The new year will start with a flurry of activities.
Our first meetings will be held on January 23 and February 13th at Common Grounds Coffee House in Lexington, KY. As usual the meeting will be held from 2-5 pm for the purpose of reading the full-length or one act plays of members. Additionally, anyone who wishes to may bring a 10-minute or shorter work and those will be read as time allows.
Meetings and memebership is open to anyone who is a resident of Kentucky and wishes to belong. The only requirement for membership is a desire to encourage the development of new works for the stage; dues are $10 per year (Sep- Aug). Member playwrights are given opportunities to have their full-length and one act plays read aloud and such other benefits of membership as may develop as the organization grows.
The first public reading of new works by member playwrights will be held on February 2 and 3, 2011, from 6:30-8:45 pm, at the Lexington Public Library (main branch) Theatre. The reading is FREE and open to the public.
Showing posts with label Lexington Public Library. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Lexington Public Library. Show all posts
Thursday, December 23, 2010
Monday, November 29, 2010
Meeting Schedule for the first Quarter of 2011
There will be no meeting in December 2010.
Instead our first meeting of the new year will be Sunday January 23, 2011 at Common Grounds Coffee House in Lexington. The second meeting will be Sunday February 13th, also at Common Grounds. For March it would be good to get out of Lexington and hold a meeting elsewhere; city and location to be determined.
The January meeting will involve readings of members' plays in progress. If you have either a one act or full-length play that is ready (or will be ready) for reading please send a note to ky.playwright@yahoo.com so that your play reading can be scheduled. If you have a 10-minute or shorter play that you would like to have read, simply bring it to a meeting and it will be read as time allows.
In either February or March of 2011 we will schedule a public (music stand) reading of members' works at the Lexington Public Library Theatre. Watch the blog for more details.
Instead our first meeting of the new year will be Sunday January 23, 2011 at Common Grounds Coffee House in Lexington. The second meeting will be Sunday February 13th, also at Common Grounds. For March it would be good to get out of Lexington and hold a meeting elsewhere; city and location to be determined.
The January meeting will involve readings of members' plays in progress. If you have either a one act or full-length play that is ready (or will be ready) for reading please send a note to ky.playwright@yahoo.com so that your play reading can be scheduled. If you have a 10-minute or shorter play that you would like to have read, simply bring it to a meeting and it will be read as time allows.
In either February or March of 2011 we will schedule a public (music stand) reading of members' works at the Lexington Public Library Theatre. Watch the blog for more details.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Next Meeting: Sunday at 2:00 pm.
The next meeting of 517 Playwrights will be Sunday October 18th at 2:00 pm, second floor, at the downtown branch of the Lexington Public Library. This will be our regular meeting and though we be distracted into discussions about the recent success of the plays produced in Midway the focus will be on what playwrights bring to read. We will go back to our traditional meeting structure: reading and discussing the plays that members are working on.
Whether you are a playwright or not, if you have an interest in new works for the stage please join us this Sunday. Playwright, actor, director or simply someone who enjoys the theatre please come and participate. The meeting will end not later than 5:00 pm.
Whether you are a playwright or not, if you have an interest in new works for the stage please join us this Sunday. Playwright, actor, director or simply someone who enjoys the theatre please come and participate. The meeting will end not later than 5:00 pm.
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Next Regular Meeting to be October 18, 2009
The next regular meeting of 517 Playwrights will be held on Sunday October 18, 2009 at the main (downtown) branch of the Lexington Public Library from 2:00 pm to 5:00 pm on the second floor. Please join us.
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Sunday September 13th
Friday the 13th is supposed to be bad luck. No such superstition is attached to a Sunday the 13th so there is nothing to keep you from joining 517 Playwrights this coming Sunday at 2:00 for our regular meeting at the Beaumont branch of the Lexington Public Library.
We will be meeting in the small conference room there at the library for the purpose of doing a table reading of Bill McCann Jr.'s newest script, It's Who You Know: A Play about Identity and Opportunity.
