MEDIA CONTACT: Patricia A. Ellis, 313-410-3417 | https://www.gpt.org/
Grosse Pointe Theatre's Playwriting Workshops will teach the art of storytelling
Workshops prepare authors for the upcoming ten-minute play festival competition.
GROSSE POINTE, MI – All playwrights and those interested in becoming one are invited to participate in
Grosse Pointe Theatre's Take Ten Playwriting Workshops, which will be held virtually July – October 2021,
from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on the second Saturday of the month. Registration for the workshop series is
now open. The cost for the four-workshop series is $25. However, the workshops are complimentary for
Grosse Pointe Theatre members, so all participants are welcome to become a GPT member. Membership
information is provided on the registration page. The workshops will teach skills in storytelling through
playwriting, specifically the ten-minute play format. This year's playwriting theme is, "While You Were Out,"
similar to the message slips used in offices and the twists and turns that can happen communicating the
message. The virtual workshop format will make it easy for playwrights from around the state to participate.
By the end of the workshop series, participants should have a finished ten-minute play that they can submit
to Grosse Pointe Theatre's Take Ten, Ten-Minute Play Festival competition. The competition is open to all
playwrights. The workshop series will be a worthwhile educational exercise for newcomers, as well as those
who have experience in playwriting. Play submissions to GPT's playwriting competition will be accepted
through Dec. 31, 2021, and the winning submissions will be performed next spring.
Grosse Pointe Theatre's ten-minute play festival, now in its eighth year, is the brainchild of longtime GPT
member Mary Lou Britton who has been leading this program as its executive producer since it began.
After assuming many technical and administrative responsibilities at GPT through the years, Britton honed-
in on her writing skills creating ten-minute plays. She has written several short plays since. Having spent her
career as an executive communicator and editor, and now playwright, Britton is excited to share her skills
and enthusiasm for playwriting with other playwrights and newcomers. Britton will team-teach the
workshops with Stella Woitulewicz, an actor and theatre buff who got hooked on comedy writing at Second
City Detroit. She has written and co-directed numerous short plays since.
"Playwriting has grown in popularity through the years and it's exciting to see someone take a story idea
and create a plot, characters and a setting that audiences can relate too," said Britton. "Playwriting opens
up another dimension to storytelling, connecting each character's experiences in a believable and
entertaining way – in this case, all in ten minutes! We look forward to working with this year's participants
and seeing their creative process develop into a finished ten-minute play."
For more information on Grosse Pointe Theatre's Take Ten Playwriting Workshops and Ten-Minute Play
Festival, visit http://www.gpt.org. Additional questions can be addressed by emailing playfestival@gpt.org or by
calling 586-779-8974.
About Grosse Pointe Theatre
Grosse Pointe Theatre, a volunteer-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, is honored to celebrate more
than 72 years of entertaining audiences in southeast Michigan – connecting, creating and inspiring
communities through theatre. For information on virtual and live performances, youth and educational
programs, membership and other ways to get involved or show support, visit http://www.gpt.org or call 313-881- All donations are tax deductible and appreciated.
