MONMOUTH — Eleven plays written by Maine middle and high school students, will read in the first Write On! Student Playwriting Festival, set for the Theater at Monmouth, Cumson Hall, at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 15.

The plays were chosen from among 35 entries submitted in the inaugural year of the theater’s playwriting project, funded in part by a $10,000 grant from the Stephen and Tabitha King Foundation.

General admission tickets for the event are $20.  Please call the Theater at Monmouth box office at 207-933-9999, or visit the website at www.theateratmonmouth.org

Write On! integrates playwriting into the middle and high schol curriculum to enhance academci and cultural literacy, creative expression and communcation skills. The 11 plays selected for performance range from five to 30 minutes, with plots ranging from ghosts sightings to bear sightings, fighting off zombies to fighting against parents, and starting at a new school to looking for a new home.

“The Ghost Boy,” by Aaron Lockman, received first place in the competition. “A Part of Me: The Glorious Past,” by Emily Stevens, grade 11, was the second place winner. Honorable mentions were awarded to: “Grandma’s Boys,” by Aric Belanger, grade 6; “Don’t Take Candy from Babies,” by Matthew Chalmers, grade 6, “The Young One’s Fault, ” by Gavin Diou-Cass, grade 7; “the Amazing Rescue,” by Ashley Harmon, grade 7; “The Likharev Incident,” by Alex Real, grade 8; “A New Generation,” by Jordan Sansaricq, grade 8; “Ester,” by Emily Webber, grade 7; “School,” by Isalbell Whitten, grade 7; and “The New Life,” by Ariana Wiles, grade 7.

 Tickets for the 2013 “Write On! Student Playwriting Festival” are $20 general admission. For reservations, please contact the TAM Box Office at 207.933.9999 or visit www.theateratmonmouth.org

  Submitted plays were reviewed by a jury of professional theatre artists and the 11 finalists participated in workshops with the artists to refine and revise their plays. 

 Write On! was developed in response to recommendations by TAM’S 2011 education task force to create a school-based program that address Maine’s Common Core Standards both for student learning and teacher professional development. Write On! includes professional development workshops for teachers, curriculum guides, and classroom visits with professional teaching artists continuing TAM’s mission to take learning in and through the arts to all corners of the state.

For more information on how to become involved in Write On! (as a teacher in your classroom or as an aspiring young writer) call 207.933.2952 or visit www.theateratmonmouth.org/education-school-programs.html. School application and students submission forms for the 2014 school year are available online. Student submissions must be received no later than May 1, 2014.

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