Miami University Hamilton Theatre presents
MIAMI WRITES
A program in support of student, alumni, faculty and local playwrights
December 1, 2017 in Studio 307
Admission is free, but seating is limited.
About the Reading:
- The reading is December 1, 2017
- 7:30 PM
- Studio 307 (307 Phelps Hall) on the campus of Miami University Hamilton, 1601 University Blvd., Hamilton, Ohio 45011
- A talkback follows each presentation immediately afterward. This portion of the evening should be part of the production in its entire; therefore, patrons are strongly encouraged to stay and participate. Each patron is given forms to fill out for each play. This is done to focus discussion and provide the playwrights with feedback not covered in the talkback session.
About Submitting:
Send play submissions to
- Bekka Eaton at eatonrl@miamioh.edu
- Electronic submissions only.
- Submit short plays or portions of longer ones. Maximum length presented at the reading—10-15 minutes.
- Each playwright must submit one play only
- If you are submitting a longer one-act or full-length play, please be clear about what 10-15 minute section you would like to have read. Submit the entire play. You must include a clear and cogent recap of the action preceding and following the section of the play you are submitting. This will be for the audience’s information should your play be selected.
- Scripts must follow the template below.
- It is highly recommended that you use either Times or Courier fonts. These are standard for play submission. If you do use another font, make sure it is a standard font available to all computers. A good guideline is to use only HTML fonts.
- Scripts must be paginated and playwright’s last name must be on each page.
- Clearly underline or highlight any stage directions you will need to be read aloud. A guide for what stage directions to include is to imagine what the audience will need to know that is happening visually. The less stage directions, the better your play will read.
- Include a brief synopsis
- Include the setting
- Include brief character break-downs for each character
- On a cover page include:
- Contact phone number
- Email
- Playwright’s brief bio
- *All playwrights must be able to attend the reading in person.
- Deadline for entries: November 3, 2017 by 10:00 PM
- If you have any questions, feel free to contact Bekka Eaton at eatonrl@miamioh.edu or at 513.330.1503 (c).
EATING ART by Roberta Flackwood
(Cover Information)
Robert Flackwood Contact Information:
Home Phone: (888) 888.8888
Cell Phone: (777) 777.7777
Email: robertaflack2345@gmail.com
About Roberta Flackwood:
Roberta is the 2011 winner of the Writing-Rookie of the Year Award given by Ohio-By-Night Literary Guild. Her play Stop Me, I’m About to Jump won Best Play of the Year from the regional arts organization, We Got Your Arts Wright Here in 2013. Most recently, her play Where Did You Put My Keys? was optioned by The Art is Good Ensemble, a LORT regional theatre, in Whackadoodle, Michigan. It will premier there in the spring of 2276. Roberta is also a teacher at Flavonoid Hills High School in Mount Ohyeah, Ohio. She has been writing plays with her 11th-grade English Composition class since she began at Mount Ohyeah 15 years ago. Three years ago, one of her wonderful students asked her if she could read one of her own (Roberta’s) plays. Roberta had to reply that she had none. Roberta began writing plays that evening and has never looked back.
Cutting from:
EATING ART
By Roberta Flackwood
Copyright 2275
Roberta Flackwood
Phone: (888) 888.8888
robertaflack2345@gmail.com
Setting:
St. Petersburg, Russia in the late 1890’s. The action of the play takes place on the streets, in ZLATA’s apartment and The Black Snow Cafe.
Synopsis:
In the artistically and socially fertile setting of St. Petersburg, Russia, a young Russian actress will stop at nothing to become a member of a famous and critically acclaimed St. Petersburg theatre company. She wrecks the lives of many of her friends and yet her goal is to shed light on the plight the Russian poor and working peoples. When does serving the greater good overrule the rights of the individual?
