What is The Young Playwrights Festival? The Young Playwrights Festival is the O'Neill's program for middle school and high school students. The Festival's mission is to provide young artists an opportunity to improve their writing and give them experience with playwriting as a craft and discipline. The festival begins with two days of rehearsal and culminates with a script-in-hand reading. What does the Young Playwrights Festival offer students? The YPF is an opportunity for students interested in playwriting to get experience with the dramatic process at a truly world class institution. Participants will gain an understanding of dramatic form and structure, work with experienced theater artists, and most importantly, see their creative vision brought to life on the stage. Students will have an entire creative staff to work with, and will be given ample opportunity to re-write heading into the staged reading. What have students and teachers said about the Young Playwrights Festival? "My time at the O'Neill greatly enhanced not only my knowledge of drama and performance, but also my view of the collaborative process. In addition, I have been able to see first hand the great results that can be achieved through working with high caliber actors and directors like those at the O'Neill." - Erik Crouch, age 17, Frustration, 2009 "My experience taught me so much about the theater. I learned acting exercises that my cast did in order to prepare themselves to play their role. I also learned not only the skills and process behind the acting, but how to edit and revise my script as well as improve my writing holistically É Only a few weeks ago it [the play] was just paper. Now it was on a stage with actual actors and an audience sitting on the edge of their seat. At the end of the performance, I was the one who was applauding the loudest." - Emily Patten, age 13, Charlotte Ablaze, 2009 "The Young Playwrights Festival was an experience that I will never forget... I had so many wonderful opportunities to meet people, discover my unrecognized talents, learn the process of a theater production, organize and rewrite my play, and have the one-on-one with my own director and set of actors." - Katie Butta, age 17, An Aspiring Insomniac, 2008 "I think that more kids should get involved in the Young Playwrights Festival. Not only was it fun to write a play, but when you first hear your play performed by real actors it changes everything. It gives your piece a whole new dimension and depth... It was great." - Casey Corrado, age 13, The Ivy League, 2008 "A GREAT EVENT! Those students were beaming from the experience, as they should have been. What a learning event for them. They will never forget it, I know. Those seeds we planted will flower, I can practically guarantee it. We at the high school are very grateful to you for extending this opportunity to our students. - Gay Collins, English Teacher, Waterford High School