Sarasota Players Centre gives a boost to four writers in New Play Festival

Jay Handelman, Sarasota Herald-Tribune
·2 min read
Actor and playwright Derek Brookens is the author of “Gin Rickey,” one of four works featured in the Players Centre’s 2022 New Play Festival.
Actor and playwright Derek Brookens is the author of “Gin Rickey,” one of four works featured in the Players Centre’s 2022 New Play Festival.

Just as the Players Centre is catching up with full productions of past winners of its annual New Play Festivals, it is helping to give birth to four new works in the 2022 festival.

COVID prevented the theater company from producing winners from the 2019, 2020 and 2021 festivals. It recently presented a production of Ron Pantello’s “Damaged Goods,” the winner of the 2019 festival. From July 29 to 31, it will present “The Manager” by Douglas Gearhart, who won the 2020 festival. It’s about an out-of-work little league manager in his last year as a coach of his son’s team, which comes as he is facing divorce.

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A new home? Players Centre building its theater future around Sarasota Municipal Auditorium

The 2021 festival winner, “The Mantle” by Jalex Scott, is expected to be produced next summer.

A future production may be coming for one of the four plays being presented as readings in this year’s festival, which runs July 5-8 in The Players Studio.

Connie Schindewolf, who has had numerous full length and short plays featured at both the Players Centre and Theatre Odyssey festivals, will be represented by “Of the Lake,” about a married couple who still wait for the return of their daughter who died 20 years ago. It will be directed by Jalex Scott. Derek Brookens, who has been seen in several local productions as an actor, has written “Gin Rickey,” described as a 1940’s psychological drama about a detective who returns to the force after being unable to solve the mystery of his missing wife. It will be directed by Elliot Raines.

Actress and writer Cece Dwyer is one of four writers whose new works are featured in the Players Centre’s 2022 New Play Festival.
Actress and writer Cece Dwyer is one of four writers whose new works are featured in the Players Centre’s 2022 New Play Festival.

CeCe Dwyer, who was one of the winners of the first American Association of Community Theatre's New Play Fest playwriting competition in 2013, has written “Lateral Moves,” which the theater describes as a seductive romantic comedy involving a millennial couple and their parents. Blake Walton is directing. The final play is Laurie Stoner’s “When Lightning Strikes,” directed by India Marie Paul. It is described as a magical realism drama about a suicidal artist blinded by a lightning strike who regains a desire to live.

Each play will be presented once, with a cast of area actors in The Players Studio, 1400 Boulevard of the Arts, Suite 200, Sarasota. Tickets are $28 for all four readings.

For more information: 941-365-2494; theplayers.org

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This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Players Centre presents readings of 4 new plays in 2022 festival