Purpose
To encourage, critique, and support playwrights and other writers in the creation of new work
Next Meeting
Date and Time: TBD
Location: Java Train Coffee House, 1341 Pascal Street North, Saint Paul, MN
Background
The Critical Mass Playwrighting Fellowship was formed in the fall of 2002 by four writer/actors: Jaron Burdick, Kevin Thomas Whitby, T. James Belich and Timothy Goddard. Critical Mass began to meet bi-weekly with the intention of creating a place where playwrights could meet to encourage and critique each other's work. In the summer of 2003 three original plays, developed within Critical Mass, were premiered: The Tiger, the Brahman, and the Jackal, Drake Cosmo and the Slime Pirates of Blog, and Smack in the Middle.
The group has continued to meet regularly ever since and continues to give playwrights the crucial experience of hearing their work read out loud. At each meeting members are invited to bring the piece they're working on in whatever stage it is in, be it a synopsis, a short scene, or a full draft. The members of the group will read the piece out loud and offer their critical feedback, seeking to provide the author with the input they need to bring the piece to the next level. Since its inception Critical Mass has helped develop many plays into stage-ready works, including:
| The Tiger, the Brahman, and the Jackal (2003) | by T. James Belich | |
| Drake Cosmo and the Slime Pirates of Blog (2003) | by Timothy Goddard | |
| Smack in the Middle (2003) | by Jaron Burdick | |
| The Golden Peptide (2004) | by Timothy Goddard | |
| Illinois Jane and the Pyramid of Peril (2004) | by T. James Belich | |
| The Twelve Dancing Princesses (2004) | by Jaron Burdick | |
| A Rose's Other Name (2004) | by Bradley "Peanut" McCoy | |
| Miracles (2005) | by K. Thomas Whitby | |
| Jungle Tails (2005) | by Jaron Burdick | |
| Revenge of the Puppet Kings (2006) | by Bradley "Peanut" McCoy | |
| The Wind in the Willows (2006) | by T. James Belich | |
| Little Star: A Tale of Grace and Beauty (2007) | by K. Thomas Whitby | |
| Illinois Jane and the Rainforest of Retribution (2007) | by T. James Belich | The Princess and the Moon: A Fairytale (2008) | by T. James Belich |