BOSTON: The Lyric Stage Company of Boston, in collaboration with Boston Public Schools (BPS), has announced its second annual Lyric First Page Playwriting Festival, to which students can submit short plays for evaluation by a volunteer panel of theatre professionals and teachers. All Boston Public Schools, Boston Charter Schools, or Greater-Boston area students in grades 3-12 are eligible to participate.
Submissions will be judged based on character, dialogue, plot, content, and impact. All playwrights will receive feedback, and a selection of student plays from elementary, middle, and high school categories will be scheduled for virtual readings featuring professional actors and directors during the week of June 13. Suggestions for a strong script and a 40-minute playwriting lesson taught by artistic director Courtney O’Connor are available on the Lyric Stage website. The deadline for submissions is May 6.
“Lyric Stage has long been the home for Boston’s theatrical artists onstage and backstage,” said Lyric A.D. Courtney O’Connor in a statement. “In our next 50 years, we want to be a home for Boston-area playwrights as well. With this program, we aim to introduce the joys of playwriting to more students in the Boston schools. We hope we can inspire and nurture this passion for finding a theatrical voice for years to come, and hopefully one day we’ll produce some of these playwrights on our stage at 140 Clarendon Street.”
Sponsored by the Village Bank, the Lyric First Page Playwriting Festival began in 2020 with the mission of providing opportunities and resources to Boston area students interested in playwriting. The inaugural play readings took place in April 2021 and showcased students’ talents with plays exploring everyday life, dreams, and even outer space. The festival hopes to give students an expressive outlet and help them realize their own potential to be theatre makers.
“Our theatre students and teachers are so excited to gear up for another round of Lyric First Page,” said Paul Sedgwic, Theatre Content Specialist for BPS, in a statement. “Last year was such an inspiring success. I believe this is the only playwriting initiative of its kind that offers an opportunity for such a wide variety of grade bands (3rd grade through high school) to write original plays and see their work realized. Huzzah!”
Founded in 1974, the Lyric Stage Company is Boston’s oldest resident theatre company. The theatre aims to promote inclusivity, education, and connection through live theatre.
