Join us on August 12, 20 and 27 at 7:30pm for developmental readings of four new plays.
All readings in the Bare Essentials series are free and open to the public. Be sure to stay after for exciting conversation with the director, cast and playwright!
The 2024 Bare Essentials Play Reading series will feature four new plays by Georgia playwrights:
Aug 12 – FALSE AWAKENING by Jacob Ryan Martinez, directed by Lilliangina Quiñones
In shards of glass like the pieces of a shattered mirror, we see a man running away from his feelings of failure as a husband and father and from the fear of his own sexuality.
Featuring the reading talents of Luis Hernandez, Kate Arthur, Kevin Arbona, and Braian Rivera
Meet the Playwright: Jacob Ryan Martinez
Aug 20 – LIZ FRANK by Keely Herrick, directed by Kati Grace Kirby
Elizabeth, the heroine of Mary Shelley’s classic novel FRANKENSTEIN encourages the author to find a more satisfying ending to the wedding night of Victor Frankenstein and his wife – one where she doesn’t get murdered by a monster. Can you blame her?
Featuring the reading talents of Anna Holland, Anthony Nash, Mary Ruth Ralston, and Tyra Watkins
and FULL TERM by Jazzë A. Lewis, directed by Brenda Porter
Three women meet God in maternity and share their stories shedding light on the beauty, pain, struggle, love and happiness that comes with living life as a Black Woman during one of the most pivotal moments in a woman’s life, motherhood.
Featuring the reading talents of Asha Basha Duniani, Daja M. Rice, and Maya Hodges
Aug 27 – THE FANTABULOUS SHOWCASE OF LAURIE AND KACEY By Sydni Symone, directed by Charis Sellick
While Mom and Dad are arguing, two kids ease their fears and express their anxiety by making up a puppet show with stuffed animals as their audience.
Featuring the reading talents of Madeline Brashier, Kristina Jin, Niko Carleo, Katie Wickline, Brock Kercher, Joey Davila, Emily Nedvidek, and Alishah Bhamati
Curated by Essential’s Founding Artistic Director, Peter Hardy, himself a national award-winning playwright who’s had over 30 productions of his work done around the country and has had plays chosen for the National Playwrights’ Conference and the Lanford Wilson New American Play Festival and received playwriting awards from the National Playwrights’ Conference, the Festival of Southern Theatre and the New Southern Theatre Festival.
What audiences are saying…
“It exposed me to something I didn’t know about- how plays are crafted- and the amazing talent we have in Georgia.”
“Programs like this are vital for the survival of Georgia theatre”
“The delight of discovering new talent is a major draw, and connecting with stories close to our own communities and backyards is a wonderful gift.”
What our playwrights say:
I love staged readings because they allow a play to take its first baby steps towards coming to life. When I’m writing the dialogue I hear it in my head a certain way but until it’s actually coming out of the mouths of performers I don’t know if it’s working the way I thought. Staged readings also give a great sense of the flow and momentum of the piece as a whole. They are a part of my creative process with every script I write.
-Emily McClain, The Rock and the Hard Place reading Aug 22, 2023
Thank you for everything you did to help make the reading happen and come off so smoothly! As a first time playwright, seeing the work performed on stage meant the world to me.
-Matt Hoffman, The Manuscript reading June 6, 2022.
