Village Playhouse Presents the Young Person’s Playwriting Project 2016

Village Playhouse presents their 2016 installation of the Young Person’s Playwriting Project at 7:30pm on December 2-3, 9-10, 16-17, with a final matinee performance on Sunday, December 18, at 2:00pm. All performances are at Inspiration Studios in West Allis.

Producer Tom Zuehlke explains, “Four budding high school and middle school authors spent their Wednesdays this summer learning about the art and craft of playwriting and composing these plays.  These four scripts represent a youthful look at some very adult subjects, giving an interesting perspective to both context and content. It has been a pleasure to watch these talented teenagers grow and nurture their work from page to stage.”

The Dallas Shooting was written by Kyra Price, an 8^th grader at St. Frances Cabrini, in West Bend. She was inspired to write about the shopping mall shootings because she knew someone who was present when these events took place.

This is veteran actor Scott Stenstrup’s first opportunity to direct a play with the Village Playhouse.  “The shooting of police officers is a very relevant topic today.  But it amazes me how well some of our high schoolers can write… and how imaginative they are!”

Switch was written by Kate Highdudis, a 7th grader at Longfellow Middle School who enjoys volunteering at the Wisconsin Humane Society. Although she has appeared on the Village Playhouse stage several times, she is very excited to have her first written play brought to life.

“Kate’s play is a psychological piece that gave great room for the actors to play,” according to director Rita Bates. “It is a thrill for me to encourage young playwrights by helping to bring their work to life.” 

After performing in many plays with the Village Playhouse and singing with the Bel Canto Boys Chorus, Wauwatosa East 9^th grader Nicholas Hightdudis wanted to try his hand at writing a play of his own. He is thrilled to offer Alex & Jamie, which director Paul Zaragoza was happy to take on. 

“Young people bring a certain energy and harness it into their craft, which is beautiful,” says Zaragoza. “This play has two young actors going through the trouble of realizing that something or someone is dictating their every move. But they decided to let fate takes its course.”

Veteran actor Scott Sorensen is honing his directing skills with To Heal The Wounds by Max Erickson, a senior at Waukesha West High School, who hopes to continue his studies of theatre arts in college in order to make a career of it, on or off stage.

“The title is a bit disturbing, given the actions of the play,” says Sorensen. “There is a multitude of twists and turns that are sure to surprise the audience, but it’s a good show and very well written. I find it very interesting that this piece was written by a teenager.”

Performances will take place December 2-3, 9-10, 16-17 at 7:30pm, with a final matinee performance on Sunday, December 18, at 2:00pm.  All performances will take place at Inspiration Studios, 1500 S. 73^rd Street, in West Allis.

Tickets are $17 for adults; $15 for students and seniors and are available by emailing YPPP@villageplayhouse.org or by calling 414 207-4VPW.

For additional information, visit the website:  www.villageplayhouse.org. 

Inspiration Studios opened its doors to the West Allis community on March 1, 2014, with the intention of providing varied styles of art and theatre to the broader community, focusing particularly on the emergence of new artists and their works.

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.