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COLUMN: Deadline approaching for 10-Minute Play Contest

The Ryga Festival is looking to get more local talent on stage through the contest.
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Playwrights in the Okanagan have only a few days left to enter a fantastic new playwriting contest being held right here in Summerland.

The Ryga Festival, which put on last year’s excellent Marginal Arts Festival, is looking to get more local talent on stage during this year’s festival through the 10-Minute Play Contest.

The objective is simple, entrants write an original play that runs 10 minutes or less and submit it to the Ryga Festival at rygafest@gmail.com.

There are two categories, over 18 and under 18 and aspiring writers of all ages are encouraged to submit an entry.

I know I’ve talked about this contest before, but with the May 31 deadline approaching, I thought this would be the perfect time to remind anyone who wanted to enter that time was running out.

Contests like this are a great opportunity to try out an art form you’ve either always wanted to try out or have been doing for years in secret and have been looking for something to do with the stack of plays that you’ve written.

This is an especially worthwhile endeavour for those 18 and under. It can provide you just enough of a taste of something to let you know if playwriting is for you or, if you happen to end up the winner, that wonderful first opportunity to see something you’ve written appear on stage.

Contests like this got me started when I was in high school and that feeling of accomplishment never really goes away.

The contest is open to anyone who lives in the region served by the Okanagan Library system, which stretches from Golden to Princeton, including Penticton.

The winning play in each of the two categories will be performed on stage during the Ryga Festival.

More information about the 10-Minute Play Contest can be found online here: http://www.rygafest.ca/10-minute-play-competition/.

If you’re feeling more in the mood to check out some art than you are to write a play, then this is a good time to head over to the Arts Centre on Wharton St. to see their new gallery exhibit. Kelowna-based artist Vikki Drummond’s show Backwards and Forwards… opened last week and is well-worth checking out.

Drummond uses a mixed medium approach, combining graphite and acrylic paints, to create complex, layered pieces of art. The show runs until June 23 and is not to be missed.

Douglas Paton is a Summerland writer and musician. If you know of a local arts and culture event, contact him at dgpaton80@gmail.com.