Playwrights Theatre is pleased to announce the winners of the 26th Annual New Jersey Young Playwrights Contest. From the nearly 370 plays submitted by young writers throughout the state, a panel of theatre professionals has selected four High School plays, four Junior High School plays and four Elementary Schools plays. The 26th Annual New Jersey Young Playwrights Contest Festival will be held on May 18 and May 19 as part of a partnership between Playwrights Theatre and Premiere Stages at Kean University.
The plays will be presented at the University Center's Little Theatre at Kean University on Monday, May 18 at 10am for the Elementary and Junior High Division winners and on Tuesday, May 19 at 10 am for the High School Division winners' plays. The readings will feature professional actors and directors and reservations can be made by calling Jim DeVivo at 973-514-1787 X14. Admission to the readings is free, but reservations are required, as seating is limited.
"The plays for this year grapple with the current economic troubles and some of the more customary social struggles within our culture," says Jim DeVivo, Director of Education. "Seeing the world through the eyes of these playwrights has the potential to transform our own perspectives and to continue the discussion of such topics in a new and unique way."
In the High School Division (grades 10-12), the winners are Samantha Berstler, an 11th grade student from Villa Walsh Academy in Morristown for her play "Requiem". Ms. Berstler's play "The Mountain of Friendship" was part of the 2003 Madison Young Playwrights Festival and in 2004; her play "Byzantium Meets Twenty-first Century Actors" was a winner in the Elementary Division of the New Jersey Young Playwrights Contest. Tyler McGuckin, an 11th grade student from Bergen County Academies in Hackensack for his play "Suitcase"; Jennifer Woods, an 11th grade student from Bergen County Academies in Hackensack for her play "'Till Death Do Us Part" and Ben Muzi, a 12th grade student from Lawrence HS in Lawrenceville for his play "About to Pop!" Mr. Muzi won last year for his play "Impression:
The aforementioned winners will receive a New Jersey Governor's Award in Arts Education, which is co-sponsored by New Jersey Arts Education Partnership and the New Jersey Department of Education, at the Governor's Awards Ceremony on May 21 at 5:00pm at the State Museum auditorium in Trenton. The Governor's Award is the highest honor in arts education in New Jersey.
"We are proud of all of these youngsters and encouraged by their creativity,"
The four winners of the Junior High School Division (grades 7-9) are Caroline Gelinne, a 9th grade student from Mount Saint Mary Academy in Watchung for her play "Beyond the Paint"; Melina Murray, a 9th grade student from Glen Ridge High School in Glen Ridge for her play "What We Remember"; Fallon Schlossman, Rebecca Van Voorhees, and Lydia Gracey, 8th grade students at Millburn Middle School for their play "The Art of Interrogation"
The Elementary School Division winners (grades 4-6) are Cristina Lopez, a 4th grade student at Lafayette Elementary School in Chatham for her play "The Blacksmith's Daughter"; Salonee Shah and Lindsay Wang, 5th grade students at Wildwood Elementary School in Mountain Lakes for their play "Filched"; Owen Mairo, a 4th grade student at Brookside Place School in Cranford for his play "Billifride"
For more information about Playwrights Theatre's Main Stage Season, FORUM, Creative Arts Academy, Summer Camp for Kids and Teens or Playwrights Theatre's New Jersey Writers Project, please visit http://www.ptnj.org or call (937) 514-1787.
