Dirt Dogs Theatre Co. Names Selections For Annual Student Playwright Festival

Plays by local high-school seniors, Andrea Diaz, Seth Brown, and Calliana Duke have been chosen by Dirt Dogs Theatre Co. (DDTCo.) as selections for the 2023 Student Playwright Festival. Each playwright is awarded a $500 scholarship and is paired with a Houston-based playwright as a mentor to fine-tune the plays and prepare them for production. The students will be guests of honor as their plays are performed at the MATCH - Midtown Arts & Theater Center Houston on June 7, 2023.

Andrea Diaz, a senior at Obra D. Tompkins High School, presents her play, Corner Store. The play is based on the true story of Andrea's Cuban grandfather, Paco Diaz, and how he was arrested fighting for the country he loved. Andrea will be mentored by author and playwright, Doug Williams, best known to Houston and DDTCo. audiences as co-author of The Boundary. Corner Store will be directed by DDTCo. Artistic Associate, Curtis Barber, whose DDTCo. directorial credits include The Revolutionists and Misery.

Seth Brown is a senior at Huntsville High School. His play, Get It, Together, tells the story of a young adult who must overcome his issues and take care of business, or face losing it all. Seth is mentored by Ted Swindley, creator of the worldwide hit musical Always...Patsy Cline, and the Founding Artistic Director of Stages Repertory Theatre. Get It, Together is directed by DDTCo. Executive Director, Trevor B. Cone, whose DDTCo. credits include Life x 3 and The Eight: Reindeer Monologues.

Calliana Duke, a senior at Kinder High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, debuts her play The Fifth Passenger. It's not easy guiding people through the limbo to the afterlife, especially when you're literally Death and customer service is a nightmare no matter where you end up. Calliana is mentored by Gwen Flager, author of Shakin' the Blue Flamingo. The Fifth Passenger is directed by Malinda L. Beckham, Artistic Director of DDTCo., whose directorial credits include A Steady Rain, Glengarry Glen Ross and The Exonerated.

Dirt Dogs Theatre Co. Student Playwright Festival

Corner Store

written by Andrea Diaz

Obra D. Tompkins High School (77494)
directed by Curtis Barber
mentored by Doug Williams

Get It, Together

written by Seth Brown
Huntsville High School (77340)
directed by Trevor B. Cone
mentored by Ted Swindley

The Fifth Passenger

written by Calliana Duke
Kinder High School for the Performing and Visual Arts (77008)
directed by Malinda L. Beckham
mentored by Gwen Flager

June 7, 2023
(reception following the performance)
MATCH - Midtown Arts & Theater Center Houston
Matchbox 3, The John P. McGovern Foundation Theater, 3400 Main Street, Houston, TX 77002
713-521-4533 | matchouston.org

Single tickets, $15
also available to stream

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