2010 Middle School Playwriting Festival

The 2010 Middle School Playwriting Festival featured eight courageous, poignant and outrageous plays written by and starring middle school students from Bridgehampton School, Eastport South Manor Junior High School, Sag Harbor’s Pierson Middle School, The Ross School, Shelter Island School & Tuckahoe School.

The YAWP Playwriting Program is a two-month school residency that introduces middle and high school students to the principles of dramatic writing. Inspired by Aristotle’s Poetics, teaching artists guide students through written and improvisational exercises to develop ideas, characters, themes and dialogue, assisting each student in the discovery of their unique perspective and creative voice.

Every student who participates in the program completes a short, one-act play. One play from each participating class is selected by committee for professional staging at Avram Theater, Stony Brook Southampton. Students then audition to perform in, assistant direct and/or stage manage the plays under the mentorship of the YAWP Program staff and professional theatre artists for two public performances.

The 2010 production took place on Friday March 19 and Saturday March 20, and featured the following:

ACT 1
THE MATH CLASS
By NICK TRACE – EAST PORT SOUTH MANOR
Andrea………………………………..Sarah Jurgielewicz
Christine……………………………..Samantha Quinn
Director: Megan Minutillo

DOG DAYS
By JEREMY SCHWARTZ – TUCKAHOE SCHOOL
Cashew…………………………….. Sarah Ryder
Scruffy………………………………. Gregory Nanos
Director: A.J. Lebenns
Assistant Director: Christian Westerhoff

YOU’LL NEVER LEARN
By BRYANT YUNKER – THE ROSS SCHOOL, 8B
Lindsey………………………………. Destin Oliveira
Steph…………………………………. Ali Schade
Director: Margaret Kestler
Assistant Director: Caitlin Cummings

STUCK BUCK
By TOMMY CARD – SHELTER ISLAND SCHOOL
Stuck Buck…………………………..Drew Garrison
Jane Doe……………………………. Felicity Williams
Director: John Kaasik
Assistant Director: Leila Mulligan

ACT 2
ROCK’S TALE
By IAN BARRETT – PIERSON MIDDLE SCHOOL, SAG HARBOR
Rock ………………………………….. Jimmy Haynal
Crock …………………………………..Nick Kruel
Director: Toni Munna
Assistant Director: Jocelyn Chafa

LOVE STINKS
By J. N. HOCHSTEDLER – BRIDGEHAMPTON SCHOOL
Jeremy…………………………………… I. J. Hemby
Violet…………………………………….. H.K. Lund
Director: Lydia Franco-Hodges
Assistant Director: K.M. Bravo
Understudies: A.T. Degroot, K.M. Bravo

SUNFLOWER CHILD
By COSMA SIEKIERSKY, THE ROSS SCHOOL, 8C
Adrian…………………………………… James Bianco
Lucille…………………………………….Maisie Puris
Director: Halina Ujda
Assistant Director: Madeline Hykes

NO MORE HORSING AROUND
By SAM HAMILTON – THE ROSS SCHOOL, 8A
Bartender……………………………….. Bryant Yunker
Horse…………………………………….. Alejo Majcherski
Director: Jacqui Leader
Assistant Director: Brian Schwartz

Production Running Crew: Eric Coffey, Tatyana Dawson, Micah Hemby, Maddy Hykes, Anajae Lamb, Aditya Nugraha, Brian Pina, Jada Pinckney, Nick Stevens, Pahola Tere, Britany Trabona, Jerome Walker

Participating Schools:

BRIDGEHAMPTON SCHOOL
Teaching Artists: Naimy Hackett, Kristen Lowman
Classroom Teachers: Nancy Nagel, Lenore Wright
Superintendent: Dr. Diane Youngblood
Principal: Jack Pryor

Participating Students: Karina Bravo, Olivia Bono, Tatyana Dawson, Annabel DeGroot, Claudio Figueroa, India Hemby, Micah Hemby, Jennah Hochstedler, Henry Kotz, Anajae Lamb, Hayley Lund, Aditya Setya Nugraha, Brian Pina, Jada Pinckney, Nick Stevens, Jerome Walker

EASTPORT SOUTH MANOR JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL
Teaching Artists: Will Chandler, Cathy Moriarty
Classroom Teacher: Michelle Heaney
Superintendent: Mark A. Nocero
Principal: Joseph A. Steimel

Participating Students: Alessandra Albano, Bryan A. Burrowes, Brittany R. Castoro, Domenic DeAngelis, Daniel Dowsett, Zachary Engasser, Kathryn E. Finne, Corie J. Hack, Shane P. Heinrichs, Scott Hickerson, Sarah E. Jurgielewicz, Dakota R. Killean, Karl Lindberg, Danielle N. Lukas, Julia Montgomery, Stephanie M. Ogeka, Samantha E. Quinn, Michael Savino, Tyler K. Shiu, Patrick J. Spellman, Nicholas S. Trace, Dorothy Ullrich, Matthew P. Van Tronk, Mark J. Zaharis, Jesse Zhou

