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James Elden's Playwright's Spotlight
James Elden
109 episodes
6 days ago
Send us a text Sofia Streisand dropped into Playwright's Spotlight to discuss the U.S. premiere of her play Bluebeard's Castle (that I misspoke as Blackbeard's) November 1st through November 23rd. In this discussion, we discuss the difference between Russian, European, and American theatre, her journey from musical theatre to playwriting, writing multiple voices, and writing for specific actors and their cadence, mannerisms, and nuances. We unpack writing in a second language, the concept of ...
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Send us a text Sofia Streisand dropped into Playwright's Spotlight to discuss the U.S. premiere of her play Bluebeard's Castle (that I misspoke as Blackbeard's) November 1st through November 23rd. In this discussion, we discuss the difference between Russian, European, and American theatre, her journey from musical theatre to playwriting, writing multiple voices, and writing for specific actors and their cadence, mannerisms, and nuances. We unpack writing in a second language, the concept of ...
Show more...
Performing Arts
Arts,
Education,
Leisure,
Hobbies
Episodes (20/109)
James Elden's Playwright's Spotlight
Inspirational Feedback, Weight-Bearing Walls, and Recognizing and Overcoming Imposter Syndrome - Playwright's Spotlight with Sofia Streisand
Send us a text Sofia Streisand dropped into Playwright's Spotlight to discuss the U.S. premiere of her play Bluebeard's Castle (that I misspoke as Blackbeard's) November 1st through November 23rd. In this discussion, we discuss the difference between Russian, European, and American theatre, her journey from musical theatre to playwriting, writing multiple voices, and writing for specific actors and their cadence, mannerisms, and nuances. We unpack writing in a second language, the concept of ...
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1 week ago
1 hour 1 minute

James Elden's Playwright's Spotlight
Applied Theatre, Writing Bilingual, and Dramaturgical Playwriting - Playwright's Spotlight with Ankita Raturi
Send us a text Ankita Raturi basked under the Playwright's Spotlight for the World Premiere of her play Neha & Neel. In this discussion we break down the concept of applied theatre and being a teaching artist, how it effects character, exercises that extrude character and whether or not the practice makes it into a piece. We unpack earning a monologue, the first steps of playwriting, writing bi-lingually, dramaturgical playwriting, and the audience's experience. We also discuss finding di...
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1 week ago
1 hour 21 minutes

James Elden's Playwright's Spotlight
Writing Theatrically, Working on the Puzzle, and the Ecosystem of Theatre - Playwright's Spotlight with Crystal Skillman
Send us a text Playwright Crystal Skillman beamed into the Playwright's Spotlight from Indianapolis for the run of her World Premiere play The Rocket Men. We discuss how one becomes a 4-time NYT's Critics' Pick playwright, what it means to be a "theatrical" writer, writing design on the page and offering solutions, trusting and listening to your audience, the concept of "magic but no magic", and learning from seeing a production of your work. We also unpack the benefits (or challenges) of dir...
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2 weeks ago
1 hour 3 minutes

James Elden's Playwright's Spotlight
Formulas and Slow Burners, the Process of Radio Dramas, and Making Mystery Interesting - Playwright's Spotlight with John Ballentine
Send us a text SEASON5, EPISODE 1!!! Wow. Hard to believe. This is an episode recorded months ago saved for this very occasion. Kudos to Cameron Scott for connecting me to John. This is a very special episode taking writing to a new level that every playwright can benefit from. John takes writing to levels I don't think we've ever tackled in past episodes, but you will have to listen to Campfire Radio Theater to fully grasp his approach. If you're not familiar with Campfire Radio Theate...
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3 weeks ago
1 hour 10 minutes

James Elden's Playwright's Spotlight
Community, Distractions, and Writing Characters You Don't See on Stage - Playwright's Spotlight with Israel López Reyes
Send us a text Israel López Reyes swung by the studio before the opening of his recent commission to discuss his background leading up to it and his success as an Angeleno playwright. We discuss his journey from actor to playwright, how he fell into theatre and his discovery to figuring out story and telling stories that matter. We unpack the evolution of emerging playwrights, the process and approach to character, the elements of structure, learning from the Greats, mastering the craft as we...
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1 month ago
1 hour 3 minutes

James Elden's Playwright's Spotlight
Film to Stage, Naturalism to Realism, and Finding Courage to Write - Playwright's Spotlight with David Kohner Zuckerman
Send us a text Filmmaker turned playwright, David Kohner Zuckerman, dropped into Playwright's Spotlight to talk about the World Premiere of his play Parallel Process. In this interview, we talk unpack his journey from film to stage and how it affect his writing, his approach to naturalism and honesty to his writing, and how his acting and directing applied to his writing. We also touched on his collaborating with his cast, how rehearsals affected his structure, and being a first time playwrig...
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1 month ago
58 minutes

