Theatre Nova Selects Plays for Playwrights' Festival

After the success of Theatre Nova's inaugural Michigan Playwright's festival in December 2015, they are hosting the second annual Playwright's festival. This year the festival will run from October 18th-October 22nd. They are pleased to announce the selected playwrights and schedule for performances.

"Stockton" by Eric Bloch, "Cooking for Henry" by Joanna Hastings, "Why Dogs Howl" by Tucker Rafferty, "Mrs. Fifty Bakes a Pie" by Linda Ramsay-Detherage, and "Animal Shaped Pancakes" by Sean Paraventi were selected for the festival in the fall while "The Princess at Midnight" by Linda Ramsay-Detherage, "Girls Like Us" by Sarah Wilder, "Reflections in a Ditch" by Dane Harrington Joseph, and "Atheist Comedy" by Ron Riekki were selected for the festival in the spring of 2017, with dates to be announced at a later date.

Theatre Nova's mission statement focuses on new plays and new playwrights. Their goal is to work with new and local playwrights to help them develop their craft and to offer brand new plays for audiences. Out of these goals, the Michigan Playwright's Festival was born. Each year Theatre Nova hopes to use the festival to find and develop full length plays for the next year's season, as well as featuring 10 minute plays written by student playwrights from local universities.

The theatre's 2016 season included 3 original scripts from Michigan playwrights, 2 of which were staged at last year's festival; Katherine by Kim Carney; and Spin by Emilio Rodriguez. The third local script, Irrational by R. MacKenzie Lewis and David Wells was one of the most successful show staged at Theatre Nova. Additionally, "Bird" by Kristin Hanratty was picked up for a slot in Puzzle Piece's current season.

All staged readings are $10 or PWYC. Performances of "Mr. Joy" by Daniel Beaty are $20 or PWYC. Festival passes can also be purchased for $50. Festival passes include one ticket to all staged readings and one ticket to a performance of "Mr. Joy" by Daniel Beaty. Tickets can be purchased at https://www.artful.ly/store/events/10295

All readings will be at the Yellow Barn (410 W. Huron, Ann Arbor), which Theatre Nova converts to an 80-seat "thrust stage" theatre seven times a year. The location offers free parking, as well as quick walking access to downtown; nearby reference points are the Ann Arbor YMCA, the Big City Small World Bakery, Tasty Bakery, and The Last Word. The entrance for parking is near the intersection of Huron St. and Chapin St/3rd St.

Theatre Nova is Michigan's only professional theater exclusively producing new plays. Its mission is to raise awareness of the value and excitement of new plays and rising artists, and provide resources for playwrights to develop their craft by importing, exporting, and developing new work. It seeks to create a sustainable theater for generations to come, built on the cornerstones of accessibility, transparency, artist-leadership, and equality. It is a nonprofit 501c(3) organization. Visit theatrenova.org for more information.