Set 30 years in the future It's Who You Know is about a president of the United States and how he goes about the process of selecting a nominee for the Supreme Court. The President and his two aides (Bernard and Mac) are faced with selecting a nominee from a field that has been winowed, by Bernard, to four. The four candidates include two law school professors (one African American and one white), a federal appeals court judge (a white female) and a former two term MA attorney general who has only recently undergone gender reassignment surgery (and is now a transman).
Reading the script is an opportunity for the playwright to hear how his words sound aloud. After the reading the floor will be opened for comments and discussion about the script. Generally, the playwright doesn't respond much to the comments the purpose of which are to give him feedback that may (or may not) be reflected in changes to the script.
Up to this point the organization has done only table readings of members' scripts. At some point in the future, we will no doubt do public readings for an invited audience. And there is also some possibility that we may-- under the auspices of the Kentucky Playwrights' Workshop, Inc.-- produce some scripts either as script-in-hand readings, workshop productions, or even full-scale productions of members' scripts. But all of that is in the future.
For now we are focused on doing table readings. Please join us for our meeting this Sunday and a reading of It's Who You Know: A Play about Identity and Opportunity. The reading will be at the Beaumont Branch of the Lexington Public Library beginning at 2:00 pm. Please join us.
We will be meeting in the small conference room there at the library for the purpose of doing a table reading of Bill McCann Jr.'s newest script, It's Who You Know: A Play about Identity and Opportunity.
Set 30 years in the future It's Who You Know is about a president of the United States and how he goes about the process of selecting a nominee for the Supreme Court. The President and his two aides (Bernard and Mac) are faced with selecting a nominee from a field that has been winowed, by Bernard, to four. The four candidates include two law school professors (one African American and one white), a federal appeals court judge (a white female) and a former two term MA attorney general who has only recently undergone gender reassignment surgery (and is now a transman).
Reading the script is an opportunity for the playwright to hear how his words sound aloud. After the reading the floor will be opened for comments and discussion about the script. Generally, the playwright doesn't respond much to the comments the purpose of which are to give him feedback that may (or may not) be reflected in changes to the script.
Up to this point the organization has done only table readings of members' scripts. At some point in the future, we will no doubt do public readings for an invited audience. And there is also some possibility that we may-- under the auspices of the Kentucky Playwrights' Workshop, Inc.-- produce some scripts either as script-in-hand readings, workshop productions, or even full-scale productions of members' scripts. But all of that is in the future.
For now we are focused on doing table readings. Please join us for our meeting this Sunday and a reading of It's Who You Know: A Play about Identity and Opportunity. The reading will be at the Beaumont Branch of the Lexington Public Library beginning at 2:00 pm. Please join us.
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Next Meeting: Sunday September 13, 2009
The next meeting of 517 Playwrights will be Sunday September 13, 2009 at the Beaumont Branch of the Lexington Public Library. The meeting will run from 2:00 to 5:00 pm solely for the purpose of reading and discussing new works by our playwright members.
The play to be read and discussed will be Bill McCann, Jr.'s full-length play It's Who You Know: A Play about Identity and Opportunity. The play, set 30 years in the future, is about the selection of a nominee to serve on the Supreme Court of the United States. With two unit sets, ten scenes that all take place in the White House, seven characters (President, Mac and Bernard aides to the president, and four potential nominees for the court), this is a play of ideas and comedy which asks several question including: is the country ready for a trans-gendered female to serve on the highest court in the land?
Bill McCann, Jr., is a cofounder of 517 Playwrights and Treasurer of the Kentucky Playwrights' Workshop, Inc. His play There is No Wrigley Field was a 2007 finalist in the Lakeshore Players' 10-Minute Play Contest. As an actor Mr. McCann is currently in rehearsal for On Golden Pond that is being produced by Little Colonel Players in Pewee Valley, KY; Mr. McCann is playing the role of Charlie Martin.