James Elden's Playwright's Spotlight
Implementing Twists, Writing Red Herrings, and Keeping Your Audience Engaged - Playwright's Spotlight with Stuart Brown
Send us a text Playwright Stuart Brown streamed into Playwright's Spotlight for a second time after technical difficulties with sound, but I hope delved a little deeper this time around. We discuss the Connecticut Theatre Market, being a critic and a playwright and how the former affected the latter, honesty as a critic, and advice to theatre companies on getting critics in seats. We also explore how being a critic helped his writing when he began to pursue playwriting, keeping your audience ...
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2 months ago
1 hour 2 minutes

James Elden's Playwright's Spotlight
The Musicality of Dialogue, the Magic of Writing, the Doorway Effect, and the Trick of Eliminating Parenthiticals - Playwright's Spotlight with Lawrence Connolly
Send us a text Playwright. Screenplay Writer, and Novelist Lawrence C. Connolly streamed into Playwright's Spotlight and, as always, we touched base on many topics not covered in previous episodes. It never ceases to amaze me. In this discussion, we delve into adapting a novel and the allegory of Frankenstein, staging multiple locations on stage, the process of outlining a five-act play, approaching cross-talk amongst multiple characters, and the musicality of dialogue. We also we unpack flow...
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2 months ago
1 hour 14 minutes

James Elden's Playwright's Spotlight
The Business of Playwriting, Laying Breadcrumbs, and Dramatic Truth and the Math of Human Emotion - Playwright's Spotlight with Angelica Cheri
Send us a text Angelica Cheri swung by Playwright's Spotlight after leaving the rehearsals of her Broadway play Wanted only to jump into the rehearsals for the West Coast Premiere of her play Burta Burta. She was wiling to share her insights of the craft. We delve into the rehearsal process, approaching rewrites and the importance of dramatic truth, finding opportunities and landing an agent, changes to pieces from a thesis to premieres to publication. We also touch on the trick of raising st...
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2 months ago
1 hour 6 minutes

James Elden's Playwright's Spotlight
Episode 100! Jersey Boys, an Egg Timer, Stage Effects, and Organizing Principles - Playwright's Spotlight with Rick Elice
Send us a text Episode 100! Thanks for supporting us on this journey. We would love to hear how this podcast may have helped you with your creative endeavors. To celebrate this milestone, Rick Elice of Jersey Boys, Peter and the Star Catcher, Water for Elephants, The Addams Family, The Cher Show, and the upcoming Princess Bride Musical, was gracious enough sit in the Spotlight (TWICE) after a botched first recording. We owe this opportunity to Cameron Scott who put this entire thing into moti...
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3 months ago
1 hour 14 minutes

James Elden's Playwright's Spotlight
Magical Realism and Heightened Language, Punctuation as Sheet Music, and Locking Opposite Characters in a Room - Playwright's Spotlight with Ashley Griffin
Send us a text Playwright and performer, Ashley Griffin, swung by the studio to sit in the Playwright's Spotlight before her West Coast Premiere of her Off-Broadway play The Opposite of Love. It's a compelling conversation that tackles so many aspects of playwriting, that the title of the thumbnail became a struggle. In this discussion, we breakdown her playwriting origins, learning lessons from mentors, overcoming technical challenges, magical realism and heightened language, and achieving t...
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3 months ago
1 hour 8 minutes

James Elden's Playwright's Spotlight
Artistic Visas, Defining Success, and Networking to Find Opportunities - Playwright's Spotlight with Joel Trinidad
Send us a text I invited Joel Trinidad onto the Playwright's Spotlight after reading about his journey. He streamed in while on tour for his acting performance of Romeo and Juliet as part of a fringe fest in South Dakota. In our conversation, we discussed acquiring an artist visa, producing your own work, the definition of success, the structure of a musical, and the importance of networking and finding opportunities. We also discussed using your cast to fill seats, imposter syndrome, submiss...
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4 months ago
57 minutes

James Elden's Playwright's Spotlight
Plays as Living Things, Staging in Unconventional Locations, and the Definition of Being a Writer - Playwright's Spotlight with Cameron Scott
Send us a text Broadway marketer turned playwright Cameron Scott came onto Playwright's Spotlight after I received his submission to PLAY Noir to talk about his later-in-life start to playwriting. In this conversation, we delve into what the definition of a writer is, a play being a living thing, audio plays vs stage plays and a play's transition from audio to stage, and setting time aside and finding opportunities to write. We also discuss staging in unconventional locations, being a minimal...
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4 months ago
1 hour 16 minutes

