Saroyan Prize Winner Lilly Thomassian ("Nadia") in Nov. 08 Issue of American Theater!

20 Concord Lane Cambridge MA 02138 USA tel. 617 871-6764
www.armeniandrama.org

PRESS RELEASE

May 8, 2008


FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION CONTACT:
www.armeniandrama.org

SAROYAN PLAYWRITING PRIZE FINALISTS ANNOUNCED

The Armenian Dramatic Arts Alliance (ADAA) is pleased to announce the three finalists of the inaugural William Saroyan Prize for Playwriting: Nadia by Lilly Thomassian, Flesh and Tenderness by Kristen Lazarian and The Living and the Dead by Matthew ?Yazo? Yaldezian.


Play submissions were received from across the United States, the UK and Armenia. Entries were required to be full-length plays written in English and based on Armenian themes. The plays were required to have a professional production or reading prior to submission, which resulted in high quality entries.


First round judges were Claire Cox, playwright and writing instructor at the Gotham Academy in New York; Enrique Urueta, playwright and former literary manager at Impact Theatre in San Francisco; Landon Vaughn, actor, writer and producer; Tanya Yerevanian, actor, writer and graduate of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts in London; and David Grillo, actor, writer and producer of the off-Broadway production of Beast on the Moon.


The three finalist plays will be evaluated by an honorary jury including Leslie Ayvazian, award-winning playwright and Assistant Professor of Playwriting at Columbia University; Deborah Salzer, playwriting educator and Founder of The Playwrights Project; and, Mac Wellman, Lifetime Obie-award winning playwright and the Donald I. Fine Professor of Play Writing at Brooklyn College.


The winner will be announced at the ADAA?s 3rd Annual Celebrity Gala on Saturday, August 23, 2008, which will be held at the Stars Palace Theatre in Glendale, CA. The winner will be honored with a $10,000 award. Tickets for the gala are available at www.itsmyseat.com.


The Armenian Dramatic Arts Alliance's mission is to make the Armenian voice heard on the world stage through the dramatic arts of theatre and film. The organization accomplishes this mission by supporting playwrights and screenwriters and providing production opportunities, research tools, networking resources and writing awards. In addition to the William Saroyan Prize for Playwriting, the ADAA administers the $10,000 Lillian and Varnum Paul Prize for Screenwriting, the deadline for which is February 15, 2009.


For more information about ADAA, its activities and how to contribute to its important mission, please visit the website at www.armeniandrama.org or call at 617-871-6764.

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