Meet the Playwright: Paul Donnelly

Paul Donnelly (right) wrote the play we’ll be reading tonight, Falling Off the Edge.

Tell us a little about yourself.
I was born in Brooklyn, NY.  Grew up and spent most of my life in Washington, DC and the Virginia suburbs.  Spent eight years in Atlanta and just relocated to Honolulu in June with my husband, Frank Wong, our two dogs and three cats.

I’ve been writing plays since the snazziest technology available was an IBM Selectric.  The high points have been two Helen Hayes Award nominations, seeing an actor in one of those shows actually win a Helen Hayes Award,

Continue reading →

East Coast Premiere THIS FRIDAY

ADA pr photos

 

The Essential Theatre’s East Coast Premiere of Lauren Gunderson’s ADA AND THE MEMORY ENGINE will open the 2017 Essential Theatre Play Festival on Friday, July 28 at 8 p.m.   There will be another performance on Saturday at 8 p.m.

This beautiful and dazzling play is based on the life of Ada Lovelace, the daughter of Lord Byron and a visionary mathematical genius who, in the first half of the 19th Century, became the world’s first computer programmer.

Essential Theatre produced Lauren’s first play in 2001, when she had just turned 18.

Continue reading →

ANOTHER MOTHER, written by G. M. Lupo: PROFESSIONAL WORLD PREMIERE

ANOTHER MOTHER press kit with photos

Join Essential Theatre for the professional world premiere of Another Mother, by Atlanta playwright G. M. Lupo, opening August 4.

Winner of the 2017 Essential Theatre Playwriting Award, Another Mother follows the journey of Genevieve as she pieces together the mysterious identities and relationships between her biological mother, her birth mother and the mother who raised her.

Featuring the acting talents of: Rylee Bunton (Genevieve Duchard), Nina Jones (Rosalind Duchard), Kristin Storla (Abigail Worthy), Christine Vozniak (Alyssa Caine), Trey York (Steven Asher,

Continue reading →

ADA AND THE MEMORY ENGINE by Lauren Gunderson: REGIONAL PREMIERE PRODUCTION

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

ADA AND THE MEMORY ENGINE press kit with photos

July 2017 – Join us for the regional premiere production of Ada and the Memory Engine by Lauren Gunderson, opening July 28.

One of the latest plays penned by our very first Essential Theatre Playwriting Award Winner and the Most Produced Living Playwright in America in 2016, Lauren Gunderson, this play is about the world’s first computer programmer, Ada Lovelace. Described by the Huffington Post as “a rare and special artistic achievement: an intelligent play about intelligent historical people that has been crafted by intelligent theatre artists for an intelligent audience,”

Continue reading →

The 2017 Essential Theatre Play Festival Is Right Around the Corner!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

2017 ESSENTIAL FESTIVAL press kit with photos

Atlanta, July 2017 – Tickets are now on sale for the 19th Annual Essential Theatre Play Festival, which kicks off in just a few weeks!

This summer, Essential Theatre continues its tradition of premiering the best new work by Georgia playwrights for Atlanta audiences with the 19th Annual Essential Theatre Play Festival. The festival runs July 28 through August 27 at the West End Performing Arts Center, located at 945 Ralph David Abernathy Boulevard.

This summer, audiences will see the World Premiere of Another Mother by G.

Continue reading →

Meet the Playwright: Anna Denise Millard

Anna Denise Millard (left) wrote the play we’ll be reading tonight, What My Mother Told Me.

Tell us a little about yourself.
After graduating from Emory University with a degree in Playwriting, I have spent the first few years of my career working in publishing in New York City, as an Assistant Editor with Oxford University Press and the Speakers Bureau Director for the Hachette Book Group. I’ve recently decided to shift paths, starting a new journey focused on pursuing artistic endeavors and working in hospitality. I live in Bushwick, Brooklyn where I collaborate on podcasts,

Continue reading →

Meet the Playwright: G. M. Lupo

G. M. Lupo is an author and playwright native to Atlanta, GA. His work has been performed at Sketchworks, Atlanta Fringe Fest 2015, Out of Box Theatre, and OnStage Atlanta. He was born in and spent most of his childhood in West End, and learned to read in the library that once resided in what is now the West End Performing Arts Center. He’s a graduate of New York University’s Graduate Creative Writing Program and Georgia State University. His website is lupo.com. He is a member of Working Title Playwrights, where Another Mother had a First Light Reading in February 2016.

Continue reading →