Young Playwrights Festival

Breaking News: 2014-2015 Young Playwrights Festival Showcase winners!

It is Milwaukee Chamber Theatre's great pleasure to announce the winners of the YPF Showcase competition.  Of the Top Ten Distinguished Plays of 2013 and 2014, three have been chosen for full production by MCT in March 2015.  They are as follows:

3 by Hasani Kidd, Rufus King International School (Mentor teacher: Anna Figlesthaler)

AS WE WAIT by Sydney Schlager, Pius XI High School (Mentor teacher: Peter Reeves)

STORAGE SPACE by Nalee Praseutsack, Rufus King International School (Mentor teacher: Anna Figlesthaler)

Three additional plays have been selected for commendation by readers.  Honorable Mentions are as follows:

THE DANGER WITH STRANGERS by Ariana Santiago, Ronald Wilson Reagan College Preparatory High School (Mentor teacher: Carrie Baker)

HIGH SCHOOL BLUES, INDIGOS AND VIOLETS by Anjelica Sylvas-Jones, Ronald Wilson Reagan College Preparatory High School (Mentor teacher: Carrie Baker)

WE WILL NOT GO by Hemi Wong, Rufus King International School (Mentor teacher: Anna Figlesthaler)

Congratulations to all competitors for sharing their creativity and voices!  Watch for news to come about the Showcase and our production process.

TOP TEN DISTINGUISHED PLAYS OF 2014

Milwaukee Chamber Theatre is proud to announce the winners of the annual Young Playwrights Festival Playwriting Competition.  Students from six area high schools entered the competition this year.  The following one-acts have been selected as the Top Ten Distinguished Plays of 2014 and will now enter into competition with last year's winners as finalists for MCT's biennial Young Playwrights Festival Showcase.  Three will be chosen to be fully produced by MCT in March 2015.  Final winners and honorable mentions will be announced August 1, 2014.  Congratulations!

ANOTHER EMPTY PICTURE FRAME by Conlan Ledwith (eAchieve Academy)

AS WE WAIT by Sydney Schlager, Pius XI High School (Mentor teacher: Peter Reeves)

BROTHER, LIVE FOR ME by Guillermo Soto Andrade, Messmer High School (Mentor teacher: Gail Burkel)

CELINE DION: LIVE AT THE MGM GRAND by Mariah McGavin, Pius XI High School (Mentor teacher: Kevin Schwartz)

FREE DINNER by Natalie Johnson, Rufus King International School (Mentor teacher: Anna Figlesthaler)

HIGH SCHOOL BLUES, INDIGOS AND VIOLETS by Anjelica Sylvas-Jones, Ronald Wilson Reagan College Preparatory High School (Mentor teacher: Carrie Baker)

THE LAST GOODBYE by Dominique Vang, Rufus King International School (Mentor teacher: Anna Figlesthaler)

WE WILL NOT GO by Hemi Wong, Rufus King International School (Mentor teacher: Anna Figlesthaler)

WHY ME??? by Kyler Campbell, Messmer High School (Mentor teacher: Gail Burkel)

WINTER BREAK LOVE by Titilope Osisanlu, Ronald Wilson Reagan College Preparatory High School (Mentor teacher: Carrie Baker)

 

TOP TEN DISTINGUISHED PLAYS OF 2013

3 by Hasani Kidd, Rufus King International School (Mentor teacher: Anna Figlesthaler)

BLAME IT ON THE DREAMERS by Liliana Franco, Pulaski High School (Mentor teacher: Christine Lemon)

THE DANGER WITH STRANGERS by Ariana Santiago, Ronald Wilson Reagan College Preparatory High School (Mentor teacher: Carrie Baker)

FAMILIA POR VIDA by Stephanie Flores-Ochoa, Messmer High School (Mentor teacher: Gail Burkel)

GETTING BY by Annie Beamish-Crouthamel, Rufus King International School (Mentor teacher: Anna Figlesthaler)

LESSONS FROM THE WICKED by Edhela Louisa Enriquez, Ronald Wilson Reagan College Preparatory High School (Mentor teacher: Carrie Baker)

LIFE LESSONS by Tori Carter-Story, Messmer High School (Mentor teacher: Gail Burkel)

THE RIDGEMONT by Anna Balistreri, Ronald Wilson Reagan College Preparatory High School (Mentor teacher: Carrie Baker)

SMOKE AND MIRRORS by Amber Bush, Rufus King International School (Mentor teacher: Anna Figlesthaler)

STORAGE SPACE by Nalee Praseutsack, Rufus King International School (Mentor teacher: Anna Figlesthaler)

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS!

