Depot News
News and notes about playwrights and readers featured in this series. Congratulations to all on their many successes!
Dates in parentheses indicate a season when a playwright’s work was read at the Depot. See the Past Seasons Page for more information.
Macgregor wins Playwrights first Award
David MacGregor (2025) has won the Playwrights First Award for 2024-2025. Founded in 1993 by literary agent Caroline French, Playwrights First seeks to advance playwrights who demonstrate exceptional promise. The first awardee was Margaret Edson, whose Playwrights First submission, Wit, went on to win a Pulitzer Prize for drama.
David has won the award for “Mildred Whiskey,” which the Depot presented in June of 2025. Directed by Gary Poe, the cast featured Madeleine Dauer, Suzanne Steele McCormack, Kody Mileski, and Ryan Zemanek. Dorian Mendez served as stage manager.
Nominations for Ringel Anthology
Monsters in the Mills, edited by Christa Carmen of Westerly and L.E. Daniels, former Rhode Islander living in Australia, is an anthology of tales of horror set in and around the mills of Rhode Island and Connecticut. Depotee Faye Ringel provided the concept and title and wrote the introduction. In addition to being a Shirley Jackson Awards and Australasian Horror Writers Association's Shadows Awards finalist, it is now a finalist for the 2024 Ditmar Awards, to be presented in Canberra at Australia's National Science Fiction Convention. Monsters in the Mills is the second anthology created by this group of horror writers, poets, and scholars: the first was We are Providence (2022). A third anthology is now being assembled, not yet titled.
Putt play selected for New York Production
Barry M. Putt, Jr.’s (2018) full-length play Omeed’s Tapestries has been accepted into the Midtown International Theatre Festival (MITF) for a six-performance run in July 2026 at the Actors Theatre of America in New York. The Depot read an earlier version of the play then titled “Equal.” MITF is a leading Off-Off-Broadway festival, spotlighting bold new voices with the potential to move on to longer New York runs.
Wells-Oakes Play at The tank
Michael Wells-Oakes’ (2024) new play “Winter Wheat” will receive a reading in the Attic Studio of the Tank on Monday, 20 October at 7 PM, located at 312 W. 36th Street, 6th floor.
Premier of mabey’s Desert Oceans
John Mabey’s (2022, 2024) full-length drama Desert Oceans receives its world premier at the University of Alabama, 16 to 21 September. Performances will be held in the Alan Bales Theater. Desert Oceans previously won top honors at the 2024 New Voices Theatre Festival.
scranton One-acts in Pittsburgh and Quincy
September 11-14, Ben Scranton’s (2021) one-act “The Head of Seamus Delaney” will be featured in Program D, the Pittsburgh New Works Festival. Produced by R-Act Theatre Productions, Larry Spinnenweber directs a cast of five in this “comedic celebration of traditional Irish storytelling.”
Ben’s “A Revolutionary Roast: The Comic Tale of the Reconciliation between John Adams and Thomas Jefferson” was performed at the Gordon Amphitheater in Quincy, MA as part of the city’s 400th anniversary celebrations. Thalia Theater Troupe produced.
Rushton’s TPC at Barker Playhouse
Jack Rushton’s ( 2021, 2022, 2024) company, The Playwrights Collaborative, presented “From Heartbreak to Hilarity,” seven one-act plays, as fundraiser for the Players at Barker Playhouse in Providence. Jack’s company performs throughout the region to raise funds for theater venues. The shows at Barker Playhouse ran 6-7 September.
Minigan’s Sarai at new play Fest
“Sarai’s Knife” by John Minigan (2018, 2019, 2021, 2022) was one of 4 plays selected from a pool of 350 for the twelfth annual Playwrights’ Revolution, the new play festival at Capital Stage in Sacramento. Imani Mitchell directed a staged reading on 31 July that featured Alexandria Wilson, Kali Honeywood, Jason Kuykendall*, Phoenix Brewer (*Member Actors’ Equity Association).
John will continue to develop the play during an August residency at the Madison New Works Lab at James Madison University in Virginia.
Heinecke art Piece documentary
On 31 May, at the Caelum Gallery, Sophia Valera Heinecke (2023) presented her new art work about the “granularity” of knowing another person well, Manifold Sands.” The documentary Sophia made to capture the piece is available to watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=isBnT2ftFs8
DAuer plays Ariel with Shake on the lake
Puppeteer and actor Madeleine Dauer plays Ariel in the new production of Shakespeare’s Tempest with Shake on the Lake. Directed by the company’s founder, Josh Rice, the production features original puppets, foley, and a style that is “fun, fast, and physical.” The production tours in Arkansas and western New York through 3 August. For a brief overview of the show and a look at two of the puppets, watch Madeleine and Josh’s interview for KATV (ABC 7): https://katv.com/community/little-rock-arc/puppets-take-center-stage-in-shakespeares-the-tempest-at-arkansas-museum-of-fine-arts-katv-news-entertainment-community-inform-share-attend
Graham directs for Fringe Fest
Laura Graham co-directed “The Kidnapping of Andrew Wakefield: An Interrupted Fairy Tale” with the play’s author, Hal J. Cohen, for the 2025 Portland (ME) Fringe Festival.
Gabridge and Mclindon at Moonbox
At the end of June, Moonbox Productions presented the Boston New Works Festival, which featured a main stage production of Patrick Gabridge’s “Mox Nox” (2021), directed by Alexandra Smith, as well as a staged reading of James McLindon’s “Hitch” (2019), directed by Donovan Holt.
