Playwrighting Workshop

Next weekend I will be attending the 2009 Saskatchewan Drama Association Provincial Festival in Regina, SK. It looks like it will be a great weekend, filled with exciting one-act plays by high school students all over the province. The last time I attended the festival was in 1998, so it should bring back a whole lot of good memories. I remember looking forward to provincials all year long when I was in high school, and always being so impressed by the plays I would see. This year looks like no exception. There are some great shows in the line up.

The real reason I am going is because the SDA asked me to judge their playwrighting competition. I was more than happy to oblige, and was very impressed with all the entries. The winner is a real gem of a play called Table Talk. It's written by a young student from Lumsden High School, Daniel Russell. I was impressed with the maturity of his writing, and also in his humor. The play is laugh-out-loud funny without ever relying on punchlines. Being a comedy writer myself, I know how difficult that can be.

Anyway, I will spend two days with Daniel and a few of his classmates, workshopping his script. I cannot tell you how excited I am to get into the nitty gritty of a play and see what makes it tick. It should be a really great time!