WIT Red Carpet - 2008 Awardees

The LONG BEACH PLAYHOUSE NEW WORKS FESTIVAL, directed by Jo Black-Jacob, Literary Manager, was established in 1990 by former Artistic Director, Elaine Herman and managed by the late Emmett Williams until 2004. "Our ongoing commitment is to help established and emerging playwrights develop new work, discover original plays, present staged readings of Festival Winners, and, hopefully, produce award-winning World Premieres such as Richard Martin Hirsch’s “THE QUALITY OF LIGHT”(2006), and William Blinn’s “HATTIE”(2005)."

All volunteers at LBPH, the New Works Festival Committee Members; Jo Black-Jacob, Penny Farmer, James Izumi, Ray Jacob, Lisa Klig, Arthur Kraft, Ralph Richmond, Marjorie Rivera, and Caprice Spencer Rothe, have read and evaluated over 1,000 new plays since 2004. Recent AWARDEES include CA playwrights Robert Ahola, Cecilia Fannon, Frank Farmer, Paula Fell, Mary Fengar Gail, Arthur Gottlieb, Diane Grant, Joni Hilton, and Luke Yankee. Each of their plays was given a DIRECTED STAGED READING on LBPH Mainstage, written analyses by renowned Drama Critics Shirle Gottlieb, Vicki Paris Goodman, Eric Marchese, and James Scarborough, a DVD of the performance, and $100 honorarium.

"In our newly created ‘Cold Table Reads’, or ‘3rd Sunday Project’, produced by NWFC Member, Caprice Spencer Rothe, Finalists of the current NWF have an opportunity to hear their plays read by professional actors with a discussion following led by Rico Freedman, award-winning playwright. AND, in September of 2008, LBPH NWF will inaugurate a Playwrights’ Workshop to further our goals of producing Outstanding Theatre in Greater Los Angeles."