Play Development
A brief history of how Pirates vs. Leprechauns came to be..
What would happen if...
I was watching a TV show with my family one day and band of pirates landed on an island. The pirates were searching for treasure, of course. That's when I asked the question: What would happen if pirates searching for silver and gold ran into another group who wanted the gold just as much as they did? And what if that group had different types of strengths than the pirates? Who could match up evenly against pirates? How would that battle turn out? Who would win?
The first question to answer was who (or what) would be a formidable foe for a band of feisty pirates? I thought about a lot of different possibilities, but one type of magical creature kept coming to mind. Some who likes gold as much as pirates?
Leprechauns! About 4 months later, I had a draft of a play I called Pirates vs. Leprechauns. I had always intended it to be a play that children could enjoy. But I also wanted to make it fun for adults, too.
October 2021
READING AT OCPA MEETING
I am part of a group of playwrights (Orange County Playwrights Alliance) who meet once a month to share new work in development. One one Saturday in October, I was fortunate enough to have a reading of the first draft of PVL by some talented actors/teachers who are experienced in theatre for young audiences. One of those actors was Lissa Slay, who heads the Theatre Department at Mater Dei High School in Santa Ana California. Lissa has years of experience teaching and performing theatre for children.
March 2022
ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PERFORMANCES
It turns out that Lissa Slay was looking for a show that her advanced theatre students could perform in front of elementary school audiences. This exercise is part of the students education in learning about touring children's theatre groups. All in all, 6 different elementary schools and nearly 2,500 students were able to see the first production of Pirates vs. Leprechauns. That version had only one song and was only 35 minutes long. It was so much fun hearing the kids laugh at lines I didn't even know were funny. And the biggest compliment I had was when a 10 year old boy sought me out after the play to tell me how much he liked it.
December 2022
PVL CHOSEN AS PART OF THE WAYWARD ARTIST SEASON
I was lucky enough to join a theatre group in OC called The Wayward Artist. Craig Tyrl, the Artistic Director of TWA had applied for a youth theatre grant. When the grant came through he asked me to consider making Pirates vs. Leprechauns performances a part of the youth program. I jumped at the chance, and now PVL will be both featured in the summer youth theatre camp and a performance by adult actors for the public in December 2023.
June 2023
PVL SUBJECT OF TWA SUMMER THEATRE CAMP
For two weeks in June, 2023 (June 12-23), PVL was performed by elementary school students from the Santa Ana school district. Because The Wayward Artist received a grant from the California Arts Council for this program, the summer camp will be completely tuition free.
December 2023
PIRATES VS. LEPRECHAUNS (Professional Production) PREMIERES AT THE WAYWARD ARTIST
In December 2023, the new and improved version (60 minutes, 6 songs) was performed by professional actors at the Grand Central Art Center in Santa Ana California.
The show was directed by Sydney Raquel, Co-Artistic Director at The Wayward Artist. The cast included: Spike Pulice as Pocket, Genevieve Kauper as Lucky, Elisabeth Hunter as Finn, Sidney Aaron Aptaker as Shanty, Ashton Haugen as Limerick, Adrianne Owings as Mumble, and Richard Piatt as Greenbeard.
Stage management by Phone Tha. Scenic design by Kristin Campbell. Costume design by Ella Nelson. Lighting design by Matthew M. Hayashi, Sound design and musical direction by Craig Holland.
January 2024
Pirates vs. Leprechauns is nominated for OUTSTANDING NEW WORK for the Orange County Theatre Guild Awards!
Here's the article: OCTG Unveils List of Award Nominees.