Playwright John Yarbrough Wins British Theatre Challenge

New York playwright John Yarbrough's THE ROSE-RED CITY won the top audience prize at the British Theatre Challenge at London's Stockwell Playhouse, held October 20 & 21. The play was among ten plays selected for performances at the Challenge, chosen from hundreds of international submissions.

"It was an absolute pleasure to direct 'The Rose-Red City,'" said John Mitton, artistic director of the Sky Blue Theatre Company, which produces the Challenge. "What struck me most, which can often be key to a standout piece of text, was the musicality of the dialogue. The rhythm, the pace and ebb and flow of the play all work so well together to create the drama, tension and eventual reconciliation."

The audience prize awarded to Yarbrough is the only award given at the prestigious international playwriting event. The play featured London actors Robert Benedetti-Hall, Alma Reising, Rosie Ward and Jonathan Blakeley. All performances were filmed by London's Mini Mammoth Films.

"The play asks the question, 'How far would you go to forgive?,'" Yarbrough says. "Most of us likely never know the answer until the moment arrives."

Yarbrough's plays have been selected for THE BEST AMERICAN SHORT PLAYS anthology and have been performed at The Players Club in New York, the Manhattan Repertory Theatre, the Strawberry One-Act Festival, Theatre Southwest's Festival of Originals, the Pittsburgh New Works Festival and elsewhere.

UK-based playwright David Hendon's play RED OR BLUE? took the runner-up audience prize at the Challenge.

For information about the 2018 British Theatre Challenge and the Sky Blue Theatre Company go to skybluetheatre.com/playwriting-competition.