Durango PlayFest Announces Cancellation Of 2020 Festival With Help From Acting Alumni

Durango PlayFest, a nonprofit dedicated to the art of playwriting and live theatre, today announced the cancellation of its August 2020 festival in order to keep audiences and communities safe. The nonprofit's board of directors and Festival Director Felicia Lansbury Meyer will continue to work throughout the summer to bring creative inspiration to the Four Corners area and to plan for 2021.

Well-known national actors who've performed in the festival in past years continue to be enthusiastic supporters and prepared a special video message for current and future friends of PlayFest. The actors participating in the video include: Dan Lauria ("The Wonder Years," "Lombardi"); Wendie Malick ("Just Shoot Me," "Dream On"); Brett Dalton ("Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D."); Kim Brockington ("Guiding Light," "Asunder"); Mike Farrell ("M*A*S*H"); Laura Spencer ("The Big Bang Theory," "Bones"); Jon Tenney ("The Closer," "Tombstone"); Emily Swallow ("Supernatural," "The Mandalorian"); Carla Gallo ("Superbad," "Undeclared"); Andrew Leeds ("Veep," "Bones"); Austin Cauldwell ("Switched at Birth," "Invisible"); and Tatiana Wechsler ("Oklahoma!," "X: Or Betty Shabazz v. The Nation").

Watch the video:

"While we're disappointed that we've had to cancel the 2020 festival, we felt it was imperative to continue our mission of celebrating the creative work of playwrights," Lansbury Meyer said. "The new landscape we are all learning to navigate presents challenges for theatre, as well as opportunities. We are committed to finding innovative ways to continue our mission year-round."

Lansbury Meyer said that PlayFest's social media channels will keep audiences up to date on what past festival actors, directors and playwrights are doing, and information regarding promising regional and national theatre ventures.

ABOUT DURANGO PLAYFEST (www.durangoplayfest.org)

Durango PlayFest is a weeklong festival of new plays held each year in August. It brings nationally known and emerging artists to Durango, engages and educates the community, and bolsters economic vitality through the development of new works in an intimate and collaborative forum. PlayFest strives to make artistic expertise and experience accessible to students, educators and community members in the Four Corners region, and to provide a nurturing environment to playwrights for development of their new work. Partners of the non-profit Durango Playfest include: Fort Lewis College, a public, four-year institution that blends small classes, dynamic academic programs, and a liberal arts perspective; and The Acting Company, a New York-based professional touring theater company that also provides educational programming.