Finalists Announced!

Finalists were announced today for the 2009 Eileen Heckart Drama for Seniors Competition, hosted by the Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee Theatre Research Institute at The Ohio State University. There were 510 plays submitted to the third competition. Winning plays, and first-runners-up, will receive staged readings at The Ohio State University during the 2009-2010 academic year. Winning writers are not required to attend.

Further information: 614/292-8238 (voice), 614/292-3222 (FAX), woods.1@osu.edu; www.heckartdrama.blogspot.com


One act

Abrams, Tevia E. New York, New York Marge and Jack
Conlon, Richard P St. Charles, Illinois send forth thy mercies
Dubois, Katherine Boulder, Colo. Volunteer Work
Schutzman, Steven Baltimore, MD Tammy
Toohey, Rosemary Frisino Baltimore, MD Tilapia

Ten minute

Armour, Toby (Ms.) East Haven, Conn. Lifer
Chua, Damon Los Angeles, Calif. Dogs Are Evil
Steelsmith, Mary Los Angeles, Ca. Happy and Gay
Stewart, Douglas Santa Fe, NM Never Mind
Walker, Stephanie Allison Los Angeles, CA Melt

Full Length

Elliott, Paul Los Angeles, Calif. Exit Laughing
Orndorff, Elizabeth Danville, KY Aidan’s Gift
Sifford, R. Lawrence Washington, D.C. Murder in a Nursing Home
Spector, Donna Warwick, NY Not For the Ferryman
Traverse, Lans London, England Coleslaw and Coconut Cream Pie

The Eileen Heckart Drama for Seniors Competition honors Eileen Heckart (1919-2001), the distinguished American actress whose long career culminated in her stunning performance in Kenneth Lonergan's The Waverly Gallery (2000), for which she received the Drama Desk Award, Obie Award, and Outer Critics Circle Award. That same year she was awarded the Tony for lifetime achievement. She also was the recipient of an Academy Award (Butterflies Are Free), Golden Globe (The Bad Seed) and an Emmy (Save Me A Place at Forest Lawn). She was recognized with a Margo Jones Medal in 2000 for her long championing of new plays, having appeared in almost thirty world premiere productions. Ms. Heckart was a native of Bexley, Ohio, and an alumna of The Ohio State University.

2009 Semi-finalists named

Semifinalists were announced September 11th for the 2009 Eileen Heckart Drama for Seniors Competition, hosted by the Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee Theatre Research Institute at The Ohio State University. There were 510 plays submitted to the third competition, which honors Eileen Heckart (1919-2001), the distinguished American actress whose long career culminated in her stunning performance in Kenneth Lonergan's The Waverly Gallery (2000), for which she received the Drama Desk Award, Obie Award, and Outer Critics Circle Award. That same year she was awarded the Tony for lifetime achievement. She also was the recipient of an Academy Award (Butterflies Are Free), Golden Globe (The Bad Seed) and an Emmy (Save Me A Place at Forest Lawn). She was recognized with a Margo Jones Medal in 2000 for her long championing of new plays, having appeared in almost thirty world premiere productions.

Winning plays, and first-runners-up, will receive staged readings at The Ohio State University during the 2009-2010 academic year. Winning writers are not required to attend. We hope to be able to announce finalists by the end of September, and the winners by late October.

Further information: 614/292-8238 (voice), 614/292-3222 (FAX), woods.1@osu.edu; www.heckartdrama.blogspot.com


One act

Abrams, Tevia E. New York, New York Marge and Jack
Conlon, Richard P St. Charles, Illinois send forth thy mercies
Dubois, Katherine Boulder, Colo. Volunteer Work
DuKore, Lawrence New York, NY Death in Venice, California
Jackson, Simon Edinburgh, Scotland The Rose Garden Party
Kinast, Robert L. Prairie Village, Kansas The Leftover Couple
Klarup, Pamela Chicago, Illinois Seeing Siberia
Lerner, Harry Summerfield, Florida Diary of a Fading Rose
Lindsay, Barbara Seattle, Wash This Almost Joy
Mellas, Michael Minneapolis, Minn Waiting
Potter, Jon Rockport, Maine Working
Rothstein, Robin New York, NY Breaking Routine
Schutzman, Steven Baltimore, MD Tammy
Toohey, Rosemary Frisino Baltimore, MD Tilapia
Werner, Raymond Pittsburgh, PA Night Song
Werner, Raymond Pittsburgh, PA Wandering Angus

