Page-to-Stage Festival
The Seventh Annual
Page-to-Stage Festival 2008
Sponsored by Washington CityPaper
Saturday–Monday, August 30– September 1 from 2–11 p.m. each day
Venues throughout the Kennedy Center
FREE! No tickets required, limited seating available.
The Kennedy Center hosts its seventh annual Page-to-Stage festival, featuring more than 30 D.C.-area and national theater companies. This three-day event offers free readings and open rehearsals of plays and musicals being developed by local, regional, and national playwrights, librettists, and composers.
Don't miss your chance for a first look at outstanding works for upcoming season premieres!
Limited seating available on a first-come, first-served basis.
General admission seating opens approximately 30 minutes prior to each event.
Programs, artists, and schedules are subject to change without notice.
No free parking for free events.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
PARTICIPATING THEATERS INCLUDE:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
7th Street Playhouse Productions
500 Clown in association with the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center and the University of Maryland Department of Theatre
AccokeekCreek Theatreco.
Actors Theatre of Louisville in association with the Source Theatre Festival
Adventure Theatre
African Continuum Theatre Company and theHegira
Arena Stage in conjunction with Mixed Blood Theatre
Baltimore Playwrights Festival
Bouncing Ball Theatrical Productions
Bowie State University
Catholic University of America (MFA Playwrights)
Catholic University Benjamin T. Rome School of Music
Charter Theatre
Doorway Arts Ensemble
Florida Stage with the Guthrie Theater in partnership with Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company
Forum Theatre
Ganymede Arts
GMU (George Mason University) Players
The Georgetown Theatre Company
Georgetown University Theater and Performance Studies Program
The Inkwell
Journeymen Theater Ensemble
Perseverance Theatre with support from the National Museum of the American Indian
The Playwrights Forum
The Playwright's Group of Baltimore
Prison Foundation
Quotidian Theatre Company
Rorschach Theatre Company
Salt Lake Acting Company in partnership with Theater Alliance
Scena Theatre
Signature Theatre
Synetic Theater
Taffety Punk Theatre Company
Theater J
Venus Theatre
Washington Shakespeare Company
Washington Stage Guild
Women's Work Writers Group
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
PERFORMANCE DESCRIPTIONS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
See the performance schedule further below for the date, time, and location for each event.
Programs, artists, and schedules are subject to change without notice.
7th Street Playhouse Productions
VANDERGIFT!
By Anthony E. Gallo
A historic comedy, Vandergift! follows a steel tycoon through national wars, depressions, and the collapse of the steel industry as he tries to unify industrialism and a workingman's paradise.
500 Clown
in association with the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center
and the University of Maryland Department of Theatre
THE ELEPHANT DEAL
With a full band, an acrobatic stage crew, and an enthusiastic Madame of Ceremonies, 500 Clown brings spontaneous theater standing on the shoulders of Brecht, The Fratellini clowns, and the notion that identity comes through relationship. Impulsive play, transformation, and raucous singing are part of the open rehearsal of this exploration of identity and the borders between self and character.
AccokeekCreek Theatreco.
SHORTSTACK V4: THE LUNCHBOX DINER PLAYS
Playwrights residing in D.C., Maryland, and Virginia present a series of short plays set in a standard American diner at Christmas. Playwrights include Renee Calarco, Audrey Cefaly, Joe Dennison, Deborah Finkelstein, Lynne Lerych, Mark Harvey Levine, Steve Lewis, John Shanahan, Gwydion Suilebhan, Jeffery Sweet, and Walter Thinnes.
Actors Theatre of Louisville
in association with the Source Theatre Festival
MATCH GAMES
A reading directed by Michael Bigelow Dixon
Featuring Melissa Flaim, Kimberly Gilbert, James Konicek, Susan Lynskey, and Bruce Nelson
Whether love is found, lost, botched, or misunderstood, this seductive and funny collection of short plays explores the tempestuous territory of attraction. The plays selected represent some of the best of nearly 20,000 short scripts read by Actors Theatre since the National Ten-Minute Play Contest began in 1989.
Adventure Theater
HAROLD AND THE PURPLE CRAYON
Book, music, and lyrics by Adam W. Roberts
Directed by Michael J. Bobbitt
Based on the book by Crockett Johnson, this kid-friendly musical follows our hero Harold who sets out to conquer the world--armed only with an oversized purple crayon, ready to draw himself out of any dilemma.
