James Elden's Playwright's Spotlight

Jan 21 2025 84 ep. 84 mins 13
James Elden's Playwright's Spotlight Podcast artwork

Playwright Spotlight features a new playwright every episode to discuss the tools of the trade and solutions to the obstacles we face as writers in hopes of making us all better and more successful playwrights.

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Julliard, Monologues as a Marketing Tool, and the Math of Playwriting - Playwright's Spotlight with Adam Szymkowicz

Jan 21 2025 85 mins  
Send us a textThis interview is a long time coming. I am extremely grateful for Adam taking the time to come on to share his knowledge. I'm sure if time allotted, we could easily could've had a three hour conversation, and I promise we will do at least one more episode. In this talk, we discuss his decision to write a book about playwriting from a letter-writing perspective, common

Capturing the Audience, Archetypes & Character Flaws, and Being Done When You're Dead - Playwright's Spotlight with Laura Annawyn Shamas

Jan 06 2025 60 mins  
Send us a textHappy New Year! It's amazing how things come full circle. After having Steven Dietz' wife, Allison Gregory, on last episode, we were privileged enough to have Laura Annawyn Shamas on Playwright's Spotlight, who happened to work them both in Minneapolis at The Playwright's Center. In this episode, Laura and I discuss a playwright's involvement in a piece, tech and cost

Stealing from the Best, Letting the Story Find You, and the Approach of "When Are We?" - Playwright's Spotlight with Allison Gregory

Dec 24 2024 99 mins  
Send us a textThis week I had the pleasure of having a fascinating conversation with Allison Gregory on this recent episode of Playwright's Spotlight and her approach of writing about historical and mythological characters and exploring outside their known stories. We delved into the philosophy of "when we are", letting the story find us, the power of the #2 pencil and writing long

Prize Money vs Publication, Avoiding Scams, and the Effects of Changing Location - Playwright's Spotlight with Nick Amatuzio

Nov 26 2024 62 mins  
Send us a textBefore I get in to the breakdown of this episode, I have to correct a few things that are bit embarrassing for one hosting a playwriting podcast. 1) Black Comedy was written by Peter Schaefer (Black Comedy, Equis, Amadeus). 2) After "Matisse" is actually After Magritte and was indeed written by Tom Stoppard that was attributer to Black Comedy in this episode. I'm stil

Self Publishing, Offending Your Audience, Unconventional Marketing, and One Truth a Day - Playwright's Spotlight with Sharisse Zeroonian

Nov 12 2024 76 mins  
Send us a textPlaywright and filmmaker Sharisse Zeroonian streamed into the Playwright's Spotlight this week. Forgive a few moments of choppy audio on my end, but Sharisse's audio is clear, and she gives some great insight into taking your fate as a creative into one's own hands. We discuss her evolution as a writer through academia, offending your audience, self-publishing, unconv

From Lawyer to Playwright, Finding the Engine, and Working Backwards to Move Forward - Playwright's Spotlight with June Carryl

Oct 29 2024 80 mins  
Send us a textA MUST LISTEN! This in far from a dismissal of past guests and interviews. This is a personal and human conversation that is insightful and inspiring from struggle to achievement and perhaps a pathway to the later. June and I had a mishap in schedule that, had it not happened, I don't think we would have had the conversation that we came away with. Her background of g

Taking the Leap, Intention, and the Play is the Thing - Playwright's Spotlight with Ethan Crystal and Garrett Poladian

Oct 22 2024 79 mins  
Send us a textBonus episode between our usual schedule! In order to align our guest's upcoming shows with their interview, we're sneaking an additional episode during what would normally be a break. However, we skipped an week earlier in the season, so we hope this makes up for it.Ethan Crystal and Garrett Poladian streamed in to the Playwright's Spotlight to talk about their world

Living Voices, Loving Language, Pushing Boundaries, and Earning the Moment - Playwright's Spotlight with Jennie Webb

Oct 15 2024 79 mins  
Send us a textAfter high praise from Ellen Geer a few episodes, we were able to get Jennie Webb to sit in the Playwright's Spotlight and share her experiences as a playwright, dramaturg, and overseer of workshops. We explored her transition from acting into playwriting, her assistance in developing new works from "living voices", the benefits of asking questions, knowing the origin

Overcoming Imposter Syndrome, the Deadline Draft, and Learning from Classic Greek Playwrights - Playwright's Spotlight with Michi Barall

Oct 01 2024 79 mins  
Send us a textMichi Barall streamed into Playwright's Spotlight this week days before her new play Drawing Lessons leaps into rehearsal at Children's Theatre Company. Conceptually complex, Michi shares the concept of translating a graphic novel for the stage, the concept of live drawing on stage and simultaneously performing, putting the concept on the page, the process of casting,

Developing Premise, Breaking a Story, and Assembling the Team - Playwright's Spotlight with Ben Edlin and Deborah Aquila

Sep 17 2024 58 mins  
Send us a textBen Edlin and Deborah Aquila came by the studio to sit in the Playwright's Spotlight before the World Premiere of the collaborative play -TH*IR*DS. In this interview, we discussed the long process of developing this play over the course of seven years, the changes made, the possibility of it becoming a pilot but returning the concept to the stage, their process and pr