PIERSON MIDDLE SCHOOL
Teaching Artists: Will Chandler, Tara Propper
Classroom Teacher: Christine Farrell
Superintendent: Dr. John Gratto
Principal: Jeff Nichols

Participating Students: Caleb Atkinson-Barnes, Brooke Banks, Ian Barrett, Jack Bori, Bridget Canavan, Richard Daniels, David Duran, Carli Fischer, Joseph Gengarelly, Jimmy Haynal, Marley Holder, Nicholas Kruel, Cooper Marienfeld, Timothy Markowski, Gavin O’Brien, Annie Osiecki, Sydney Renick, Jusuf Schellinger, Aaron Schiavoni, Cole Severance, Maxwell Snow, Kyle Sturmann, Kristian Washburn

THE ROSS SCHOOL
Teaching Artists: Will Chandler, Emma Walton Hamilton, Diana Gallagher, Dominick Quartuccio
Classroom Teachers: Mark Tompkins, Clare Wolfe
Head of School: Michele Claeys
Director of Middle School: Bill O’Hearn

Participating Students: (8A) Lily Baron, James Bianco, Sam Hamilton, Maddy Hykes, Justin Lindberg, Jordan Marks,
Jeheli Odidi, Destin Oliveira, Stephanie Oppenhiem, Dominica Purcell, Eli Schultz, Deiderique Vanderknapp, Johan Walstam. (8B) Laura Barsky, Arthur Brooke, Adin Doyle, Thomas Ludacer, Alejo Majcherski, Jackie Pape, Lia Petersen, Ali Schade, Alex Toscano, Bryant Yunker, Michael Wu, Jane Shih. (8C) Nina Channing, Anna Smith-Cuffee, Caitlin Cummings, Cheyenne Eberstadt, Chloe Hirtenstein, Olivia Meihofer, Kayla Myers, Diego Purcell, Maisie Puris, Patrick Rice, Brian Schwartz, Cosma Siekierska.
The Ross School’s participation in YAWP was sponsored by the Brinkley family in honor of Writer-Producer Don Brinkley.

SHELTER ISLAND SCHOOL
Teaching Artists: Annette Handley-Chandler, Dennis O’Connor
Classroom Teacher: Logan Kingston
Superintendent & Principal: Sharon Clifford

Participating Students: Tommy Card, Sawyer Clark, Inga Cordts, Liam Cummings, Patrick Doyle, Olivia Garrison,
Jonathan Lewis, Julia Martin, Caity Mulcahy, Leila Mulligan, Nicole Poleshuk, Taylor Rando, Johnny Sturges, Haley Sulahian, Felicity Williams.

TUCKAHOE SCHOOL
Teaching Artists: Will Chandler, Rose Dios
Stephanie Neill: Classroom Teacher
Interim Superintendent/Principal: Brian McCarthy
Assistant Principal: Gail R. Ackerson

Participating Students: Jason Aguilera, Erik Bartolon, Chris Bautista, Thomas Beckman, Astin Bee, Emily Christian,
Eric Coffey, Alyssa Colon, Corissa Corr, Noelle Crough, Kevin Edgar, Tyler Garcia, Stephen Gerzack, Daniella Gonzales, Alexandra Guarin, Jordan Jarrin, David Kirshy, Eryk Kropiwnicki, Jake Marano, Ezekial Martinez, Satish Mohan,
Johan Morales, Greg Nanos, Daniela Ortiz, Caroline Rumph, Sarah Ryder, Jeremy Schwartz, Leonardo Souza, Stephen Swiderski, Kassy Taraku, Pahola Tene, Britany Trabona, Nathalia Valencia, Brandon Wagner, Sarah Warren, Christen Westerhoff.

2010 YAWP PRODUCTION STAFF
Executive Director – Emma Walton Hamilton
Program Director – Will Chandler
Producer – Stephen Hamilton
Production Stage Manager – Sally Jane Kerschen-Sheppard
Costumes and Props – Yuka Silvera
Lighting Design – Archie Wilson
Sound Design – Gio Sgarlata

Production Assistants – Diana Gallagher, Doc O’Connor, Tara Propper, Dominick Quartuccio

2010 YAWP Playwriting Program Teaching Artists
Will Chandler, Rose Dios, Diana Gallagher, Naimy Hackett, Annette Handley-Chandler, Kristen Lowman, Cathy Moriarty, Dennis O’Connor, Tara Propper,
Dominick Quartuccio, Emma Walton Hamilton

Special thanks to the following for their support of YAWP:
Dean Mary Pearl, The Jenjo Foundation, Joanna & Daniel Rose, The Schaffner Family Foundation, Assemblyman Fred Thiele, Christie Brinkley, Carol Brown, Bill Burford, Jules Feiffer, Bob and Susan Fisher, Mike Gasparino, Hampton Ballet Theater School, Deborah Ann Light, Joe Minutillo, Joe Russell, Patti Sarubbi.

Tags: Issue #1 - Spring/Summer 2010