African Continuum Theatre Company and theHegira
DAUGHTER/CONCUBINE
By Danielle A. Drakes and Danielle Martin
Directed by Meredith L. King
Featuring Pamela Ward and Man-Zuanna Sherman
Haunted by her sordid ancestry's history, blues singer Ursa Corregirdora cultivates strength by sifting through the remains from her past. This production is adapted from Gayl Jones's novel, Corregidora.
Arena Stage in conjunction with Mixed Blood Theatre
THE NEAR EAST
By Alex Lewin
Directed by Anita Maynard-Losh
Featuring Gabriela Fernandez-Coffey, Brian Hemmingsen, Dan Istrate, Joel Joseph, Michael Kramer, Paul Morella, and Michael Vitaly Sazonov
An American archaeologist teams up with an Arab activist to unearth the oldest scripture from its resting place in the desert between Mecca and Medina, encountering an eclectic array of characters throughout their journey. This work is from the O'Neill Playwrights Conference.
Baltimore Playwrights Festival
Baltimore Playwrights Festival presents excerpts from all of the winning entries of the Festival's 27th season.
Bouncing Ball Theatrical Productions
THE PLAYDOH GOLEM
By Shawn Northrip
Directed by Shirley Sirotsky
Commissioned by Theater J, this klezmer-punk musical tells the story of a Jewish teenage girl trying to win her crush.
Bowie State University
INDIGOS
By t. tara turk
Directed by Renee' Charlow
In 1963, Lord and Lady Major, jazz's royal couple, lose their baby Alice. But Alice still makes a life-changing appearance.
Catholic University of America (MFA Playwrights)
Enjoy four short plays by MFA playwrights directed by MFA directors:
THE TALL TALES OF THE SISTERS OF ELLERY HOLLOW
By Stephen Spotswoord
DEATH AND CHAMOMILE
By Steve Lewis
THIS IS NOT MY LIFE
By Steve Lewis
HUNTER RISING
By Bob Bartlett
Catholic University Benjamin T. Rome School of Music
LIFE IN DEATH
By Gregg Martin
Directed by Jay Brock
Based on Edgar Allen Poe's "The Oval Portrait," this one-act opera portrays an artist who becomes so obsessed with his work in progress--a painting of his bride-to-be--he does not realize that she is wasting away as he paints her.
Charter Theatre
QUARTET
By Richard Washer
Directed by Leslie Kobylinsky
Is it possible to say the things that should have been said years ago? Are we forever tied to the friends and the music of our youth? And the secrets that we keep--who do they hurt in the end? A poetic, haunting look at old friends coming to terms with the music they thought they had silenced.
THE PRINCE AND THE TROUBADOR
Book, music, and lyrics by Rex Daugherty and Doug Wilder
When the Prince's Troubadour is kidnapped by the Witch, he must enlist the help of the Princess who scorned him to save his friend! But with trolls and bandits blocking the path, will they make it in time before the Troubadour is served for dinner? Find out in this adventure-filled musical for all ages!
Doorway Arts Ensemble
MAY 39TH
By Callie Kimball
Directed by Christy Denny
A voyeuristic peek at dating in the year 3008 exploits two people as they navigate through the morning after their first date. Sam offers Louisa everything she wants, and a few things for which she hadn't bargained.
THE LAST DAYS OF CLEOPATRA
Original book, music, and lyrics by Charlie Barnett
Reworked book by Joe Calarco
This new musical details the infamous love affair between Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton on the set of the '60s film fiasco. The stuff that scripts are made of--as Liz and Dick curse and caress their way into history...
Florida Stage with the Guthrie Theater
partnering with Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company
G.I. GAY AND OTHER PLAYS
By Jeffrey Hatcher
Featuring Jennifer Mendenhall and Michael Russotto
A reading featuring short plays about the home front during a war that now seems very far away.
Forum Theatre
MIMESOPHOBIA (OR BEFORE AND AFTER)
By Carlos Murillo
Directed by Michael Dove
They seemed like the perfect couple. Affluent. Attractive. Well-educated. Why did the husband brutally murder his wife and then take his own life? A desperate screenwriting duo struggles with severe writer's block to unearth the answer.
Ganymede Arts
DYKECHOTOMOUS
By Allison Fradkin
Directed by Caroline Angell
A tale of coming out while coming of age. Suitable for young adults.
GMU (George Mason University) Players
GIVING A TROLL A GREEN CARD
By Danielle Snyder
Directed by Kimberly Cetron
Snyder's contemporary comedy explores tangled relationships, natural art, and people who use words for a living, but have difficulty articulating their feelings.
