The Business of Playwriting, Laying Breadcrumbs, and Dramatic Truth and the Math of Human Emotion - Playwright's Spotlight with Angelica Cheri episode artwork

EPISODE · Aug 6, 2025 · 1H 6M

The Business of Playwriting, Laying Breadcrumbs, and Dramatic Truth and the Math of Human Emotion - Playwright's Spotlight with Angelica Cheri

from James Elden's Playwright's Spotlight · host James Elden

Send us Fan MailAngelica Cheri swung by Playwright's Spotlight after leaving the rehearsals of her Broadway play Wanted only to jump into the rehearsals for the West Coast Premiere of her play Burta Burta. She was wiling to share her insights of the craft. We delve into the rehearsal process, approaching rewrites and the importance of dramatic truth, finding opportunities and landing an agent, changes to pieces from a thesis to premieres to publication. We also touch on the trick of raising stakes, the structure of a song in musical theatre, magical realism and laying breadcrumbs, achieving foreshadowing, playwriting vs musical theatre, and how analytics can rename a play. We wrap it up discussing the struggles with the business of playwriting as well as with the craft itself, the differences between structure vs form, approaching character and the math in human emotion, and, finally, creative license. It's a talk chock full of nuggets of theatrical knowledge that I took a lot from. Enjoy.For tickets to the West Coast premiere of her play Berta Berta that which runs through August 25th at the Echo Theater Company in Los Angeles, visit https://www.echotheatercompany.com/berta-berta.Angelica Chéri is a playwright, bookwriter, lyricist, screenwriter and poet. Her plays include Phenomenal Woman, Maya Angelou; The Seeds of Abraham; The Sting of White Roses; Crowndation; and The Wiring & the Switches. She and collaborator Ross Baum received the Richard Rodgers Award for their musical Wanted (formerly titled Gun & Powder), which is heading to Broadway next season. She received her BA in Theater from UCLA, MFA in Playwriting from Columbia University and MFA in Musical Theater Writing from NYU.To watch the video format of this episode, visit https://youtu.be/ul3ThJixBRkResources mentioned in this video - Playwright's Bill of Rights - https://www.dramatistsguild.com/rightsThe Richard Rogers Award - https://www.artsandletters.org/rodgers-awardThe O'Neill - https://www.theoneill.org/monte-cristo-awardNational Alliance for Musical Theatre - https://namt.orgCleveland Arts Prize - https://clevelandartsprize.orgTheatrical Works Worldwide - https://www.theatricalrights.comWebsite and Socials for Angelica Cheri -www.angelicacheri.comIG - @angleicacheriFB - https://www.facebook.com/angelicacheriWebsites and socials for James Elden, Punk Monkey Productions and Playwright's SpotlightPunk Monkey Productions - www.punkmonkeyproductions.comPLAY Noir -www.playnoir.comPLAY Noir Anthology –www.punkmonkeyproductions.com/contact.htmlJames Elden -Twitter - @jameseldensauerIG - @alakardrakeFB - fb.com/jameseldensauerPunk Monkey Productions and PLAY Noir - Twitter - @punkmonkeyprods              - @playnoirla IG - @punkmonkeyprods      - @playnoir_la FB - fb.com/playnoir      - fb.com/punkmonkeyproductionsPlaywright's Spotlight -Twitter - @wrightlightpod IG - @playwrights_spotlightPlaywriting services through LACPFest - www.lacpfest.comSupport the show

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Send us Fan Mail Angelica Cheri swung by Playwright's Spotlight after leaving the rehearsals of her Broadway play Wanted only to jump into the rehearsals for the West Coast Premiere of her play Burta Burta. She was wiling to share her insights of the craft. We delve into the rehearsal process, approaching rewrites and the importance of dramatic truth, finding opportunities and landing an agent, changes to pieces from a thesis to premieres to publication. We also touch on the trick of raising ...

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The Business of Playwriting, Laying Breadcrumbs, and Dramatic Truth and the Math of Human Emotion - Playwright's Spotlight with Angelica Cheri

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