@dramatistsguild​

Last year my ambassador, Katie Ganem, moved out of the region. I’ d like to introduce my new ambassador, Ann Fraistat (FRY-stat). 

Ann is a Maryland/DC-based playwright, director, and actor. She has co-authored several full-length and ten-minute comedies with her brother, Shawn. These include Romeo & Juliet: Choose Your Own Ending, which won Best Comedy and Best Overall Show at the 2010 Capital Fringe Festival, and which has been published by Playscripts. Short works have been performed in DC by Pointless Theatre, Pinky Swear Productions, and Rorschach Theatre, and in London by Etcetera Theatre. Ann received her B.A. in theatre and English from the University of Maryland, College Park. 

Brent: Can you describe a theatre experience that shaped you as a writer? 

Ann: When I was a kid, my dad took me to a production of Noises Off, and it blew my mind. The experience of being in this packed theatre, everybody laughing and grinning, stuck with me. All these strangers walked into this room and, with each joke that made them laugh together, became more of a community. Plus, they staged the show with the director character sitting in the audience with us, yelling through a megaphone. It hammered home even more this idea that we were all in this together—the audience and the people in the show. So, yeah, I’ m a comedy writer, and when I direct, I ignore the fourth wall.

Brent: Are there themes to which you find yourself returning in your work? Ann: Shawn and I love to mash comedy up against other genres, which have varied from horror to Shakespearean romance. One constant, though, is that our plays tend to explore how people can be changed by their relationships, for better or worse. When it ends up for the better, it often becomes about how people can find the power of hope and redemption in each other. Brent: Which theatre companies in your area provide outstanding support for dramatists? 

Ann: The one I’ d most like to highlight is Venus Theatre (in Laurel), which accepts open submissions and produces only new works. With every show that opens at Venus, a new play debuts, and that’ s really exciting—especially because so many are written by female playwrights, who often receive fewer opportunities than their male counterparts. 

Brent: What led you to join the Dramatists Guild? How have you used its resources?

Ann: In 2011, I joined the Dramatists Guild on the advice of a more seasoned playwright. My brother and I were interested in trying to get a play published. When we received a publishing offer, the DG offered us wonderful advice about how to move forward with the contract and how to work with our publisher to bring it in line with industry standards. Their sample contracts have been a huge help in understanding what our rights are as playwrights, and how to work without accidentally giving those rights away. We also use the DG Resource Directory to find opportunities. That’ s how our ten-minute piece Of Mice & Madness was selected for the London Horror Festival!

 Brent: Why did you agree to become a DG Ambassador? 

Ann: Writing is so often a solitary activity, but theatre is inherently collaborative. It can be hard to know how to bridge the gap. When I first graduated from college, I was doing a lot of self-producing, so I had a built-in outlet for my and Shawn’ s plays. More recently, I’ ve been self-producing less, and Shawn and I have begun to feel that gap more. How do we take these plays we’ ve created on our hard drives and help them find their way to a stage where they can live and breathe? I know we’ re not the only ones trying to puzzle this out, and I love the idea of trying to help create more opportunities for other local playwrights to workshop their plays. Readings and workshops are vital because when we see our shows on their feet, that’ s how we can best learn, grow, and feel inspired to keep on creating.            

Ann Fraistat. Photo credit by ClintonBPhotography