National Theatre Conference Features Works by Converse Playwrights

Original one-act plays written by Converse II student Dr. Deborah Gideon, Nyla Walker ’04, and Steven Hunt, Associate Professor of Theatre have been selected for presentation at the prestigious Edward Albee Last Frontier Theatre Conference in Valdez, Alaska in June.

Dr. Gideon’s play is entitled “You Bet Your Life” is a drama based on a family relationship during a trying time. “The mother is dying of cancer,” explains Dr. Gideon, “and the son, who is addicted to drugs, steals medication from stores for his mother. Throughout the play, the relationship between the father and son stretches and grows.”

In “Perhaps,” Nyla Walker ’04 mixes drama with comedy in a tale of modern day relationships.

Steven Hunt’s “All the King’s Horses” revolves around three separate attitudes of change in a small town. “Three older men reminisce about the good old days and what the future holds while sitting in a town square that is about to be torn down to make room for an office building,” said Hunt.

Co-founded in 1993 by Pulitzer-Prize winning author Edward Albee and dramatist Marshall Mason, the conference began as a venue for honoring important established playwrights and authors. Very quickly it expanded to include the development of new writers and the presentation of new plays.