RECOUNTING by David Nice Announced as Winner Of York College New Play Contest

York College of Pennsylvania's Theatre Program has announced the winning full-length play for the inaugural year of the JL Smith New Play Festival. Lancaster resident David Nice's play Recounting was selected by a panel of professional theatre artists from the many plays submitted. A staged reading of the play will be directed by York resident Cal Weary and presented live on Friday, May 7 at 7 p.m. on Zoom.

Recounting follows two Central PA couples who hold differing political beliefs. When the 2000 Presidential election demands a recount, it is unclear if their bipartisan friendship will survive. David Nice's plays have been produced by the Creative Works of Lancaster, the Reading Theater Project and Gamut Theatre, and he has had staged readings of his work at Fulton Theatre, Maryland Ensemble Theatre and Albright College. A graduate of Franklin and Marshall College and Saint Joseph's University, Nice is a founding member of the Lancaster Dramatists' Platform.

Director Cal Weary is helming the staged reading of Recounting. A York College of Pennsylvania graduate, Weary last worked on the Every 28 Hours project with the Theatre Program in 2016. He is known in York for his annual production of The Wiz, his work at William Penn High School and as CEO and founder of the Weary Arts Group, the Board President of the Parliament Arts Organization, and as a Board member for the York History Center.

In addition, to the Friday night Zoom performance of Recounting, six winning 10-minute plays will also be presented during the opening night of the JL Smith New Play Festival on Thursday, May 6. Plays selected include a script written in verse, a play about the pains of a bad blind date, and a heartfelt examination of the fear of school shooters that many Americans have faced. Playwrights for the 10-minute scripts hail from U.S. cities like Atlanta, New York City and Boston and as far away as Exeter, England and Sydney, Australia.

Plays will be presented on Thursday, May 6 and Friday, May 7 at 7 p.m. EDT. More information about links to these live Zoom events can be found at York College Theatre Program's website, ycp.edu/theatre, and on YCP Theatre's social media sights including on Twitter at @FestJL.