DCPA Announces Finalists for 2016-17 Regional High School Playwriting Competition

By: Jan. 17, 2017
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The Denver Center for the Performing Arts (DCPA) is pleased to announce the finalists of the fourth annual Regional High School Playwriting Workshop and Competition for Colorado high school students.

DCPA artistic, literary and education professionals have determined 10 semifinalists out of 132 submissions received from high school students across the state. Traditionally the playwriting competition selects three finalist. Due to a tie in this year's scoring, four finalists will be honored. The top four finalists - Parker Bennett (Fossil Ridge High School), Jessica Wood (Denver Christian School), Ryan McCormick (Fort Collins High School), Jasmin Hernandez Lozano (Vista Peak Preparatory Academy) - will receive mentorship from a professional playwright and have their plays read at the 2017 Colorado New Play Summit on Saturday, February 25 at 9am with a public reading at 8pm in The Conservatory Theater. Finalists also receive a $250 cash scholarship and complimentary pass to the Colorado New Play Summit. One submission will be selected for a full production during DCPA Education's 2017 teen summer program.

The 2016-17 Regional High School Playwriting Workshop and Competition served 2,823 students at 46 schools in 15 counties statewide.DCPA teaching artists conducted 138 playwriting workshops within 15 counties. Each finalist's teacher will receive a $250 gift certificate for books, supplies, or other teaching tools for their classrooms.

"These young playwrights are the next generation of theatre. It is our responsibility and our privilege to encourage them and give them the tools to succeed," said Allison Watrous, Director of DCPA Education. "We launched the one-act play playwriting competition in 2013 to nurture Colorado's promising young playwrights, create new plays and inspire creativity. In just four short years, we've been thrilled with the response: 577 submissions and nearly 12,000 students served through the program, giving voice to the next generation of American theatre."

2016-17 Finalists:

(Alphabetical by title)

  • The Boy on the Tree by Jasmin A. Hernandez Lozano, Vista Peak Preparatory Academy
  • Chill Winds by Jessica Wood, Denver Christian School
  • Counting in Clay by Parker Bennett, Fossil Ridge High School
  • Spilt Lava by Ryan Patrick McCormick, Fort Collins High School

2016-17 Semi-Finalists:

(Alphabetical by title)

  • As We Know It by Corinna Donovan and Walker Carroll, Crested Butte Community School
  • The Boy on the Tree by Jasmin A. Hernandez Lozano, Vista Peak Preparatory Academy
  • Chill Winds by Jessica Wood, Denver Christian School
  • Counting in Clay by Parker Bennett, Fossil Ridge High School
  • Dr. Grumpy Pants by Daniela Villalobos, York International
  • Imaginary Friends by Abby Meyer and Nic Rhodes, Fossil Ridge High School
  • The Mistress of Stories by Amelia Middlebrooks, Valor Christian High School
  • The Sincerest Form of Flattery by Samantha Shapard, Overland High School
  • Spilt Lava by Ryan Patrick McCormick, Fort Collins High School
  • Waiting by Sarah Shapard, Overland High School

The 2016-1 Regional High School Playwriting Workshop and Competition is sponsored by Robert and Judi Newman/Newman Family Foundation with matching gifts from The Ross Foundation, June Travis and Transamerica. For more information on all youth playwright finalists, visit denvercenter.org/news-center

The Denver Center for the Performing Arts (DCPA) is the largest non-profit theatre organization in the nation, presenting Broadway tours and producing theatre, cabaret, musicals, and innovative, multimedia plays. Last season the DCPA entertained more than 1.2 million visitors and served more than 105,000 students of which 84,000 were youth.



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