mullen, Nicholas Pappas+, Melissa Ritz, Brittny Roberts, Jessica June Rowe+, Richard Ruyle, Joe Samaniego, Mercedes Segesvary+, Mark Sherstinsky+, Nicki Spencer+, Jonathan Wickremasinghe-Kuhn, and Desiree York (+ Best of PlayGround Alumni).
Recent topics have included: “Adapt a Fairy Tale,” “Holiday Miracle,” “Justice,” “Artificial Intelligence,” and “Probable Future or Possible Future” as part of a now-five-year collaboration with Planet Earth Arts and Stanford University. The top six plays from each month are rehearsed for just one-and-a-half hours each and presented as script-in-hand staged readings at Monday Night PlayGround, now celebrating its seventh year in Los Angeles and twenty-fifth in the Bay Area. Audience members can also experience the thrill of being a producer through the monthly People’s Choice Awards, helping to determine which plays and playwrights go on for consideration in PlayGround’s annual showcase, the Best of PlayGround Gala.
PlayGround-LA is the first regional expansion of the celebrated Bay Area playwright incubator and theatre community hub, PlayGround(SF). PlayGround was launched in San Francisco in 1994 by co-founders Jim Kleinmann, Brighde Mullins and Denise Shama. In 1996, Kleinmann became PlayGround’s first Artistic Director. Since its founding, PlayGround has developed and staged over 850 original ten-minute plays by 250 Bay Area and Los Angeles early-career writers and has commissioned/developed more than 75 full-length plays. In the process of staging those works, PlayGround has helped to identify some of California’s leading emerging writers and, at the same time, has engendered the creation of a true community of theatre artists, bringing together hundreds of local actors, directors and playwrights. Beginning with its 7th season (2018-19), PlayGround-LA has relocated its public programs to the Broadwater Mainstage, home of Sacred Fools Theatre Company. For more information, visit http://playground-la.org.