SO YOU WANNA BE A PLAYWRIGHT . . .

Playwrights are born and made.


(Yes, I know, it's usually one or the other.)

Frankly, something deep inside makes only the truly strangest of us want to be playwrights. We don't do it for the money, clearly. We do it because we have a need to share with others--and we want to get the voices in our head out there on the stage, live. (So maybe we can have some peace and quiet inside our heads for a little bit!) It's an admittedly odd thing to want to do, but if it's in your blood, then you pretty much need to do it.

And yet there are many folks who want to write but don't--not enough time to write, no quiet place to work, no actor friends to read for them, etc.--all the usual excuses for keeping their inner playwriting demons repressed. (And maybe this is a healthy, self-preserving action!) And yet . . .

Playwriting allows an unusual opportunity not only to put one's thoughts into words, but to create a living "dream world" that both artists and audiences can share, often dealing with topics and behavior that no other art form can or will bother to explore. It utilizes the imagination not only of the author and the actors, but the audience as well, and in an instant, one can go from a small dreary room with folding seats to a castle in Italy (without spending millions on a wedding, Mr. & Mrs. Cruise), or conjure up a dragon or fly to Mars or go back in time or, maybe, just deal with something seemingly innocent that happened at a bus stop that changed someone's life forever.

This is where the writers being "made" comes in. With a good, free-wheeling, fun playwriting class, one can let the writing beast out and see what makes him/her tick.

All of this is admittedly a shameless plug for the playwriting course I'm teaching down at the Henry Street Settlement Abrons Arts Center. It is the final week to sign up for the "winter session" of my Adult Playwriting class, which begins November 29th and meets on Wednesday nights from 7-9 pm. No experience is necessary, and the class welcomes both experienced writers and complete beginners. Ten classes are only $150. In addition to reading and critiquing members' work, we will discuss the creative process, writers block, play marketing and, well, life. Call 212-598-0400, ext. 224 to register, or go to the Henry Street Settlement Web Site.