The Blank Theatre's 26th Annual Young Playwrights Festival Announces 2018 Winners

Now celebrating its 26th Anniversary, The Blank Theatre's Nationwide Young Playwrights Festival has chosen 12 plays by playwrights aged 15-19 from seven different states. These plays will be presented by professional actors and directors in this year's Festival at The Stella Adler Theatre in Hollywood May 31-June 24.

This year's winning plays are: DERAILED by Jared Goudsmit, Kirkwood, MO, Age 17; 1:59 by Jarett Malouf, Sherman Oaks, CA, Age 17; THE VEINS OF CREATION by Sarah Tomko, Bentleyville, PA, Age 19; CHEKHOV'S GUN by Charlotte McCombs, Fayetteville, AR, Age 15; AMETHYST by Bridget Pegg, St. Louis, MO, Age 16; THE GENTILE'S SONG by Charlie Leavengood, Sarasota, FL, Age 18; JESSE by Michelle Garcia, Los Angeles, CA, Age 17; HOW NOT TO BE A JUNKYARD DOG by Colette Shaw, Los Angeles, CA, Age 18; ARACHNO WOMAN NO CRY by Anthony DePew, Lake Forest, IL, Age 18; SCRAP BOX by Quirina Vickers, Toluca Lake, CA, Age 16; WINDOWS WIDE by Joseph Kim Sexton, Jersey City, NJ, Age 17; and MOM AND DAD DON'T PLAY TOGETHER ANYMORE by Alex Goodale, Sun Valley, CA, Age 18.

A panel of theatre professionals chose from 302 plays submitted by young writers across the nation. Winning playwrights are next assigned a mentor, and then a professional director who will help them hone their scripts for four public performances with professional actors. This year's mentors include Gary Tieche (Medium), Kit Steinkellner (four-time YPF winner), Beth Bigler (The Real Housewives of Atlanta and three-time YPF winner), Bert V. Royal (Dog Sees God), Robert L. Freedman (two-time Tony Award-winner for A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder), Richard Kramer, Shelagh McFadden, Ellen Byron, Max Posner, Oahn Ly, June Carryl, and Adam Belanoff (Major Crimes). This year's directors are (in alphabetical order) Barbara Bain, Warren Davis, Rebecca Eisenberg, Bjorn Johnson, Bree Pavey, Christopher J. Raymond, Matthew Singletary, Michael A. Shepperd, Laura Stribling, Richard Tatum, April Webster, and Stoney Westmoreland.

Past winners of The Blank Theatre's Young Playwrights Festival include Stephen Karam, recipient of the Tony Award for Best Play (The Humans); Lauren Yee, recipient of the Kesselring Prize for In A Word; Max Posner, recipient of a New York Times 'Critics Choice' for The Treasurer; Aliza Goldstein, LADCC Award-winner for A Singular They; Austin Winsberg, librettist of First Date on Broadway and writer of The Sound of Music Live! (NBC); and Kit Steinkellner, creator of new Elizabeth Olsen TV series Sorry for Your Loss.

Said Daniel Henning, Founding Artistic Director of The Blank, "Each spring for the past 25 years, The Blank has found the freshest, most original voices in the American theatre, invited them to Los Angeles, and promoted their work during a month-long festival in June. This thought-provoking work, performed and directed by seasoned professionals, has entertained thousands of audience members over the years. While these authors are often as different as the states from which they come and the subjects with which they deal, they share something truly improbable. They're teenagers." Henning continued, "These are not only the voices of today's theatre - they are the voices of tomorrow's as well."

This year's YPF is made possible in part by The Bloomberg Philanthropies, Los Angeles County Arts Commission, Los Angeles City Department of Cultural Affairs, The Rosenthal Family Foundation, Mitch O'Farrell (Councilmember, 13th District, City of LA), and The Plum Foundation.

The Stella Adler Theatre is located at 6773 Hollywood Boulevard, in Hollywood. The performance schedule is Thursday, Friday, and Saturday at 8pm and Sunday at 2pm. Each week's program includes three plays, and admission is $25 for adults and $15 for students. Festival passes, which are good for one ticket each week of the festival, are $80 for adults and $50 for students. Tickets go on sale May 1 and may be purchased online at www.TheBlank.com, or by phone at (323) 661-9827.

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