EM Lewis
	Home News Coming Soon! Biography Full-Length Plays Short Plays Works-In-Progress Cool Stuff Links Blog Contact		Full-Length Plays Song of Extinction 5 Men/1 Woman 90 minutes Max, a musically gifted high school student, is falling off the edge of the world –- and his biology teacher is the only one who’s noticed. A play about the science of life and loss, the relationships between fathers and sons, Cambodian fields, Bolivian rainforests and grief. *Reading: TimeLine Theater's 2010 "TimePieces" Reading Series -- Chicago, IL *Published by Samuel French -- March 2010 *Published in Dramatics Magazine -- January 2010 *Winner: 2009 Harold & Mimi Steinberg/ATCA New Play Award from the American Theater Critics Association *Winner and WORKSHOP PRODUCTION: 2009 EcoDrama Festival -- University of Oregon -- Eugene, OR *Winner: 2009 Ted Schmitt Award for the world premiere of an outstanding new play from the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle -- Los Angeles, CA *Winner: 2008 Production of the Year and Best Lead Actor from the LA Weekly Awards -- Los Angeles, CA *WORLD PREMIERE PRODUCTION -- Moving Arts at [Inside] the Ford, through a special Winter Partnership Program with the Los Angeles County Arts Commission (Fall 2008) *Winner - 2008 Ashland New Plays Festival -- Ashland, OR *Reading - Atlantic Theater's 2008 Next Page Reading Series - New York, NY *Finalist - 2008 Sundance Institute Theater Lab *Finalist/Reading - HotCity Theater's 2008 Greenhouse Festival - St. Louis, MO *Reading – NYU’s 2008 hotINK International Festival of New Plays (sponsored by Atlantic Theater) – New York, NY *Staged Reading in the 2007 Living Room Series at the Blank - Los Angeles, CA *Reading at Moving Arts 2007 - Los Angeles, CA Reviews from the World Premiere of SONG OF EXTINCTION, produced by Moving Arts at [Inside] the Ford: "CRITIC'S CHOICE… artfully balances its theme of mortality between the intimate and the macroscopic… explores inner psychological states with remarkable eloquence and clarity…" - Phillip Brandeis, Los Angeles Times "GO! The interplay of the three [views on extinction] in Lewis' smart and honest script is one small push away from collective transcendence" - Amy Nicholson, LA Weekly "An extraordinary production… exquisitely written… Everything about this play is done to perfection… there is a melancholy richness and sensitivity in this beautiful play that will stay with you for a very long time. Guaranteed to leave you thoughtful and speechless." - Cynthia Citron, Curtain Up "An exquisitely poetic and deeply moving new play…" - Steven Stanley, Stage Scene LA "Lewis weaves a mesmerizing tale that gently plucks on the universal chords of the human condition… The triumph of this play is the masterful blend of visual and audio elements that complement the text with an exquisite tenderness and spellbinding artistry…" - MR Hunter, Stage Happenings "...remarkable, totally engaging... The theme of Ms. Lewis’ haunting “Song” is extinction past and present, from the Cambodian genocide during the Khmer Rouge regime to endangered species in the Bolivian rain forest, epics against which a number of intimate, desperate human dramas unfold. That so many stories as well as so much history are presented in such compelling style (without sermonizing or pontificating) is a testament to the playwright’s skills and ability to trust the passions and inner voices of her fully-drawn characters..." - Jack Ong, Executive Director of the Haing Ngor Foundation "...one of the most beautiful and important plays of the season." - Laura Hitchcock, Los Angeles Beat HEADS 3 Men/1 Woman 90 minutes "...provocative and wonderfully threatening." -- Edward Albee "Best of 2007" -- LA Times A British Embassy worker, an American engineer, a network journalist and a freelance photographer are held captive in Iraq; as death draws close, each hostage must decide what he’ll do to survive. ________________________________ *Publication: Scene from Heads published in the Smith & Kraus anthology "The Best Men's Stage Monologues and Scenes 2009" *2009 PRODUCTION -- And Toto Too Theater Company -- Denver, CO *2009 PRODUCTION -- The Alcyone Festival at Halcyon Theater -- Chicago, IL *Reading -- 2009 Emerging Artists Theater -- New York, NY *Winner - 2008 Francesca Primus Prize for an Emerging Female Theater Artist: EM Lewis, for HEADS *2007 WORLD PREMIERE PRODUCTION -- The Blank Theater -- Hollywood, CA (directed by Darin Anthony) *Reading - 2007 Chicago Her-Rah! Theater Festival - Chicago, IL *Reading - 2007 Great Plains Theater Conference, Long Play Lab - Omaha, NE *Reading - 2007 Kingfisher Cafe Reading Series at the Academy Theater - Avondale Estates, GA *Semi-finalist - Beverly Hills Theatre Guild's Julie Harris Playwright Award Competition - Beverly Hills, CA *Semi-finalist - 2007 O’Neill Playwrights Conference – Waterford, CT *Winner/Residency - Coe College's 2007 "New Works for the Stage" Competition - Cedar Rapids, IA *Reading – NYU’s 2007 hotINK International Festival of New Plays (sponsored by Atlantic