If you would like to read an excerpt from It's Who You Know prior to September 13 please request it by writing ky.playwright@yahoo,com
Though we need playwright members, you need not be a playwright to attend our meetings. Meetings of 517 Playwrights are open to anyone having an interest in reading and supporting the development of new works for the stage.
The play to be read and discussed will be Bill McCann, Jr.'s full-length play It's Who You Know: A Play about Identity and Opportunity. The play, set 30 years in the future, is about the selection of a nominee to serve on the Supreme Court of the United States. With two unit sets, ten scenes that all take place in the White House, seven characters (President, Mac and Bernard aides to the president, and four potential nominees for the court), this is a play of ideas and comedy which asks several question including: is the country ready for a trans-gendered female to serve on the highest court in the land?
Bill McCann, Jr., is a cofounder of 517 Playwrights and Treasurer of the Kentucky Playwrights' Workshop, Inc. His play There is No Wrigley Field was a 2007 finalist in the Lakeshore Players' 10-Minute Play Contest. As an actor Mr. McCann is currently in rehearsal for On Golden Pond that is being produced by Little Colonel Players in Pewee Valley, KY; Mr. McCann is playing the role of Charlie Martin.
If you would like to read an excerpt from It's Who You Know prior to September 13 please request it by writing ky.playwright@yahoo,com
Though we need playwright members, you need not be a playwright to attend our meetings. Meetings of 517 Playwrights are open to anyone having an interest in reading and supporting the development of new works for the stage.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Audition Notice: A Night of 10-Minute Plays
Auditions for the seven 10-minute plays to be produced by the Kentucky Playwrights Workshop, Inc. will be held on Tuesday August 18 and Wednesday August 19, 2009 from 6:00 - 9:00 pm in CONFERENCE ROOM B, fourth floor, of the Main Branch, Lexington, Public Library. Directors of all seven plays will be present to select actors for their plays. A total of 9W and 8 M are needed. Actors may audition to appear in multiple plays/play multiple parts.
Kentucky Playwrights Workshop, Inc. is producing the seven winners of 517 Playwrights' 10-Minute Play Contest. Production of the plays will be the second weekend of October, 2009 (9, 10, 11) at the Thoroughbred Theatre in Midway, KY:
Crish Barth, Hill Cattle, 2 F (30s - 40s)
Will the man of her dreams show up to carry her away, as she contends?
Len Cuthbert Enigmatic Lucidity 1M 1F (20s to 50s)
Is the woman he loves trying to kill him? Or is he dreaming?
Lawrence DuKore, The Day Brando Died 2M (40s to 50s)
Two tennis players meeting for tennis learn about the common girl friend in their pasts
Leon Kaye More Pasta 1 M (20's) 1 M 1F (50s)
More is at stake than pasta when a family sits down together.
Thomas Pierce, Almost Connect 2 M 2W (20s to 40s)
A couple almost meet over coffee.
Kay Rhoads, Last Church of Lost Souls, 2 F (20s to 40s)
A female inmate and a guard look for the inmate's mother's grave.
Steven Schutzman, The Weight 1 F (16-18) 1 M (20's)
A girl runs away from home and shows up at the apt. of an older musician she admires.
The plays allow for great casting flexibility; nearly all plays can be cast with people of any race, ethnicity or age. So if you have an interest in acting this is a great opportunity to be showcased in new, interesting and challenging new work.
Come audition August 18 or 19 at the main branch, Lexington Public Library, 4th Floor, Conference room B, from 6 to 9 pm. Join in the fun of being in a play, or two, or maybe more! For additional information contact Jim Betts at (859) 321-2852.
Kentucky Playwrights Workshop, Inc. is producing the seven winners of 517 Playwrights' 10-Minute Play Contest. Production of the plays will be the second weekend of October, 2009 (9, 10, 11) at the Thoroughbred Theatre in Midway, KY:
Crish Barth, Hill Cattle, 2 F (30s - 40s)
Will the man of her dreams show up to carry her away, as she contends?
