MEET THE FESTIVAL PLAYWRIGHTS!
Deanna Ableser is a theatre teacher at Dana Middle School in Hawthorne, California. Deanna was the recipient of the 2006 VSA Playwright Discovery Teacher Award and was honored at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. She has a Masters of Fine Arts in Theatre and a Masters in Education from the University of Southern California. She has been teaching and directing award winning youth theatre for the past twelve years. Brooklyn Publishers, Smith and Kraus, Lazy Bee Scripts and Youthplays.com currently publish her plays.
"BLACK COFFEE"
A woman and a man sitting in a coffee shop toy around with the idea of a simple kiss between strangers.
Directed by: Nancy Cheryll Davis
Cast: A. Russell Andrews, Thomas Bell, Jackie Marriott
*This play has been double-cast.*
Director
Cynthia Faith Arsenault is a psychologist, playwright, director and producer. She has been active in theatre in the Newburyport, MA area, directing many times for the Firehouse New Works Festival, Random Acts, and Group shows, as well as productions of “96 Tears,” “Four by Tenn," and "A Secret Remedy." Her short plays, "Head of Household" and "Hope Springs a Leak,” were part of "Got Group?" at the Actors Studio of Newburyport (ASN, 6/13). "KFC + F2F" was seen at Cape Cod CC’s “Play With Your Food" (9/13). Her monologue "It's My Wonderful Life" was in "Holiday Mishegas" (Actors Studio, Newburyport, 12/13), "Grade-A Group" (ASN, 9/14); and "Merry Little Holiday Shorts" at Onstage Atlanta (12/14) . "F2F" and "Wrong Number" were chosen for the New Works Festival at Firehouse Ctr. for the Arts in Newburyport (1/14). Last February her play "Head of Household" won Audience Favorite in all categories in Company Theatre's Winter Shorts Festival in Norwell, MA. Her short play "Wrong Number," was a Swan Day Boston selection at the Boston Playwrights Theatre (3/14) and seen at Readers’ Theatre Repertory (San Pedro, CA, 10/14), which company also produced her short play, “Insufficient Postage” (12/14) and is in rehearsal with “Head of Household.” Her recently produced comedies are: "Booze Cruise Blues” in “Grade-A Group” (ASN, 9/14); “Let’sTalk Turkey” in “Ongoing Holiday Mishegas" (ASN, 12/14) and “Black Friday” at the Greenbrier Valley Theatre New Voices Play Festival (W.Va, 2/15).
"MY MOTHER IN THE MIRROR"
A daughter visits her elderly mother in a nursing home. As her mother drifts in and out of lucidity, the daughter struggles to define herself in view of her love of, identification with, and impending loss of her mother.
Directed by: Kim Harrington
Cast: Franceska Lynne, Joahn Webb
Dan Borengasser writes plays and screenplays. Three plays have been published. His plays have also been produced across the country, from New York to Los Angeles, as well as in Australia, New Zealand and India. Three radio plays have been produced and broadcast. Three short screenplays were produced as well as a feature length film he co-wrote. www.danborengasser.com
"CRISIS LINE"
Trish Foster, a suicidal caller to a crisis line, gets more than empathy and certainly more than she bargained for from volunteer crisis line counselor Sarah Collinsworth.
Directed by: Diane Sellers
Cast: Jackie Marriott, Megan Weaver
Director
George Corbin is a member of The Robey Theatre Company’s Playwrights’ Lab and has had four of his plays performed in the NAACP’S Ten Minute Play Festivals – Hi Lo LA, Phone Booth, The Robe and The Window Man. One of his plays, Galveston, has been performed in The Towne Street Theatre’s Ten Minute Play Festival. The Towne Street Theatre also had a public reading of one of George’s plays – The Daughters of the Kush, and most recently, his short play Plantin was performed at the Robey’s Paul Robeson Theatre Festival.
"GRAVE CONCERNS"
A widow decides to purchase an expensive burial plot next to the grave of her favorite comedian, rather than that of her deceased husband, which leads to a conflict with and ultimately a stronger bond with her daughter.
Directed by: Mark V. Jones
Cast: Carina Doyle, Diane Sellers, Erin Nicole Washington
*This play has been double-cast.*
Director
Playwright Charlene A. Donaghy: Plays have been produced in New York, Boston, New Orleans, Memphis, around the United States, with recognition in Great Britain and Canada. Hansen Publishing Group will release Bones of Home and Other Plays, a collection of Charlene’s plays in fall 2015. Other publications include Best American Short Plays and Best Ten Minute Plays for Teens. Charlene is Festival Director/Warner International Playwrights Festival, Producing Director/Tennessee Williams Theater Festival, Producer/ATHE New Play Development Workshop. She teaches playwriting/theatre at University of Nebraska, is a founding member of Boston’s Proscenium Playwrights, core member of NYC’s 9th Floor Playwrights, and Connecticut Regional Representative of The Dramatists Guild of America. www.charleneadonaghy.com
"FREAK OUT"
Three old friends who lived through their tumultuous teens in the 1970s, their blossoming twenties in the 1980s, growing into their own as thirty-somethings in the 1990s, and now, as the decades whisk by at break-neck speed, turning fifty is about change and acceptance...or is it? When one friend holds onto the past, do the others want to bring her into the present for her...or for themselves?
