Readings by The Coterie's Young Playwrights' Roundtable Members to be Presented at Young Playwrights' Festival

It is The Coterie's favorite time of the year when nine short world premiere readings by members of The Coterie's Young Playwrights' Roundtable will be showcased during the annual Young Playwrights' Festival at 7:00 p.m., May 2, at The Coterie Theatre, located on level 1 of the Crown Center Shops. The evening includes 50 minutes of fanfiction monologues inspired from sources such as Marvel, DC Comics, Harry Potter, and even Mary Poppins.

Young Playwrights' Festival 2021: Fanfiction Vignettes

"This year's Roundtable members met via Zoom all year long and grew into a tight-knit group of 29 who enthusiastically helped each other with peer feedback. The selected pieces in this year's festival are a 'sampler' of their originality and imagination," states facilitator Jeff Church, Coterie Producer Artistic Director, who has been facilitating Coterie Roundtables since the early '90s.

Rich and varied theatrical writings by our city's most gifted young playwrights emerge from a yearlong process. A collection of new plays is forged into an ambitious festival of script-in-hand readings. The Coterie's Young Playwrights' Roundtable features new work in a festival recognizing quality writing by young people, a highlight in The Coterie's season.

Young Playwrights' Festival 2021: Fanfiction Vignettes will incorporate nine Roundtable scripts in one act, no intermission. The evening is recommended for grades 4 through adult, and masks will be required. The Coterie invites the public to get a fascinating insight into the minds of young adults today.

Professional directors for this year's festival are Coterie Artistic Director Jeff Church, Coterie Education Director Amanda Kibler, and UMKC Associate Professor of Theatre in Acting Carla Noack. Stage manager for the festival is Matthew Koehler.

Young Playwrights' Festival 2021: Fanfiction Vignettes is a ticketless, socially distanced event. It is also an all-masked audience event, with the performers (all vaccinated) each performing a monologue with a face shield. Admission for the Young Playwrights' Festival is $5.00 and advance reservations are required due to reduced seating capacity. Unlike past Coterie productions, seating is not General Admission. Instead, socially distanced seating pods will be assigned so patrons are asked not to congregate in The Coterie lobby prior to the performance. The theater will open for seating 30 minutes prior to the performance. Contact the Box Office to attend Young Playwrights' Festival virtually. Reservations can be made by phone at (816) 474-6552 or online at www.thecoterie.org. On the day of the performance, the Box Office will open at 6:00 p.m.

FESTIVAL SELECTIONS

The following is a list of productions, the playwrights, and their schools:

Selected Works for Young Playwrights' Festival 2021: Fanfiction Vignettes

Peyton

by Maria Heath (Shawnee Mission South High)
- Inspired by The Avengers films

Little Sister

by Megan Bogner (Shawnee Mission South High)
- Inspired by The Avengers films

Alfred XXIV

by Preya Nguyen (Pembroke Hill)
- Inspired by Mary Poppins

Adopted Daughter

by Cheyenne Crew (F.L. Schlagle High)
- Inspired by the Batman comics

J L J

by Tucker Rushing (Belton High)
- Inspired by DC Comics

Lady M

by Claire Redick (The Barstow School)
- Inspired by Shakespeare's Scottish play

Dear Cedric

by Kayleeann Milborn (Sumner Academy)
- Inspired by Harry Potter

Join Me

by Tyler Johnson (Hyman Brand Hebrew Academy)
- Inspired by Star Wars

Mistaken Identity

by El O'Brien (Blue Valley North High)
- Inspired by DC Comics

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