From Performers to Playwrights

At St. Ambrose University, students are given the opportunity to take a wide array of classes, including Dr. Cory Johnson's Current Dramatic Literature class.

In that course, students have the chance to read popular and often Pulitzer Prize-winning plays from the past few years. This semester, her students were given the opportunity to write a play that was submitted to the Quad City Theatre Workshop's 3rd Annual Susan Glaspell Playwriting Festival.

The festival honors playwright Susan Glaspell, who was born in Davenport in 1876. Glaspell's work challenged gender roles and featured strong female characters, a rare thing in her time. To honor this, play submissions are encouraged to include at least one strong female role. The winner and runner-up will have the opportunity for a staged reading of their show, and the first-place winner will receive $200.

Johnson, in preparation for submissions, provided her class with prompts to help them get started. For some students, this was the first time they attempted to write a play, while others have been writing for a few years. When everyone sat down and had their plays read aloud, the results were surprising.

"So many people had written very easy-flowing dialogue that was easy to understand, and several were hilarious," said senior Christian Colmenares. "For first-timers, it was completely surprising."

Colmenares not only submitted his play to the Workshop but also to the Protest Play category of playwriting for the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival.

Another student, sophomore Tyler Hughes, said he is hoping to receive responses that help him improve as a playwright.

"I like my writing, but I've never actually had the opportunity to submit anything before and get feedback," he said.

Hughes and the rest of the class will anxiously await the announcement of the results on January 15, 2019.

For anyone interested in throwing their hat in the ring, the Workshop will accept submissions until December 15.