Katarzyna Roszczeda Wins Fidelity FutureStage Playwriting Contest

Fidelity FutureStage® Playwriting Contest winner, Katarzyna (Kathy) Roszczeda, a New York City high school senior, is headed to Broadway this June to see her original play produced on stage at the Imperial Theatre, home to 2009 Tony Award-winning Best Musical, BILLY ELLIOT. On Sunday, April 11, Roszczeda had the opportunity to celebrate by meeting Elton John, BILLY ELLIOT composer and honorary chairperson of Fidelity FutureStage, at opening night of the musical in Chicago.

The Fidelity FutureStage Playwriting Contest, a joint initiative of Fidelity Investments® and BILLY ELLIOT THE MUSICAL, was created to give students throughout the NYC metro area encouragement and opportunity to participate in the theater arts. Students were invited to write a 10-minute, one-act play reflecting one of the themes from the story of BILLY ELLIOT: pursuing a dream, discovering a special talent or overcoming an obstacle. The contest was open to all high school students attending school in NYC and surrounding counties in NY, NJ and CT.  The grand prize of the contest included the opportunity to attend the opening night of BILLY ELLIOT in Chicago, walk the red carpet and attend the after-party, and have their play produced on Broadway.

Roszczeda, a 17-year old resident Ridgewood, NY and senior at Frank Sinatra School of the Arts in Queens, won the competition with NAVY BLUE TILES, a romantic comedy about regaining lost love. The idea for the play originated from a class assignment to write about two characters that have not seen each other for a long time. Roszczeda expanded on that assignment, and reports that bringing her characters to life through dialogue was her favorite part of writing the play.

NAVY BLUE TILES will be performed at the Imperial Theatre on June 14, as part of the Fidelity FutureStage Finale event. The play will also be published by Samuel French, the premier play and musical publishing and licensing company serving the Broadway community.

Roszczeda’s winning play was selected by a judging panel that included actors Michael Urie (THE TEMPERAMENTALS, “Ugly Betty”), Anthony Mackie (A BEHANDING IN SPOKANE, “The Hurt Locker”) and Constantine Margolis (ROCK OF AGES, “American Idol”). Rounding out the judges was the General Manager of BILLY ELLIOT THE MUSICAL and Past Chair of The Broadway League Nina Lannan, as well as Fidelity FutureStage Artistic Director Michael Bush, who will also direct the June 14th finale event.

Fidelity and BILLY ELLIOT THE MUSICAL worked with education partner Thru The Stage Door to manage the Fidelity FutureStage Playwriting Contest.  Thru The Stage Door visited schools throughout the metro area, conducting approximately 70 playwriting workshops to encourage participation in the FutureStage contest.More than 550 plays were submitted to the Fidelity FutureStage Playwriting Contest from students from across the NYC metro area, representing NYC, Westchester, Rockland and Orange counties outside of the city, Nassau and Suffolk counties on Long Island, as well as Bergen, Essex, Middlesex, Monmouth and Union counties in New Jersey, and Fairfield county in Connecticut.

The contest is an extension of the Fidelity FutureStage theater education program, now in its fourth year bringing 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 bringing their own creativity to life on a professional stage. For more information, visit www.FutureStage.com.

About BILLY ELLIOT THE MUSICAL

Billy Elliot the Musical, the 2009 Tony Award-winning Best Musical, is the celebration of one boy’s journey to make his dreams come true. Set in a small town, the story follows Billy as he stumbles out of the boxing ring and into a ballet class, discovering a passion that takes him by surprise, and takes his whole family on an incredibly uplifting adventure. Billy Elliot, winner of ten 2009 Tony Awards, is brought to life by the film's original creative team including director Stephen Daldry, choreographer Peter Darling, and writer Lee Hall - joined by Elton John who wrote the score. The show has played to over four million people worldwide since its London premiere in 2005. Billy Elliot the Musical is presented by Universal Pictures Stage productions, Working Title Films and Old Vic Productions in association with Weinstein Live Entertainment, based on the Universal Pictures/Studio Canal film. In support of the Fidelity FutureStage Playwriting Contest, BILLY ELLIOT is offering a special ticket rate for students, starting at $40. Group rates for classes are also available. For more information, visit www.billyelliotbroadway.com

About Thru The Stage Door

Thru the Stage door, a new arts education company, exists to create extraordinary theatre experiences and arts learning tools that educate, ignite curiosity about the artistic process, build new theatre-going audiences and inspire a life-long love for the arts.  Co-founded by Broadway veterans Dori Berinstein and Philip Katz, Thru The Stage Door is proud to produce immersive, interactive, cutting edge Online Study Guides for educators, students and families.  The Online Guide has been named “The Official Study Guide of Broadway.” For more information, visit www.thruthestagedoor.com