Summer Theater Lab, 2019: Frost & Dodd Student Play Festival

The 2019 Frost & Dodd Student Play Festival

Friday-Saturday July 26-27 @ 8:00 pm
Sunday July 28 @ 4:00 & 8:00 pm
The Bentley Theater
All tickets $5; available at the Hop Box Office

The culmination of the 92nd annual Frost Student Playwriting Competition and the 44th annual Ruth & Loring Dodd Student Playwriting Competition. The winning one-act plays will be performed in repertory over the course of the July 26-28 weekend. The complete performance schedule is listed below; please click here for more information about the Frost & Dodd Competitions.

THE 2019 RUTH AND LORING DODD PLAYWRITING COMPETITION WINNER

Dr. Superman
by Kayshav Prakash '22
Friday & Sunday, July 26 & 28, 8 pm
A Fully-produced Production
Jamie Horton, director
Tickets available here

"Dr. Superman" follows an Indian family transplanted to the rural South, as they navigate the brown experience in a community being ravaged by the rise of opiates and the loss of jobs. 

Kayshav Prakash is a ’22 from San Jose, CA, studying mathematical data science and theater. He has been writing plays since high school, which is where he first developed Dr. Superman; the play won first place for playwriting during his senior year. Outside of theater he is involved with Casual Thursday improv, the Mock Trial Society and the Tour Guides Program. He would like to thank his friends, his family, the Dartmouth Theater Faculty, CAT and Mindy Kaling for convincing him to pursue writing at Dartmouth. 

Robert Alter '21, scenic design
Anna Clark '19, costume design
Jonathan Briffault '21, lighting design
Maya Frost-Belansky '20, stage manager

THE 2019 ELEANOR FROST PLAYWRITING COMPETITION WINNERS

Lost Angeles by Kavya Menon ‘20
&
The Recording by Monik Walters ‘19

Saturday, July 27, 8 pm
Sunday, July 28, 4 pm
Staged Reading Performances
Directed by Deby Xiadani '15
Tickets available here 

Lost Angeles
When Aria moves to Los Angeles to pursue an internship in film production, she finds herself in the midst of a very interesting mix of personalities. Between the 11 girls she shares an apartment with, her quirky boss, and the random people she meets, there is never a dull moment. 

The Recording
An examination of the narration of death in black communities and the storytelling capabilities of black women in these contexts. "The Recording" is a nonlinear exploration of the concept of mothers outliving their children in a modern era of violence, and the responsibility black women have to tell those stories.

Kavya Menon ’20 is an English major modified with theater, with a concentration in creative writing, and an Arabic language minor. She grew up in Cleveland, Ohio, and she discovered her love for acting and theater in high school; some of her favorite roles were Hermia in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and the Wicked Witch of the West in The Wizard of Oz. She has been in four productions at Dartmouth, and this is the first one-act play that she has written. She’d like to thank her mom and her three dogs for being a constant source of support and love. 

Monik Walters ’19 studied geography and African American studies at Dartmouth. Born and raised in Valley Stream, NY, her affinity for the arts started with her high school’s performing arts program. She is excited to share this piece with the world and wants to continue making an impact in her communities and for people and women of color. Outside of the arts she has concentrated her time on activism and advocacy. In her senior year at Dartmouth, she served as the college’s first black female student body president. She also worked with NAACP at Dartmouth throughout her student career, campaigning against racial injustice, food insecurity and financial inequity.