Texas State hosts 2007 Black and Latino Playwrights Conference

By Marc Speir
University News Service
September 5, 2007

The Department of Theatre and Dance at Texas State University-San Marcos will host staged readings from the Fifth Annual Black and Latino Playwrights Conference Sept. 14-16.

The performances will showcase readings of two new plays in the Studio Theatre Center on campus at 601 University Drive. Admission is $3.

After an extensive nationwide submissions process, artistic director Eugene Lee and assistant artistic director Joe Luis Cedillo have selected Common Ground by Antoinette Winstead and Before Death Comes for the Archbishop by Elaine Romero as the two new scripts to workshop this year.

The conference invites professionals to work with students in producing a play with hands-on experience and highlights the talent of minority voices. Speakers and playwrights will visit the campus for the week of Sept. 9-16. This includes presentations by guest directors and artists, auditions and three to five days of open rehearsals that culminate with the staged readings.

Plays are rehearsed with the playwrights in residence, adding depth to the writer’s perspective and vision of the story. There will be a brief audience response session after each performance.

Common Ground is a modern tragedy focused on sibling rivalry and set in central Texas.

Before Death Comes for the Archbishop tells the story of Padre Martinez, a Mexican priest who passionately defends his faith and property as he battles the forces of manifest destiny in Mexico during the mid-1800s.

Common Ground, directed by Dean Irby, will be presented Sept. 14 at 7:30 p.m. and Sept. 15 at 2 p.m.

Before Death Comes for the Archbishop, directed by Kenny Leon, will be presented Sept. 15 at 7:30 p.m. and Sept. 16 at 2 p.m.

For more information, contact the Department of Theatre and Dance at (512) 245-2147.