The New Works Festival at the Firehouse Center for the Arts opens tomorrow with my play “Encore, Encore!”You can check out the following press releases for more information:

• “Curtains up on the New Works Festival at the Firehouse”
• “Firehouse hosts fresh new works of theater”

The Firehouse Center for the Arts opens its 13th annual New Works Festival, which runs for two weekends — Friday and Saturday, Jan. 23 and 24, and Friday and Saturday, Jan. 30 and 31. All shows start at 8 p.m.

“Providing insight on the play-writing process from conception to presentation, this festival allows us to share with the community a rare and special look at the abundant talent that surrounds us,” according to the Firehouse.

This time around 191 plays were submitted from all over New England and were judged by an independent panel of theater professionals in blind readings.

Come and check out the festival!

I was interviewed the other day by Ann Reily, Editor-in-Chief of Newburyport Magazine, for the staged reading of “Encore, Encore.” Ann “grew up in Amesbury and has more than 13 years of experience as an editor and reporter.” She interviewed the director of “Encore, Encore” (Anne Easter Smith) a few days before she interviewed me. Ann Reily wrote her article for the local Newburyport News.

“Encore, Encore” is the opening play of the New Works Festival at the Firehouse Center for the Arts. The cast includes Gina Colombo, Tim Gurczak, Sanford Farrier, Eliot Johnston, James Manclark, Julie McConchie, and Michael Johnson. Many thanks to Jim Vaiknoras for the rehearsal photo below.

You can check out the article here!

Tickets are now available for the 2015 Y.E.S. Festival produced by Northern Kentucky University. My new play “Encore, Encore” will be presented on five separate occasions in the festival from April 16-April 26.

Keep an eye on the festival website for more information!

Northern Kentucky University has put out a press release announcing the three winners of their 2015 contest. There are also some other press releases about the festival from publications in the Cincinnati area. Northern Kentucky University is located within greater Cincinnati and attracts attention in the nearby theatrical community.

Check out the articles below!

NKU Announces Three World Premieres for Y.E.S. Festival

Here’s the Lineup for this Year’s Y.E.S. Play Series at NKU

NKU Announces 2015 Y.E.S. Festival

I was very fortunate to be able to make it up to Newbury, MA to attend the first rehearsal for the staged reading of my play “Encore, Encore” at the Firehouse Center for the Arts. The rehearsal took place in a small black box theater owned by noted playwright Steve Faria (thanks, Steve!). I met almost all the cast members for the play. I was very impressed with everyone and thoroughly enjoyed hearing them read the script out loud. Actress Gina Colombo will make a wonderful Dorothy Parker.

I also took the opportunity to walk around nearby Newburyport, where the Firehouse Center is located. Newburyport is a beautiful, quaint New England town – a cross between Cape Cod, MA and Newport, RI – with brick sidewalks and buildings from the 18th century.

Among other things, I came across the Firehouse itself and the New Works Festival poster in their window (can you find my name?):

Added to that, I also took some other pictures of the town:

Tickets for the staged reading of my play “Encore Encore” are available on the website of the Firehouse Center for the Arts in Newburyport, MA. Event-goers can purchase a pass to all four days of the festival for $40 or a ticket to an individual evening of entertainment for $15.

“Encore Encore” won the Pestalozzi Price for full-length play and is the only full length play being featured in the festival. My work opens the festival at 8pm on Friday, January 23, 2015.

Tickets are available for purchase here.

The final schedule of performances for the 2015 Y.E.S. Festival of New American Plays has been announced.

I’m happy to say that my play “Encore Encore” will be opening the festival on Thursday, April 16 at 8pm.

Additional performances are as follows:

• Saturday, April 18th at 1pm
• Monday, April 20th at 8pm
• Thursday, April 23rd at 8pm
• Saturday, April 25th at 8pm

The director of the play will be the very talented Ed Cohen. More information about Ed is available here. I have already had the pleasure of speaking with him at some length about “Encore Encore” and look forward to working with him further.

I learned the wonderful news today that my play “Encore, Encore” will be given its first fully staged production this upcoming April by the Department of Theatre and Dance at Northern Kentucky University.

Northern Kentucky University is “a growing metropolitan university of more than 15,000 students” just 7 miles southeast of Cincinnati, Ohio. It is one of the largest universities in the Cincinnati metropolitan area and a respected liberal arts institution. Its Department of Theatre and Dance has sponsored the Y.E.S Festival (Y.E.S. = “Year End Series”) biennially. The 2015 festival is the 17th such festival sponsored by the university since 1981. “Encore, Encore” will be one of three plays produced in the 2015 festival.

The 2015 Y.E.S. Festival will take place from April 16-April 26 (exact dates of plays TBD). There will be four separate productions of three world premiere plays (three 8pm shows and one 1pm show for each play). The festival  showcases the theatrical work of new and emerging writers and also gives NKU students the ability to demonstrate their talents to the world. I will be flown into Kentucky the week prior to the premiere of “Encore, Encore” to participate in the last week of rehearsals and the opening night.

Special thanks to Northern Kentucky UNniversity and theater professor Sandra Forman for their confidence in my work! I am greatly looking forward to “Encore, Encore” receiving its first full production!!

YesPlays.com has officially posted my play “Encore Encore” on their website for potential licensing by theater companies. The script of the play is available here.

• A PDF script of the play costs $10.00
• A license to produce the play costs $45.00 per performance
• A perusal copy of the script by mail costs $10.00

Thanks again to YesPlays.com!

I had the pleasure today of speaking with the lady who is directing “Encore, Encore” at The Firehouse Center For The Arts “The Long and The Short of It” Festival. Her name is Anne Easter Smith and she is a well-regarded historical fiction novelist whose works focus on the Wars of the Roses in 15th century England. Her special focus is on rehabilitating the reputation of Richard III – the oft-maligned king who is best remembered for his nefarious appearance in Shakespeare’s famous history play.

I am looking forward to seeing what Anne does with “Encore, Encore!”

Click here to check out a list of Anne’s books on Amazon.