Dan's Papers - July 3, 2009 - A Conference for Writers, Performers and Thinkers

This year, the Southampton Writers Conference, sponsored by Stony Brook Southampton's MFA Writing and Literature Program, is bigger and better than ever, with several local celebrity guests leading workshops and acting in theatrical productions.

This year's summer conference (July 8-August 2) has something for everyone, from adults to children. Now in its third decade, the acclaimed program is recognized for providing a forum for authors of all genres to study and discuss the craft of writing under the guidance of some of the most respected in the industry, including faculty members and guest participants.

"This is our best line-up ever, and the most we've ever open to the public," said Darren Johnson, a spokesman for the college. "It's a tremendous opportunity to see guest performances at affordable prices in Southampton. There are events for people of all ages."

Robert Reeves, Director of the MFA Arts Program in Writing and Literature, and Director of the Conference, said that this East End tradition is known around the country. He said last year the college added a Children's Literature and Screenwriting Conference, and this year, they've added a Playwriting Conference, with major writers and teachers from around the country.

"The reason our conference is special is that, although we have lots of well-known names in the literary world, we're not about celebrities but about serious writing as an art," he said. "The people who come here get the best instruction and their work often gets recognized." He said two of the Stony Brook Southampton MFA students, Elena Gorokhova and Helen Simonson, have already sold their novels to Random House and Simon & Schuster.

This year's new Playwriting Conference, directed by Emma Walton Hamilton and Steve Hamilton, runs in three sessions, concurrently with the Children's Literature, Southampton Writers, and Screenwriting Conferences. It provides established and emerging playwrights the opportunity to develop work in an intensive, collaborative laboratory setting in partnership with professional actors and directors. Conference participants attend morning labs, play readings, panel discussions, workshops and seminars with Edward Albee, Lanford Wilson, Leslie Ayvazian, Robert Brustein, Mike Daisy and Tim McDonald, among others.

The Children's Literature Conference (July 8-11) directed by MFA Faculty member LouAnn Walker, features workshops for writers, illustrators and lovers of children's literature. The Screenwriting Conference, directed by Annette Handley Chandler, who has produced films for Paramount, Disney and CBS, returns for five days.

The Conference kicks off with three events that are open to the public. A panel on Adaptation with Pulitzer Prize winner Marsha Norman and writer/director and iTheatrics CEO Tim McDonald is on Thursday, July 9, followed by two events for kids and adults. On July 10 is the Hamptons premiere of The Musical Adventures of Flat Stanley, written and directed by Tim McDonald, based on a children's book series by Jeff Brown, about a boy named Stanley Lambchop, who gets flattened by a bulletin board into a one-inch being.

A Celebration of Poetry for the Entire Family with Julie Andrews, her daughter and author/faculty member Emma Walton Hamilton and celebrated Broadway artist James McMullan is scheduled for Saturday, July 11. Andrews and Walton will read from their soon to be published poetry anthology, Julie Andrews' Collection of Poems, Songs, and Lullabies, accompanied by original illustrations by Jim McMullan.

Other highlights this year include Alan Alda starring in a production of Three Farces and a Funeral, based on the life and letters of Anton Chekhov, on July 18. On August 1, Alec Baldwin will discuss screen writing with playwright/screenwriter Jon Robin Baitz.

A select number of events will be open to the public, and all, including the above, will be held in the beautifully renovated Avram Theater at Stonybrook Southampton College, at 7:30 p.m. Public events include the Ensemble Studio Theater Onstage reading an exciting new play. Audience members become part of the process of creating new work for the stage.

Theater Collaborations is a discussion with Tony Walton, Robert Brustein, Emily Mann and Joe Mantello on the profits and pitfalls that face a creative team trying to bring the playwright's work to life.

A Seagull in the Hamptons by Emily Mann is a reading of classic comedy set in modern-day Quogue, freely adapted from Anton Chekhov's The Seagull, starring Brian Murray, Larry Pine and Maria Tucci.

The Last Cargo Cult, created and performed by Mike Daisy and directed by Jean-Michele Gregory, is the true-life story of Daisy's time on a remote South Pacific island where the inhabitants, who live at the base of a constantly erupting volcano, worship America. Daisy has been called "the master storyteller" by The New York Times for his groundbreaking monologues which weave together autobiography, gonzo journalism and unscripted performance.

During "An Evening with Billy Collins," he, Frank McCourt, Roger Rosenblatt, Robert Reeves and other special guests will celebrate the latest issue of the college's literary magazine.

On July 31, at The Alan J. Pakula Prize event, a major, original voice in screenwriting and directing will be honored.

Weekday evening events are $25/$10 for seniors, students and Stony Brook University faculty and staff. Tickets to Saturday evening events are $35/$10. For box office information for all these events being held at 7:30 p.m. in the Avram, Theater, call 631-632-5152 or visit www.stonybrook.edu/avram.