Premiere Stages At Kean University Announces Readings Of Premiere Play Festival Finalists

Premiere Stages has announced public readings of three of the 2020 Play Festival Finalists, which had been postponed in 2020 due to COVID-19 restrictions.

The Festival is an annual competition for unproduced scripts that offers developmental opportunities to playwrights with strong affiliations to New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania and Delaware. The readings will be held virtually via Zoom and are free to the public. A live Q&A with the playwrights will follow each reading.

"The pandemic erupted last March during the week that we had scheduled for our annual Spring Reading Series, forcing us to postpone all five readings on the day we were slated to begin." stated John J. Wooten, producing artistic director of Premiere Stages. "While we had to cancel, all five of the finalists received their cash awards and a promise that their reading would be rescheduled for a public viewing, which we continue to honor this month."

Three of the five finalists will receive professional readings March 19-21 through a partnership with the Theatre Authority, Inc. The fourth finalist, Scab by Gino Diiorio received a reading by Premiere Stages in July 2020 and the fifth finalist, Lyon's Pride by Bleu Beckford-Burrell is not available for a reading in March; though the play continues to be under consideration for subsequent development by Premiere Stages.

The 2021 Spring Readings will include:

Songbird by Rachel Luann Strayer (Friday, March 19 at 7 p.m. EST) - Jess is an up-and-coming singer/songwriter who doesn't want to talk about why she abandoned her career. In fact, she doesn't want to talk about it so badly that she hasn't spoken in months. Jess's sister, Brit, thinks a beach trip to their old family vacation spot is just the trick to get Jess to open up. As tensions rise and a young visitor arrives seeking her help, Jess knows there are words that have to be spoken; she's just hoping she has the right ones. To register for the free reading of Songbird visit http://www.premierestagesatkean.com.

My Mother the Sun by massi monfiletto (Saturday, March 20 at 7 p.m. EST) - When her mother goes missing in the desert between the US/Mexico border, Solana must journey out with a group of activists to bring her back. As her past begins to haunt her, she must undertake an extraordinary transformation in the hopes of keeping her family together. To register for the free reading of My Mother the Sun visit http://www.premierestagesatkean.com.

Year One by Erik Gernand (Sunday, March 21 at 3 p.m. EST) - In 1933 Germany, Anna struggles to keep her family afloat during the first year of Adolph Hitler's rise to power. When her brother Max arrives unexpectedly from Berlin, Anna's life is thrown into even greater turmoil when the true reason for his visit is uncovered and she's forced to choose between family and country. To register for the free reading of Year One visit http://www.premierestagesatkean.com.

Premiere Stages is moving forward with a full season of virtual and live programming in 2021 and all five finalists are being considered for a slot in this season or for expanded development in a subsequent year.

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