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Writer's pictureAndrew G. Cooper

I'm Working on a New Playwriting Commission!

I have exciting news to share that I've been sitting on for a while! I'm currently working on a commission for a new play through Verb Theatre's New Play Commission Program! Here's what the company's website says about the program:

Verb Theatre has proudly supported the creation of new theatre for over a decade, and we’ve always got a few buns in the oven at any given time... Here at Verb, we are interested in creative risk taking. We love scripts that tell stories in ways that push the boundaries of what theatre can do and what theatre can be. We are interested in theatre that touches on contemporary conversations and ideas. We’re looking for the theatre of tomorrow.

The project that I'm working on for this program is currently titled Advent and Asunder. I don't want to give away too many secrets but it's a speculative fiction script that explore both contemporary and future social themes as well as the form of theatre itself. The writing is coming along steadily and I'm very excited by the direction the script has taken so far.


It's hard to express how important programs like this are for the development of new theatre and the growth of playwrights. Having funds to support dedicated time to dive into the creation and incubation of new ideas is so liberating as an artist. It really allows me to develop my process for playwriting and try new things with this script. This stage of the commission is just for writing the script, so without the pressure of an upcoming performance (which is so often present in the early writing process) I'm able to let my ideas simmer for longer and I feel the end result will be much more vibrant because of it.


Some people have asked me about my writing process lately; it's something I may write a post about in the future. No matter what type of writing I do, one thing that's consistent over my writing is that I write every day, usually first thing in the morning. Getting into the habit of writing daily is something that I always stress to new writers. To be a writer, you have to write. If you do a little bit every day, you'll eventually have something. It's as simple, and as difficult, as that.


I'm excited about Advent and Asunder and I hope to share more news about it soon!

 

Here's a bit more about Verb Theatre from their website:

"At Verb Theatre our mission is to provide for our audiences theatrical experiences that explore cutting edge ideas in cutting edge ways. We look to explore conversations and theatrical forms that will be important to our audiences tomorrow with our surprising, important, and innovative performance."


They don't have any scheduled programming right now because of the pandemic, but make sure to check out their work in the future!

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