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 directors for foreign language pieces, writing multiple characters for one actor, discovering "magic" in grad school, self producing, keeping notes, ego, and good ideas, and clear guidelines and the ethics of paying fees to have one's work read. Ankita is a force to be reckoned with that every playwright can learn from. Enjoy!
For tickets to Neha and Neel at LATC in Los Angeles through November 16th, visit - https://www.latinotheaterco.org/nehaandneel
Ankita Raturi is a currently Queens-based writer and teaching artist. She writes hyper-theatrical works in English, Hindi/Urdu, and sometimes Bahasa Indonesia about living between cultural identities and contending with the ongoing legacies of colonization. She is the 2024 Winner of the Los Angeles New Play Project Award, and 2022 Winner of the Bret Adams and Paul Reisch Foundation’s Ollie Award. New play developments include Theater Mu, Playwrights’ Center, New York Theatre Workshop, Roundabout, Ma-Yi Theater Company, South Coast Repertory, Ensemble Studio Theatre, Playwrights Realm, and Berkshire Theatre Group, just to name a few. She is currently practicing applied theatre as an actor-teacher with CUNY’s Creative Arts Team. B.F.A. in Drama: NYU/Tisch. M.F.A. in Playwriting at UC San Diego.
To watch the video format of this episode, visit - https://youtu.be/T19LZUw4vC4
Links to sites and resources mentioned in this episode -
New Play Project - https://lanpp.org
Bret Adams and Paul Reisch Foundation - https://www.bretnpaulfoundation.org/
Theater Mu - https://www.theatermu.org
Playwrights' Center - https://pwcenter.org
New York Theatre Workshop - https://www.nytw.org/
Roundabout Theatre Company - https://www.roundabouttheatre.org
Ma-Yi Theater Company - https://ma-yitheatre.org/
South Coast Rep - https://www.scr.org
Ensemble Studio Theatre - https://www.ensemblestudiotheatre.org/
Playwrights Realm - https://www.playwrightsrealm.org/
Berkshire Theatre Group - https://www.berkshiretheatregroup.org/
Clubbed Thumb - https://www.clubbedthumb.org/
New Play Exchange - https://newplayexchange.org
Socials for Ankita Raturi -
IG - @ankitawrites
Websites and socials for James Elden, Punk Monkey Productions and Playwright's Spotlight
Punk Monkey Productions -
www.punkmonkeyproductions.com
PLAY Noir -
www.playnoir.com
PLAY Noir Anthology –
www.punkmonkeyproductions.com/contact.html
James Elden -
Twitter - @jameseldensauer
IG - @alakardrake
FB - fb.com/jameseldensauer
Punk Monkey Productions and PLAY Noir -
Twitter - @punkmonkeyprods
- @playnoirla
IG - @punkmonkeyprods
- @playnoir_la
FB - fb.com/playnoir
- fb.com/punkmonkeyproductions
Playwright's Spotlight -
Twitter - @wrightlightpod
IG - @playwrights_spotlight
Playwriting services through Los Angeles Collegiate Playwrights Festival
www.losangelescollegiateplaywrightsfestival.com/services.html
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