Mccluskey in 24-hour musical
Maeve McCluskey has been chosen to participate in Needham Community Theatre’s 24-hour musical festival. Maeve and her castmates are going to learn an entire show in 24 hours and then perform it. For more information and tickets, head to https://www.needhamtheatre.org/24-hour-musical .
For a live reveal of what show the group is going to perform, follow Needham Community Theatre on Instagram and Facebook and tune into the livestream at 9am on Saturday, June 7th.
Reynolds in Radium Girls
Elizabeth Reynolds appears in multiple roles in the Windham Theatre Guild’s production of Radium Girls by D. W. Gregory. The production runs June 6-15. For more information and tickets, visit https://www.windhamtheaterguild.org/show?id=L994IGHE
PUTT Christmas Play published
Kinsman Avenue will publish A Home for Christmas by Barry M. Putt, Jr. (2018) in time for the holiday season this year. The play centers on two homeless boys who befriend a stranger on Christmas Eve and discover a new sense of family.
Tofte Wins $20K LANPP GRant
Amy Tofte (2022, ‘24) has won a Los Angeles New Play Project (LANPP) grant of $20,000 for “Righteous Among Us,” read at the Depot in 2022. The LANPP grants were established by producers Paula Holt and Nathan Birnbaum, who, in collaboration with the UCLA School of Theater, Film, and Television, the UCLA Foundation, and the gift of an anonymous donor, seek to bring new work to small and mid-sized Los Angeles theaters. “Righteous Among Us” was produced at Little Fish Theatre.
Amy thanks the Depot for our assistance in the development of “Righteous Among Us.”
Shen’s YZ Rep wins obie
Sally Shen, Executive Director of Yangtze Repertory Theatre, announces that their production of Jeremy Tiang’s Salesman/之死 has won the Obie Award for Outstanding New Play.
Thelen’s “Man or Mouse” Premiers
Larry Thelen’s political satire “Man or Mouse” received its premier at Theatre off the Square in Weatherford, TX. The play will next be produced by Lakewood Theater in Maine as part of their 125th anniversary season. The play will run from 11 to 20 September.
cooney makes best of list
Amy Goldschlager, for Oprah Daily, has selected Claire Cooney’s Saint Death’s Daughter for her top 20 most transporting fantasy novels. Goldschlager notes the novel’s “morbid comedy, intricate wordplay,” and “sweetness and charm,” and she ranks Saint Death’s Daughter 11th on the list.
Depot featured on local radio
The Depot was featured on the Wayne Norman Show, WILI AM. Audio of Wayne’s 20-minute conversation with Anne is available here: https://media.transistor.fm/3bb41a75/a3f45216.mp3
Powers named Poet Laureate
The Board of Trustees of Scotland Public Library has named Susan Powers the town’s first Poet Laureate. To encourage poetry writing and appreciation, Susan has taught classes at Parish Hill High School and leads a monthly poetry workshop at the Scotland Public Library, as well as organizing poetry readings at the library and elsewhere. For more information, visit the Connecticut Council of Poets Laureate website: https://ctpoetlaureates.com/
For Susan’s poem about Scotland, CT visit https://ctpoetlaureates.com/poems-about-towns/scotland/
Mcgoldrick makes a CarToon
Michael McGoldrick (2021) has begun a new venture in writing and producing cartoons. Check out his first show, “Trick Me!” a humorous Halloween story, available on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wYjoV-YWyyE
Houlker at Yale
Surrey Houlker (2023) begins her second year at the David Geffen School of Drama at Yale as one of the three MFA candidates in the Class of 2027 in playwriting.
Blak wins Getchell Award
Cris Eli Blak (2021) has won the 2024 Charles M. Getchell New Play Contest, sponsored by the Southeastern Theater Conference, for Between Dog and Wolf.
Latham audio play online now
Eclectic Full Contact Theatre presents a new short play by Donna Latham (2021, 2022), “Memento Mori,” a love story set in a nineteenth-century post-mortem photographer’s studio. The audio play and interview with Donna are available here: tinyurl.com/EFCTHHAH
Latham monologue published
Smith and Kraus have published Grumio’s monologue from the short play “Best Beware My Sting” by Donna Latham (2021, 2022). The monologue appears in the 2024 edition of The Best Men’s Stage Monologues, edited by Debbie Lamedman.
Shames wins guild fellowship
Germain Shames (2021) has been selected for a 2024-2025 Dramatists Guild Foundation National Fellowship. Germaine joins a class of eleven playwrights. Through the program, Germaine will be able to attend workshops and receive mentorship in developing her work for productions.
Anne is Podcast guest
Anne appears on Rachel Feeny-Williams’ Theatrical Shenanigans podcast, season 2, episode 6. The podcast features an audio performance of Ryan Kaminski’s “The Deal” with Vivian Howard and Arthur Nelligan. Afterwards, Rachel and Anne discuss the play. To listen to this episode and other episodes of Rachel’s podcast: https://theatricalshenanigans.podbean.com/e/s02-e06-episode-6-the-deal-anne-flammang/
Anne also appears as a guest on George Sapio’s Onstage/Offstage Podcast, Episode #171. You can find the podcast here: https://onstageoffstage.podbean.com/
Both podcasts are fantastic and quite distinct in format, so check out other episodes and support theater podcasters!
Sapio Named Macdowell fellow
George Sapio (2022) was named a 2023 MacDowell Fellow. George was resident at the Peterborough, NH campus in March: “I could wax prolific about my time there, but suffice to say it was a watershed….”
BOSTON PODCAST Players
Season Three of Boston Podcast Players features interviews with playwrights who reflect on the impact of the pandemic. Highly recommended listening. Find the podcast on iTunes and on the BPP website.