The Georgetown Theatre Company
THE MYSTERY PRINCE
By R.L. Nesvet
Directed by Catherine Aselford
Based on an unsolved historical enigma and adapted from a novel by Mary Shelley, this play questions whether or not Richard III murdered his nephews when a mysterious young man claims to be one of the lost princes, now an adult and ready to depose the tyrannical Henry VII.
Georgetown University Theater and Performance Studies Program
HARLAN AT THE ROCKPILE
By Seamus Sullivan
Directed by Tim Raphael
Alternating between the travels of two Americans to Afghanistan, one in the 1820s and one in 2005, the play asks haunting questions about personal power and responsibility in a country that continues to pose uncomfortable concerns for Americans.
The Inkwell
NEW WORKS
Excerpts of new works by Melissa Blackall, Kristen DeWulf, Chaun Raviv, Sarah Sander, and Adam Jonas Segaller.
PLAYWRIGHTS: PAMPERED? PATRONIZED? PUSHED ASIDE?
The Inkwell presents a panel discussion on how the trend to coddle new work may help it flourish or falter, with Callie Kimball, Nelson Pressley, Blake Robison, and Ari Roth.
A TIME UPON
By Greg Beuthin
Directed by Jessica Burgess
A full reading.
Journeymen Theater Ensemble
A DELICATE PEOPLE
By Jacqueline E. Lawton
Directed by Deborah Kirby
Featuring Danielle A. Drakes, Jessica Francis Dukes, Cesar Guadamuz, and JJ Johnson
Two sisters learn lessons of patience and humility when their beliefs are challenged by unexpected events. They soon realize that the only person they can trust is the other when they are reunited for their mother's 60th birthday party after a bitter ten-year estrangement.
THE FAITHFUL
By Scott Organ
Directed by Andy Wassenich
Featuring Eric Messner, Cindy Marie Martin, Tiffany Fillmore, Krista Cowan, Jimmy Flanagan, Bill Aitken, and Kinsey Dickey
A lying minister, a child bride, and a man who thinks he has seen God experience life, love, and the loss of both as their real and imaginary protective walls are knocked down.
Perserverance Theatre
with support from the National Museum of the American Indian
BATTLES OF FIRE AND WATER
By David Hunsaker
Based on oral and written narratives recounting the 19th century battle between the Tlingits and Russians, this workshop of Hunsaker's play intertwines the different accounts to tell both sides of this monumental event in Alaskan history.
The Playwrights Forum
BRIDGING GENERATIONS
Presented in ten short plays, 6th graders from Silver Spring's Hebrew Day Institute attempt to understand the Holocaust, World War II, the Depression, courtship and marriage, and careers by conducting interviews at the Temple Har Tzeon luncheon program for senior citizens.
The Playwright's Group of Baltimore
The "Lock and Key" plays are a series of short plays (eight to ten minutes) with the common thread of a lock and key somewhere in the play.
Prison Foundation
FROM PRISON TO STAGE
Ex-prisoners and other talented singers and actors perform prison songs and sketches.
Quotidian Theatre Company
MONDAY EVENING 1942
By Steve LaRocque
Set against the backdrop of the 1942 All-Star baseball game in New York City and a city-wide air raid drill that included a complete blackout, the play portrays a father's painful good-bye as his only daughter prepares to leave with the Army during World War II.
Rorschach Theatre Company
MINOTAUR
By Anna Ziegler
A loose adaptation of Greek mythology, this poetic and quirky story's themes of love, loss, and primal longings are startlingly relevant.
Salt Lake Acting Company
in partnership with Theater Alliance
SHE WAS MY BROTHER
By Julie Jensen
Featuring Lee Mikeska Gardner and Cesar Guadamuz
Based loosely on historical events, this reading explores the story of two rivaling ethnographers and their journey with a Zuni transvestite to Washington, D.C.
Scena Theatre
FIRST LOVE
By Samuel Beckett
Featuring Ian Armstrong
A man's musings about his youth occasioned by his visit to his father's grave.
Signature Theatre
CROSSING
SENIOR MOMENTS
SLEEPY HOLLOW
Book by Hunter Foster
Composer Matt Conner showcases three new musicals.
