Pavement Group Hosts 3rd Annual Amuse Bouche Playwriting Festival at Den Theatre, Now thru 4/10

Pavement Group previously announced participants for their 3rd Annual Amuse Bouche festival - a one-week celebration of some of the most exciting new voices in American Theatre - which will feature involvement from Steppenwolf's Young Adult Council as the first project to launch an annual programming relationship.

Now in its third year, Pavement Group's 2013 Amuse Bouche will feature five hand-picked playwrights from across the country, all tasked to cook up a 15 minute script in 24 hours based on ten "ingredients" curated by the students at Steppenwolf's Young Adult Council (YAC). Students will follow the production process from early planning stages through the final performance, with some YAC representatives joining the cast for a unique experience working with professional actors and directors in a fast-paced environment.

The 2013 playwrights include: Hilary Bettis (O'Neill Nat'l Playwrights Conference, James McLure Fellowship from New River Dramatists, John N Wall Fellowship for playwriting at Sewanee Writer's Conference), Sigrid Gilmer (Finalist for Jerome, PONY Fellowship, IGNITION, and Kesselring), Laura Jacqmin (Kennedy Center David Mark Cohen Award, O'Neill Nat'l Playwrights Conference, Wassterstein Prize, Steppenwolf's First Look), David Perez (Pavement Group Founding Artistic Director), and Lauren Yee (IGNITION, Dramatists Guild fellow, MacDowell Colony fellow, member of The Public Theater Emerging Writers Group).

The five Chicago-based directors will be Alexander Lane (Pavement Group), Benno Nelson (New Colony), Will Rogers (Victory Gardens Theater), Emily Schwartz (Strange Tree), and Krissy Vanderwarker (Dog & Pony). The total cast of 17 will include actors from local companies such as Mary Arrchie Theatre Co, Pavement Group, Sideshow Theatre Company, the Steppenwolf Young Adult Council, and Theatre Seven of Chicago.

Performances will run tonight, April 8 - April 10, 2013, at 8p.m. All performances will be at The Den Theatre at 1333 N Milwaukee Ave. Tickets are $8 and can be purchased at pavementgroup.org.

The Young Adult Council is a unique program for passionate and motivated high school students who wish to learn the inner-workings of professional theatre from the most celebrated artists in the city. In addition to face time with these leading professionals, Council members attend the best plays in Chicago, learn how to analyze and speak about these plays and lead events for their peers around Steppenwolf productions. Council members meet once a week and receive a travel stipend for this rigorous and exciting work. The 2012-13 SYA season is focused on the role of social activism and civic responsibility in creating healthy communities.

Founded in 2006, Pavement Group is a Chicago based collaborative of theatre artists who look nationally for emerging voices to produce fresh plays that make contact with new audiences. The company is committed to immediate and immersive work that is thought provoking, not thought providing. Pavement Group unlocks a conversation between the audience and their humanity. Pavement Group was founded by Brittany Barnes (Managing Director), Julia Dossett Morgan, David Perez (Founding Artistic Director) and Tim Schoen. The company now also includes Cyd Blakewell, Jeff Kelley, Mary Krupka (Producing Director), Alexander Lane (Co-Literary Manager), Keith Neagle (Casting Director), Aimee Plant, Chip Davis, Heidi Koling and Jeremy Smith. Artistic Associates include Mallery Avidon, Matt Farabee, Jessica London-Shields, Michael Salinas, Cassy Sanders, Janna Webber, and Joe Zarrow (Literary Director).

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