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PRESS RELEASE
May 11, 2008
Armenian Dramatic Arts Alliance
20 Concord Lane, Cambridge, MA 02138
Contact: Zoe Kevork
(818) 415-9848
www.itsmyseat.com
SAROYAN PLAYWRITING PRIZE FINALISTS ANNOUNCED
by Zoe Kevork
The Armenian Dramatic Arts Alliance (ADAA) is pleased to announce the three
finalists of the inaugural William Saroyan Prize for Playwriting: Nadia by
Lilly Thomassian, Flesh and Tenderness by Kristen Lazarian and The Living
and the Dead by Matthew "Yazo" Yaldezian.
Play submissions were received from across the United States, the UK and
Armenia. Entries were required to be full-length plays written in English
and based on Armenian themes. The plays were required to have a professional
production or reading prior to submission, which resulted in high quality
entries.
First round judges were Claire Cox, playwright and writing instructor at the
Gotham Academy in New York; Enrique Urueta, playwright and former literary
manager at Impact Theatre in San Francisco; Landon Vaughn, actor, writer and
producer; Tanya Yerevanian, actor, writer and graduate of the Royal Academy
of Dramatic Arts in London; and David Grillo, actor, writer and producer of
the off-Broadway production of Beast on the Moon.
The three finalist plays will be evaluated by an honorary jury including
Leslie Ayvazian, award-winning playwright and Assistant Professor of
Playwriting at Columbia University; Deborah Salzer, playwriting educator and
Founder of The Playwrights Project; and, Mac Wellman, Lifetime Obie-award
winning playwright and the Donald I. Fine Professor of Play Writing at
Brooklyn College.
The winner will be announced at the ADAA's 3rd Annual Celebrity Gala on
Saturday, August 23, 2008, which will be held at the Stars Palace Theatre in
Glendale, CA. The winner will be honored with a $10,000 award.
The Armenian Dramatic Arts Alliance's mission is to make the Armenian voice
heard on the world stage through the dramatic arts of theatre and film. The
organization accomplishes this mission by supporting playwrights and
screenwriters and providing production opportunities, research tools,
networking resources and writing awards. In addition to the William Saroyan
Prize for Playwriting, the ADAA administers the $10,000 Lillian and Varnum
Paul Prize for Screenwriting, the deadline for which is February 15, 2009.
For more information about ADAA, its activities and how to contribute to its
important mission, please visit the website at www.armeniandrama.org or call
at 617-871-6764.
May 11, 2008
Armenian Dramatic Arts Alliance
20 Concord Lane, Cambridge, MA 02138
Contact: Zoe Kevork
(818) 415-9848
www.itsmyseat.com
SAROYAN PLAYWRITING PRIZE FINALISTS ANNOUNCED
by Zoe Kevork
The Armenian Dramatic Arts Alliance (ADAA) is pleased to announce the three
finalists of the inaugural William Saroyan Prize for Playwriting: Nadia by
Lilly Thomassian, Flesh and Tenderness by Kristen Lazarian and The Living
and the Dead by Matthew "Yazo" Yaldezian.
Play submissions were received from across the United States, the UK and
Armenia. Entries were required to be full-length plays written in English
and based on Armenian themes. The plays were required to have a professional
production or reading prior to submission, which resulted in high quality
entries.
First round judges were Claire Cox, playwright and writing instructor at the
Gotham Academy in New York; Enrique Urueta, playwright and former literary
manager at Impact Theatre in San Francisco; Landon Vaughn, actor, writer and
producer; Tanya Yerevanian, actor, writer and graduate of the Royal Academy
of Dramatic Arts in London; and David Grillo, actor, writer and producer of
the off-Broadway production of Beast on the Moon.
The three finalist plays will be evaluated by an honorary jury including
Leslie Ayvazian, award-winning playwright and Assistant Professor of
Playwriting at Columbia University; Deborah Salzer, playwriting educator and
Founder of The Playwrights Project; and, Mac Wellman, Lifetime Obie-award
winning playwright and the Donald I. Fine Professor of Play Writing at
Brooklyn College.
The winner will be announced at the ADAA's 3rd Annual Celebrity Gala on
Saturday, August 23, 2008, which will be held at the Stars Palace Theatre in
Glendale, CA. The winner will be honored with a $10,000 award.
The Armenian Dramatic Arts Alliance's mission is to make the Armenian voice
heard on the world stage through the dramatic arts of theatre and film. The
organization accomplishes this mission by supporting playwrights and
screenwriters and providing production opportunities, research tools,
networking resources and writing awards. In addition to the William Saroyan
Prize for Playwriting, the ADAA administers the $10,000 Lillian and Varnum
Paul Prize for Screenwriting, the deadline for which is February 15, 2009.
For more information about ADAA, its activities and how to contribute to its
important mission, please visit the website at www.armeniandrama.org or call
at 617-871-6764.