Playwriting with Purpose

Jacqueline Goldfinger (she/they) is a writer and teaching artist. Her plays have been produced by The Kennedy Center, Contemporary American Theatre Festival, Court Theatre (New Zealand), École nationale de théâtre (Canada), Unicorn Theatre, Capital Stage, Urbanite Theatre, Theatre Exile, Perseverance Theatre, Azuka Theatre, among others. Their opera, choral and art song libretti have been performed at Opera Columbus, Resonance Works, BBC Radio 3 (UK), Voces8 (UK), Oberlin Opera, Chor Leoni (Canada), Chiesa di Ognissanti (Italy), San Diego Opera, Mendelssohn Choruses around the U.S., and others. The filmed version of their short opera, Letter to Our Children, with Composer Justine F. Chen has been screened at film festivals around the world. She’s written for composers including Melissa Dunphy, Justine F. Chen, and Dominick DiOrio. Her work has been developed at Maryland Opera Studio, The National Theater (UK), New Georges, La Mama, Disquiet (Portugal), PlayPenn, Drama League, the Lark, among others. Her work has been supported by organizations including Yaddo, National Endowment for the Arts, Millay Colony, Sloan Foundation, and the Orchard Project. Her plays have won the Yale Prize, Glaspell Prize, Generations Award, Smith Prize, Barrymore Award, among others. Their opera Alice Tierney with Composer Melissa Dunphy won the Opera America Discovery Award. Their short opera film Letter to Our Children with Composer Justine F. Chen won Best Music Video at the Paris Short Film Awards. Their plays and libretti have been published by Yale Press, TRW Plays, Concord Theatricals, and others. Her poetry has been published by literary magazines including La Piccioletta Barca and the Beyond Queer Words Poetry Anthology (Germany). As a dramaturg, she has worked with La Jolla Playhouse, Philadelphia Theatre Company, Arden Theatre, and others. As an educator, she has taught at University of California, Davis (graduate), University of Pennsylvania (undergraduate), and others. Her academic writing includes two books, Playwriting with Purpose and Writing Adaptations and Translations for the Stage (co-written with Allison Horsley), published by Routledge. MFA: University of Southern California, BA: Agnes Scott College, Website: www.jacquelinegoldfinger.com

1. Creating Compelling Characters 2. Writing Electric Dialogue and Silent Moments 3. Environment and Idea 4. The "Well-Made Play" (Short and Long Form) 5. Scene Structure 6. Monologue Structure 7. Thoughts on Aristotle’s Poetics 8. Other Structures 9. Writing in 3D for the Living Stage 10. The Limitless Room 11. The Revision Process 12. The Business of Playwriting