Cygnet Theatre & Playwrights Project Feature TRAGEDY FORUMS, 2/2-16

Cygnet Theatre and Playwrights Project are excited to announce a very special collaboration - BEYOND THE PAGE - a series of discussion forums surrounding the creation of new plays.  These unique one-night events (hosted by Playwrights Project Program Producer and Manager Chelsea Whitmore and Playwrights Project Executive Director Cecelia Kouma and featuring distinguished guests and playwrights) will follow Wednesday night performances of Cygnet's first World Premiere - Stephen Metcalfe's THE TRAGEDY OF The CommonS.  BEYOND THE PAGE discussion forums are FREE to audience members attending the Wednesday, February 2nd, 9th and 16th performances of  THE TRAGEDY OF The CommonS at Cygnet Theatre in Old Town San Diego State Historic Park.  
 
The development of Cygnet's first World Premiere has been a fascinating and  thrilling new step for Artistic Director Sean Murray and Cygnet Theatre.  THE TRAGEDY OF The CommonS, created a buzz  from its initial presentation as a staged-reading in Cygnet's Playwrights in Process Series.  Premiering new works by well-known playwrights has been a goal of Murray's and the  audience response from Metcalfe's early draft was proof positive he had found the perfect production to mark this move. The resulting symbiotic effort, between Metcalfe and Murray, of taking that script from the page to the stage has been an exciting process as unique as the production itself.

The process is one Playwrights Project knows well.  This nonprofit organization, founded in 1985, endeavors to advance literacy, creativity and communication through playwriting programs and  theatre productions.  By conducting the annual California Young Playwrights Contest, professionally producing winning scripts and nurturing writers with educational programs, Playwrights Project is solely dedicated to the development of new works.  Their program - Play by Play: Cultivating Emerging Playwrights - focuses on playwrights between the ages of 19 and 29  and offers them the opportunity to workshop their current play with readings and one-on-one support from a theatre professional.  Playwrights Project is honored to have Stephen Metcalfe serving this program as a theatre professional and mentor.

To celebrate the playwrights' process, Cygnet Theatre and Playwrights Project are presenting their Beyond the Page forums with a specific discussion topic for each scheduled date.  Each event will be attended by writer of stage and screen, Stephen Metcalfe to discuss the development of THE TRAGEDY OF The CommonS (as well as his other works) and an exciting list of note-worthy guests.  February 2nd features: What Makes a Good Play?...What to Consider in Revising Your Script.  Special guest panelists include Shirley Fishman (Director of Play Development at the La Jolla Playhouse), Allan Havis (Playwright and Provost at UCSD) and Deborah Salzar (Founder of Playwrights Project).   February 9th features: Getting Your New Play Produced.  Special guest panelists include Seema Sueko (Executive Artistic Director of Mo'olelo and award-winning playwright), Ruff Yeager (Executive Artistic Director of Vox Nova and award-winning playwright), Tim West (playwright, Cygnet Resident Artist and COMMONS actor) and Chelsea Whitmore (Playwrights Project Program  Producer and Manager).  February 16th features: The Possibilities and Pitfalls of Writing about Places You Know!  Special guest panelists: tba.
 
Cygnet Theatre and Playwrights Project are particularly excited to offer audiences an opportunity to interact with COMMONS writer Stephen Metcalfe at each of the Beyond the Page forums.  Metcalfe boasts an impressive list of stage and screen plays.  His first produced screenplay was Jacknife, based on his Off-Broadway play Strange Snow.  The film starred Robert DeNiro and Ed Harris and was directed by British stage and screen veteran, David Jones.  He adapted screenplays for Paramount's Cousins (with Ted Danson and Isabella Rossellini) and Pretty Woman (with Julia Roberts and Richard Gere, directed by Gary Marshall.)  Other well-know works include It Could Happen to You (with Nicholas Cage and Bridget Fonda), The Air Up There (with Kevin Bacon) and Mr. Holland's Opus (with Richard Dreyfuss).  His plays, which have been produced in New York and in regional theaters throughout the United States, include Loves & Hours, Vikings, Strange Snow, Sorrows and Sons, Pilgrims, Half a Lifetime, Emily, White Linen, The Incredibly Famous Willy Rivers, White Man Dancing and The Gift Teller.   He is an Associate Artist at The Old Globe Theatre and is a member of the Playwright's Unit at The Manhattan Theatre Club in New York.

Cygnet Theatre and Playwrights Project encourage all aspiring playwrights and true theatre-lovers to enjoy this unique look into the creation of a new script!  The BEYOND THE PAGE forums are FREE following the February 2nd, 9th and 16th performances of the World Premiere of The Tragedy of The Commons on Cygnet's Old Town Stage located at 4040 Twiggs St. in Old Town San Diego State Historic Park. 
 
Tickets for THE TRAGEDY OF The CommonS can be purchased by visiting Cygnet's website at www.cygnettheatre.com or by calling the box office at 619-337-1525.  Tickets can also be purchased in person by visiting Cygnet's box office located at the Old Town Theatre, 4040 Twiggs St. in Old Town San Diego State Historic Park.

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