Kumu Kahua Theatre and Bamboo Ridge Press Announce The Winner of the November 2023 Go Try PlayWrite Contest
For Immediate Release 12.15.2023
Kumu Kahua Theatre and Bamboo Ridge Press Announce
The Winner of the November 2023 Go Try PlayWrite Contest
Where: Kumu Kahua Theatre, 46 Merchant Street, Honolulu
Contact: Sara Ward, officemanager@kumukahua.org, 536-4441
HONOLULU HI – The November Go Try PlayWrite winner is Lee A. Tonouchi for his piece Why We Get War?
Lee A. Tonouchi a.k.a. "Da Pidgin Guerrilla" is one Pidgin writer. He had several plays produced by Kumu Kahua Theatre. Dey include Gone Feeshing, Living Pidgin, Da Kine Space, Echoes of Dat Red Guitar, and UchinaAloha. His play Oriental Faddah and Son ran at Paliku Theatre. HTY wen go do his youth play Three Year Swim Club. An'den da East West Players did da adult version which wuz one Los Angeles Times Critic's Choice Selection. Lee get several award-winning Pidgin books too and his most recent one stay da collection, Chiburu: Anthology of Hawai'i Okinawan Literature. Most recently he da recipient of da 2021-2022 Tony Quagliano Poetry Award and da 2023 American Association for Applied Linguistics Distinguished Public Service Award for his work in raising public awareness of important language-related issues and promoting linguistic social justice.
November 2023 prompt: A “what’s in the news” prompt. Write a ten (10) page maximum scene or an six (6) page maximum monologue of an adult responding to a child’s question about an event currently in the news. I encourage you to pose the most difficult question a child can muster to the most problematic events in the world right now. Remember that this is a scene or monologue in the dramatic form; avoid preaching and cant. Good luck.
Each month Kumu Kahua Theatre co-sponsors this playwriting contest with Bamboo Ridge Press in their combined effort to nurture local playwrights and authors. Each month a different judge is pulled from amongst the theatre practitioners in the Hawaii theatre community. All plays submitted are read by Kumu Kahua Theatre Artistic Director, Harry Wong III.
Kumu Kahua Theatre is now accepting entries for the
December 2023 Go Try PlayWrite Contest.
December Prompt: A “what’s in the news” part two prompt. Write a ten (10) page maximum scene or an six (6) page maximum monologue of a child responding to an event currently in the news. They may or may not proffer a solution, but they do add clarity to the event. The child could be talking to an adult or other children. Find all the innocence and cruelty in a child’s perspective.
CLICK HERE TO SUBMIT
Contest Rules: Each entrant must write a 5-page monologue and/or a 10-page scene based on monthly requirements. Each month a new prompt will be chosen by Kumu Kahua Theatre’s Artistic Director. The prompt will be given on or by the 1st of the month and the due date will always be the last day of the month. All entries must be written in traditional play format; instructions on this format can be found here: https://www.dramatistsguild.com/script-formats courtesy of the Dramatists Guild.
There will be one winner each month. Scripts will be submitted to the judges anonymously. So please do not put your name on the cover of your script. Winners will receive $100.00 and a subscription to Bamboo Ridge Press.
Kumu Kahua productions are supported in part by the NME Fund of the Hawaiʻi Community Foundation, the Island Insurance Foundation, The State Foundation on Culture and the Arts, through appropriations from the Legislature of the State of Hawaiʻi, The AAPI Community Fund, The Richard Aadland Fund, The Hawaiʻi Tourism Authority, The Honolulu Star-Advertiser, The John R. Halligan Charitable Fund, Spectrum/Charter Communications, ABC Stores, the Gloria Kosasa Gainsley Fund, Hawaiʻi Public Radio, H. Hawaii Media, Simply Storage, The Kim Coco Fund for Justice of the Iwamoto Family Foundation, Vacations Hawaiʻi, Zippy’s Restaurants, Highway Inn, Generations Magazine, CVS/Longs Drugs, HMSA, Hawaiian Electric, MonkeyPod, Ron and Rachel Heller, Leonard and Charlotte Chow, and other foundations, businesses, and loyal patrons.