Young Playwrights' Theater To Premiere Twelve New Plays by Local Youth

On April 22 and 23, 2013, at 7:30pm, at GALA Hispanic Theatre (3333 14th St. NW), Young Playwrights' Theater (YPT) will premiere twelve new plays written by DC area youth over two nights of free performances.

Professional actors and directors from throughout the DC region will present these twelve plays written by elementary, middle and high school students from Washington, DC, Arlington, VA and Silver Spring, MD. YPT selected the 12 students to be honored in the New Play Festival from the more than 1500 students in YPT's In-School Playwriting Program in the spring and fall of 2012. The In-School Playwriting Program integrates the art of playwriting into the classroom in order to enhance student literacy, creative expression and communication.

"The New Play Festival is a celebration of the talent and creativity of students throughout the DC area," says Brigitte Moore, Executive Director of YPT. "YPT believes in the importance of arts education as a catalyst for positive change in a student's life. We are excited to present these twelve amazing plays and to show young people that by expressing themselves through writing, their voices and stories have the power to captivate, delight and inspire."

On April 22, YPT will present seven fun, family-friendly plays, delving into worlds where contemporary teens meet fairy tale princesses and the battle of cats and dogs gets a super-powered twist. On April 23, five of YPT's older students present daring new works, exploring themes that range from the struggle to rebuild in the wake of Hurricane Sandy to a sloth with an appetite for humans.

"I really want to keep on writing," says playwright Genesis Lopez, who is in the fifth grade, "because I used to think that writing was boring but now that YPT inspired me I love writing."

Throughout DC area public schools and public charter schools, YPT works primarily with students who are ethnically diverse, economically disadvantaged, and chronically underserved. Plays to be presented in the New Play Festival were written by students at Ballou High School, Bancroft Elementary School, Bell Multicultural High School, Chelsea School, Elsie Whitlow Stokes Community Freedom Public Charter School, H-B Woodlawn Secondary Program, Lincoln Middle School, Plummer Elementary School, Sousa Middle School, Swanson Middle School and Watkins Elementary School.

Seventh grader Marco Anderson is the first playwright to be produced twice in the New Play Festival. Marco's first play was produced in 2011, when he was a fifth grader at Plummer Elementary School. When Marco discovered YPT was coming into his English class at his new school, he was quick to share with his classmates the experience he had writing his first play. About being produced in the 2011 Festival, Marco said, "It was like something I couldn't believe was happening to me!" Marco's second play will be performed on April 22.

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