Directed by: Raf Mauro
Cast: Nancy Cheryll Davis, Nancy Renee, Diane Sellers
Director
Vincent Terrell Durham is a writer in Los Angeles, California. He was raised in Binghamton, New York. His story telling skills were honed on the stand-up stage for over thirteen years. After stepping away from comedy, he was reminded by an old friend that he was supposed to have been a writer. Vincent opened his laptop and remembered that calling. You can follow him at vtdisme.com or @vdurham66. He is honored to have NOW premier at The 8th Annual Towne Street Theatre 10 Minute Play Festival.
"NOW"
The short stage play NOW is a glimpse into the lives of three women of 1973. The Women’s Movement along with The National Organization for Women are both in full swing. Each woman, knowingly or not so knowingly, has their own take on the movement, each other, and their roles in life.
Directed by: Nancy Renee
Cast: Tene Carter, Samantha Clay, Franceska Lynne
Director
I’m excited, honored, and humbled to be part of Towne Street Theatre’s 8th Annual 10 Minute Play Fest and look forward to what this year’s theme, WOMEN has to offer. Someone once said, “Words Carry History.” (so true Dusty) I hope the picture I’ve painted with my words resonates with you as a masterpiece! “We all have a story to tell ~ maybe one day, I’ll read yours."
"ENEMY OF MY ENEMY"
Everyone has secrets and some skeletons were meant to remain forever hidden in the closet. Four individuals are about to crash together on a course towards healing. Sometimes…“there needs to be a collision to make an impact.”
Directed by: Mark V. Jones
Cast: Samantha Clay, Tiffany Heard, Anthony Johnson, La'Chris Jordan, Erin Nicole Washington,
Megan Weaver
Elena Naskova's plays have been produced and read in Portland, San Luis Obispo, San Francisco, North Hollywood, Chicago, Nantucket, Mesa/Scottsdale, Sheffield - UK, New York, Toronto, Bloomington, Oakland, San Francisco, Madrid - Spain and Seattle. She is a member of the Dramatist Guild.
"BROWNIES"
Things turn nasty after Emily bakes brownies for her husband Roger and Roger refuses to have some.
Directed by: Raf Mauro
Cast: Colette Rosario, Richard Warren
Director
Cheryl Navo’s theatre involvement began in 2009 as an actor with KMC Onstage in Kaiserslautern, Germany. She spent several years exploring the roles of director, set designer, charge artist, and costumer before writing her first play. Her first one-act play, Parade of Queens, was produced by the Baumholder Hilltop Theatre and won four awards during the 2012 Army Europe Festival of One Act Plays. Her second play, "Hotline" was produced for the 2013 Pittsburgh New Works festival where it garnered three awards. Hotline was also produced by the Baumholder Hilltop Theatre for the 2013 Army Europe Festival of One Act Plays where it won three awards, including Outstanding Original Script. "Hotline" is now available from Dramatic Publishing Company. "At What Price" is Cheryl’s first ten-minute play. Until recently, Cheryl worked for the Department of Defense as a Training Manager for the Army Medical Department. She is now writing full-time.
"AT WHAT PRICE"
Trudi has just been given the news that she has a BRCA1 genetic mutation that gives her a much higher than average chance of developing breast and ovarian cancer. She has just left her doctor’s office where she learned the test results and was given the option of having a bilateral prophylactic mastectomy. While Trudi talks to her husband on the telephone, her logical Left Brain and intuitive Right Brain disagree on the best course of action.
Directed by: Veronica Thompson
Cast: Alexa Alexander, Aissatou Diallo, Jackie Marriott
Currently a full-time playwright, Julian Olf directed and taught playwriting and screenwriting at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, where he also served as Department Chair. His plays have been produced in New York, Boston, Los Angeles, Baton Rouge, Charlotte and Vancouver. His comedy 1-900-SEX-DATE won the Nantucket Short Play Award and was staged by the West Coast Ensemble. His one-character play, (PEOPLE ALMOST ALWAYS SMELL GOOD IN THE ART MUSEUM), was published by the Massachusetts Review and nominated for a Pushcart Prize. In 2012, his play JUDITH won a Julie Harris Playwright Award and received Equity readings by the Boston Playwright’s Theatre and the Jewish Ensemble Theatre of Detroit. In 2013 his play TWINS opened the 10th Anniversary season of the Boston Actor’s Theatre. Also in 2013, his short play WAR HERO was staged by Theatre Odyssey of Sarasota and by the Salem Theater Company. In the area of film, his screenplay ANTHONY, inspired by Shakespeare’s Hamlet, won a Gold Award at WorldFest International Film Festival, Houston and received an industry reading by The Drama Garage of Hollywood. In 2012, SKUNKY had an Equity workshop reading at the Abingdon Theatre (NYC) and was staged by the Roxbury Repertory Theatre at the Boston Theatre Marathon. More detailed information about the playwright may be found in his Dramatist’s Guild Profile: http://www.dramatistsguild.com/memberdirectory/getmembership.aspx?cid=39101
"SKUNKY"
While interviewing for a key position, the glamorous Charlotte charms the boss then transforms herself into an avenging angel.
Directed by: Veronica Thompson
Cast: Barika Croom, Ray Dennis, Colette Rosario, B.T. Taylor, Megan Weaver
*This play has been double-cast.*
