Play Cafe

WORKING WITH A DIRECTOR ON YOUR PLAY, on-line workshop with San Francisco Bay Area director Norman Gee, June 6, 4-5:30PM Pacific Time. WORKSHOP DESCRIPTION Norman will outline the role of the director working with a new script in different scenarios: readings, showcases, development, production - all musing on building relationships with directors, and perhaps what role they might play in finding a production. There will be time for Q & A, followed by an open discussion of di...fferent models of production and some optimistic suggestions for how to blossom interest in local work REGISTRATION & MORE DETAILS: https://tinyurl.com/yczwncah Suggested donation of $10-$20. Registrants will be sent an email with a Zoom link.

Play Cafe SCENE NIGHT Thurs. May 13 We will be hosting our next Play Cafe Scene Night on Thursday, May 13 from 6:45pm8:30pm, via video conferencing. Radio scripts and musicals (songs will be read, not sung) are also welcome. We welcome two actors to read scenes for us: Dan Kurtz and Marcie Rich. Kayla Minton Kaufman will facilitate. PROCEDURES: Submit your pages (reading time: ten minutes or less) in PDF format by May 10 at 5PM to [email protected]. In Subject Line wr...ite: Scene Night Submission. Priority will be given to Play Cafe Members (visit our website https://www.playcafe.org/membership to become a member). By May 12 we will announce the scenes which will be read. If your scene is selected, you will be asked to make an online payment to participate ($10 for members, $15 for non-members). Attendance is free for students. You will be given instructions on how to participate in our video conferencing call via Zoom. Please indicate if you are available for the Monday, May 17 Scene Afternoon if your work can not be read at the May 13 event. There is no fee to attend if you are not submitting a script. Write to [email protected] to request instructions on how to participate without a scene. Questions? Write to: [email protected]

JEDI DRAMATURGY WORKSHOP - JEDI stands for justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion. Sunday, May 16, 4PM 5:30PM Pacific Time, presented by dramaturg Melissa Hillman on line. REGISTRATION & MORE DETAILS: https://tinyurl.com/re4pztbn Workshop Description: This workshop is designed to give playwrights an introduction to engaging with JEDI in your work in thoughtful, productive ways. We’ll address: Why we no longer say color-blind or handicapped & more on the latest... terminology Recognizing racist and racialized tropes-- including what racialized means-- and elevating your work above them Writing disability without ableism The dangers of ironic bigotry Intent vs Impact And other tips for writing characters whose identities are different than yours. This one workshop can only cover the tip of the iceberg, so after the workshop, you’ll be given a handout full of links and book recommendations for further study. REGISTRATION & MORE DETAILS: https://tinyurl.com/re4pztbn Suggested donation of $15-$25. Registrants will be sent an email with a Zoom link.

DIRECTORS - YOUR BABY’S NURSEMAID, on-line workshop with San Francisco Bay Area director Norman Gee, June 6, 4-5:30PM Pacific Time. https://tinyurl.com/yczwncah WORKSHOP DESCRIPTION Norman will outline the role of the director working with a new script in different scenarios: readings, showcases, development, production - all musing on building relationships with directors, and perhaps what role they might play in finding a production. There will be time for Q & A, followed ...by an open discussion of different models of production and some optimistic suggestions for how to blossom interest in local work. ABOUT NORMAN GEE Norman draws on his experiences as a San Francisco Bay Area actor and director working with the new works companies like Thick Description, Each One Reach One, Stagebridge, Central Works and Playground; producing with African-American Shakespeare Company, and with his own theater, Oakland Public Theater. He has served on the Selection Committee and Board for Bay Area Playwright's Foundation; and currently oversees a writing program with the Eugene O'Neill National Foundation and serves on Play Café’s Advisory Board. Norman is also the co-host with Reg Clay of the podcast The YAY, a mostly weekly look at "Life in the theater & the theater of life". Interviewing folks from the local theater scene, you can find The YAY at https://soundcloud.com/user-346794914, or through the Facebook page. REGISTRATION & MORE DETAILS: https://tinyurl.com/yczwncah Suggested donation of $10-$20. Registrants will be sent an email with a Zoom link.

COMING SOON! April 25 at 4PM Pacific Time - WRITING FOR THE EAR: THE VISUAL ART & CRAFT OF AUDIO (RADIO) DRAMA presented by Rick Toscan, a virtual Play Cafe offering. Details & Registration: https://tinyurl.com/37799adt WORKSHOP DESCRIPTION: Radio drama audio drama or fiction podcasts as it’s called now is often thought of as an experience for our ears, but it’s actually a highly visual form of storytelling. We’ll explore audio drama structure, story elements and pattern...s, dialogue, the uses of screenwriting and playwriting techniques, the incorporation of sound effects and environmental ambience, script formats, and the techniques of audio docudramas like Serial the most popular form of audio drama today. We’ll compare US practices with those in the UK where the development of techniques has been continuous, and implications for writers in the current US transition from nonprofit to commercial studio production of fiction podcasts. And we’ll examine what’s helpful for writers to know about audio production in creating compelling scripts for this visual theatre of the mind. Workshop participants will receive a resource guide on writing audio drama today with best practice examples, submission opportunities, and Word templates for US and UK/BBC script formats. REGISTRATION & MORE DETAILS: https://tinyurl.com/37799adt Dramatists Guild, TBA & Play Cafe Members: $15, Non-members: $25. Registrants will be sent an email with a Zoom link. The Resource Guide will be sent via email close to the date of the workshop. QUESTIONS: write to [email protected]

SCENE NIGHT Thursday, April 8 We will be hosting our next Play Cafe Scene Night on Thursday, April 8 from 6:45pm8:30pm, via video conferencing. Radio scripts and musicals (songs will be read, not sung) are also welcome. We welcome two actors to read scenes for us: Loretta Janca and Ben Chau-Chiu. Kayla Minton Kaufman will facilitate. PROCEDURES:... Submit your pages (reading time: ten minutes or less) in PDF format by April 5 at 5PM to [email protected]. In Subject Line write: Scene Night Submission. Priority will be given to Play Cafe Members (visit our website https://www.playcafe.org/membership to become a member). By April 7 we will announce the scenes which will be read. If your scene is selected, you will be asked to make an online payment to participate ($10 for members, $15 for non-members). Attendance is free for students. You will be given instructions on how to participate in our video conferencing call via Zoom. Please indicate if you are available for the Monday, April 19 Scene Afternoon if your work can not be read at the April 8 event. There is no fee to attend if you are not submitting a script. Write to [email protected] to request instructions on how to participate without a scene. Questions? Write to: [email protected]