MFA playwriting alum Aaron Carter to be at MPAACT

2005 MFA playwriting alum Aaron Carter's play Panther Burn will be produced in Chicago by MPAACT in association with Prop Theatre. The play will be directed by Andrea Dymond, Literary Manager and Resident Director of Victory Gardens. In "Panther Burn", a group of militant black activists kidnap outstanding members of the African-American community. The aim of the activists is to draw attention to those whom the successes of the civil rights movement has left behind. As the kidnapping drags on, lines between captive and captor blur and everyone must take a stand between idealism and the seductive effectiveness of violence."

MFA Alum Reading at Abingdon

There will be a reading of THE CRITIC, by Melissa Gawlowski (MFA 2005), directed by Michael Page. Thursday, March 9, 2006, 7:00 PM, Abingdon Theatre Arts Complex, Dorthey Streslin Theatre, 312 West 36th Street, 6th Floor, New York, New York  10018 (Editor's Note: Melissa's play, The Critic, was her 2nd year MFA Festival play.)

MFA Alum Play Produced Off-Broadway

Recent MFA playwriting alum Qui Nguyen's  TRIAL BY WATER will be playing Off-Broadway March 12 - April 9, 2006 at The Culture Project, 45 Bleeker Street, NYC. Directed by John Gould Rubin, and featuring Arthur Acuna, Genevieve DeVeyra, Dinh Doan, Jojo Gonzalez, Karen Tsen Lee, Timothy McCown Reynolds, and Jessica Chanly Smith. "Trial By Water is the unforgettable story of the redemption of two teenage brothers forced to flee Vietnam by boat in the middle of the night.  When the ship’s engine breaks down, their dreams of a better life are shattered by the nightmare of being stranded at sea.  With hope fading, each brother must confront his own morality when faced with unthinkable acts of survival. Upending the traditional narratives of the Boat People, the play eschews stereotypes for a gritty, nuanced, and honest portrayal of the many compromises immigrants must go through to search for permanent moorings. "

MFA Alum Develops at the Lark

Chantal Bilodeau, MFA Playwriting alum (2002): There will be a reading of her new play PLEASURE & PAIN at the Lark Theatre in New York on February 16th at 7pm. For reservations, location, etc., go to www.larktheatre.org

Current MFA to Attend Stanford Workshop

2nd year MFA playwright Laura Jacqmin has been invited to participate in the University Playwrights Workshop at Stanford University this coming summer, to workshop her new play BUTT NEKKID.  More info on the new Stanford program from their web site: "Stanford University and the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival are pleased to announce the launching of the University Playwrights Workshop. This new program is designed to provide graduate students in playwriting with the opportunity to experience first hand the development process on a new play with professionals... Twelve playwrights will be selected from prestigious programs and brought together for two weeks during which they will develop one of their plays with a team of well-known regional theatre directors, accomplished dramaturgs, and highly skilled professional actors, culminating in a staged reading." (http://www.stanford.edu/group/newplays)