Interview: Playwright Samantha Miller Opens Up About DRAGONSOUL OFFLINE

Devon is split between two worlds - an exciting, adventurous life battling dragons online vs the lonely and mundane battles of everyday life in the 7th grade.

That's the premise of DRAGONSOUL OFFLINE, a new play receiving a staged reading at the inaugural South Carolina New Play Festival.

"When the SNPF was first being imagined, there was always a slot dedicated to family theater," says Festival Executive Artistic Director West Hyler.

Hyler and Shelley Butler, Artistic Director, have a long history of creating Theater for Young Audiences, and looked to TYA/USA, the leading organization for the professional field of theatre for children and families, for inspiration when it came time to find a new family play in need of development. In October 2020, as a response to field-wide reckoning with racial injustice and inequities, TYA/USA launched a program called ReImagine. Aiming to support the development and visibility of new works for young audiences by BIPOC playwrights, the ReImagine Advisory Council selected an inaugural cohort of eight playwrights from a submission pool of well over 200 applications.

"Shelley and I read through the eight winning plays," Hyler said, "and when we got to DRAGONSOUL OFFLINE by Samantha Miller, we knew we'd found the perfect piece for SNPF."

The story revolves around 11-yr old Devon. To him, there's nothing worse than logging off from his party of friends and sitting through another lonely day of 7th grade. When the student body president (and girl of his dreams) takes notice of Devon's natural leadership abilities in a time of need, Devon starts to wonder if maybe some of what makes him so epic online can also make the real world a little more interesting.

"While I was reading the play, my 11yr old son, Dashiell, was chatting away to his friends while playing Roblox online," Hyler said. "It was abundantly clear that DRAGONSOUL OFFLINE was the play that would speak directly to middle-schoolers about their contemporary lives, and give parents a better understanding into what their kids are doing while online, and why they are doing it."

Playwright Samantha Miller is an emerging writer who has built a career as a performer and playwright in the Theater for Young Audiences space. She's a member of the Writer's Room at Bay Area Children's Theatre and simultaneously touring as a performer with Kaiser Permanente Educational Theatre. DRAGONSOUL OFFLINE was selected as a winner of the ReImagine: New Plays in TYA grant, sponsored by the Kennedy Center, WriteNow, and the Children's Theatre Foundation of America.

BWW asked Samantha Miller to open up about some of her own dragons.

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First off, tell us a little about the creation of the play.

I was touring as a performer in a play for elementary schoolers that had a video game theme. The kids were so excited to come up to us cast members after the performance and ask us questions like "Do you really play video games, too?! Do you play Roblox? Do you play Fortnite?" I was the only member of the cast who really was a gamer, and the kids were thrilled to discuss the latest gaming news with me. It made me realize that I was probably a member of the first generation to have online games as a staple growing up, and that may explain why I've never seen a play that takes place in the metaverse where these kids spend all the free time their allowed to! So, DRAGONSOUL OFFLINE was an idea that was born and submitted to the ReImagine: New Plays in TYA grant program. Incredibly, it was selected, and I went on to have a workshop with StageOne Family Theatre and a group of amazing artists (and children!) that they brought in to support my development process. And now I have the opportunity the get this play up on its feet with SNPF, and I'm already making new discoveries with this new group of people.

What most excites you about seeing the show performed?

I can't wait to see the audience react. That's so essential for a playwright! I sit in silence doing re-writes a lot, often overthinking certain moments or jokes or character arcs. But when I have an audience - especially a young audience - all the questions I ever asked myself about my work gets answered immediately. If a joke is funny, kids will belly laugh. If they're a fan of the protagonist, they may just stand up and shout angrily at the antagonist. There's no mystery with young ones, and that's great for a writer.

What kind of dragons do you fight in your own life?

Ooh, great question! I personally fight the Great Dragon of Impatience. He's a sneaky dragon who whispers alllll the cool stuff I want to be doing in my ear at night when I'm trying to sleep. I have so many big, BIG dreams and goals and aspirations. And sometimes I really wish that Rome was built in a day. So when that Dragon of Impatience does come around, I fight him off with gratitude for what I've been able to do so far! Then I get really excited about what's next for me, and I can sleep peacefully.

What do you hope audiences will take away with them?

Ultimately, DRAGONSOUL OFFLINE reflects my own experiences as a young(er) person- one where I was most comfortable and happy when living inside the digital world, while struggling to connect with the 3D world and 3D people that I was forced to go to school with. It wasn't until I found my special interest in real life that I was able to balance between realities, and I hope this play will encourage young people to go out and discover their passion as well! (I also want parents to walk away thinking, "Oh, so that's why my kid is so addicted to _______?" I think a lot of parents will gain a new understanding...)

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Samantha Miller's DRAGONSOUL OFFLINE will receive a staged reading on Sunday, August 14 at 2:00 PM at the South Carolina Children's Theatre.

All readings will be free with first-come, first-serve open seating. Reserved seating is available for Patrons and VIPs of the festival. To reserve a seat, sign up for a class, or learn more about the South Carolina New Play Festival, visit www.southcarolinanewplayfestival.org.

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