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Suzan-Lori Parks' Watch Me Work from The Public Theater
Video

Suzan-Lori Parks' Watch Me Work from The Public Theater

A playwriting masterclass.

Monday 23 March 2015
New York, NY, United States

Suzan-Lori Parks livestreamed Watch Me Work from The Public Theater in New York City on the global, commons-based peer produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Monday 23 March at 2 p.m. PST (Vancouver, UTC -8) / 4 p.m. CST (Austin, UTC -6) / 5 p.m. EST (Montréal, UTC -5) / 10 p.m. GMT (London, UTC +0) / 23:00 CET (Berlin, UTC +1).

Parenting and Playwriting
Essay

Parenting and Playwriting

The Boyfriend Plot

19 March 2015

Catherine Trieschmann tackles what happens when she leads storytelling exercises with her daughter’s Girl Scout troop, and almost all of them write about boyfriends.

The Language of "Gender Parity"
Essay

The Language of "Gender Parity"

19 Women Playwrights and Their Voices

15 March 2015

Emma Weisberg considers the complexities of language and summarizes conversations with fourteen women playwrights discussing the question “How do you define gender parity?”

On Wearing Two Hats
Essay

On Wearing Two Hats

Why Playwrights Should Work in Literary Management

13 March 2015

Lia Romeo explains the advantages of being a playwright working in literary management, and how her job has improved her writing and other important skills.

Inviting Them In
Essay

Inviting Them In

Writing as an Act of Communion

11 March 2015

Romanian playwright Peca Ştefan discusses a project to research and engage with residents to tell the stories of towns throughout Romania.

Suzan-Lori Parks' Watch Me Work from The Public Theater
Video

Suzan-Lori Parks' Watch Me Work from The Public Theater

A playwriting masterclass.

Monday 9 March 2015
New York, NY, United States

Suzan-Lori Parks livestreamed Watch Me Work from The Public Theater in New York City on the global, commons-based peer produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Monday 9 March at 2 p.m. PST (Vancouver, UTC -8) / 4 p.m. CST (Austin, UTC -6) / 5 p.m. EST (Montréal, UTC -5) / 10 p.m. GMT (London, UTC +0) / 23:00 CET (Berlin, UTC +1).

 

Your Guide to Theatre Education
Essay

Your Guide to Theatre Education

Christopher Shinn at The New School’s MFA Playwriting Program

3 March 2015

In this installation, David Dudley interviews Christopher Shinn of The New School’s MFA playwriting program about how this educational option works.

Two actors onstage facing each other.
Do White Playwrights Think About This?
Essay

Do White Playwrights Think About This?

27 February 2015

Larissa FastHorse explores the issues she deals with as a Native playwright, from finding an agent to what happens when she has to un-Native American a character.

Happy Accidents, Competition, and the Best Idea Wins
Essay

Happy Accidents, Competition, and the Best Idea Wins

Prayers of Halley Feiffer

24 February 2015

Martha Steketee explores the development and evolution of I'm Gonna Pray for You So Hard with playwright Halley Feiffer. The play spans five years and two opening nights, features substance abuse, plenty of familial debate, and one attempt at reconciliation.

Thoughts on Directing a Solo Show
Essay

Thoughts on Directing a Solo Show

11 February 2015

Director Seth Barrish talks about the process of directing a solo show.

A Lover’s Guide to American Playwrights—I Married a Playwright
Essay

A Lover’s Guide to American Playwrights—I Married a Playwright

Karen Hartman

4 February 2015

Todd London's latest addition to his column, A Lover’s Guide to American Playwrights, is about his own personal resident playwright—Karen Hartman—and the “wilderness of mid-career.”

Summer School
Essay

Summer School

The Sexy Part

28 January 2015

Wendy MacLeod shares her experience at the Kenyon Playwrights Conference, a June intensive where students get to workshop their writing and learn from many people in the field.

The Case for Long-Term Playwright Residencies
Essay

The Case for Long-Term Playwright Residencies

21 January 2015

Playwright Deborah Salem Smith discusses the benefits of being a long-term playwright in residence at Trinity Repertory Company.

Doers Gonna Do—National New Play Network & the New Play Exchange
Essay

Doers Gonna Do—National New Play Network & the New Play Exchange

15 January 2015

National New Play Network launches the New Play Exchange, a crowd-sourced, open-access database of plays, playwrights, and producers. Nan Barnett shares what she hopes it can achieve.

