Memphis’ Professional Resident Theatre company is pleased to announce the NewWorks@TheWorks Playwriting Competition Finalists.
Playhouse on the Square, in partnership with Donna Sue and Wayne Shannon, Sue and Frank Guarino, and Home Advisor are proud to announce the staged readings for this year’s competition finalists.
The NewWorks@TheWorks Playwriting Competition provides an outlet for new playwrights to showcase their work and have a chance to see their play produced on a professional level. A panel of local directors, actors, and designers will review all submitted scripts and select six to receive staged readings. After the six readings have been presented, Playhouse on the Square will select two that will receive full productions. The playwright(s) of each play will be flown to Memphis to take part in the rehearsals and the development of the new work. Along with these fully mounted productions, the two winning works will each be awarded a prize of $750. They will receive world premieres in the upcoming season at Playhouse on the Square’s third performance space, TheatreWorks.
The 2018 finalists are as follows:
Signature Photo by Michael Bucklin
November 25th, 7:00 pm
Syria, 2014. Held in an ISIS jail cell, American photojournalist JOAN HARPER recounts her twenty-year career to her cellmate, a Canadian AID WORKER. Tracing her turbulent history, Joan reveals how her quest to take one truly iconic photograph devastated her career and her life.
More by Deborah Rennard
November 26th, 7:00 pm
Ten years have elapsed since Mila has communicated with her father, When she learns he is in a coma, Mila rushes to his bedside to find her sister is ready to “pull the plug.” There ensues a battle of wills and we soon discover nothing is what it appears to be.
The Greater Good by Diane Sampson
November 27th, 7:00 pm
Conflicting needs collide in the family of a passionate social justice advocate. The Greater Good explores the questions of what we owe and to whom. Must we choose where our primary loyalties lie and what price might we pay for doing so?
St. Paulie’s Delight by J. Joseph Cox
December 2nd, 7:00 pm
When Paul learns his estranged aunt has passed away, he holds a wake for her that doubles as a testing ground for his exquisite big, gay wedding. A day-of shift in plans leaves Paul’s life in shambles, forcing him to confront burying his definition of family along with his mysterious aunt.
Shearwater by Victor Wishna
December 3rd, 7:00 pm
Ben, ailing journalist and novelist, has lucked into the gig of a lifetime: ghostwriting a memoir for Esther Lindman, the colorful and infamously outspoken widow of one of the 20th Century’s greatest American artists. But when the stories don’t add up, and new pressures mount at home, Ben just digs deeper, soon discovering that truth—like art—is in the eye of the beholder.
When We Get Good Again by James McLindon
December 4th 7:00 pm
“When brilliant, idealistic, but poor college student Tracy is tempted by a lucrative job selling term papers to her classmates to pay her tuition, she begins to wonder: Is it ever okay to put being good on hold?”
All readings will be presented at
The Circuit Playhouse
51 South Cooper Street
Memphis, TN 38104.
Tickets are $10 for each reading or purchase all six for $50 at the door.
For more information, please contact our Box Office at (901) 726-4656 or visit our website: www.playhouseonthesquare.org.
