WHAT
Cherry Picking is an annual opportunity for writers, both established and burgeoning, to create new material for performance in one night of staged reading. HOW
Each year, a group of producers gathers and develops the theme for Cherry Picking. This annual meeting allows the creative team to examine issues that are somehow charged. This may be a hot topic politically, a fascinating sociologi
cal phenomenon, a nagging question, a captivating image, and so on. A “Call for Submissions” is distributed and writers are invited to tackle the challenge of writing a short play based on the given theme or assignment. The submissions are read by a committee whose members choose the line-up for that year’s event. The bravery, wisdom, and candor of our writers is unparalleled. They willingly take on the challenge, fly in the face of fear, and the results are consistently inspiring, regardless of whether or not their work is heard onstage. WHY
Originally developed in 1998, Cherry Picking was established to provide a forum and an audience for both new writers cutting their teeth on the challenge of dramatic writing and visual artists who wanted the opportunity to have their work exhibited. In its first two years of inception, we asked writers to submit work they were in the process of writing or had already written. This was a wonderful way for their work to be heard, however we also discovered showcasing pieces of widely varying lengths, themes, and development a somewhat disjointed evening for the audience. In addition, established writers were looking for the same chance to access a no-pressure forum of development. Things must evolve. And so they did. In our third year, Cherry Picking found its true form. Embracing our mission statement of fostering creativity, we asked each participating artist to create something entirely new strictly for the purpose of Cherry Picking and opened the event up to writers in all stages of their careers.
