For more than 40 years, the University of Iowa Department of Theatre Arts has presented an annual festival centered on producing, reading, and analyzing new scripts from the Iowa Playwrights Workshop. Iowa New Play Festival 2014 will take place Monday-Sunday, May 5-10, in the UI Theatre Building.

Preparing 11 new plays and presenting them in a single week is a monumental undertaking that is only possible through the utilization of UI Department of Theatre Arts’ wide-ranging resources in acting, directing, design, dramaturgy, stage management, and technical support. Through staged readings, workshops, and productions, the festival showcases the process of new play development.

New Play Festival 2014 will include four full productions, one workshop, and six readings. The full schedule is below. Additional details about each performance are available on the Department of Theatre Arts website.

Productions

Monday, May 5: Four Stories by Micah Ariel James, 5:30 and 9 p.m. Theatre B. Directed by Nina Morrison. Sibling shopkeepers apprehend an intruder on the last day of the old year; a couple hosts a breakfast party on the first day of the new year; two old friends reunite to watch the fireworks on the last day of the old year; four strangers contemplate the justice of justice on the first day of the new year. Four Stories contains haze, loud noises, and potential use of strobe lighting effects.

Tuesday, May 6: and i will hold you/when you are broken by Lisa Flora Meyers, 5:30 and 9 p.m. Directed by Mario El Caponi Mendoza. When the possibility of losing the ones you love is highly probable, how does one embrace memory? After a series of natural disasters, two people cling to hope embracing even the smallest moments of magic in the world. In this new play, playwright Lisa Flora Meyers and director and multimedia designer Mario El Caponi Mendoza explore the steadfastness of love even in times of great suffering. and i will hold you/when you are broken contains adult themes.

Thursday, May 8: Swordplay by Ryan Oliviera, 5:30 and 9 p.m. Theatre B. Directed by Marina Johnson. A young woman tries to reconnect with her boyfriend by playing Swords and Stones (an online role-playing game), only to discover their growing disconnections to each other. When his video game temptations turn to real-world disasters, she must reconnect with herself and beat the real world and the video game on her own merit…and with a little help from a new friend. Swordplay takes place in the digital and real world. Which is more real? How are our relationships informed by our digital and personal interactions? Is reality broken? Swordplay contains choreographed violence, adult language, and sexually explicit content. Not suitable for younger audience members.

Friday, May 9: Speed of Light by Bella Poynton, 5:30 and 9 p.m. David Thayer Theatre. Directed by Ariel Francoeur. While the system is being invaded by an alien race, Mayra Ecazin, a brilliant physicist, has discovered the mystery of traveling at the speed of light. The race to get the machine made, however, proves more difficult than anticipated. While Kantis, a nearby planet and home to Mayra’s best friend, Valki, fights for survival, Mayra herself struggles to stay alive—as the very phenomenon that allowed for her discovery may also be her undoing. The clock is ticking, and all involved are working as fast as possible—but is it fast enough? Speed of Light contains some adult themes, including fictional drug use.

Reading series

Monday, May 5: Phoebe by Sean David DeMers, 2 p.m. Cosmo Catalano Acting Studio, Room 172. Phoebe is a modern update of the Phaedra myth that explores the unspeakable, the unacceptable, and the unconscionable in love and war. Phoebe contains adult language, adult themes, and descriptive violence.

Tuesday, May 6: #julys by Sam Lahne, 2 p.m. Cosmo Catalano Acting Studio, Room 172. Directed by Annie Levitz. #julys is an off-kilter farce that examines anti-Semitism, identity, and the internet through the eyes of Avram, a troubled 16-year-old who builds a community through an anti-Semitic conspiracy website/social forum, but finds his life spiraling out of control as his offline and online worlds converge. #julys contains the use of strong language and adult themes.

Wednesday, May 7: Still Quiet by Emily Dendinger, 2 p.m. Cosmo Catalano Acting Studio, Room 172. Ex-priest Michael is dying and has come to see his ex-girlfriend Beth to request her help in writing his obituary letter. However, as a tornado rages outside and strange happenings start to occur, Beth and Michael begin to question whether everything is as it seems.

Thursday, May 8: Falls for Jodie by Eric Holmes, 2 p.m. Cosmo Catalano Acting Studio, Room 172. Before his attempted assassination of President Ronald Reagan, John Hinckley visits the Yale campus to meet his child star crush whom only a bellman can help him find. Falls for Jodie contains adult language, some discussion of violence, and racial content.

Friday, May 9: Suit of Leaves by Sam Collier, 2 p.m. Cosmo Catalano Acting Studio, Room 172. Directed by Nina Morrison. Glitch travels the borders between genders, times, and landscapes, searching for a home in a mythic America where deals turn sour, seeds turn to diamonds, and apples turn to hearts.

Saturday, May 10: Undergraduate Playwrights Showcase, 2 p.m. Cosmo Catalano Acting Studio, Room 172. Six selected undergraduate playwrights will showcase their 10-minute plays (or excerpts of plays) as staged readings.

Saturday, May 10: Order Now by Theresa Giacopasi, 4 p.m. Cosmo Catalano Acting Studio, Room 172. Directed by Lesley Geffinger. When Jack is discharged from SEAL Team Six for a mysterious injury, he seeks solace in infomercials as he struggles to find meaning in civilian life. Order Now contains some adult language and allusions to violence.

Workshop

Wednesday, May 7: Life of the Experiment by Sarah Cho, 5:30 and 9 p.m. Cosmo Catalano Acting Studio, Room 172. Directed by David Freeman. Life of the Experiment is a science-fiction drama about the ethical issues involved in the medicinal treatment of cancer. In 3037, five individuals are each diagnosed with cancer and agree to participate in a clinical trial where they undergo physical and emotional stress in the hope of finding a cure. The play is an exploration of modern cancer treatments and the practices involved in the trials of new medicine. Life of the Experiment contains mature language and adult themes.

Tickets for productions are $5 (free for UI students with valid ID) and are available one hour before each production or at the UI Theatre Building from noon to 1:30 p.m., Monday and Tuesday, May 5 and 6. All workshops and readings are free and open to the public.

The Department of Theatre Arts is part of the Division of Performing Arts in the UI College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.

Individuals with disabilities are encouraged to attend all UI-sponsored events. If you are a person with a disability who requires a reasonable accommodation in order to participate in this program, contact the Department of Theatre Arts in advance at 319-335-2700.