Len Cuthbert Enigmatic Lucidity 1M 1F (20s to 50s)
Is the woman he loves trying to kill him? Or is he dreaming?
Lawrence DuKore, The Day Brando Died 2M (40s to 50s)
Two tennis players meeting for tennis learn about the common girl friend in their pasts
Leon Kaye More Pasta 1 M (20's) 1 M 1F (50s)
More is at stake than pasta when a family sits down together.
Thomas Pierce, Almost Connect 2 M 2W (20s to 40s)
A couple almost meet over coffee.
Kay Rhoads, Last Church of Lost Souls, 2 F (20s to 40s)
A female inmate and a guard look for the inmate's mother's grave.
Steven Schutzman, The Weight 1 F (16-18) 1 M (20's)
A girl runs away from home and shows up at the apt. of an older musician she admires.
The plays allow for great casting flexibility; nearly all plays can be cast with people of any race, ethnicity or age. So if you have an interest in acting this is a great opportunity to be showcased in new, interesting and challenging new work.
Come audition August 18 or 19 at the main branch, Lexington Public Library, 4th Floor, Conference room B, from 6 to 9 pm. Join in the fun of being in a play, or two, or maybe more! For additional information contact Jim Betts at (859) 321-2852.
Saturday, July 11, 2009
July 26, 2009
The next meeting of 517 Playwrights will be Sunday July 26, 2009 at the downtown branch of the Lexington Public Library. We will meet at a table near the window on the second floor. If you are a director interested in directing one of the 10-minute plays please join us. Or if you are an actor interested in biting into some meaty new plays, please come to the meeting. We will be discussing the selected plays, seeking out directors and planning for auditions. If any of this sounds like something you'd like to be involved with join us at 2:00 pm on July 26th.
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Actors, directors and fans of theatre: Join us!
517 Playwrights is open to anyone and everyone. If you are a playwright come and share your work with other playwrights: you'll be given feedback about what works and what doesn't. You'll be given encouragement to keep working and writing. You'll be given suggestions from fellow writers about how to make the play better. And always you'll be hearing the works of others who also are 'struggling' to make their works work.
Sounds like we only want playwrights doesn't it? Not at all, Theatre is a collaborative effort and new plays need to be no less. Right now all of our members and participants are playwrights, but for this organization to really succeed we also need directos and actors, plus theatre goers and technicians, to join in our efforts. People who have a different interest in theatre work each bring a different perspective to new works. So please, whatever your theatrical 'calling,' join us in bringing new works to the stages of our minds in the hope that one day those plays will move from the mind to the stage!
See you Sunday April 5th at the main branch of the Lexington Public Library, near the second floor elevators. We'll gather there then pick out a table and read and discuss the new scripts our members bring to the table. The meeting will begin at 2:00 and end promptly at 5:00 pm (when the library closes). Based on the plays we've read up to this point you will be impressed by the talent of our area playwrights. Join us.
Sounds like we only want playwrights doesn't it? Not at all, Theatre is a collaborative effort and new plays need to be no less. Right now all of our members and participants are playwrights, but for this organization to really succeed we also need directos and actors, plus theatre goers and technicians, to join in our efforts. People who have a different interest in theatre work each bring a different perspective to new works. So please, whatever your theatrical 'calling,' join us in bringing new works to the stages of our minds in the hope that one day those plays will move from the mind to the stage!
See you Sunday April 5th at the main branch of the Lexington Public Library, near the second floor elevators. We'll gather there then pick out a table and read and discuss the new scripts our members bring to the table. The meeting will begin at 2:00 and end promptly at 5:00 pm (when the library closes). Based on the plays we've read up to this point you will be impressed by the talent of our area playwrights. Join us.
