Introductory Playwriting Series
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Choose 1, 2, or all 3 parts of this introductory playwriting series!
As a genre of writing, playwriting might be the most immediately rewarding. You can finish a script one day and have a bunch of actors performing it the next. You just have to know how to start. If you’ve ever acted in plays or even just been in the audience for one and thought, “I have a great idea for a play,” this is the series for you.
**Save $5 when you attend all three sessions.**
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PART 1: THE BASICS (with David L. Williams) - December 5, 2pm - 4pm ($15)
You just need to come in with a few ideas for a short play. We’ll tackle the biggest component of playwriting - conflict - and you’ll learn about the difference between conversation and dialogue. We’ll also go over the guidelines for a successful short play, and we’ll work on some exercises that will help you figure out how to make your ideas work on stage.
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PART 2: INTERACTIVE MURDER MYSTERIES (with Stefanie Austin) - December 13, 2pm - 4pm ($10)
For those interested in writing interactive murder mystery scripts - particularly the comedic kind - will learn some techniques for creating suspects and motives, crafting the plot, and engaging audiences. We'll discuss the importance of “fair play” and I'll share some of my personal rules when developing these stories. We'll have plenty of time for discussion and will work through exercises to outline a mystery of your own!
****
PART 3: SCRIPT WORKSHOP (with David L. Williams) - January 23, 2pm - 5pm ($10)
Take what you've learned from the previous sessions and draft your script. Bring it in to this sessions to workshop it. Your work will be read aloud and you’ll get feedback from the group that will get you even closer to a revised script that is ready for submission to any number of playwriting festivals or contests.
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About the instructors:
DAVID L. WILLIAMS is a graduate of the theatre department of Cornell University, where he was a four-time award winner in the Heerman’s-McCalmon Playwriting contest, and received his MFA in playwriting from the University of Nebraska Omaha. He has written more than thirty plays and musicals, and his work has been produced across the United States and internationally in Australia, Italy, Canada, Denmark, Norway, and Lithuania. His most recent productions include the world premieres of his full-length plays The Starving at Barter Theatre and The Censor at Throughline Theatre. In 2021, his book Disruptions, "A collection of fantasy, horror, and science-fiction plays about the little interruptions that change everything,” was published by Montag Press.
STEFANIE R. AUSTIN is co-founding director of Sock & Buskin Theatre Company. After many years of acting, directing, and serving in a variety of crew roles in community theatre, Stefanie decided to try her hand at writing and producing. In the Spring of 2020, after suffering from cabin fever, she enrolled in an online playwriting class led by local playwright David L. Williams. Three years later, Sock & Buskin produced her first murder mystery, Sin-ergy. Since then, Stefanie has written over a dozen comedic murder mysteries, which she published through her own company, Knock 'Em Dead Scripts (www.knockemdeadscripts.com). Her plays have seen over 250 performances across the U.S., Canada, Australia, and the U.K.
As a genre of writing, playwriting might be the most immediately rewarding. You can finish a script one day and have a bunch of actors performing it the next. You just have to know how to start. If you’ve ever acted in plays or even just been in the audience for one and thought, “I have a great idea for a play,” this is the series for you.
**Save $5 when you attend all three sessions.**
-----------------------------------
PART 1: THE BASICS (with David L. Williams) - December 5, 2pm - 4pm ($15)
You just need to come in with a few ideas for a short play. We’ll tackle the biggest component of playwriting - conflict - and you’ll learn about the difference between conversation and dialogue. We’ll also go over the guidelines for a successful short play, and we’ll work on some exercises that will help you figure out how to make your ideas work on stage.
****
PART 2: INTERACTIVE MURDER MYSTERIES (with Stefanie Austin) - December 13, 2pm - 4pm ($10)
For those interested in writing interactive murder mystery scripts - particularly the comedic kind - will learn some techniques for creating suspects and motives, crafting the plot, and engaging audiences. We'll discuss the importance of “fair play” and I'll share some of my personal rules when developing these stories. We'll have plenty of time for discussion and will work through exercises to outline a mystery of your own!
****
PART 3: SCRIPT WORKSHOP (with David L. Williams) - January 23, 2pm - 5pm ($10)
Take what you've learned from the previous sessions and draft your script. Bring it in to this sessions to workshop it. Your work will be read aloud and you’ll get feedback from the group that will get you even closer to a revised script that is ready for submission to any number of playwriting festivals or contests.
-----------------------------------
About the instructors:
DAVID L. WILLIAMS is a graduate of the theatre department of Cornell University, where he was a four-time award winner in the Heerman’s-McCalmon Playwriting contest, and received his MFA in playwriting from the University of Nebraska Omaha. He has written more than thirty plays and musicals, and his work has been produced across the United States and internationally in Australia, Italy, Canada, Denmark, Norway, and Lithuania. His most recent productions include the world premieres of his full-length plays The Starving at Barter Theatre and The Censor at Throughline Theatre. In 2021, his book Disruptions, "A collection of fantasy, horror, and science-fiction plays about the little interruptions that change everything,” was published by Montag Press.
STEFANIE R. AUSTIN is co-founding director of Sock & Buskin Theatre Company. After many years of acting, directing, and serving in a variety of crew roles in community theatre, Stefanie decided to try her hand at writing and producing. In the Spring of 2020, after suffering from cabin fever, she enrolled in an online playwriting class led by local playwright David L. Williams. Three years later, Sock & Buskin produced her first murder mystery, Sin-ergy. Since then, Stefanie has written over a dozen comedic murder mysteries, which she published through her own company, Knock 'Em Dead Scripts (www.knockemdeadscripts.com). Her plays have seen over 250 performances across the U.S., Canada, Australia, and the U.K.
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Where is it happening?
Nittany Mall, 2901 E College Ave,State College,PA,United States
Event Location & Nearby Stays:
Know what’s Happening Next — before everyone else does.
Host or PublisherSock & Buskin Theatre Company
