Sarasota Area Playwrights Society artfully develops new plays

I am constantly astounded by the array of performing arts in Sarasota. The varied year-round events are abundant, of the highest quality and exciting. I've observed, however, that one area that could use more attention is the creating, supporting, and producing of new work by local artists---the key word here being "local."

One growing organization is helping to fill that gap. Last year, I was contacted by talented Bradenton playwright Bernie Yanelli to do a reading of his new play for an organization called SAPS. Immediately, I ran though my mental list of area theatrical acronyms and came up short.

SAPS stands for Sarasota Area Playwrights Society. George Loukides, an experienced director, actor and playwright, formed the organization six years ago. A retired New York City Supervisor of Special Education, he has lived in Sarasota for the past 10 years. At the time he created SAPS, he acknowledged that we live in a wonderful cultural community but he felt something was missing---nothing existed to nurture the talents of local playwrights throughout the year.

SAPS began as a small, 10-member group of playwrights and actors. It provided a unique opportunity for writers to develop and showcase their skills. Weekly workshops and monthly readings gave them the chance to hear their plays read aloud and be evaluated by peers, actor members and guests. Since then, participation in the group has grown exponentially.

Playwright Arthur Keyser is a very active member of SAPS and has found it to be an invaluable resource. I did a performance of his play, The Visitor, in 2012 for Theatre Odyssey’s Ten Minute Play Festival. It won second place in the festival and has since been published by ArtAge Senior Theatre Resource Center along with four of his other plays.

“Everything in playwriting, unlike other writing, is a collaboration,” Keyser explained. “With SAPS we have a lot of opportunities to get our work heard and we learn from each other. I have a play scheduled for an upcoming workshop; I expect to hear a lot of feedback from the group. Afterwards, once I go back to working on the script, I know it will be better than it is today.”

There are many steps along the way from the writing of a play to getting it produced by a theater. At the end of the day, theaters need to sell tickets and one of the surest ways to accomplish that is through well-known, high-quality material. Understandably, many theaters are hesitant to schedule a new play into their season that hasn't been tested and approved by audiences in advance.

SAPS provides support for these new plays at their initial and intermediate level, helping playwrights develop their scripts so they are in better shape before they are promoted to more traditional performance venues.

Presently, SAPS has 45 members. Its large growth is entirely a result of word-of-mouth. To keep up with the growing numbers and artistic demand, SAPS has expanded its programming year after year. For the current SAPS theater year (which runs October through May), SAPS will have scheduled approximately 45 events, which include Sunday play readings, playwright workshops, Afternoon Tea events that are open to the public and outreach programs.

As a local actress, it’s exciting for me to know that I have the opportunity to work on new material, to help playwrights hear their work and to contribute to a play’s growth. Much of theater is only possible because we have the stories of playwrights to tell. What's more, by nurturing the work of area playwrights, Sarasota’s cultural status will benefit on the local level, and maybe even far beyond.

- If you are interested in joining or for more information about SAPS, please contact George Loukides at (941) 822-0482 or [email protected].

The next Afternoon Tea is open to the public on Saturday, March 9 at 2 p.m. at Villa Grande, 4 Maggie Ln., Sarasota, FL 34232. Reservations can be made by calling (941) 366-2200 Monday through Friday, 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. A $10 entrance fee includes light refreshments plus the reading of four short plays written and acted by SAPS members.