Ten minute

Appel, Dori. Ashland, Oregon Feathered
Armour, Toby (Ms.) East Haven, Conn. Lifer
Bailey, Jerry Murfreesboro, Tenn. Clyde, Is That You?
Bohane, M. John Nokomis, Florida The Travelling Woman
Chua, Damon Los Angeles, Calif. Dogs Are Evil
Dempsey, Sandra Toronto, Ont. V.S.A.
Lerner, Harry Summerfield, Florida A Love Story
Lewison, David Los Angeles, Calif. Maryanne
Lindsay, Barbara Seattle, Wash. The Takeover
Martin, Maureen A. Sarasota, Florida Memorial Park
Musto, Edward New York, NY Shute Branch
Rigney, Mark Evansville, Indiana Porch Revival
Steelsmith, Mary Los Angeles, Ca. Happy and Gay
Stewart, Douglas Santa Fe, NM Never Mind
Walker, Stephanie Alison Los Angeles, CA Melt

Full Length

Antone, Tiffany Los Angeles, Calif. Ham Brown’s House
Elliott, Paul Los Angeles, Calif. Exit Laughing
Estrine, Judith New York, NY Pinocle and Roses
Gately, Robert Bethlehem, PA Going Solo
Guilford-Blake, Evan Stone Mountain, GA Leavin’ for Heaven
lathrop, mara Port Townsend, Wash The Lily & Lou Show
Orndorff, Elizabeth Danville, KY Aidan’s Gift
Rao, Diane New Concord, OH Sunset: Sunrise
Siegel, Adam New York, NY The Legacy
Sheldon, Carol Novato, Calif. Last Call
Sifford, R. Lawrence Washington, D.C. Murder in a Nursing Home
Spector, Donna Warwick, NY Not For the Ferryman
Toohey, Rosemary Frisino Baltimore, MD Gladys in Wonderland
Traverse, Lans London, England Coleslaw and Coconut Cream Pie
West, Ellen Portland, Oregon Losing Things

Readings scheduled, although still haven't pried the last few evaluations

Hosting a retreat for playwrights, members of the International Centre for Women Playwrights, this week, so that's distracted me from getting the final few evaluations. But we do have a schedule for the readings of the winners: here's the listing sent to the local newspaper today:

Sunday, November 15, 2009
Staged reading of the winner of the Eileen Heckart Drama for Seniors 2009 Competition, full-length play category. 7:00 p.m., New Works Lab, Drake Performance and Event Center, 1849 Cannon Drive, on the Ohio State University campus. Free. For further information, www.heckartdrama.blogspot.com


Sunday, February 28, 2010
Staged reading of the winner and first runner-up of the Eileen Heckart Drama for Seniors 2009 Competition, one-act play category. 7:00 p.m., New Works Lab, Drake Performance and Event Center, 1849 Cannon Drive, on the Ohio State University campus. Free. For further information, www.heckartdrama.blogspot.com

Sunday, May 30, 2010
Staged reading of the winners of the Eileen Heckart Drama for Seniors 2009 Competition, ten-minute play category. 7:00 p.m., New Works Lab, Drake Performance and Event Center, 1849 Cannon Drive, on the Ohio State University campus. Free. For further information, www.heckartdrama.blogspot.com

contact: Alan Woods, Heckart Competition Coordinator, 614/292-8232, woods.1@osu.edu

Still waiting . . .

and so am I; last few evaluators are still promising to get comments to me. Don't know why it's taken so long this time around, and I do apologize to the playwrights, who have been extraordinarily patient! Hoping to have the semifinalists announced in the next week--

Alan

Patience! Running slow

My apologies for the delays in getting the initial evaluations completed; with the larger volume of plays this time around, it's all taking longer than I'd predicted. Hope to have the list of semifinalists ready by the end of the month, or early in July at the latest. Much thanks for your patience!

Alan Woods

Update on 2009 Competition!

Eileen Heckart as Mary Richards' globe trotting Aunt Flo on the Mary Tyler Moore Show in 1975 and 1976.

Total plays submitted: 510. That breaks down to:
190 ten minute plays
137 one acts
183 full length plays

Lots of reading for the volunteer evaluators! Hope to have some preliminary results in a couple of months.

Another Update

Everybody Loves Opal Playbill, New York, 1961

Scripts keep coming in; as of today, the numbers are:
112 ten minute plays
90 one acts
124 full length

lots of good work out there, and a week and a half before the 3/20 deadline!

AND NOTE: GUIDELINES BELOW, BENEATH PROGRAM OF EILEEN HECKART AS ELEANOR ROOSEVELT!