Six plays to be featured at the 10-Minute Play Festival June 7-9
By Judie Holcomb-Pack
Winston-Salem Writers will stage the six winning plays submitted to their annual 10-Minute Play competition on June 7 and 8 at 7:30 p.m. and June 9 at 2 p.m. at the Intergenerational Center for Art and Wellness, adjacent to Senior Services. The contest is open to any playwright in North Carolina.
David Ratcliffe, the 10-Minute Play coordinator, remarked on how the contest has changed over the past 13 years. “We have moved from selecting three plays that were read script in hand, to the current model of fully memorized with some production elements.” The plays will be on the stage of the Gallery Theatre of the Generations Center, 114 30th Street.
“To me, the festival represents opportunity. It’s an opportunity for novice and experienced playwrights, actors and directors,” said Ratcliffe. “This year we had 47 entries from playwrights all across North Carolina and our selected playwrights span the state from New Bern to Asheville.”
The winning plays are:
*“Best Worst Date Ever” by Judie Holcomb-Pack* and David Winship* of Winston-Salem
*”Halt! Who Goes There?!” by Bonnie Milne Gardner of Asheville
*”Kudzu” by Rebecca Holder* of Mt. Airy
*”Oriole” by Matthew Scharf of Pfafftown
*”Talkin’ Turkey” by Erica Allen McGee of Charlotte
*”Used” by Leslie Tall Manning of New Bern
John Hohn, co-founder of 40+ Stage Company, is directing the play, “Best Worst Date Ever.” Also an acting teacher, Hohn said, “Acting is a transformative journey that I find very rewarding to teach.” Ten-minute plays, as Hohn explained, “allow the director to concentrate on one relatively short scene.” He continued, “A scene in a full-length play is a stepping stone, in other words, whereas a ten-minute play is a completed bridge.”
Hohn has seen several of his students go on to perform in local theatre. He remarked, “Acting can be a journey of self-exploration, where participants draw on their own life experiences to create their characters. … It’s a journey that can inspire personal growth and self-discovery.”
Discussing the play selection this year, Ratcliffe said, “Our judges had a challenge to find six plays they could all agree on. This year’s slate is slanted a little toward comedy so it should be a fun night.”
To purchase tickets online, go to www.intothearts.org and click on Tickets. Tickets are $16 (including fees).
*Denotes member of Winston-Salem Writers.
