On this episode of Theatre with P.R.I.D.E., we chat with the 4 finalists of ReNew Productions' Playwright's Playground Festival 2021. Ashley DiLorenzo, Bella Capelli, Paige Schuyler Bakke, and Maddie Lobdell tell us all about their plays, from inspiration to process to the messages behind it! These 4 young playwrights are the future of the playwriting, and we can't be more excited for them and the future of creating theatre.

Playwright's Playground Festival will air on 2 weekends, Saturday the 17th and Saturday the 24th on ReNew's Youtube Channel. 

Saturday the 17th

• "Mike Newton's Law" by Maddie Lobdell
• "woman, falling" by Bella Capelli

Saturday the 24th

• "Talk-To-A-Priest.com" by Paige Schuyler Bakke
• "Someone Should Have Told Me" by Ashley DiLorenzo

ReNew Productions Links

• Website
• GoFundMe

Podcast Cover Art by Frankie Rowles
Podcast Music by Ben Pederson

Jason June (he/him/she/her) is a gender-queer mermaid author who enjoys all things words, known for his picture books WHOBERT WHOVER, OWL DETECTIVE, and PORCUPINE CUPID, as well as chapter book MERMICORN ISLAND. She is making her YA debut with JAY’S GAY AGENDA, a queer rom-com which he was ready to talk all about with one of our favorite hosts, Riley. Listen along as Riley and JJ discuss the importance of queer education, seeing yourself, and the possibility of TV adaptations??

Find JAY’S GAY AGENDA

• Order from Bookshop, IndieBound, Barnes & Noble, Books-A-Million, or Amazon.
• SIGNED COPIES! Order from BookPeople and follow the personalization instructions

Jason June

• WEBSITE
• INSTAGRAM

Additional Queer Reads

• YOU SHOULD SEE ME IN A CROWN by Leah Johnson
• CEMETERY BOYS by Aiden Thomas
• FELIX EVER AFTER by Kacen Callender

ReNew Productions Links

• Website
• GoFundMe

Podcast Cover Art by Frankie Rowles
Podcast Music by Ben Pederson

5 Trans, Non-Binary, and Genderqueer theatre artists (Allie Faulkner, Elliot Colahan, Kai Scott, River Hedgepeth, and our own Chad Parsons)  sit down to talk about their experience in theatre and how to make theatre/theatre training more accessible and inclusive for a variety of gender identities. As we move out of the pandemic and live commercial theatre is returning, we discuss what we want to see on and off stage, and what type of stories are told. Listen on in, cis-identifying friends! Here's a free education on how to make the theatre community and world a better place!

ReNew Productions Links

• Website
• GoFundMe

Playwright's Playground Festival will be taking place July 9-11 at the Ritz Theatre in Haddonfield, NJ! Submit your plays here!

Podcast Cover Art by Frankie Rowles
Podcast Music by Ben Pederson

On this episode, we have 2 young drag queens talk about their life in the current world. Both of them having extensive Musical Theatre experience, we also talk about gender exploration in characters, shows we've done, and what theatre does for informing gender. We also touch on some heavy-hitting topics like being Queer in a conservative environment, and what parents can do to support their queer child. Let's have a kiki!

ReNew Productions Links

• Website
• GoFundMe

Playwright's Playground Festival will be taking place July 9-11 at the Ritz Theatre in Haddonfield, NJ! Submit your plays here!

Podcast Cover Art by Frankie Rowles
Podcast Music by Ben Pederson

May the world remember your name!

Daniel Mertzlufft took those words to heart. Daniel Mertzlufft is the mastermind behind the hit viral sensation "Ratatouille: The TikTok Musical" and "The Grocery Store Musical". Starting on TikTok during the pandemic as a means of escapism, he ended up reconnecting the Musical Theatre community at a time where we were so far apart. Join us on this special edition of Theatre with P.R.I.D.E. as we sit down to have a conversation with Daniel and his experiences over the last year, composing, and what is coming next!

Daniel Mertzlufft

• Website
• Instagram
• TikTok

ReNew Productions Links

• Website
• GoFundMe

Playwright's Playground Festival will be taking place July 9-11 at the Ritz Theatre in Haddonfield, NJ! Submit your plays here!

Podcast Cover Art by Frankie Rowles
Podcast Music by Ben Pederson

Season 2 is starting off strong! We bring in 2 incredible theatre artists Anne Marie Scalies and Tyler Calhoun, who have also created and hosted theatre-based podcasts that explore the theatre world, community, and how we create theatre to have a conversation with our two co-hosts Georgia and Riley. We discuss what we have learned from creating a podcast in the midst of a pandemic, our experiences interviewing an array of different theatre artists, and what theatres can do to create a better environment moving forward as we transition out of an isolating time that also brought a much-needed cultural shift. Listen on in!

Listen to "Theatre with a Tea" from Anne Marie Scalies here

Listen to "Life in Theatre" from Tyler Calhoun here

ReNew Productions Links

• Website
• GoFundMe

Playwright's Playground Festival will be taking place July 9-11 at the Ritz Theatre in Haddonfield, NJ! Submit your plays here!

Podcast Cover Art by Frankie Rowles
Podcast Music by Ben Pederson

Hey Listeners!

Wow, it has been QUITE the opening season for us here at Theatre with P.R.I.D.E. We are so thankful for your continued support and to all the amazingly-talented and knowledgeable theatre professionals that have joined us on our past episodes. We love you all!

And don't worry! Theatre with P.R.I.D.E. is here to stay! We will be posting occasionally during our off-season (November-May), and will be back full-force in June (the start of PRIDE month) for SEASON 2!

Remember, when you go to vote, vote for the candidate(s) that you feel best exemplify our acronym P.R.I.D.E. (Perspective, Respect, Identity, Diversity, & Equity). Voting is a step forward toward positive change. However, we then must come together, undivided to create the change we want to see.

Much love to all of our listeners! We'll be back soon!

~The Theatre with P.R.I.D.E. Team
(Chad, Georgia, and Riley)

*NOTE: This episode was filmed on October 27, 2020. It was released on October 29, 2020—less than ONE WEEK before November 3, Voting Day. Vote!*

Want to purchase the book we read? Look here: A Day in the Life of Marlon Bundo by Jill Twiss and Last Week Tonight

ReNew Productions Links

• Website
• GoFundMe

Podcast Cover Art by Frankie Rowles

Podcast Music by Ben Pederson

Welcome to the afterlife, listeners! Listen along to some meaningful conversations about the winning play of ReNew's Playwright's Playground Festival, "Divine Wisdumb: A Comedy "Straight" from the Afterlife!" by Riley Bocchicchio. Joining us on this episode are: Chad Parsons (Co-Director), Georgia Evans (Tech), Mahogany Fleeks (Jezebel), and Parker Perry (Dennis). We talk about the views, messages, humor, and next steps forward for the play as it will move into its workshop phase with ReNew Productions in December. 

ReNew Productions Links

• Website
• GoFundMe
• Divine Wisdumb: A Comedy "Straight" From the Afterlife!" Live Zoom Reading

Podcast Cover Art by Frankie Rowles
Podcast Music by Ben Pederson