Characters: (in order of appearance)
Lev —60-70 to-ish. A gentleman of means and a patron of the arts
Leonid —60 to 70-ish. A gentleman of even more means and an even bigger patron of the arts
PYTOR Nikolaevich MOROZOV —20’s. Wanna-be poet. Worries he’s slumming when he dabbles in theatre and with theatre folk. Naive, but thinks he is wise beyond his years. In love/lust/-fatuated with ALYONA.
ALYONA (sometimes called Yelena) Alexevna Popov —early 20’s. Actress on the verge of a career. She’s beautiful. Her dress is that of a Russian peasant.
DMITRY POPOVITCH—64. Working actor. Not a star. Gets by. Drinks.
ZLATA—late 50’s. Poet. Largely unpublished. Some renown for her criticism mainly. Sometime university professor. Eccentrically, but not expensively dressed. Western influences in her wardrobe. There is always a scarf.
ANDREY Vladimirovich Suvorin—30-40. Sculptor. Watches everything. Loves everybody. Some Western influence in his dress, but largely Russian. Extremely poor. Everybody gives him food and drink without thinking. He is a genius. He is also a musician. He loves color.
Scene 1: Two Gentlemen Patrons of the Theatre
(The stage is sparse. There are no actual doors. The design should in some way hint of Russian Symbolism aka winter in St. Petersburg, Russia, 1896-ish. There is somehow a door and somehow above it a lighted window and scaffolding— someway for actors to move about up there. Nearby is a big metal trash bin. A large heap of clothing is wadded up next to it. Above the door is a worn sign originally lettered “stage door;” however, only the letters a, g, e, and r are now easily legible. Lights up on two gentlemen waiting. They wear large overcoats. LEONID has a better coat than LEV. LEONID smokes throughout.)
LEV:
I’m freezing.
LEONID:
I know. I know.
LEV:
How long until she comes out?
LEONID:
How should I know? You say that as if I do this all the time. I’ve never done anything like this before. Why do you always assume me the expert in everything we do? Honestly. It does tire one so. Just because it was my idea—
LEV:
All right. All right, friend. Forgive me. Absolutely. You are absolutely right. But still, what can she be doing in there? The curtain went down (checking his pocket watch) 35 minutes ago. Could there be a party? Tuesday night. What would be special about this particular Tuesday night, Leonid? Why a party? Or perhaps theatrical folks party every night.
LEONID:
Can’t afford it.
LEV
Just so. Good point.
(Slight pause)
LEONID:
Could be she has a fellow up there.
LEV:
No. Really? No. Do you think so?
LEONID:
She is an actress.
(Silence as they consider this.)
LEV:
God, she’s beautiful.
LEONID:
And talented.
LEV:
Well, it goes without saying. Of course, one doesn’t automatically exclude the other.
LEONID:
Who said it did?
(Beat)
LEV:
No. Really? Do you think that’s what she could be doing, really? She’s so young.
LEONID:
One can’t tell an actress’ age, Lev. It’s part of the art itself— to make the mundane irrelevant… Age ageless. The illusion illusory. Besides that, they have all kinds of tricks they can do with powder.
LEV:
That is true. The magic of the theatre and all that.
(They both turn and look up at the single lighted window… Shadows move across it.)
LEONID:
True. Magic. Yes. Beautiful.
LEV:
And at least an illusion of youth. I guess that’s all you’d need if you were in a play. Just the illusion of it.
LEONID:
Yes. She’s probably in reality somewhere around 40, I would guess.
LEV:
Remarkable. She didn’t look as if she’d reached 20 in the play, did she?
LEONID:
That’s the talent… and the powder.
LEV:
Illusion.
LEONID:
I am chilled right through.
LEV:
Me too. Vodka , Leonid?
LEONID:
Vodka with a vodka chaser, Lev.
(Exit laughing. As they exit, LEONID flips his cigar away. It lands accidentally on the pile of rags. Lights dim. End Scene)
Job Title: JumpStart Theatre Program Mentor
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