Young playwrights and Yale drama students team up for original production
The plays of eight local middle-school students — written by the young playwrights and designed, produced, and performed by School of Drama students — will be presented on Friday, June 22, and Saturday, June 23, at 7 p.m. in the Off-Broadway Theater, 41 Broadway.
Admission is free and open to the public. Seating is available on a first-come, first-served basis.
The production is part of the 17th annual Dwight/Edgewood Project (D/EP), an annual after-school initiative which pairs the middle-school students with Yale School of Drama mentors, designers, and directors. During the month of June, the students work one-on-one with their mentors and learn about theater and playwriting through interactive games and writing exercises.
D/EP 2012 will include students from Augusta Lewis Troup School, who were chosen by school staff including Lighthouse Resource Teacher Judith Goodrich, based on their interest in writing and storytelling.
The program on Friday features “Revor” by Saran Toure; “Chaotic Friendship Duo” by Paris Ransom; “What Are We?” by Saschin Choy; and “The Kings of Friends” by Nikolaos Constantopoulous.
On Saturday the following plays will be performed: “Helping out Cheat” by RaQuan Jones; “Little Big Foot” by Ashley Chapman; “Trust Me When Feeling Down by Daneel Morrison; and “No Such Thing As Perfect” by Kiyesha Smith.
The staff of D/EP 2012 includes Merlin Huff and Melissa Zimmerman (co-producing directors), Jack Tamburri and Dustin Willis (directors), Rachel Gordon Smallwood (scenic designer), Nikki Delhomme (costume designer), Benjamin Ehrenreich (lighting designer), Keri Klick (sound designer), Sonja Thorson (production stage manager), Brian Smallwood (technical director), and Maree Barbara Tan-Tiongco (assistant technical director). Mentors include Jabari Brisport (Yale Presidential Public Service Fellow), Ceci Fernandez, Sophie von Haselberg, Mary Laws, Dan O’Brien, Emily Reilly, and Jon Wemette.
Michael Walkup, a 2008 graduate from the School of Drama and former D/EP director (2006-2007) and artistic coordinator (2008), is in his second season as the program’s playmaking teaching artist.
D/EP 2012 is made possible in part by the Yale Repertory Theatre and the Yale School of Drama, the Office of New Haven and State Affairs, Esme Usdan, The Lucille Lortel Foundation, and individual donors.
