I'm in Denver for The Dramatists Guild. Yesterday I offered a Self-Production Primer, a 4-hour starter kit workshop on some fundamentals for playwrights interested in producing their own work. Whenever I teach one of these in a new city, I always find it an interesting window into that local community. Spending a half a day with a roomful of people who are making theatre on a grassroots level gives you a flavor for the feel of the local culture.
And in Denver the feeling was great. Two things struck me most immediately about the 20 people gathered in that room at the Denver Center Theatre rehearsal building.
Lots of questions raised made it clear that this is a community that is enjoying a sort of surge in activity on the new work front. More is being produced all the time. The questions and comments were smart and insightful. And most exciting to discover: many of the writers in the room have already been working to produce each other's work. Not just their own plays but plays written by their colleagues.
Now this is certainly nothing new. We have 13P and many other groups that have followed to hold up as models of success.
Later that night when we attended Jeffrey Neuman's new play, Exit Strategies at The Edge Theatre, it was clear to observe from across the street before the show began as one after another and another arrived and greeted the playwright with bear hugs and kisses, that this is a community with loads of generosity and love to spare. And if that's the case, I'd say, chances are, things are only going to continue to improve for all writers in Denver.
It's a lovely thing to behold.
