PLAYWRIGHTS PARTICIPATING IN THE 2024 PROGRAM

 

 

HANNAH FLANNERY    ‘Katabasis’

SHARYN HENDERSON    ‘Querencia Calling’

LOUISE HOPEWELL    ‘Vagabond’

LOUISE MENTOR   ‘The Protea Plantation’

*To find out more about these playwrights, visit our Playwrights & Dramaturgs page.

 

 

Our 2024 SCRIPT SELECTOR      N A O M I   S U M N E R   C H A N

Naomi Sumner Chan is a Manchester based writer, dramaturg and facilitator fuelled by salt and vinegar crisps and mugs of tea. In 2021 she was Virtual Writer in Residence with Melbourne Writers Theatre as part of UNESCO Cities of Literature. Her work has been performed at theatres across the United Kingdom including York Theatre Royal, Birmingham Hippodrome, Arcola Theatre and Theatre 503.  Her play DOLLARS AND SENSE was shortlisted for The Women’s Playwriting Prize 2021. Recent projects include working with Tamasha and Coney to create smartphone audio adventure Ten Thousand Heartbeats: A Local’s Guide to Liverpool Chinatown and leading the Young Company Writers’ group at Manchester’s Royal Exchange Theatre. She is currently a guest writer for Channel 4’s Hollyoaks. Naomi also works as a freelance script reader for theatre and TV. Previously she has read for The National Theatre, BBC Writersroom, The Royal Court, Traverse, Liverpool Everyman, Papatango and Theatre 503.

 

 

 

2024 SELECTION REPORT 

SELECTED
Katabasis by Hannah Flannery
Querencia Calling by Sharyn Henderson
Vagabond by Louise Hopewell
The Protea Plantation by Louise Mentor

HIGHLY COMMENDED
The Hatchet by Cassandra Magrath

COMMENDED
Transfusion by Stephen Najera

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Reading this year’s submissions I was genuinely surprised at the range of genres and themes the writers had chosen to explore. There was sci-fi, horror, period pieces, crime drama, coming of age stories and feminist political pieces. Each script was distinctly different from the rest, not only in terms of subject matter but also in terms of form and storytelling style.  It felt like each writer was writing WHAT they wanted HOW they wanted which is brilliant! And while many of the plays had an Aussie flavour, most if not all contained universal themes or questions relevant to those living elsewhere.

Reflecting on the scripts overall,l I’d encourage writers to consider what’s unique about theatre and ask themselves WHY they’ve chosen to tell this story live on stage. Many of this year’s submissions felt more or equally suited to TV or film. Suzanne Bell, Dramaturg at the Royal Exchange Theatre and winner of the Kenneth Tynan Prize for Dramaturgy, has a mantra, “Theatre isn’t Real” – it’s a magical space relying on symbolism, metaphor and suspension of disbelief from an audience who are literally in the same space as the actors. Lean into this world of imagination. The selected plays and those rated Highly Commended and Commended were the ones I found to have strong theatrical elements.

You probably already know the maxim SHOW DON’T TELL. During the writing process it’s easy to forget that theatre isn’t just about words but pictures  – theatre is where the word becomes flesh. (Can you tell I have an MA in Theology?) Give your characters things to do other than just talk, and keep the images on stage constantly moving. In each scene decide: what does each character want and how do they use what they say AND do they get it? Before submitting your script to theatres or competitions, find some people to read it out loud so you can hear how it sounds –  this will be an illuminating/ excruciating exercise that helps you identify clunky dialogue as well as discovering rhythm & pace.

With all opportunities like this there are “winners” and “losers” and naturally some will be disappointed with the outcome. However, ALL the writers who submitted to this year’s Page to Stage program should be congratulated and recognised with due respect – it is a brave thing to write a play and send it out into the world. You have done something most people NEVER will, so don’t stop now. Keep writing plays, keep reading plays and keep watching plays and who knows what will happen?                                                                                                             – Naomi Sumner Chan, May 2023

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

 

PAGE TO STAGE 2024 was administered with a grant from the Rodney Seaborn Playwriting Support Fund.
We gratefully acknowledge the support of The Seaborn, Broughton & Walford Foundation for the 2024 program.