James Elden's Playwright's Spotlight
Writing a Play in Real Time, Necessity Breeding Creativity, and Journey to the Hollywood Fringe - Playwright's Spotlight with Faye Widjaja and Sohani Sawant
Send us a text Returning playwright Faye Widjaja and her cohort, Sohoni Sawant, dropped by the studio after having streamed in from her original interview just over two years ago to discuss the journey and evolution of her play A Minor Inconvenience from the Lenaea High School Theatre Festival to the Hollywood Fringe. It's an insightful journey I hope every playwright at any stage can pull a nugget of knowledge. We explore their journey from the original production and obstacles at Lena...
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5 months ago
54 minutes

James Elden's Playwright's Spotlight
Adaptations, Archetypes, Writing Whimsy, and A Quantum Fantasia - Playwright's Spotlight with John Farmanesh-Bocca
Send us a text John Farmanesh-Bocca swung by The Playwright's Spotlight to talk about his latest Shakespeare adaptation Lear Redux: A Quantum Fantasia. Throughout this conversation we discuss his journey into becoming an adaptive playwrights of the Classics, how he breaks them down, unpacks them, and the puts them back together to serve a modern audience without losing the original story and, sometimes, the original language. We discuss how much preparation he does before moving into collabor...
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5 months ago
1 hour 22 minutes

James Elden's Playwright's Spotlight
Rhythm in Dialogue, Playing with Different Structures, and the Flaws of Rewriting on Stage - Playwright's Spotlight with Brad McEntire
Send us a text Longtime-listening playwright Brad McEntire streamed into the Spotlight to discuss his experience and approach to the craft. We discuss the exercises and lessons from studying under Will Power at Southern Methodist University and the Dallas Theatre Center, playing with the rhythm of dialogue, what beginning playwrights don't do or practice, and whether or not you can achieve impossible stage directions with a small budget. We also delve into his background as a literary manager...
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5 months ago
1 hour 22 minutes

James Elden's Playwright's Spotlight
Vomit, Unwritten Dialogue, Hip Hop Theatre, and the Delusions of Learning the Craft - Playwright's Spotlight with Rickerby Hinds
Send us a text Rickerby Hinds swung by the Playwright's Spotlight prior to the premiere of his "last' play. We unpack various topics including Hip Hop Theatre, being a self-taught playwright, writing without arrogance, earning your audience, and the use of poetry, spoken word, rap, and movement and dance. We also discuss lessons in editing, metaphors and similes, achieving layers, character introductions, unwritten dialogue, and what choreography on the page looks like. We wrap it up with his...
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6 months ago
1 hour 23 minutes

James Elden's Playwright's Spotlight
Painting a Room, Masterclasses vs Academia, and the Perils of Liking Your Own Writing - Playwright's Spotlight with June Thomson Morris
Send us a text Just over the week before the World Premiere of her first play celebrating the Centennial celebration of Coral Gables, Florida, multiple Emmy-winning journalist June Thomson Morris beamed into the Playwright's Spotlight. In this interview, we discuss attempting one's first play, overcoming obstacles, and experiencing your work come to life for the first time. We also explore how journalism nurtures playwriting, learning from Masterclass vs Academia, narrowing framing and forego...
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6 months ago
55 minutes

James Elden's Playwright's Spotlight
Voices, Overwriting, Stage Directions in Dialogue, and Infusing Your Writing with Heart - Playwright's Spotlight with Lisa Rosenbaum and Ronda Spinak
Send us a text Playwrights Lisa Rosenbaum and Ronda Spinak sat in the Playwright's Spotlight to discuss the evolution of their play The Violin Maker from its Sydney, Australia production to its US premiere from its origin from The Violins of Hope through its process up to rehearsals. We delve into the styles of salons, approaching flashbacks and overwriting, respect and valuing while collaborating, getting to the emotion and infusing your writing with heart, stage directions as road maps and ...
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6 months ago
1 hour 2 minutes

James Elden's Playwright's Spotlight
London, N.Y., and L.A. Markets, Great Hooks and Good Stories, and Stealing from the Greats - Playwright's Spotlight with Stephen Laughton
Send us a text British L.A.-based playwright Stephen Laughton came sat in-house in the Playwright's Spotlight before the West Coast Premiere of his play One Jewish Boy. In this interview, we discuss the differences in the London, New York, and Los Angeles markets, London gatekeepers and the draw of the London Fringe and its difference to the Edinburgh Fringe, taking advantage of Covid, and the responsibilities and how playwriting applies to the Astrophysics Team at the American Museum of Natu...
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7 months ago
1 hour 10 minutes

James Elden's Playwright's Spotlight
Send us a text Sofia Streisand dropped into Playwright's Spotlight to discuss the U.S. premiere of her play Bluebeard's Castle (that I misspoke as Blackbeard's) November 1st through November 23rd. In this discussion, we discuss the difference between Russian, European, and American theatre, her journey from musical theatre to playwriting, writing multiple voices, and writing for specific actors and their cadence, mannerisms, and nuances. We unpack writing in a second language, the concept of ...