The Ryga Festival Society has announced the winners of its first-ever 10-Minute play competition.
The society announced the competition in May, inviting Okanagan playwrights to submit original, unproduced plays that could be performed in 10 minutes or less.
Heather Davies, Ryga Festival artistic director, said the response to the contest was encouraging.
“It was wonderful to see the number and range of plays submitted,” said Davies. “I look forward to directing the readings of the top five plays during the Ryga Festival and celebrating the creativity of these writers.”
A trio of judges with ties to literature, theatre, and community read and ranked the submissions: Sue Kline, community librarian, Summerland Library and Kevin Loring, artistic director, Indigenous theatre, National Arts Centre joined Davies on the panel.
Each judge chose their top five from the submissions and the results were compiled to come up with the winners.
First: The Proposal by Kilmeny MacMichael; second: Summerland Appellation by Don Gayton; tied for third: Growing Up Vernon by Linda Beaven and Snow Globe by Keyanna Burgher; honourable mention: Good Old Summerland by Sophia
The winning plays receive cash prizes of $100, $50, and $25.
Davies will direct a staged reading of the top five plays at a Playwrights’ Cabaret on Sept. 3 at 1 p.m. in the IOOF Hall in Summerland.
