Critics’ Forum
Theater
New Play Development: Birthing a Script – and a Community
By Lori Yeghiayan

Plays do not hatch, fully-formed, from the imagination of a
playwright, like Athena, the Greek Goddess of Wisdom (and War),
bursting forth from Zeus’ skull. No. A longer, more complex
birthing process is usually required to nurture a script from idea to
first-draft to a script ready for production.

I recently sat down with Los Angeles-based playwright Lilly
Thomassian, whose play Nadia just won first prize in the inaugural
William Saroyan Prize for Playwriting. Our discussion centered on
the function of community in the development of new work for the
stage and screen, and the role the diasporan Armenian community might
play in it.

Not surprisingly, the conversation also included a close look at the
playwriting process itself, one that Thomassian is intimately
familiar with, because she has used it herself on a number of
occasions. Understanding the intricacies of the process is key to
recognizing the diasporan Armenian community’s special role in
expanding the number as well as the quality of Armenian-themed plays
being produced and staged today.

Before a production of a new play can take shape – with a director,
actors, sets, lights and costumes – the script must be complete, or
at least nearly so. The process of getting the text to this place is
referred to by those in production as "new play development."

On any given day, there are staged readings or workshops of plays-in-
progress being produced by theaters big and small, in major cities
and small towns all across the United States. And, there are legions
of playwrights sitting alone at their keyboards working on the re-
writes that spring from these collaborations.

Why? Because it is common wisdom in the field that inviting a
director and actors into a writer’s process at various points in a
play’s development is the best way to cultivate new work for the
theater and to develop new talent. It is also the road to production
in the current U.S. model. Often a theater’s Literary Department –
assigned the task of scouting new plays for possible production –
will not even read a script submission unless the play has had a
development history, such as a staged reading.

This new play development process has only been applied in a limited
way within the Armenian diasporan community in the United States.
Often, there is ample support within the community for the results –
a film screened, a play produced – but there is less support for the
steps necessary to achieve those results.

A greater investment in new play development among the U.S. diasporan
Armenian theater community could translate into more playwrights and
screenwriters of Armenian descent, as well as more – and stronger –
scripts featuring Armenian characters and themes. It could also lead
to the next stage of maturation for a theater community still in its
infancy. The ultimate outcome: more Armenian artists making an
impact in the field and more Armenian stories being disseminated to a
wider audience.

Anais Thomassian and Joe LeMieux in Lilly Thomassian’s Thirst at Luna
Playhouse, 2006. Photo credit: Leon Parian.

The presentation of the three finalists for the William Saroyan
playwriting prize this past August is a commendable step in this
direction. The competition, established by the William Saroyan
Foundation in 2007, awards a $10,000 prize for the best full-length
play based on an Armenian theme. For this inaugural year, the
Armenian Dramatic Arts Alliance – a Boston-based nonprofit
organization whose mission is to project the Armenian voice on the
world stage through theater and film – administered the competition
and produced a three-day festival to present the top three scripts.
Each play was assigned a director and actors and, after a short
rehearsal period, was presented to the public in a performance at the
renowned Fountain Theater in Los Angeles.

The value of such an enterprise to the life of a play and the career
of a budding playwright can hardly be overstated. When I asked
Thomassian whether she had ever had a play of hers go straight from
first-draft to production, she dismissed the suggestion: "No," she
said, "I can’t imagine."

As it turns out, Thomassian’s prize-winning play Nadia – about an
Armenian family living in modern war-torn Iraq – did not emerge from
her head dressed in full regalia like Athena, armed and ready for
battle. It took ten years, working on and off, and at least 30 drafts
for the play to reach maturity. Readings and workshops were an
important part of that process.

"I love what a director brings to a play," added Thomassian. "And,
the actors show you a side of the work that you didn’t even know you
were writing. That’s what I love. [In a staged reading,] you’re not
working on a production, but on the text and making it play better."

The great majority of the development process for Thomassian’s plays,
however, has taken place outside of the Armenian community.

For example, to develop Nadia, Thomassian worked with groups such as
First Stage in Hollywood and Playwrights Ink, a writing group for Los
Angeles playwrights. Her plays Let the Rocks Speak and Thirst – both
of which received successful Los Angeles productions – were similarly
developed, with support primarily coming from non-Armenian theater
groups.

Such support not only helps shape a particular piece of writing, but
it can also be a vital source of encouragement for early-career
writers. Feedback from the very community most invested in the
success of Armenian art and artists may be just what is needed to
encourage a budding playwright.

Greater support from within the Armenian community could also lead to
the development of a network of Armenian theater artists.
Connections made through such efforts would foster more collaboration
among Armenian artists and result in a greater impact in the field.
After all, the collective voice is stronger than the lone one.

A scene from the 2003 Fountain Theatre production of "Let the Rocks
Speak," by Lilly Thomassian.

Steps taken in support of new play development within the Armenian
community nurture Armenian playwrights and plays and are to be
applauded. Such efforts are not only a wise investment in individual
artists working in this powerful story-telling medium; they also
foster the growth and development of a diasporan Armenian theater
community in the United States.

An even greater investment in the process would help ensure that when
scripts finally do spring to life fully-formed – armed with the
literary equivalent of Athena’s mighty thunderbolt – the work is in
top form, showcasing Armenian talent and stories in the best possible
light.

And wouldn’t that be wisdom indeed?

All Rights Reserved: Critics’ Forum, 2008. Exclusive to the Armenian
Reporter.

Lori Yeghiayan holds a Master of Fine Arts degree in Theater from the
University of California, San Diego and has worked as a professional
actress in television, radio, film and theatre.

You can reach her or any of the other contributors to Critics’ Forum
at comments@criticsforum.org. This and all other articles published
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