Fidelity FutureStage®, the producers of Billy Elliot the Musical and Elton John today announced the first ever Fidelity FutureStage® Playwriting Contest - a unique opportunity for area high school students to become Broadway's youngest playwrights.
Students are invited to write a 10-minute, one-act play reflecting one of the themes from the story of Billy Elliot: fulfilling a dream, discovering a special talent or overcoming adversity. One grand prize winner will have the opportunity to work directly with the Billy Elliot the Musical creative team to develop and produce their play. That play will be performed live at the Fidelity FutureStage finale gala event on June 15, 2009 at the Imperial Theater.
The Fidelity FutureStage Playwriting Contest is a joint initiative of Fidelity Investments and Billy Elliot the Musical to encourage young people to use their creativity, participate in the theater arts and perhaps become Broadway's next rising star.
"What Fidelity FutureStage is doing is encouraging young people to use their imagination," said Elton John, Fidelity FutureStage Honorary Chairperson. "I'm saying to all of you young people out there - use your creative spirit. If you feel that you have something special to offer - go for it."
The contest is an extension of the Fidelity FutureStage theater education program, now in its third year providing playwriting and production curricula and theater experiences for 10 inner-city schools.
"Fidelity FutureStage has touched nearly 2,000 students since its start in 2006, bringing professional theater into New York City classrooms," said Jennifer K. Brown, Executive Vice President at Fidelity Investments. "Adding the Fidelity FutureStage Playwriting Contest this year opens the program to even more students throughout the city and surrounding counties, and gives them an opportunity to tell their stories and possibly fulfill a Broadway dream."
The contest is open to full-time students in grades 9-12 attending school in New York City and the following New York and New Jersey counties: (New York) Bronx, Kings, Nassau, New York, Queens, Richmond, Rockland, Suffolk and Westchester; (New Jersey) Bergen, Essex and Hudson. All plays must be submitted by 11:50pm ET on April 30, 2009. Complete contest rules and directions for submission can be found at www.FutureStage.com/playwriting.
Designed to help area teachers engage their classes, and individual students to get started, www.FutureStage.com provides numerous playwriting resources including tips on crafting a story and developing characters, theater terminology, formatting guidelines, and video messages from Elton John and other members of the Billy Elliot creative team. Teachers can download a full curriculum guide from the site, offering class-by-class lesson plans and suggested assignments.
To reach out to teachers throughout the metro area and help them better understand the program, Fidelity FutureStage has worked closely with Camp Broadway®, a leader in theater arts programming and curriculum development, and educational partner and contest manager for the Fidelity FutureStage Playwriting Contest.
Following the April 30, 2009 deadline, all eligible plays will be reviewed and evaluated by a panel of Broadway professionals who will narrow the field to five finalists. Plays will be evaluated in the following categories: originality/creativity of the play; character development; structure of dialogue and plot; and appropriateness of the play to the Billy Elliot themes.
The Fidelity FutureStage Playwriting Contest grand prize winner will be chosen from among the five finalists by a panel of judges, set to include Billy Elliot the Musical writer, Lee Hall. The winner will be announced in late May.
Fidelity FutureStage, now in its third year, is designed to bring theater to life for 600+ NYC students, representing 10 inner-city schools. The year-long theater education curriculum affords students the opportunity to learn from leading playwrights, directors, designers and actors, and ultimately experience the thrill of bringing their own creativity to life on a professional stage.
More than 1,000 hours of classroom work over the course of the school year includes instruction in theater arts disciplines ranging from playwriting and editing to casting, auditioning, set and costume design, directing and final stage production. To date, some of the Broadway artists lending their time and support to the Fidelity FutureStage program have included: Kathleen Marshall (GREASE!), William Ivey Long (Grey Gardens, Hairspray), Charles Strauss (Annie, Bye Bye Birdie), Alan Menken (Little Shop of Horrors, The Little Mermaid), Jerry Zaks (Caine Mutiny Court-Martial, Little Shop of Horrors), Raul Esparza (Company, Speed the Plow), Lin-Manuel Miranda (In the Heights), Charles Dutton (The Piano Lesson) and Chazz Palmintari (A Bronx Tale).
