Page to Stage - 2009 New Concept

Young Dramatists Page to Stage has been part of North Sydney's cultural landscape since 1994.

The original concept of young people writing and performing in their own plays was instigated by local drama teacher Eileen Hoare (who sadly passed away in 2008) and Wendy Michaels from the NSW Board of Studies.

With the assistance of actress Anne Grigg, many professional actors and directors took part in this community project for little or no financial gain. Two of these actors, Bill Conn and Elaine Hudson took over as Artistic Directors when Eileen, Wendy and Anne retired from the project in 2000.

Eight plays were performed annually at the Ensemble Theatre and many of the young people involved went on to further study and are now working in various aspects of professional theatre.

Young Dramatists Page to Stage folded in 2008, but, keen to keep aspects of the project alive, Council employed Bill and Elaine to provide some low-key writing and drama workshops in collaboration with two local schools - St. Aloysius and North Sydney Girls High School.

Four plays written by the students have been selected for workshopping, and approximately 20 young people will meet every Tuesday and Wednesday afternoon at Stanton Library to go through their paces. The new format is entitled PTS Workshops.

Young people with special needs from Chatswood High School will also be involved in the project under the expert guidance of "Shakespeare on the Green" director Sher Guhl. They will perform an excerpt or text from an original play.

Performance

A performance of the four plays will be held for family and friends at 7.30pm on Wednesday 1 July 2009 at St. Aloysius Drama Theatre.

The selected plays for workshopping are:

Untitled - North Sydney Girls
Linda Ma
 
Untitled - North Sydney Girls High School
Angela Zhang
 
St. Peter - St. Aloysius
James Ross
 
Business Card - St. Aloysius
Nicholas Cord