Challenge #28 - Companion Plays

Hi folks

(2 of 2)

This prompt is the one you would be writing Sunday to be turned in on Monday morning, but just label your email for prompt 28 and you can turn it early and I’ll credit it ahead.

And of course, you can always use the mini-play at the bottom of the email and blog post as an escape hatch for the day’s writing.

Remember, if you get lost in this flurry of six prompts crammed into three days, just look at the date on your calendar - that’s the number of the prompt you should be writing that day, and turning in the next day by 8am, or, of course, as early as you want, to clear the decks for the holiday.



Let’s get you that writing prompt…


Challenge #28 - Companion Plays

Due: Monday, November 29th, 8am
(whenever 8am arrives in your time zone; we’ll do the math here in the Central Time zone, no worries :)

There’s a theater in Virginia dedicated to producing the work of Shakespeare that found an intriguing way to nurture the development of new plays that still relate to its mission.  Every six months (pre-pandemic, of course), they would put out a call for scripts “inspired by and in conversation with Shakespeare’s work” and they’d post a list of five random unrelated Shakespeare plays, a couple of the hits like “Romeo and Juliet” and “As You Like It” alongside some more obscure titles like “Cymbeline” and “Timon of Athens.”

Another theater in Washington DC in the before times put out a call for 10 minute plays that were related to the major themes in each of the plays that were headlining their season, like this:

Dreams & Discord
Seeking plays that address the juxtaposition between the lives we lead and the lives we wish for. We urge the exploration of the potential tension/energy between commitment and desire. We want scripts that explore how these forces interact between dynamic characters (couples of all permutations, families, strangers in a specific environment, etc).

Heroes & Home
Seeking plays that address our modern sense of belonging while contending with an aspect of bravery. Courage can take many different forms, and we are looking for scripts that reveal this contemporary perspective within a domestic environment. Updated twists on myths & legends might serve as one potential starting point, but we encourage you to branch out into other ideas.

Secrets & Sound
Seeking plays that explore a hidden truth or discovery. Your play must include a specific sound landscape or idea (such as cassette tapes, voicemail messages, vinyl, Siri, 8-track, etc), and be an active component of the play (as opposed to characters that happen to be musicians and play a drum on stage).

Covert Catalysts
We are looking for plays that examine an instant of revolution (on a macro or micro level) in an unexpected way. We encourage the playwrights to find a surprising method or action in which to invoke change. Expose and explore tension in a subterranean, surprising, humorous or clever way.

You can grab one of these, or better yet, what’s a play you really love?

What kind of play could you write that would serve as a companion piece to it?

Not a sequel or prequel, not using the same characters or story.  What story could you create that would play in the same territory, with the same themes or subject matter or type of characters?  Something original that comes from you, but inspired by a play that you admire.

Try that.

Or, you know, whatever you like.

Just write.




How to submit your work for Challenge #28

You have options.  They are:

Save your script as a PDF or Word Doc and send as an attachment to an email sent to ThresholdWritingChallenge@gmail.com

OR

Copy and past your script in the body of an email and send it to ThresholdWritingChallenge@gmail.com

OR

Post your script online (as a Google doc, or in a blog post, on your own personal website, etc.) - email a link to this script to ThresholdWritingChallenge@gmail.com
(If you’re going to Google doc route, just make sure to have the document public, or give permissions to our email address to open it)

When emailing us, make the subject line of your email - Challenge #28
(That just helps us sort through the email more quickly)
(Or, you know, just reply to this email if you want :)

OR

Post the link for the online document option above in the comments section on this very blog post for this challenge on our writing challenge blog.



Again, this is: Due: Monday, November 29th, 8am
(whenever 8am arrives in your time zone; we’ll do the math here in the Central Time zone, no worries :)

 

And, just to reassure you, no, we are not going to be sticklers about you following these directions down to the minutest detail - the important thing is that you write, and then that you share it with us, so we can keep track of who’s writing every day.

We will be VERY understanding about technical difficulties and how they can screw up making the deadline.  No need to fret about anything except the writing (and hopefully that’s not something causing you to fret too much either :)

Also, no, there is no penalty for finishing and submitting early - but it also isn’t a race, so give yourself all the time up til 8am on Monday to write if you need it.  When you’re done, you’re done.

A friendly reminder - you don’t have to write to the prompts if they don’t inspire you.  You can ignore them and just write whatever you want, just as long as you’re writing (that’s the main thing, not what you write)

Someone had a good question about the overall goal of the month, are we supposed to write a full-length play, or two one-act plays, etc.?  The short answer is no (unless you want to).  The longer answer is here if you’re curious.

For those concerned about format, we’re pretty liberal about that, too - just as long as it’s legible and in English.  More on that here.

Again, remember, it doesn’t need to be great, it doesn’t even need to be responding to this prompt (the prompt is just there so you’re not staring at a blank screen to start with no idea what to write about :)

Doesn't even need to be complete - you could have the beginning or the middle or the end of an idea, maybe two out of three but not all, that's still fine. This is all about getting things started, you can write more later. You have 2 more days to build on whatever you come up with today, if you want. Just get anything on the page, even if won't make sense to anyone else, as long as it make sense to you.

It just needs to be something.

And that something can be:

Lights up.

Something happens onstage that is a reflection of a play you think of fondly as an old friend, and gets you thinking about it in a new way.

Lights down.

The End

That’s always your escape hatch, every day.

That’s your base line.

Build on it.

Have fun.

Don’t stress.

Make an impulsive decision and run with it.

Breathe.

You’ve got the day (and a half).

Just write.