Synetic Theater
HOST AND GUEST
Based on the epic poem by Vazha Pshavela
Written by Roland Reed
Directed by Paata Tsikurishvili
Choreography by Irina Tsikurishvili
Host and Guest centers around two men, one Muslim and one Christian, who befriend each other despite their cultures' long-standing hatred. The people from both of the Georgian villages punish them violently for their friendship, and the entire community is shattered by war. The confrontation between individual morality and ancient community prejudices is the conflict that brings about the central tragedy of this moving piece. The original poem was written around the turn of the 20th century, and it has become a classic of Georgian literary culture.
Taffety Punk Theatre Company
ALIGHIERI'S ASSENT
By James Lawry
Directed by Lise Bruneau
Featuring Jan Knightley, Dan Istrate, Tonya Beckman Ross, Stephen Patrick Martin, and Michael John Casey
Set in Sicily at the end of World War II, two childhood friends find themselves on opposite sides of a final showdown. Alighieri, a defrocked and disgraced priest working with the resistance, is forced to confront everything he's tried to escape when Russo, commander of the fascist troops, seizes a monastery and holds the monks hostage.
THE RAPE OF LUCRECE
Directed by Christopher Marino
This sonic adaptation of Shakespeare's epic poem is part radio play, part rock concert.
Theater J
HONEY BROWN EYES
By Stefanie Zadravec
Directed by Jessica Lefkow
Set in Bosnia in 1992, two soldiers recover a little of what they lost during the war. Through an unlikely partnership, a Serbian paramilitary must face the consequences of his own brutality, while a Bosnian resistance fighter seeks refuge with a kindred soul.
SHOLOM ALEICHEM: LAUGHTER THROUGH TEARS
By Theodore Bikel
Directed by Derek Goldman
Musical direction by Tamara Brooks
Told with warmth, humor, and a rich catalogue of Yiddish songs, this one-man show is a moving portrait of pioneering 19th-century author Sholom Aleichem.
Venus Theatre of the Venus Theatre Play Shack
HOMOKAY'S MEDEA
By Julianne Homokay
Graphic, horrifying, and hilarious, Homokay's Medea takes the Greek tragedy to modern-day Hollywood, replacing the title character of Medea with a trophy wife.
Washington Shakespeare Company
SOFONISBA
By Callie Kimball
Directed by Dorothy Neumann
On the eve of her 18th birthday, artist Sofonisba Anguissola faces the challenges of her painting instructor moving away, a father eager to have her wed, and a pesky pet. Undeterred by the limitations of gender, she uses her talent to become a Spanish court painter for the royal court and eventually finds love. Supported by a grant from the Ludwig Vogelstein Foundation.
NGALA MUTI
By Emily Soloman
Directed by Gaurav Gopolan
When Americans Jim and Jane arrive in the southern African bush for a private safari with their ranger Bobby and his mystical tracker named Tshonga, Jim's desire to experience the real Africa puts the group at risk as they confront the true ruler of the land.
Washington Stage Guild
LORD ARTHUR SAVILE'S CRIME
Adapted from Oscar Wilde by Bill Largess
Directed by Bill Largess
Wilde's story of a young man-about-town who is determined to get his sordid future behind him before he weds has been adapted by Stage Guild Artist Director Largess into a witty comedy of criminal intent.
Women's Work Writers Group
MUSSOLINI'S GHOST
By Judith Brussell
A play in three parts, this drama portrays former President Busholini and his administration in an international criminal court of law.
PRINCESS MARGARET
By Patricia Connelly
Set in a 1960s Catholic school, Sister Helen struggles with maintaining control of her perfect classroom, and confronting the alcoholic mother of a struggling, needy girl.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Limited seating available on a first-come, first-served basis.
General admission seating opens approximately 30 minutes prior to each event.
Programs, artists, and schedules are subject to change without notice.
FF – These events are Family Friendly; all other events may contain mature content.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
SATURDAY, AUGUST 30
MILLENNIUM STAGE SOUTH
2 p.m.
LORD ARTHUR SAVILE'S CRIME
Washington Stage Guild
7:30 p.m.
FROM PRISON TO STAGE
Prison Foundation
SOUTH ATRIUM FOYER
7:30 p.m.
GIVING A TROLL A GREEN CARD
GMU (George Mason University) Players
NORTH ATRIUM FOYER
2 p.m.
VANDERGIFT!
7th Street Playhouse Productions
7:30 p.m.
MIMESOPHOBIA (OR BEFORE AND AFTER)
Forum Theater
THEATER LAB
2 p.m.
ALIGHIERI'S ASSENT
Taffety Punk Theater Company
TERRACE THEATER
7 p.m.
