Lion & Unicorn Theatre July 2020

BEGINNINGS – A FESTIVAL OF NEW WRITING

MISSION STATEMENT – To encourage and develop new writing.

Beginnings is a festival of new writing.  We called out for new writing scripts of no more than 2,000 words (approximately 10 minutes) that have never had a public showing of any sort. We asked for submissions to be sent in “Blind” . The selected plays will be supported by a cast of players, all playing multiple roles and two directors taking on 5 a piece…thus ensuring as even a playing field as possible for the writers. The plays will be judged by an Industry Panel.
We are delighted to have on board, as our panel;
Sofie Mason, founder OffWestEnd.com who in 2010 launched The Offies
Robert Shearman esteemed author and playwright
&  Kate Bannister, Artistic Director of The Brockley Jack Theatre.
Kat Rogers and Louise Jameson will be directing the 10 chosen plays this coming Summer,  DATES  11th & 12th July 2021 at The Lion & Unicorn Theatre, London
                                      *******NEWS*******

AND THE WINNER IS!!!

Delighted to announce the winning playwright of Beginnings 2021 is Stephen Tomas with – Tenebrae

Tenebrae was Directed by Louise Jameson and featured Julian Forsyth and Holly Jackson-Walters

Many congratulations to Stephen.

We are delighted to be working with Stephen over the next 12 months to fully develop this play into production.

Photos by Anne Koerber Photography

“The dialogue here positively crackles – Stephen Thomas
has a tremendous gift of taking innocuous statements and sentences and giving
them increased menace. Of all the plays in Beginnings, this is the one that had
the courage to be truly ambiguous – to refuse to explain itself from the outset,
and the result is something that is deeply intriguing. It’s sometimes said that
most (useful) scenes in drama reflect on some level a power shift between the
characters – and Tenebrae plays this wonderful game with the audience, that in
the space of only a few minutes that shift goes back and forth and back and
forth. There is real craft to the writing here – this is really exciting stuff. I don’t
know what Tenebrae is about, or where it’s headed – and I think it’s very telling
that I don’t want answers, I just want more of it.”

Kate Bannister, Robert Shearman, Sofie Mason – Industry Panel Judges 2020