Under Thirty: Plays for a New Generation

Jacket Description/Flap: For the vast generation of actors in their teens and twenties, as well as for teachers, directors, and producers, Under Thirty" is an unparalleled source of diverse and challenging roles, created by some of today's finest writers. The twenty plays presented here in full or in part include insightful looks at the pressure-cooker caste system of American high schools as well as heartbreaking, edgy portrayals of twentysomethings adrift in the city. There are snappy romantic duets, large-cast ensembles, and everything in between, populated by richly dimensional, mold-breaking characters: misfit cheerleaders, nurturing drifters, rich petty thieves--even a rogue SAT tutor. The contributing playwrights span the range of contemporary talent, including award-winning dramatists such as Sam Shepard, Donald Margulies, Warren Leight, and Kenneth Lonergan, hilarious humorists such as David Ives and Douglas Carter Beane, and an impressive array of cutting-edge newer voices. Biographical Note: Eric Lane and Nina Shengold have been editing contemporary theater anthologies for more than twenty years. Eric Lane's award-winning plays have been published and performed in the United States, Canada, Europe, and China. Plays include "Ride, Times of War, Heart of the City, Dancing on Checkers' Grave, "and" Filming O'Keeffe. Floating," a PlayPenn finalist, was workshopped at Raven Theatre. Eric's short plays are published in "Best American Short Plays, Poems and Plays," and the "Foreign Language Press" (Beijing). He wrote and produced the short films "First Breath" and "Cater-Waiter," which he also directed; both films screened in more than forty cities worldwide. For TV's "Ryan's Hope" he received a Writers Guild Award. Honors include the Berrilla Kerr Playwriting Award, the La MaMa Playwright Award, and fellowships at Yaddo, VCCA, and St. James Cavalier in Malta. Eric is an honors graduate of Brown University, and artistic director of Orange Thoughts, a not-for-profit theater and film company in New York City. Nina Shengold's plays include "Finger Foods, War at Home, Homesteaders," and "Romeo/Juliet," and have been produced around the world. Her one-act "No Shoulder" was filmed by director Suzi Yoonessi, with Melissa Leo and Samantha Sloyan. Nina won a Writers Guild Award for her teleplay "Labor of Love," starring Marcia Gay Harden; other teleplays include "Blind Spot," with Joanne Woodward and Laura Linney, and" Unwed Father." Her books include the novel "Clearcut"; "River of Words: Portraits of Hudson Valley Writers" (with photographer Jennifer May), and a growing posse of pseudonymous books for young readers. A graduate of Wesleyan, she is currently teaching creative writing at Manhattanville College. Nina lives in New York's Hudson Valley, where she has been books editor of "Chronogram" magazine since 2004. Review Citations:

Library Journal 08/01/2004 pg. 82 (EAN 9781400076161, Paperback)

School Library Journal 04/01/2005 pg. 164 (EAN 9781400076161, Paperback)

Wilson Senior High Core Col 01/01/2006 pg. 69 (EAN 9781400076161, Paperback)

Wilson Senior High Core Col 01/01/2007 pg. 463 (EAN 9781400076161, Paperback)

Wilson Senior High Core Col 01/01/2011 pg. 570 (EAN 9781400076161, Paperback)

Contributor Bio:  Lane, Eric Nina Shengold is an award-winning playwright and artistic director of the theatre company Actors & Writers. Eric Lane is an award-winning playwright, filmmaker and book editor. Plays include: "Times of War, Cater-Waiter and "Dancing on Checkers' Grave, which starred Jennifer Aniston. His new play "Heart of the City has been optioned for off-Broadway. Eric has written and produced two short films: "First Breath and "Cater-Waiter, which he also directed. Honors include a Writer's Guild Award, La MaMa Playwright Award, Berrilla Kerr Award and two-time O'Neill Center finalist. He has won fellowships at Yaddo and St. James Cavalier in Malta. With Nina Shengold, he has edited ten contemporary play anthologies for Penguin and Vintage Books, earning them a Lambda Literary Award nomination. Eric is Artistic Director of Orange Thoughts Productions, a not-for-profit theater & film company in New York City. Contributor Bio:  Shengold, Nina Eric Lane and Nina Shengold are editors of twelve contemporary play collections. Their other titles for Vintage Books include "Plays for Actresses, Leading Women: Plays for Actresses II, Take Ten: New Ten-Minute Plays, Take Ten II: More Ten-Minute Plays, Under Thirty: Plays for a New Generation, "and "Talk to Me: Monologue Plays. "For Viking Penguin, they edited "The Actor's Book of Contemporary Stage Monologues, The Actor's Book of Scenes from New Plays, Moving Parts: Monologues from Contemporary Plays, The Actor's Book of Gay and Lesbian Plays "(Lambda Literary Award nominee), and "Telling Tales: New One-Act Plays." Nina Shengold received the ABC Playwright Award and the L. A. Weekly Award for "Homesteaders, "published by Samuel French. Her "Romeo/Juliet," a five-actor adaptation of Shakespeare's play, is published by Broadway Play Publishing. Her ten-minute plays have been performed at the Actors Theatre of Louisville and dozens of other theaters. Ms. Shengold won the Writers Guild Award and a GLAAD Award nomination for her teleplay "Labor of Love, "starring Marcia Gay Harden; other screenplays include "Blind Spot, "with Joanne Woodward and Laura Linney, "Unwed Father, Double Platinum, "and a flm adaptation of Jane Smiley's "Good Will. "She is artistic director of the upstate New York theater company Actor's & Writers. Her first novel, "Clearcut, "was published by Anchor Books. Eric Lane is an award-winning playwright and filmmaker. Plays include "Heart of the City, Times of War, Shellac, Cater-Waiter, "and "Dancing on Checkers' Grave, "which starred Jennifer Aniston. Mr. Lane has written and produced two short filims: "First Breath "and "Cater-Waiter. "For his work on TV's"Ryan's Hope, "he received a Writers Guild Award. Honors include the Berrilla Kerr Playwrighting Award, La Mama Playwright Development Award, numerous Yaddo fellowships, and a St. James Cavalier Centre for Creativity fellowship in Malta. Mr. Lane is an honors graduate of Brown University, and is artistic director of Orange Thoughts Productions, a not-for-profit theater and film company in New York City. Contributor Bio:  Lane, Eric Eric Lane is a professor of law at Hofstra University School of Law and the author of several texts on government, and has served as director of the New York State Commission on Constitutional Revision, on the New York City Charter Revision Commission, and as counsel to the New York State Democrats. Michael Oreskes is the executive editor of the "International Herald Tribune," He has served as deputy managing editor, Washington bureau chief, and metropolitan editor of the "New York Times,"