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Reminders:
The next meeting of 517 Playwrights will be Sunday March 1, 2009 from 2:00 to 5:00 pm at the Northside Branch of the Lexington Pulic Library. You do not need to be a playwright to attend; you only need to be interested in encouraging new play development. If you are a playwright-- whether you've come to our meetings before or not-- feel free to bring a play you're working on and we'll read it and give you feedback. The goal is to be supportive of others like ourselves who are working hard to develop new works for the theatre.
Speaking of new play development: the play contest is booming. So far we have received well over 50 submissions. We will cut off submissions at 100 for this year's contest. So if you haven't already submitted do so soon. Presently we are receiving scripts at a rate of one or two a day. That rate is rather like a trickle-- but a trickle of water can fill a sink pretty fast. And a trickle of plays can end a contest's submission period long before it is set to officially end. Don't lose out on your chance for your 10 minute play to be considered for this year's contest!
***********
Speaking of new play development: the play contest is booming. So far we have received well over 50 submissions. We will cut off submissions at 100 for this year's contest. So if you haven't already submitted do so soon. Presently we are receiving scripts at a rate of one or two a day. That rate is rather like a trickle-- but a trickle of water can fill a sink pretty fast. And a trickle of plays can end a contest's submission period long before it is set to officially end. Don't lose out on your chance for your 10 minute play to be considered for this year's contest!
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Next New Plays Readings
517 Playwrights will meet at the Northside Branch of the Lexington Public Library on Sunday March 1st, 2009 to read new plays. The meeting will run from 2:00 - 5:00 pm in the small meeting room. The Northside Branch is located on Russell Cave Road about a mile north of New Circle Road. Come join us!
PS. Those who attended the last meeting may recognize that I have had to CHANGE the meeting DATE, but I have not changed either the time or place.
PS. Those who attended the last meeting may recognize that I have had to CHANGE the meeting DATE, but I have not changed either the time or place.
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Don't forget...
Don't forget to bring extra copies of your script with you to today's new scripts reading at 2:00 pm TODAY-- an hour from now! Please keep in mind that it is very hard for five or six people to share a single script. It is not necessary for there to be a script per actor, but bring enough that it is not difficult for the readers to keep their places and for the play to be read at a "normal" pace. See you soon.
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Reminders
It's awfully hard to blog without a computer-- which explains my long silence, since mine has been in the shop for almost two weeks! I got it back today and here I sit...
Last week (January 16th) Steve Taylor's three one acts were premiered; I hope lots of folks got out and supported Steve and the good cause they were being produced to support: LIFE House.
This coming Sunday-- January 25th-- from 2-5 pm we'll have our second meeting to read new plays. Bring your new script, however 'good' it may be and hear it read aloud. Only when playwrights hear their words is it possible to truly get them 'right.' So bring your script. Join the fun, meet fellow playwrights and get some of the 'warm fuzzies' every writer needs and few playwrights seem to find easily.
PS If you didn't make it to the first play reading you can still join us Sunday at the Beaumont brnach of the Lexington Public Library from 2-5pm. See you then!
Last week (January 16th) Steve Taylor's three one acts were premiered; I hope lots of folks got out and supported Steve and the good cause they were being produced to support: LIFE House.
This coming Sunday-- January 25th-- from 2-5 pm we'll have our second meeting to read new plays. Bring your new script, however 'good' it may be and hear it read aloud. Only when playwrights hear their words is it possible to truly get them 'right.' So bring your script. Join the fun, meet fellow playwrights and get some of the 'warm fuzzies' every writer needs and few playwrights seem to find easily.
PS If you didn't make it to the first play reading you can still join us Sunday at the Beaumont brnach of the Lexington Public Library from 2-5pm. See you then!
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
New Plays Reading
Finish up your first draft, or polish up that master work and bring it to the next new plays reading to be held at the Beaumont branch of the Lexington Public library on Sunday January 25th from 2 to 5 pm. Hope to see you there.
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Next New Plays Reading
The next meeting of 517 Playwrights will be held on Sunday January 25, 2009 from 2:00 to 5:00 pm at the Beaumont branch of the Lexington Public Library. Bring a play you've written and join the fun!
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