About the PLAYnary
This year, the final plenary session at the Maker Educator Convening will consist of a collection of short plays, performed live by professional actors from the Pittsburgh area, and written by… YOU! Yes, you read that right. We’re thrilled that Marc Chun and Jessica Mele will be hosting a 24-Hour Playwriting Challenge at the Convening, providing a structured way for attendees to kick-start deeper conversations about equity, race, and social justice through theatre. We would like to thank the Benedum Foundation for their support of the PLAYnary this year.
24-hour Playwriting Challenge: Write a Play in a Day from Deeper Learning on Vimeo.
How It Works
The field of maker education has the potential to disrupt the education system towards more equitable outcomes, but has a history some have argued are rooted in gendered, white, middle-class cultural practices. These issues are complicated and complex. If you choose to participate in the PLAYnary, you will have the opportunity to interrogate these themes to (literally) start a dialogue about maker education and equity. In teams of 2-3 people, you will write a short play (5 pages) during this session, and will be supported through the writing and revision process by a team of playwriting facilitators and professional actors. Your play will then be performed by those same professional actors during the closing plenary of the conference.
Left: Actors Jackie Misaye, Maddie McGuire, and Christian Telesmar do a cold reading of a play. Middle: Actors Jackie Misaye and Christian Telesmar rehearse the draft of a play just written by a team of workshop participants. Right: Actors and novice writers take a bow at the performances from the “Write a Play in a Day” workshop at the Deeper Learning Conference in San Diego, California. All photos by Brent Spirnak
You do not need to have all of the answers or provide the perfect solutions in your plays! Rather, we will be using the plays to pose key questions about equity in maker education, and will discuss those questions in small groups with the audience. In order for you to “make” a play in a day, this special workshop will span two session blocks, with a working lunch in between. Participants do not need to have any background in playwriting, and should bring a laptop to the workshop. Most of all, be prepared to dive in, play, and have FUN!
