New Community Playmaking Program Aims To Foster Creativity

RED BANK, NJ — Two River Theater and Project Write Now have teamed up to create “Community Playmaking,” a free engagement program that allows participants to write their own plays and have them performed by professional actors.

Run in collaboration with local non-profits, the program is open to adults from diverse, underserved communities and lets participants engage in a series of playwriting workshops.

Each workshop aims to foster participants’ creativity so they can write their own original short plays, which are then performed by professional actors.

No prior experience is required, officials said, just a desire to learn and share stories.

“It gives me great joy to launch Community Playmaking at Two River Theater,” Artistic Director Justin Waldman said.

“This is an incredible opportunity for our institution to partner with stalwart Monmouth County not-for-profits – like Project Write Now, Lunch Break, and Shore House – who are doing great work to better our communities, and for individuals to directly engage and actively participate in the process of making art and sharing their truth," Waldman continued.

The program kicked off in October 2024 with a group of community members, staff and volunteers from Lunch Break in Red Bank.

The participants attended playwriting classes led by Project Write Now Executive Director Jennifer Chauhan and TRT Director of Education Kate Cordaro, where they learned the basics of dramatic structure, form, and character, then wrote their own original 10-minute plays.

The program culminated in a staged reading of the plays performed by professional actors in the dining room at Lunch Break on Dec. 17.

Now, Community Playmaking will continue in February 2025, as the second iteration of the program will collaborate with the Shore House in Long Branch, a local community resource open to adults living with mental illness.

"Community Playmaking is a wonderful opportunity for people to discover that their stories and experiences truly matter," Chauhan said. "The writing process allows participants to experiment with their voice and style, uncovering the story only they can tell."

"Project Write Now is so grateful to the Two River Theater for inviting us to be part of this incredible program," Chauhan continued.

To learn more, you can visit the Two River Theater website or the Project Write Now website.