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The 2024 New Play Festival is March 12–20. All performances begin at 7 p.m. in Little Center’s Michelson Theater.\n<\/p>\n
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- March 12–14: “The Road Trip” by Megan Engstrom ’24<\/li>\n
- March 16–18: “Poison on Palatine Station” by Rosie Cohen ’23, M.A. ’24<\/li>\n
- March 20–22: “Dreamballs” by Honey Lawless ’24<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
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Three student playwrights will see their words brought to life this week as the eighth biennial Clark University New Play Festival (Playfest) begins on March 12. Clark’s largest theatre arts endeavor, Playfest is the only event of its kind among U.S. colleges and universities, notes Gino DiIorio<\/a>, director of theatre arts<\/a> at Clark. While other schools hold festivals of student short plays, Playfest features full-length works. Each play is written, directed, designed, and performed by Clark undergraduates.<\/p>\n
This year’s festival plays are “The Road Trip” by Megan Engstrom ’24, directed by Elizabeth Zinno ’25; “Poison on Palatine Station” by Rosie Cohen ’23, M.A. ’24, directed by April Chronowski ’25; and “Dreamballs” by Honey Lawless ’24, directed by Nat Solomon ’24.<\/p>\n
“The plays are kind of wild,” says DiIorio. “We have a zany comedy that takes place at a cooking show, a serious family drama, and — a first for us — a science fiction murder mystery.”<\/p>\n
The plays, which were first developed in DiIorio’s playwriting course and then as directed readings, involve more than two dozen students on and off stage: along with the playwrights, directors, and actors, each play has set and costume designers. “What’s most important isn’t the product, but the process that gives the playwrights, directors, actors, and technical staff the opportunity to work collaboratively and find the voice of the play,” DiIorio says.<\/p>\n
“Student creativity is allowed to shine,” Engstrom says of PlayFest. “We’re given free rein to create in a way that normally isn’t given to undergrads.”<\/p>\n
Engstrom’s play, “The Road Trip,” follows a family driving to a relative’s house. “Things start getting a little weird,” she says. “It’s the middle of the summer, yet it starts snowing. It’s not your normal road trip.”<\/p>\n
Engstrom, a double major in English<\/a> and theater arts, was inspired to write the play during a trip she took with her own family. “We left a family member’s house on kind of bad terms, and on the way home I quite literally was inspired by the feeling I had.”<\/p>\n