Theater) – New York, NY *Staged Reading - The Blank Theatre's 2007 "Living Room Series" -- Hollywood, CA *Reading - Boomerang Theater's 2006 "First Flight" reading series - New York, NY *Reading – 2006 ALAP New Works Lab at Pacific Resident Theatre – Venice, CA Reviews from the world premiere production at the Blank Theater in Hollywood, CA: THE BEST OF 2007 Top 10 List --Charles McNulty for LA Times "'Heads,' Blank Theatre Company. EM Lewis' beautifully acted hostage drama, set in war-torn Iraq, left out the political preaching but slowly opened up into a metaphor suggesting both the necessity and futility of hope." CRITICS CHOICE! --David Ng for LA Times "EM Lewis' new drama at the Blank Theatre Company, tells a story so topical that it feels as if the play was co-written by CNN..." GO! --Deborah Klugman for LA Weekly "...the question of who we are beneath our posturing lands with such force, it jangles the nerves long after the play has ended." CRITICS PICK! -- Gerri Garner for American Radio Network "Lewis' story is a sobering dose of reality, that is almost unbearable, it seems so real... tremendous chemistry between Gabriel and Nash, and Eckhouse and Broderick." Don Shirley for LA CityBeat "EM Lewis’s harrowing horror story... isn’t about Iraq – it’s about a descent into total vulnerability." Les Spindle for IN Magazine "EM Lewis’ hard-hitting new play sears with a disturbing sense of gritty realism..." CJ Johnson for the Los Angeles Journal "...a charging, intensely intimate 90 minutes... intelligent and often acerbic dialogue makes for a succulent feast of a script." Reviews from the Denver production by And Toto Too Theater Company: DENVER POST: "...a gripping fictional drama that raises important questions about our times." NORTH DENVER TRIBUNE: "Heads shows us four people, each put in an unbearable situation, each reacting differently but appropriately for who they are. The four actors convincingly deliver the raw emotions of fear, anger, desperation, despair, and denial – but also something more – a deeper look at our own humanity." DENVER EXAMINER: "...I am still haunted by the images that played out on the intimate Denver Victorian stage.... Heads is not easy to watch. The material is difficult, terrifying, and often heart wrenching – and this is the point. If you are looking for an evening of theatre that will get you thinking, that will leave an indelible impression long after the show has ended, and that will move you to tears – then this is for you.... In a season filled with bright musicals and silly comedies – Heads is a welcome, intelligent, and moving drama that is a must see." Infinite Black Suitcase 9 Men/6 Women 90 minutes Over the course of a single day in rural Oregon, fifteen people struggle with loss. *2007 WORLD PREMIERE at the Lillian Theatre, produced by TheSpyAnts - Hollywood, CA *Finalist – 2006 Hinton Battle Theatre Lab Diverse Voices Playwriting Contest – NY, NY *Semi-finalist – 2006 O’Neill Playwrights Conference – Waterford, CT *2005 Workshop Production at Moving Arts – Los Angeles, CA Reviews from the world premiere production at the Lillian Theater in Hollywood, CA, produced by TheSpyAnts: Julio Martinez, for Variety: "Scripter EM Lewis offers an endearing and insightful perusal into the lives of 16 rural Oregonians, dealing with the trauma of recent or impending death, during the course of a single day... Lewis gives evidence of being a significant talent to watch. 'Infinite Black Suitcase' certainly has the legs to move on to a more ambitious staging." Neal Weaver, for BackStage West: "...touchingly funny..." Keisha7, for LA Splash: "...a great balance of humanity and humor." Pat Taylor, for the Tolucan Times: "...a compellingly emotional journey!" Reading to Vegetables 4 Men/3 Women 85 minutes Rachel, a pre-med college student, takes a job as a research assistant on a psychological experiment. When someone is badly injured, the inquiry focuses on Rachel – and whether she is responsible for what went wrong. *Reading - 2008 "Seedlings" reading at Theatricum Botanicum - Topanga Canyon, CA *Semi-finalist - 2007 Panowski Playwriting Contest, Northern Michigan University - Marquette, MI *Short Play Lab Reading - 2006 1st Annual Great Plains Theatre Conference – Omaha, NE *Reading in 2005 – Kokopelli Theatre Company – Anchorage, AK *Moving Arts' 2005 Staged Reading Series – Los Angeles, CA Catch 5 Men/4 Women A secret from John’s past threatens to destroy his carefully constructed life. A play about friendship, baseball and accounting, for nine players. *Staged Reading -- the 2008 Living Room Series at the Blank Theater -- Hollywood, CA *Reading –- Alliance of Los Angeles Playwrights "New Works Lab" at the Coop Theatre -- Los Angeles, CA *Reading -- Moving Arts -- Los Angeles, CA The fact is that the materials of the fiction writer are the humblest. Fiction is about everything human and we are made out of dust, and if you scorn getting yourself dusty, then you shouldn't try to write fiction. It's not a grand enough job for you. -Flannery O'Connor