Florida Rep's 2020 PlayLab Kicks Off November 5 With All-Virtual Festival

Florida Repertory Theatre's 2020 PlayLab Festival of New Works kicks off Nov. 5th at 7 PM with the virtual reading of "Spay" by Madison Fiedler, and continues with LIVE virtual readings on Nov. 12, 19, Dec. 3, and 10. The Festival also includes a Playwrights' Panel on Dec. 11 at 3:30 PM, where the festival playwrights talk about their craft and take questions from the audience.

Individual reading and event tickets are $20. The theatre is pleased to offer two All-Access Pass options that allow patrons to get access to all the events for a discount. The $99 All-Access Pass gives the pass holders access to all five readings and the playwrights panel. The VIP All-Access Pass for $125 includes a pre-show reception where VIPs can meet and talk to the cast, director, and playwright before the reading. Digital tickets and All-Access passes are available now at www.FloridaRep.org.

Each reading is performed live before a virtual audience at 7 PM on Nov. 5, 12, 19, Dec, 3 and 10 - but that is not the only way to watch! For patrons with scheduling conflicts, the theatre will make each play reading available for ON-DEMAND Streaming for four days following the live broadcast.

If you cannot make the live performance, go to www.FloridaRep.org on the Friday following each reading to purchase a pass for streaming access for just $20. Streaming audiences can watch the reading anytime before the streaming window closes on the Monday following the reading at 11:59 PM.

The 2020 PlayLab lineup reflects Florida Rep's mission to produce a wide variety of work by emerging and well-established writers. The selected works are "Spay" by Madison Fiedler, "Tablescape" by Jeanette D. Farr, "Jerome" by Ron Lagomarsino, "White Party" by Brent Askari, and "A Sherlock Carol" by Mark Shanahan. Each play features a professional cast, director, and stage manager - made up largely of Florida Rep's longtime Ensemble Members. The playwright is part of the workshop process and the live reading is the culmination of 12 to 15 hours of rehearsal and development.

The selected plays were chosen from an open call for submissions to affiliated artists with the National New Play Network, PlayLab alumni playwrights, and several literary agencies in New York. Florida Rep's reading committee, made up of 40 theatre professionals and sponsors, began reading and evaluating 80 scripts last fall before announcing the final selections just before the pandemic shut down in-person gatherings.

The plays are each in consideration for a future premiere production in a subsequent Florida Rep season, and every year since its inception, the theatre has chosen one or two of the plays for production from each festival. In addition to the 6 showcased plays selected for the festival, Florida Rep is pleased to name four finalists for the 2020 PlayLab: "The Garbologists" by Lindsay Joelle, "Way Beyond Water" by Jan Neuberger, "Rosenberg" by David Meyers, and "Settlements" by Seth Rozin.

Each reading and performance includes a talk-back and a discussion with the playwrights, directors, and actors. The audience feedback is instrumental in the development process and helps the playwrights perfect their scripts, and it helps guide Florida Rep as it decides which play to include in a future season.

PlayLab is generously sponsored by Lee Moore & Dee Whited. Individual reading and event sponsors are Emily Eason, Noreen Raney, Bruce & Janet Bunch, Nick Bodven, Judy Weiner, Mary Denison, Naomi Bloom, and Darlene & Val Arnold.

PlayLab tickets and information are available online at www.FloridaRep.org or by calling the Florida Rep Box Office at 239-332-4488. Follow Florida Rep on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouYube for the most up to date information about programming and how to support Florida Rep during this difficult time.

2020 VIRTUAL PLAYLAB FESTIVAL

Grand PlayLab Sponsors Lee Moore & Dee Whited

SPAY

by Madison Fiedler | LIVE Broadcast Nov. 5 at 7 PM
On-Demand Streaming through Nov. 9
Two sisters living in Williamson, West Virginia confront the opioid epidemic head on in this powerful and poignant story of survival. "Spay" is an electrifying new drama where cycles of addiction and notions of autonomy are catapulted into question when a stranger shows up with an answer to this family's prayers - at a certain cost.
Directed by Maureen Heffernan | Starring: Rachel Burttram, Thomas Hadzeriga, Kylie Gray Mask, and Jordan Pesci
Sponsored by Emily Eason & Cos

TABLESCAPE

by Jeanette D. Farr| LIVE Broadcast Nov. 12 at 7 PM
On-Demand Streaming through Nov. 16
Joe and Pratt are world travelers who love a great adventure, but it is time to settle down and think about a family. Pratt prepares a lavish tablescape for what is supposed to be a civilized brunch with with their lawyer and the teen-aged mother whose baby they've arranged to adopt. What was meant to be a perfect brunch quickly spirals out of control. Plates get broken and food flies, but each finds that there is beauty in broken things, and the cracks in the foundation might be what makes a person whole.
Directed by Ellen Jones | Starring Danny Bernardy, Jennifer Byrne, Isabella Cintron, and James Seol

JEROME

by Ron Lagomarsino | LIVE Broadcast Nov. 19 at 7 PM
On-Demand Streaming through Nov. 23
Upon the untimely death of their father, two estranged siblings must face off to determine the proper course of care for their schizophrenic brother, Jerome. Alternately heartbreaking and hilarious, they embark on an emotional journey no one is prepared to take.
Directed by Chris Clavelli | Starring Dennis Creaghan, V Craig Heidenreich, Greg Longenhagen, and Brendan Powers
Sponsored by Bruce & Janet Bunch and Nick Bodven

WHITE PARTY

by Brent Askari | LIVE Broadcast Dec. 3 at 7 PM
On-Demand Streaming through Dec. 7
John and Laura Baron are making final preparations for their annual party - thrown in their lavish home on an exclusive Florida barrier island. This year, however, things don't go according to plan. As the festivities begin, the Barons grow increasingly manic and paranoid, suspecting darker forces have conspired to sabotage their perfect evening.
Directed by Reginald Douglas | Starring David Breitbarth, Amir Darvish, Nick Ducassi, Kate Hampton, and Mary E. Hodges.
Sponsored by Judy Weiner

A SHERLOCK CAROL

by Mark Shanahan | LIVE Broadcast Dec. 10 at 7 PM
On-Demand Streaming through Dec. 14
Moriarty was dead, to begin with. And Sherlock Holmes is a haunted man. But, when a grown-up Tiny Tim asks Holmes to investigate the death of Ebenezer Scrooge, the Great Detective must use his gifts to solve a Dickens of a Christmas mystery!
Directed by Mark Shanahan | Starring Dan Domingues, Isabel Keating, Drew McVety, Jason Parrish, and Nicole Shalhoub.
Sponsored by Mary Denison and Naomi Bloom

PLAYWRIGHTS' PANEL

LIVE Broadcast Dec. 11 at 3:30 PM
On-Demand Streaming through Dec. 15
Following the final reading of the 2020 PlayLab, audiences will hear from all of the festival playwrights in a round table discussion about their craft and what it takes to make new plays in America. Hosted by Associate Artistic Director, Jason Parrish.
Sponsored by Val & Darlene Arnold

Florida Rep is a proud Associate Member of the National New Play Network (NNPN). The NNPN is the country's only alliance of nonprofit theaters that champions the development, production, and continued life of new plays. Florida Rep works closely with the Network to develop relationships with playwrights, other theatre professionals, and theatres that champion new works.

To post a comment, you must register and login.