Chicago, IL- Pride Films and Plays is delighted to announce that eight writers have been named finalists in Women's Work. Four plays and four screenplays with lesbian themes or characters have been selected as finalists in the Sapphics on Stage and Sapphics on Screen categories, and all eight will be performed as staged readings September 7 - 11 in the Hoover-Leppen Theater of Center on Halsted.
"The quality of work was excellent, and the range of responses from our reading panel indicates these works ignited the strongest reactions from our readers," said PFP's Executive Director David Zak.
Allison Fradkin, Literary Coordinator for the event, assembled a reading team of 25 film and theater professionals from across the country who served as adjudicators for this contest.
Finalists in the Sapphics on Stage category (which includes plays and performance pieces) are: Bad Dog by Jennifer Hoppe-House, Patient HM by Vanda, Raising Ricci by Marilynn Barner Anselmi, and Still Fighting It by Cassie Keet.
Finalists in the Sapphics on Screen category (which includes teleplays and screenplays) are: '70s Shuffle by Diane Edington, Girls Out Loud by Pat Branch, Leap of Faith by Alicia Lomas-Gross, and The Basement by Dawn Marie Guernsey.
The performance schedule for the weekend will be:
Wednesday, September 7, 7:30 pm Girls Out Loud
Thursday, September 8, 7:30 pm Bad Dog
Friday, September 9, 7:30 pm The Basement
Saturday, September 10, 6:00 pm '70s Shuffle
Saturday, September 10, 8:00 pm Patient HM
Sunday, September 11, 1:30 pm Raising Ricci
Sunday, September 11, 3:30 pm Leap of Faith
Sunday, September 11, 6:00 pm Still Fighting It
Tickets for each performance are $12, or you can purchase an 8-play pass for $75. Tickets will be on sale at BrownPaperTickets.com on August 1. Tickets for film and industry professionals are $5.
Learn more about the scripts and the scribes in Sapphics on Stage:
Bad Dog by Jennifer Hoppe-House, Los Angeles, CA
Molly has fallen off the wagon and driven her Audi through the house. When her beleaguered wife escorts her home from the hospital, Molly finds her far-flung, dysfunctional family descending to intervene.
Jennifer Hoppe-House lives in Los Angeles, where she writes for film (the upcoming Fortune, starring Kim Basinger, Catherine O'Hara, and Jason Patric) and television (Nurse Jackie, Damages).
Patient HM by Vanda, New York, NY
A lesbian neuroscientist is haunted by her memories of her lost lover as she treats a man who hasn't had a new memory in 55 years.
Vanda is an Edward Albee Fellow. Plays include Still Photos, first place winner in Celebration Theatre's (L.A.) New Play Contest, and Vile Affections, Lambda Literary Award finalist.
Raising Ricci by Marilynn Barner Anselmi, Rocky Mount, NC
A lesbian couple returns to their Southern roots looking for healing and acceptance after the death of their son.
Marilynn Barner Anselmi is a new playwright living and working in rural North Carolina.
Still Fighting It by Cassie Keet, Los Angeles, CA
Lack of communication is highlighted in this family dramedy when the eldest daughter of the Harkey women returns home from college with her serious girlfriend.
Cassie Keet is a recent graduate from Florida State University, where her thesis, a workshopped production of Still Fighting It, garnered a Kingsbury Writing Nomination. Other works include The Appleyard, read by the Little Theatre of Alexandria in 2010, and Delicate, which will be workshopped in Tallahassee, Florida in conjunction with The Performance Kitchen.
Learn more about the scripts and the scribes in Sapphics on Screen:
'70s Shuffle by Diane Edington, Los Angeles, CA
Micki, a straight undercover FBI agent in '70s NYC, is pursuing a fugitive anarchist. Smitten Gaby, dyke bartender/politico, naively guides Micki through her Mafia underworld, into her bed, and into her heart, while the Mob and FBI plot to blow them both away.
Diane Edington has written three screenplays that have placed as three finalists and two semi-finalists in Outfest Lab, One in Ten, NewFest/NewDraft, Red InkWorks, and Write Movies.
Girls Out Loud by Pat Branch, Los Angeles, CA
A 30-something cynic gives up on romantic love and knocks herself up just in time to meet the woman of her dreams. This bundle of joy might have three baby mamas!
Pat Branch is a screenwriter, novelist, and stand-up comic. She produces the stand-up comedy show "I'm just saying...!" in West Hollywood, and her scripts have reached the quarter- and semi-final rounds of leading screenwriting competitions (Nicholls Fellowships, Sundance, Scriptapalooza).
Leap of Faith by Alicia Lomas-Gross, Colton, CA
A timid lesbian Catholic schoolteacher falls for a student's devout mother and must convince her that they are more than just friends.
Alicia Lomas-Gross is a forensic scientist by day and screenwriter by night. She survived 12 years of Catholic school and writes to tell about it. She likes making you laugh.
The Basement by Dawn Marie Guernsey, Lawrence, KS
Trapped in the basement of a building destroyed in a tornado, Lena confronts demons from her past as she endures the cruelties of the property owner, who refuses to help her.
Dawn Marie Guernsey is a successful visual artist who has recently turned to writing dramatic scripts. Her other screenplays, After Cecelia and The Good One, have done well in film festivals, placing in Page Awards, Fade In, Flagstaff, Mountain Festival, and others.
About Pride Films and Plays and Center on Halsted
Pride Films and Plays, a 501c3 non-profit founded in 2010, is dedicated to comprehending the history of great gay writing and fostering its excellence in new works for the stage and screen. Based in Chicago, Pride Films and Plays links an international network of writers with professionals working in film and theater. Through readings, contests, classes, screenings, and full theater productions, Pride Films and Plays engages artists and audiences in the full developmental process needed to make great artistic experiences. For more information, visit www.pridefilmsandplays.com .
Center on Halsted is the most comprehensive lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community center in the Midwest, and strives to meet the social, recreational, and cultural needs of people of all ages in a safe and nurturing environment. Every day, more than 1,500 people walk through the doors of this 60,000-square foot building, which includes a gym, theater, computer lab, two art galleries, and a rooftop garden. It offers a variety of social services and public programs, including mental health services, support groups, and free HIV testing seven days a week. www.centeronhalsted.org, 773.472.6469, open 8am - 10pm daily.