Shakespeare and New Work at The Shakespeare Theatre Association 2015 Conference
Video

Shakespeare and New Work at The Shakespeare Theatre Association 2015 Conference

Saturday 10 January 2015
San Francisco, CA, United States

The Shakespeare Theatre Association 2015 Conference presented the Shakespeare and New Work panel  livestreamed on the global, commons-based peer-produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Saturday 10 January  2015 at 10:40 a.m. PST (Los Angeles) / 12:40 p.m. CST (Chicago) / 1:40 p.m. EST (New York).

He Said, She Said
Essay

He Said, She Said

The Process of Distillation

9 January 2015

Michael “Quess?” Moore explores why he wound up in residence in New Orleans at the DISTILLERY, and what he’s continuing to learn and experience.

A Conversation with Playwright in Residence Nathan Louis Jackson and Director Kyle Hatley
Essay

A Conversation with Playwright in Residence Nathan Louis Jackson and Director Kyle Hatley

2 January 2015

Commons Producer Mackenzie Goodwin Tran talks to Nathan Louis Jackson and Kyle Hatley about what they’ve learned so far in his residency at Kansas City Repertory Theatre.

Teaser poster for Watch Me Work, which features Suzan-Lori Parks leaning an arm against a bench.
Suzan-Lori Parks' Watch Me Work from The Public Theater
Video

Suzan-Lori Parks' Watch Me Work from The Public Theater

A playwriting masterclass.

Wednesday 10 December 2014
New York City, NY, United States

Suzan-Lori Parks livestreamed Watch Me Work from The Public Theater in New York City on the global, commons-based peer produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Wednesday 10 December at 2 p.m. PST (Vancouver, UTC -8) / 4 p.m. CST (Austin, UTC -6) / 5 p.m. EST (Montréal, UTC -5) / 10 p.m. GMT (London, UTC +0) / 23:00 CET (Berlin, UTC +1).

Artistry, Advocacy, and Agency
Essay

Artistry, Advocacy, and Agency

Will Power, Dallas Theater Center and the Playwright On Staff Model

10 December 2014

Commons Producer Jonathon Norton talks to playwright Will Power, the playwright in residence at Dallas Theater Center, about being on staff at a regional theatre and being a member of a community.

Parenting and Playwriting
Essay

Parenting and Playwriting

Excuses

10 December 2014

In her latest installment, Catherine Trieschmann explores turning forty, leaky roofs, advice for parents on how to save money on childcare, and what to do when you’re working from home with your child.

The Tíaland
Essay

The Tíaland

3 December 2014

Playwright Elaine Ávila illuminates her eye-opening trip to Portugal—wittingly nicknamed Tíaland—as the winner of the DISQUIET International Short Play Competition. There, she is met with historical narratives of overcoming socialized barriers. 

Let’s Talk About It
Essay

Let’s Talk About It

An Exploration of Sex and the New American Theater

30 November 2014

In his essay, Director Evan Caccioppoli explores the future of sex in American theatre.

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Grand Concourse Symposium moderated by Heidi Schreck
Video

Grand Concourse Symposium moderated by Heidi Schreck

Saturday 15 November 2014
New York, NY, United States

Playwrights Horizons presented the Grand Concourse Symposium on Saturday 15 November where playwright Heidi Schreck moderates a panel featuring  Annie Baker, Sister Nancy Chiarello, and Angela Alaimo O’Donnell livestreamed on the global, commons-based peer-produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Saturday 15 November at 21:00 GMT (London) / 4 p.m. EST (New York) / 3 p.m. CST (Austin) / 1 p.m. PST (Vancouver). In Twitter, use #howlround to chat. Follow @PHNYC and @HowlRoundTV for updates. 

Three Steps to Speaking Up For the Playwright
Essay

Three Steps to Speaking Up For the Playwright

11 November 2014

Most productions are not developmental for the script and that usually means the text being used is effectively final. As is often the case, the playwright is usually not in the room, and so they have no say in the changes being made to their script. As a supporter of playwrights’ rights, I often feel that I must become the de facto voice of the writer, to protect the integrity of their text.

Uncovering Staged Readings and Discovering the Art of Collaboration
Essay

Uncovering Staged Readings and Discovering the Art of Collaboration

1 November 2014

Yet after reading about staged readings and their role in play development, I hit a roadblock. I couldn’t come up with a definition that addressed every possible scenario. More vexingly, I couldn’t figure out how to negotiate concrete meanings for words like “minimal” and “basic” that are often used when discussing staged reading elements. Despite the many points of agreement found when looking at various discussions, there are too many differences in definition to develop a clear picture of what exactly a staged reading is or how it should look.