On Saturday, May 21st, Touchstone Theatre and hundreds of guests from the community–teachers, artists, parents, children, school administrators, program funders and, above all, the 2011 Young Playwrights–gathered in celebration of youthful imagination and the transformative power of the creative & performing arts.  Thanks to all to attended the event and showed their support.

A special thanks to our Young Playwrights’ Lab program coordinators, Yadira Castanon (Central/COMPASS), Chad Correll (Nitschmann), Janet DeJesus (East Hills), Sophie Estrella (Lincoln Leadership Academy), Jennie Gilrain (Freemansburg), Sam Martinez & Wendy Seifert (South Mountain); to our guest directors, Chris Morris and George Miller; to Thom Hogan & Anthony Medici of byThom.com for your generous donation of photography & video services; to Meggan Gomez for set and prop construction help; to Sue Lucrezi for the playwrights’ reception; to Giant Foods for donations; and to the families of our young playwrights, actors, directors, and teaching artists.  

****See below for a short photo documentary of the 2011 Young Playwrights’ Festival.  (Photos by Anthony Medici/Thom Hogan/ByThom.com)****

Although there are only four characters in the play, Director Bill George also includes a large chorus that serve as puppeteers and stage hands for trees, doors, wildlife, and more! The result is a beautifully diverse setting that seems to move of its own accord. The Festival is on a larger stage this year, and the towering trees – painted and constructed with help from Anne, Mariel, and Meggan – really show off the space well!

Stay tuned for more updates on the road to the Sixth Annual Young Playwrights’ Festival!

The actors in A Tricky Story have the unique challenge of bringing non-human characters to life – and not just animals! They’re working with a combination of voice, physicality, mask, and costume to create an almost cartoon-like array of comical creatures.

Stay tuned for more updates on the road to the Sixth Annual Young Playwrights’ Festival!

The challenge here has been how to physically create both of the characters. For Alex, the body, we’re having two puppeteers manipulate the life-size puppet with arms and legs. For Baby Bobby, the head, one puppeteer has a long pole with the head at the end; we’ve tried using a kick ball and a soccer ball, and now we’re working with a helium balloon!

Stay tuned for more updates on the road to the Sixth Annual Young Playwrights’ Festival!

YOUNG PLAYWRIGHTS’ FESTIVAL! Saturday May 21st, 7pm.  Zoellner Art Center’s Baker Hall.

Here’s a sneak peek at rehearsals from the play Killer by Justin Bowman from Nitschmann – it’s an epic Medieval drama, featuring the Loyal Knight, the Baby Dragon, and the terrible El Fangor, not to mention a lovely queen, a dutiful doctor, and a short-lived king…

Killer has had two rehearsals so far, and it’s going really well! Jason, who plays El Fangor, choreographed a great sword fight for the finale, which is looking so cool. We have a lot of costume pieces that look like they’re going to work out well. We’re still fleshing out how to best present Lucy the Dragon – through costume, puppetry, or mask – but we’re experimenting with different options.

Stay tuned for more updates on the road to the Sixth Annual Young Playwrights’ Festival!

Touchstone Theatre is seeking local adult, teen, and child actors to perform in student plays,written by 8-15 year olds during our 2010-2011 Young Playwrights’ Lab.

Audition Details: Monday, May 2, 6-9pm at Touchstone Theatre. 321 E 4th Street, Bethlehem, PA 18015.  No preparation required–we will be playing several group games, improvisation and readings from the short scripts.  For more information or to sign up, contact cathleen@touchstone.org or call Touchstone at (610) 867-1689.

3-6 rehearsals will be scheduled at the discretion of each director and take place in the 3 weeks prior to the Festival on May 21st.  Please arrive at the audition with a list of your/your child’s scheduling conflicts during that time.

Touchstone’s 6th ANNUAL YOUNG PLAYWRIGHTS’ FESTIVAl will take place Saturday, May 21st, 7pm @Zoellner Arts Center’s Baker Hall.

Tickets are $10 and available by calling Touchstone’s Box Office (610) 867-1689 or online at www.touchstone.org.  Group rates apply.

“I have just discovered that I can express what I can imagine.” (East Hills Middle School student)

“I found out that I have a good imagination.  I found out that anything can be a plot.” (Nitschmann Middle School student)

“The things we did are so awesome and cool.” (East Hills middle school student)

…and from BASD teachers:

“I have watched withdrawn and shy student turn into creative and imaginative actors, directors, and playwrights.  Through a variety of theatre games, the students have become a like-minded community of young, enthusiastic performers and writers.  This experience has become a delightful one for me and I find myself looking forward to each session.  I consider it to be a privilege to be a part of this outstanding program.” (Jo Jackson, East Hills)

“This program fits right into English/Language Arts and ESOL–my teaching areas.  Speaking, listening, reading and writing are the “4 Domains” of the English language taught in the ESOL program.  [My approach to the arts] has deepened.” (Sue Lucrezi, BASD teacher)

Now we ready ourselves to meet our next batch of playwrights…students from South Mountain Middle School (Allentown School District), Central Elementary School (with funding from the United Way and COMPASS Community Schools) and Freemansburg Elementary School in Bethlehem.

2010 Young Playwrights: (from Left) Angeline Alozie, Sam Ferguson, Grace Middleton, Dalia Pandelios, Kianna Renninger, Milady Rodriguez, Makiah Galan & Cathleen O'Malley (Touchstone) Not pictured: Amalia Delgado. Photo by Thom Hogan/byThom.com.

Dear friends & supporters of the 2010 Young Playwrights’ Festival,

THANK YOU to everyone who contributed to making this event such a memorable evening.

Special thanks to Lou Cinquino, our brilliant Festival Committee Chair, Amy Meleck, Director of Development, and the Young Playwrights’ Festival Gala Committee, whose passion and hard work made the Young Playwrights’ Festival such a grand success.  The 8 student plays were performed for a sell-out audience and the proceeds from the Young Playwrights’ Festival & Gala exceeded last year’s revenue by $10,000.  This success was made possible by the generous support of Thom Hogan (www.byThom.com), our 2010 Festival Sponsor, and all of our additional event Sponsors and YPL Program Supporters.  All proceeds benefit Touchstone Theatre and our 2010-2011 Young Playwrights’ programs.

We are thrilled with the growing interest in supporting Young Playwrights’ programs across the Lehigh Valley, and look forward to expanding the program in the upcoming year, bringing academic enrichment, literacy, and a lifelong love of the creative & performing arts to area school children and their families.

Thank you to all of our partners–in the schools, onstage, and behind the scenes–for your commitment to the value and importance of accessible creative arts education.   Above all, this belief is at the heart of our work with young people, and we look forward to having you on board as we set sail for the future.

Warmest Regards,

Cathleen O’Malley

Education Director & Ensemble Associate, Touchstone Theatre

PS:  Interested in having a Young Playwrights’ Lab at your school?  Contact Cathleen@touchstone.org