People who know me, know how dear I hold the Playwrights’
Center of San Francisco. PCSF was the first among the theater community to
welcome me into the fold. PCSF was the first organization to give me a reading
of my play about a fancy shoe. PCSF led to my first production. And so it’s no
surprise I was thrilled to join the board, and for the last couple years,
co-chair with the wonderful Rod McFadden.
In its thirty-three year history, PCSF has developed playwrights, nurtured and
guided them, loved and supported them, and often on a precariously low
operating budget. But we continue and we continue because we LOVE playwrights
and we LOVE what we do.
But we need help.
Before that, let me tell you what we do:
Twice a month, we bring together actors and playwrights for Scene Night. Pages of new plays are read and feedback offered. This is our flagship/workhorse program; the program where scripts are crafted and developed and nurtured.
Twice a year, we bring together actors and playwrights and directors and audience to share the work-in-progress, to get it seen by theater companies, to get is SEEN.
Twice a year, we bring together actors and playwrights and directors and
audience and create a pop-up production of short plays written and performed in
less than 24 hours.
And every spring, we have our annual showcase of short plays co-produced by
Wily West Productions called “Sheherezade.”
We have a fantastic and dedicated volunteer staff that put together a
comprehensive weekly newsletter filled with submission and networking
opportunities, discounts for theater and classes and workshops.
And this year we are re-introducing MASTER CLASS WORKSHOPS taught by talented
and celebrated playwrights. This season, Patricia Milton and Anthony Clarvoe,
will be our featured instructors.
Two of these programs, the 24-Hour Fest and The Master Class Workshop, are new
within the last year and our goals is to continue creating programs and finding
ways to support playwrights.
But we need help.
We need help bringing you great playwrights and great theater. We need help
continuing a three-decades’ old Bay Area organization and tradition, and we
need help building off that tradition. So I ask, from the bottom of my
playwriting-loving heart, give a little, give a lot to our grass-roots funding campaign sans Kickstarter or Indie-go-go.
For more on PCSF:
Check out this wonderful National Highlight on PCSF from Suze Allen for the Dramatists Guild Magazine (pg. 76)
Lily Janik from SF Weekly writes about Sheherezade
Rod McFadden, and Melissa Howell from Wily West, intervewed on KPOO for Sheherezade 13
TheatreStorm writes about Sheherezade
Carol Lashof writes about 24-Hour fest
Laylah Muran deAssereto writes about 24-Hour Fest