ScriptFEST 2009
the 28th Annual Playwrights’ Conference
(rescheduled from October 2009)
January 22, 23 & 24 (2010)
at the Owen Theater / Mars Hill College
FREE ADMISSION
It’s a weekend of new plays!
SART actors onstage reading
the top 5 original scripts,
the top 5 finalists of 200 submissions!
…with playwrights attending
to talk about their work!
Friday, JAN 22
THE ICE CREAM KING by Rosemary Frisino Toohey
7:00pm
Comedy
The hero in this full-length comedy is Lenny, the original nice guy. He runs an ice-cream shop in an old downtown neighborhood and in the eyes of some people, his biggest accomplishment at the age of 33 is concocting butterscotch sundaes. His sister thinks it's time he got a "real" job, his best friend wants him to be more of a "player" with women, his mom suggests that he move in with her and his grandmother, and the pizzeria-owner next door says he's got to persuade the landlord not to tear down their buildings and put up condos. Lenny is struggling to respond to this list of demands when a tearful young woman enters his store. Over a shared tunafish sandwich, a bond is formed, a transformation occurs, and we learn that nice guys don't always finish last.
Saturday, JAN 23
THE SPRING CLEANING by Elizabeth Orndorff
10:00am
Light Drama
It is the first day of spring in 1932 when Addie Malcolm sets out to clean her cabin in the mountain coalfields of Kentucky. Before the day is over her world of poverty and loss is devastated even further when she finds a $50 gold piece in her husband Joseph’s “chester drawers”. How did he come by it? Why didn’t he spend it during the last thirty-odd years—especially when their son was dying and their daughter, Tressa, deserted them. But Joseph has his own story, his own reasons, for dealing with his meager life. When Tressa returns home against her father’s wishes, the truth for all of them emerges—what would any of them –any of us—do if we were pushed beyond the limits of survival?
MOTHER BEAR by Jayme McGhan
2:30pm
Heavy Drama / not appropriate for youth 15+younger
Freely, a salt man for the Teamsters, has come to Coyote Pass Truck Stop in Green River, Utah in the guise of a long-haul trucker. His goal: to recruit Mother, the most feared and respected man on the road, along with his Disciples, a gang of notorious thugs who are suspected of hijacking trucks, to join the union and strengthen the trucking industry. As the wheels spin and true identities and motivations are revealed, Freely must do battle to win the allegiance of a man who appears to have no allegiances. But appearances are deceiving. Mother Bear is a hard-hitting, plot-twisting glimpse in to the underbelly of America's highways.
FRESH PRESERVES by Tom Godleski
7:00pm
Heritage Musical
SOUTHERN APPALACHIAN HERITAGE STORIES
As Stories-Told and Stories-Sung
Musical Guest BUNCOMBE TURNPIKE
1. The Mountain Duel - Barnard NC, pre1914.
2. Joel Holcombe’s Lament - Holcombe Branch, Madison County NC.
3. The Ballad of Baldy John and Jake - a ghost story, Sandy Mush of Buncombe County NC.
4. Good and Faithful Servant – a bible story.
5. The Southern Crescent – a story from a time when steam powered trains were still in use.
6. Lawrence Cole – Alexander NC, 1955.
7. Ernest Payne –a bootlegger, Barnard Community of Madison County NC.
8. The Beagle and the Rabbit – near Simpsonville SC, 1920s.
9. Little Omie Wise –Randolph County NC, a murder story from 1808.
10. Aunt Tildy - Anderson Branch community in Madison County NC, an American Civil War story.
Sunday, JAN 24
PRUNING THE FAMILY TREE by Daniel Gordon
2:30pm
Comedy
After a ten year absence, Christy Ferguson returns to the home of her mother's family for the funeral of her grandfather, Joe. As Christy’s mother, Ellen, her aunt, Barb, and her grandmother, Marilyn, write Joe's eulogy, Christy realizes there are episodes from her family‘s history that had not been revealed to her as a child. After several mishaps, including the repossession of Marilyn’s car and Barb's attempted suicide, Christy and Ellen discover that, right before he died, Joe remortgaged the house, bought a fishing boat, and was planning to abandon Marilyn, leaving her deep in debt. Once separated by distance and age these four women develop a deeper understanding and respect for each other as their perceived truths make way for actual truths.
THE MARKHAM MYSTERY by Jo Morello
7:00pm
Mystery
Kerrie and Phil Markham’s 25-year marriage is rocked by death threats from Carla, his schizophrenic daughter, who hears voices telling her to kill her stepmother and stepbrother. Phil has hesitated to call the sheriff, but now Kerrie is missing. While never doubting that Carla hears voices, Sheriff Reba Andrews and Deputy Joe Roma wonder whether a real person--not some hallucination--is giving her the commands to kill. They use high and low technology as they seek to head off her murderous mission.
SART's Playwrights' Conference receives around 200 scripts each year and a small army of readers/reviewers circulate each submitted script. Once all scripts have been reviewed, SART invites five-six finalists to the conference to hear their plays read by SART actors. Playwrights join the directors, actors, and audiences in discussions and critiques following each reading. One script may be considered by SART to be fully-produced on the Owen stage for a full-length production during the 29th Annual ScriptFEST (October 2010).
Since its opening season in 1975,
SART has produced 57 new plays!
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