NEEDED: ORIGINAL ONE-ACT PLAYS WRITTEN BY WISCONSIN HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS

DEADLINE: JUNE 1, 2015

Young Wisconsin writers!  Submit your new one-act play to MCT's Young Playwrights Festival Playwriting Competition!  We are accepting entries for the 2015 Competition at this time.

See submission guidelines and entry cover sheets for details, available for download below.

Submission Guidelines

Entry Cover Sheet

Every year, MCT accepts original one-act play scripts for consideration for our biennial YPF Showcase featuring up-and-coming regional directors, designers, and actors.  In June 2015, ten plays will be selected as finalists.  The Top Ten Plays of 2015 will then join the Top Ten Plays selected in 2016 for a final competition!

Of the twenty finalists, three playwrights will win a cash prize and the opportunity to participate in the production process as their plays are brought to life onstage in the 2016-2017 MCT Young Playwrights Festival Showcase.  Three additional playwrights will receive Honorable Mentions and a cash prize.

Contact Marcella Kearns, Lead Educator/Literary Manager at MCT, for further information: 414.276.8842 email Marcella

 

2012-2013 Winning One-Act Plays:

MCT presents a showcase of three one-act plays written by the winners of our high school playwriting competition. ( All 3 of the one-acts listed below will be presented at each performance.)

STITCHES

by Matthew Lewis, Reagan High School
A rebellious granddaughter spends the summer working in her grandma's rural quilt shop and finds a way to grow up.
Directed by Jordan Hunt
Featuring Mary Atwood, Joan End, Jim Huston, Samantha Martinson & Emily Vitrano

A SISTER'S BOND

by Ariel Ludlum, Rufus King High School
Challenged by abusive conditions at home, a teenager seeks help from both the police force and social services to save her little sister.
Directed by Marti Gobel
Featuring Ryan Crice, Jennifer A. Grundy, Ashley Jordan, Taylor Lhamon & Kat Wodtke

JUST ANOTHER DAY IN DENTURES

by H'Vyn Jones, Messmer High School
A disgruntled teen, forced to visit her hilariously eccentric grandfather, learns more than she ever imagined.
Directed by Catie O'Donnell
Featuring Caroline Fossum, Anna Miller, David J. Moon, Cheryl Roloff & Jenna K. Vik

2012-2013 Honorable Mentions:
THE CURE FOR POWER
by Devon Kidd, Rufus King High School

THE STRANGE INVENTION OF JAMES MEROTTI
by Terah Yoeckel, Reagan High School

BIRDS OF PARADISE
by Maya George, Rufus King High School

What is the Young Playwrights Festival?

The Young Playwrights Festival is Milwaukee Chamber Theatre's signature education program. This annual writing competition is designed to encourage high school students to explore themes and relationships from a uniquely adolescent perspective through the writing of a one-act play.  Ten pieces are designated Distinguished Plays every year.  The Distinguished Plays from two years running then enter into final competition for a slot in the YPF Showcase, a biennial event which features fully produced performances of three winning one-act plays in the Broadway Theatre Center's Studio Theatre.  College level designers and emerging professional directors are engaged to bring the scripts to life on stage with age-appropriate actors.

Who can enter?

Playwrights must be high school students during the academic school year that their one-act plays are submitted to the Festival. Submissions are taken until June 1, and winners are notified by July 1 of every program year.

Who benefits?

This program serves hundreds each season. Teachers may elect to participate in our YPF Playwriting Residency, which features four FREE playwriting workshops for their students and a packet of additional activities and handouts to supplement artist visits. High school students not only receive in-class instruction but one-on-one mentoring as they draft and revise their play.  College students receive the opportunity to fulfill one of the design or technical positions required for our biennial showcase of YPF plays.  Non-professional actors of ALL ages are encouraged to audition for one of the three winning plays, which are directed by emerging Milwaukee directors.

How to apply?

For more information about auditioning for roles, click here.

For more information about design and production postions, click here.

Thanks to our generous 2012-2013 co-sponsors:

The Potawatomi Bingo Casino Miracle on Canal Street Program is the primary grant/sponsor of this project.

Charles D. Jacobus Family Foundation

This project is supported in part by a grant from the Milwaukee Arts Board and the Wisconsin Arts Board with funds from the State of Wisconsin.