42 Playwrights Are Vying to Become One of Six Scripts Performed in MONDAY NIGHT PLAYGROUND

PlayGround is the only theatre company in California to have Statewide, Northern, and Southern California New Play Competitions. PlayGround's 78 Member Statewide Writers Company, primarily based in San Francisco and Los Angeles, compete to write original plays in four-and-a-half days. The tremendous diversity of California has infused the writers pool with many writers new, not only to California, but to the rest of the country as well. The November plays will be inspired by the topic "REAP WHAT YOU SOW". "As you sow, so shall you reap." (Galatians VI)

Monday Night PlayGround returns to Berkeley Rep on Monday, November 20, at 8 PM with a special Pre-Thanksgiving performance, featuring six new 10-minute Plays.

The previous week in Los Angeles, the 6 finalists' plays are presented at West Hollywood's Zephyr Theatre on Monday November 13, at 8 PM.

Tickets are $15-$30 and the 5-admission series for the Northern and Southern California subscriptions are just $75. For tickets or more information, visit http://playground-sf.org/monday.

Members of the 2017-18 78 Member Statewide PlayGround Writers Company have just four-and-a-half days to generate their original ten-minute plays inspired by the month's topic. The top six scripts in both Northern and Southern California will each receive an hour-and-a-half rehearsal and a professional script-in-hand staged readings at at either West Hollywood's Zephyr Theatre (Southern Writers Pool) November 13, 8 PM; or at Berkeley Rep's Peet's Theatre (Northern Writers Pool) on November 20 8 PM.

The 42 Playwrights of the San Francisco 2017-18 PlayGround Writers Company are: Lynn Aylward, Kathy Boussina, Madeleine Butler, Karen Catalona, Nara Dahlbacka, Rob Dario, Victoria Chong Der+, Ai Ebashi, Nancy Fishman, Elizabeth Flanagan, Jerome Joseph Gentes+, Akaina Ghosh, Lauren Gorski, Ruben Grijalva+, Garret Jon Groenveld+, Tanya Grove, Karen Hartline, Devony Hof, Sam Hurwitt, Genevieve Jessee+, Melissa Keith+, Kate Keleher, Katie May+, Alanna McFall, Jeanie Ngo, Cheryl Ossola, Ishai Padawer, Lana Palmer, Erin Marie Panttaja+, Ken Prestininzi+, Madeline Puccioni, Marsha Roberts, Annette Roman, Cleavon Smith+, Nic Sommerfeld, Aimee Suzara, Jon Tracy, Mary Weikert, Steven Westdahl, Zoe Young, Maury Zeff+, Lesli Zephyr, and Ignacio Zulueta+ (+ Resident Playwright).

The 36 playwrights of the 2017-18 PlayGround-LA Writers Pool are: Matt Ackels, Nayna Agrawal, Christopher Aguilar, Diana Burbano, Kathleen Cecchin*, Allie Costa*, Meagan Daine, Matt DeNoto, Vincent Terrell Durham*, Elayne Heilveil, Susan C. Hunter, Daniel Hurewitz, Jen Huszcza, Julianne Jigour*, Starina Johnson, Mark V. Jones, Jonathan Josephson, Arthur Keng*, Jonathan Kuhn, Mildred Inez Lewis, Dana Lyman, Rhea MacCallum*, David Meyers, Alison Minami, Scott Mullen, Rosie Narasaki, Nicholas C. Pappas*, Andrew Joseph Perez, Brittny Roberts, Jessica June Rowe*, Richard Ruyle, Joe Samaniego, Mercedes Segesvary*, Mark Sherstinsky*, Nicki Spencer*, and Jennie Webb* (* past Best of PlayGround finalist).

Recent PlayGround topics have included: "In the Beginning...," "Artificial Intelligence," and, as part of a now-four-year collaboration with Planet Earth Arts and Stanford University, "Awakening to the Dream of the Earth". The top six plays each month are rehearsed for just one-and-a-half hours each and presented as script-in-hand staged readings at Monday Night PlayGround, now celebrating its twenty-fourth year. PlayGround audiences get to enjoy a unique behind-the-scenes perspective, with a free Pre-Performance Discussion at 7:10pm. Audience members can also experience the thrill of being a producer through the monthly People's Choice Awards, helping to determine which plays and playwrights go on for consideration in PlayGround's annual showcase, the Best of PlayGround Festival.

PlayGround, the Bay Area's leading playwright incubator, provides unique development opportunities for the Bay Area's best new playwrights, including the monthly Monday Night PlayGround staged reading series, the annual PlayGround Festival of New Works, full-length play commissions and support for the production of new plays by local playwrights through the New Play Production Fund. To date, PlayGround has supported over 200 local playwrights in the development and staging of more than 850 original short plays and 75 new full-length plays, with 6 more commissions currently in development. PlayGround also operates Potrero Stage (formerly Thick House), a state-of-the-art 99-seat black box theatre in San Francisco's Potrero Hill neighborhood, home to some of the Bay Area's leading new play developers and producers, including PlayGround, Crowded Fire, Golden Thread, and Playwrights Foundation. For more information, visit http://playground-sf.org.

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