PRINCESS MARGARET
Women's Work Writers Group
9 p.m.
MUSSOLINI'S GHOST
Women's Work Writers Group
TERRACE GALLERY
2 p.m.
QUARTET
Charter Theater
5 p.m.
THE FAITHFUL
Journeymen Theater Ensemble
7:30 p.m.
A DELICATE PEOPLE
Journeymen Theater Ensemble
FAMILY THEATER
6 p.m.
MATCH GAMES
Actors Theatre of Louisville in association with the Source Theatre Festival
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
SUNDAY, AUGUST 31
MILLENNIUM STAGE SOUTH
2 p.m.
HOST AND GUEST
Synetic Theater
7:30 p.m.
MAY 39TH and THE LAST DAYS OF CLEOPATRA
Doorway Arts Ensemble
MILLENNIUM STAGE NORTH
6 p.m.
HAROLD AND THE BIG PURPLE CRAYON (FF)
Adventure Theatre
SOUTH ATRIUM FOYER
2 p.m.
SOFONISBA
Washington Shakespeare Company
3:30 p.m.
NGALA MUTI
Washington Shakespeare Company
7:30 p.m.
HOMOKAY'S MEDEA
Venus Theatre
NORTH ATRIUM FOYER
2 p.m.
INDIGOS
Bowie State University
7:30 p.m.
FIRST LOVE
Scena Theatre
TERRACE THEATER
7:30 p.m.
HONEY BROWN EYES
Theater J
TERRACE GALLERY
2 p.m.
BRIDGING GENERATIONS (FF)
The Playwrights Forum
7:30 p.m.
DYKECHOTOMOUS
Ganymede Arts
FAMILY THEATER
2 p.m.
G.I. GAY AND OTHER PLAYS
Florida Stage with the Guthrie Theater in partnership with Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company
7:30 p.m.
SHE WAS MY BROTHER
Salt Lake Acting Company in partnership with Theater Alliance
REHEARSAL ROOM #1
2 p.m.
THE TALL TALES OF THE SISTERS OF ELLERY HOLLOW
4 p.m.
DEATH AND CHAMOMILE
5 p.m.
THIS IS NOT MY LIFE
6 p.m.
HUNTER RISING
Catholic University of America MFA Playwrights
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 1
MILLENNIUM STAGE SOUTH
2 p.m.
THE PLAYDOH GOLEM
Bouncing Ball Theatrical Productions
7:30 p.m.
LIFE IN DEATH
Catholic University Benjamin T. Rome School of Music
MILLENNIUM STAGE NORTH
6 p.m.
CROSSING
SENIOR MOMENTS
SLEEPY HOLLOW
Signature Theatre
SOUTH ATRIUM FOYER
2 p.m.
Baltimore Playwrights Festival
7:30 p.m.
The Playwright's Group of Baltimore
NORTH ATRIUM FOYER
2 p.m.
SHORTSTACK V4: THE LUNCHBOX DINER PLAYS
AccokeekCreek Theatreco.
4:30 p.m.
THE MYSTERY PRINCE
The Georgetown Theater Company
7:30 p.m.
MONDAY EVENING 1942
Quotidian Theatre Company
THEATER LAB
2 p.m.
THE NEAR EAST
Arena Stage in conjunction with Mixed Blood Theatre
7:30 p.m.
THE ELEPHANT DEAL
500 Clown in association with the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center and the University of Maryland Department of Theatre
TERRACE THEATER
2 p.m.
SHOLOM ALEICHEM: LAUGHTER THROUGH TEARS
Theater J
7:30 p.m.
HARLAN AT THE ROCKPILE
Georgetown University Program in Performing Arts
TERRACE GALLERY
2 p.m.
DAUGHTER/CONCUBINE
African Continuum Theatre Company and theHegira
7:30 p.m.
BATTLES OF FIRE AND WATER
Perseverance Theater with support from the National Museum of the American Indian
FAMILY THEATER
2 p.m.
THE PRINCE AND THE TROUBADOR
Charter Theatre's New Plays for Young Audiences
4 p.m.
MINOTAUR
Rorschach Theatre Company
8 p.m.
THE RAPE OF LUCRECE
Taffety Punk Theatre Company
REHEARSAL ROOM #1
2 p.m.
NEW PLAY EXCERTS
6 p.m.
PLAYWRIGHTS: PAMPERED? PATRONIZED? PUSHED ASIDE?
8 p.m.
A TIME UPON
The Inkwell
