Warner Theatre Announces 6th Annual International Playwrights Festival

The Warner Theatre will present its 6th Annual International Playwrights Festival held in the Nancy Marine Studio Theatre October 13 and 14, 2017. A two night event! The mission of the International Playwrights Festival is to recognize the work of emerging and established playwrights and to build a link between playwrights, the theatre community and our audiences.

The festival is a celebration of new works by playwrights from across the country and around the globe. For the sixth year, over 200 plays were submitted from across the United States and Canada and as far away as Australia. Nine winners have been selected and one play is invited to participate in the 2017 festival.

This year's festival is themed THINGS AREN'T ALWAYS AS THEY SEEM and the schedule is as follows:
WINNING PLAYWRIGHTS - per night:
Friday, October 13, 2017 at 8 pm

• CRYSTAL BALL by Donna Spector (NY) Directed by Earle "Wes" Baldwin
• SIGNING OFF by Steven Otfinoski (CT) Directed by Sharon A. Wilcox
• NEVER GIVE UP by James Hutchinson (Alberta, Canada) Directed by Katherine Ray
• MOUNTAIN LIFE by Stanley Toledo (CA) Directed by Keith Paul
• MARK MY WORMS by CaRy Pepper (CA) Directed by Taryn Glasser

Saturday, October 14, 2017 at 8 pm

• ITALIAN NOW by Charlene A. Donaghy (CT) Directed by Matt Cornish
• SAVING GRACE by Bara Swain (NY) Directed by Rebecca Russo Ozerhoski
• MR. ROYS' BICYCLE REPAIR SHOP by Cynthia Chapman (MA) Directed by Lucia M. Dressel
• THE MOURNING AFTER by John Ozerhoski (CT) Directed by Tony Leone
• A LIGHTER SHADE OF DAVE by Reed Halvorson (SC) Directed by Sharon A. Wilcox

To purchase tickets, call the Warner Box Office at 860-489-7180 or visit warnertheatre.org. Nancy Marine Studio Theatre Series is Sponsored by Northwest Community Bank.

About the Warner Theatre

Built by Warner Brothers Studios and opened in 1931 as a movie palace (1,772 seats), the Warner Theatre was described then as "Connecticut's Most Beautiful Theatre." Damaged extensively in a flood, the Warner was slated for demolition in the early 1980s until the non-profit Northwest Connecticut Association for the Arts (NCAA) was founded and purchased the theatre. The Warner reopened as a performing arts center in 1983, and restoration of the main lobbies and auditorium was completed in November 2002. In 2008, the new 50,000 square foot Carole and Ray Neag Performing Arts Center, which houses a 300 seat Studio Theatre, 200 seat restaurant and expansive school for the arts, was completed. Today, the Warner is in operation year-round with more than 160 performances and 100,000 patrons passing through its doors each season. Over 10,000 students, pre K-adult, participate in arts education programs and classes. Together, with the support of the community, the Warner has raised close to $17 million to revitalize its facilities. NCAA's mission is to preserve the Warner Theatre as an historic landmark, enhance its reputation as a center of artistic excellence and a focal point of community involvement, and satisfy the diverse cultural needs of the region.