New Play Festivals

Jul 01, 2024

Jonathan Norton, Joel Scoville, Melanie Payne, Karissa Murrell Myers, and Weston Gaylord

The Fire This Time Festival

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Joël René Scoville

is a Black Mormon (yes, really). Her musical 2&1: A Harlem Musical with Loose Morals, with composer Jenna Gillespie Byrd, was a 2023 O’Neill Finalist and 2022 Relentless Award Honorable Mention. Her musical Flophouse, with co-writer Justin Anthony Long and composer Joanna Burns, was a 2023 Rhinebeck Finalist. Her memberships include BMI, the Dramatists Guild, and UNTITLED Musical Writers Group as a founding member.

Melanie Payne

is an author, playwright, journalist, and occasional actor. Originally from Cleveland, Melanie is a graduate of Wellesley College and has an M.A. in psychology. She is the Executive Producer for the ABC Action News Investigations Team in Tampa, Florida, where she lives with her husband, Rodney Williams.

Karissa Murrell Myers

(she/her) is a Filipino American theatre artist based in Chicago. Her plays have been developed and/or produced at Goodman Theatre, A Red Orchid Theatre, American Blues Theatre, Silk Road Rising, and Boise Contemporary Theatre, among others, and at Bramble Theatre Company, where she serves as Artistic Director and Co-Founder. Member of the Dramatists Guild. www.kmurrellmyers.com  

Weston Gaylord

is a playwright/librettist based in Los Angeles. He is an alum of the Geffen Writers’ Room and the Vagrancy Playwrights Group, a recipient of the Humanitas PLAY LA fellowship, and has developed original work with Ashland New Plays Festival, TheatreWorks Silicon Valley, and Circle X.

Related Dramatist(s)

Joel Scoville,

Melanie Payne,

Karissa Murrell Myers,

Weston Gaylord,

Jonathan Norton

Related Organization(s)

The Fire This Time Festival,

Obsidian Theatre Festival,

Goodman Theatre,

Ashland New Plays Festival (ANPF),

Arkansas New Play Festival,