PLAYWRIGHTS THEATRE ANNOUNCES WINNERS OF 28th ANNUAL NJ YOUNG PLAYWRIGHTS CONTEST

Playwrights Theatre is pleased to announce the winners of the 28th Annual New Jersey Young Playwrights Contest. From the 331 plays submitted by young writers throughout the state, a panel of theater professionals has selected four High School plays, three Junior High School plays and three Elementary Schools plays. In each category, plays were selected without knowledge of playwrights' schools or grade. Judges were not provided with any of the playwrights' information. The 28th Annual New Jersey Young Playwrights Contest Festival is a partnership between Playwrights Theatre and Premiere Stages at Kean University. The readings will feature professional actors and directors. WHEN: Monday, May 23, at 10 AM for the Elementary and Junior High Division winners and on Tuesday, May 24, at 10 AM for the High School Division winners’ plays. WHERE: University Center's Little Theatre at Kean University, 1000 Morris Avenue, Union  TICKETS: Admission to the readings is free, but reservations are required, as seating is limited. Reservations can be made by calling Jim DeVivo at 973.514.1787 X14 or via e-mail njypf@ptnj.org. High School Division (grades 10-12) Sam Gelman, an 11th grade student from The Pingry School in Martinsville, for his play For the Sake of America: A Story of Patriotism. Michelle Cheripka, an 11th grade student from Bergen County Academies in Hackensack, for her play Yesterday. Jenna Postiglione, a 10th grade student from The Peddie School in Hightstown, for her play The Prologue to After. Justine DeSilva, an 11th grade student from Bergen County Academies in Hackensack, for her play Wacky Wednesday. Ms. DeSilva was also a winner in last year’s contest for her play Why You. The aforementioned winners will receive a New Jersey Governor’s Award in Arts Education, which is co-sponsored by New Jersey Arts Education Partnership and the New Jersey Department of Education, at the Governor’s Awards Ceremony on May 5, 2011, at 4:30 PM at the State Museum auditorium in Trenton. The Governor’s Award is the highest honor in arts education in New Jersey. “We are very proud of these writers, and of the schools, parents, and friends who support them,” said John Pietrowski, Artistic Director. “We are looking forward to seeing how these works change and grow in the development and rehearsal process, and how, in the hands of our professional actors and directors, they will be brought to life.” Junior High School Division (grades 7-9)  Ryan Kelly, a 9th grade student from Union County Academy, for Performing Arts in Scotch Plains for her play Cellar Door. Joy Ho, an 8th grade student from Columbia Middle School in Berkeley Heights for her play Mozart’s Silhouette. Rachel Skerker, an 8th grade student from Columbia Middle School in Berkeley Heights for her play Winter Sun. The Elementary School Division (grades 4-6) Finn Gannon, a 4th grade student from St. Vincent Martyr School in Madison, for his play There’s Nothing to Do!  Elizabeth Kilgore, a 4th grade student from St. Vincent Martyr School in Madison, for her play The Easy World. Caroline Hoerner, a 6th grade student from Chatham Middle School in Chatham, for her play The Wizard’s Candy. Honorable Mention went to Emma Q. Baxter, a 6th grader student from Randolph Middle School in Randolph, for her play Race. Casey Murphy, a 9th grade student from Union County Academy for Performing Arts in Scotch Plains, for her play Time is Fleeting. Lacey Davies, an 11th grade student from Bergen County Academies in Hackensack, for her play Happy Days. Molly Kirschner, an 11th grade student from Bergen County Academies in Hackensack, for her play Writer’s Iris.

About the High School Playwrights: Michelle Cheripka is currently a junior at the Bergen County Academies (Academy for Business and Finance). Apart from her interests in playing volleyball and piano, she has always had a passion for writing, and recently developed an interest in playwriting. Additionally, she is involved in video production and recently co-directed the short film Chroma (2011). Previously, she won a Golden Key for her play The Detachment (2011) and Honorable Mention in the New Jersey State Bar Law Day video competition (2010). Yesterday is her first play production. Justine DeSilva is a 17-year-old junior from Ridgewood, NJ who attends Bergen County Academies in the Academy for Visual and Performing Arts. She is a dedicated and well-rounded student but her true passion is for her English and Theatre classes. Justine is ecstatic to be receiving the New Jersey Governor’s Award via the New Jersey Young Playwrights Festival for her one-act play Wacky Wednesday. She is especially grateful to be able to claim this honor for the second year in a row, the first time being for her 2010 play Why You. Sam Gelman, age 16, currently resides in Randolph, NJ. He attended the Hebrew Academy of Morris County through eighth grade and is currently a junior at the Pingry School in Martinsville. Sam has been dedicated to the performing arts for many years. He has been involved in all of his school’s productions, both on stage and behind the scenes. He is a member of Pingry’s Creative Writing Club. Last year, Sam won the Pingry Justin Society Creative Writing Award for Playwriting. Jenna Postiglione has been writing forever and was first published at the age of six in a Guest Young Author Contest by Lisa Funari Willever and Franklin Mason Press, Trenton. She lives in Millstone Township and attended Millstone Township Middle School where she won the Student Voices Contest in the Asbury Park Press in 2009 under the tutelage of English teacher and mentor, Mrs. Arlene Agulnick. In addition to her love of writing, she plays piano and clarinet and enjoys acting in the Peddie Theater program. She is also working on her first young adult novel. For more information about Playwrights Theatre, visit www.ptnj.org or call 973.514.1787.

If you attend the event, tell them you learned about it from the NJ Arts Maven! Subscribe to get free daily updates!