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2024 Read and Rant
Athena Project’s Read & Rant program seeks to combine the sharing of theatrical work with the wider public and the new play development aspects of our former Plays In Progress Series while also fostering collaboration between playwrights and dramaturgs. Think book club for plays! Learn what makes a good script, discuss how it affects us, and explore the ways it links to the larger world. This monthly free offering to the community aims to raise awareness of the under-representation of women’s stories on stage.
Each month, we read two new and unproduced scripts selected from a nationwide call for submissions and typically meet every third Monday online via Zoom to discuss the works. Join us to converse with invited playwrights who bring an in-depth knowledge of the works and theatrical writing at large. Guided by a dramaturg, we also invite you to share your constructive comments, thoughts, and affirmations in order to aid in the development process of the pieces.
This month we will be featuring two playwrights selected from our Read & Rant lottery:
Emily A. Beck’ s Vampires
“911, what is the location of your emergency?” Step inside the control room and follow Elizabeth as she learns what it really means to be a 911 dispatcher on the midnight shift. Will she succeed? Or will the stress of the job and the toxic environment leave her wondering who to call for help?
Emily A. Beck – (She/Her) is a theatre artist from Chicago, IL. She graduated from Aurora University with a B.A in Theatre. As a classically trained actor, she has played roles from Helena in A Midsummer Night’s Dream to Andromache in Trojan Women. After spending five years as a 911 operator, which turned out to be her most theatrical job to date, Emily was inspired to write her debut full-length play, Vampires. Emily was lucky enough to spend 8 weeks developing Vampires in the Jackalope Theatre Playwrights lab this past spring under the direction of Calamity West. New to the world of playwriting, she is excited to continue to learn and grow. As a proud member of the LGBTQIA+ community, Emily is especially passionate about writing with a strong Queer voice.
Marina is horrified that her 20-year-old daughter plans to get in a rental car with strangers she met on an app to see a total eclipse six hours away. But when her daughter tragically dies, Marina takes her place. In this road trip play, Marina vows to live out her daughter’s ultimate dream – even if it means confronting how little she knew about her only child.
Katherine Varga – is a writer, theatre critic, and adjunct professor living in Rochester, NY. Her plays have been performed with Viterbo University’s New Play Festival (LaCrosse, WI), Benchmark Theater’s Fever Dream Festival (Denver, CO), Writers & Books (Rochester, NY), the Rochester Fringe Festival, 20% Theatre Company (Chicago, IL), Tantrum Theatre (Dublin, OH), Little Black Dress Ink, and Curious Theatre’s National Collective (Denver, CO).
After you register for a session, you will receive a confirmation email that includes information on how to access our featured scripts. You must click the link in this email, and it will take you to the scripts. We want everyone to participate who would like to learn more about these talented playwrights and their plays.
