December 2007. Happily writing a book for Accompany Publishing tentatively titled "Arts In Action: Launching A Successful Arts Education Program." About half way done right now. It's like butter.
Starting work on Duckie Goes Round the World for production in Summer 2008. Been wanting to write this since I first heard about the real rubber ducks who are mapping the world.
More Patterns, our sequel to 2005's Patterns, was presented by The Pollyanna Theatre Company at The Dougherty Arts Center, August 9 - 14 2007 and is touring schools through Spring 2008. We're having much fun with Red, Blue, Green, and Yellow as they learn the patterns of school and play.
Early/mid 2007. Working on revising a lot of material and getting some submissions out the door. Been getting more involved with The International Centre for Women Playwrights. I'm hosting a discussion forum about women and playwriting, so come post, if you please.
Looking forward to another Pollyanna Theatre Company production, working title More Patterns: The Repeat with my dear friend Judy Matetzschk-Campbell. Check out all her good work with The Pollyanna Theatre.
2006 was the year that I sold my first screenplay, Young Beowulf. Also, a short play I wrote for middle school actors, Like A Metaphor, won the Everyday Heroes award and the Dramatic Developments award, and I had a totally lovely experience with Lynda Sharpe and the students of Middleton High School with In The Middle Of It All.
Went to CineStory in California Fall 2005 to work on Eliza's Ferry. But perhaps the highlight was getting to screen the short animated film I did with my good young friend Dylan, Joe in a Pickle, to an audience of "industry professionals."
My 3 minute personal essay Sometimes, Abortion Saves was featured Public Radio International's Primary Sources, including stations: WNYC/New York Public Radio, WGBH Radio Boston, WHYY/Philadelphia, WAMU/Washington, D.C., KERA/Dallas, WCPN/Cleveland, and KCRW/Los Angeles, Spring, 2005.
The Pollyanna Theatre Company and Ballet Austin's Trail of Tears: Walking the Choctaw Road, which I adapted from the book by storyteller Tim Tingle, published by Cinco Puntos Press, premiered January 22 of 2005 at the Texas School for the Deaf to a standing ovation! It is slated to tour to Corpus Christi and Oklahoma between Feb and May, and then returned for a tour in the Spring of 2006. Tim's book was named the official State book of Oklahoma. He's a great and true storyteller.
The Pollyanna Theatre Company presented a staged reading of Sarah Who Saved Thanksgiving October 29 & 30, 2004 at the Dougherty Arts Center. After a week long workshop where thirty or so pages were re-written and songs were added and thrown out, the response to the "sing-through" was very positive: one audience member called it "A Christmas Carol for Thanksgiving!" and that rather sums it all up.
"Come, come, good wine is a good familiar creature if it be well used; exclaim no more against it." -- Shakespeare