Young Writers' Program

To continue to build and develop playwrights from Western Australia, Black Swan is pleased to unveil our Young Writers’ Program. Nine writers have been accepted into the group which is made up of playwrights who are in their first five years of professional practice. The current group of writers is diverse; some are focused on comedy or classics, others are working with contemporary performance, experimenting with form and writing for music theatre.

The group is working with Adam Mitchell, Director of the HotBed Ensemble, on building skills, play development, and will also contribute to our literary department by reading and analysing work for the Company. The Young Writers’ Program is a rigorous meeting of intellect and creativity and we look forward to seeing their work developed and appearing on our stages in the future.

Currently, the Young Writers' Program consists of the following emerging playwrights:

Daniel Kershaw
Daniel is completing his final year of a double Bachelor of Arts in film and creative writing at Curtin University. He has had two one act plays produced, Awakenings and Choice and Other Complications. Awakenings was awarded best script, best actor, best supporting actress and best director by Jake Newby at the 2006 Bunbury Drama Festival. Choice and Other Complications (2007) was given the award for Most Original Play by Ingle Knight at the ITA State One Act Festival. He is currently undertaking a writing mentorship at Barking Gecko under the guidance of artistic director Jeremy Rice.

Jane Rait
Growing up in Fremantle WA, Jane studied at the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts undertaking the “High Impact Actor Training” course with Bill McCluskey. With her studies focusing on the importance of self devised work, Jane has been working as a writer and actor since. While studying, Jane wrote the comedy/musical Checkout with Perth actor Ethan Tomas. She was recently involved in children’s theatre and currently has a play touring WA schools. Amongst various other projects Jane is currently writing with local actor and comedian Shane Adamczak and will be assisting in creative development with the Yirra Yaakin Theatre Company.

Nathaniel Moncrieff
Nathaniel is a writer, filmmaker and actor. He graduated from Edith Cowan University in 2005 with an honours degree in Film & Video. In 2004, he won first prize in The Katharine Susannah Prichard National Short Story Competition as well as Best Film and Best Director for his short Chapfallen at The Big Shave. Having contributed pieces to Perth’s Upstart Theatre Company, in 2009 Nathaniel was invited to join The Australian Theatre For Young People’s Fresh Ink programme for emerging playwrights. He is presently co-writing WAYTCO’s production of Sweat as well as preparing his original work Motel Rooms for a 2010 production by Upstart Theatre Company.

Andy Harmsen
Andy is a playwright who has worked with The Blue Room and The Hayman Theatre. His stage credits include scripts for the musical Bye, Bye Baby for Bedlam Theatre and Dirty Pretty Nails at The Blue Room in 2007. Andy’s most recent work is as screenwriter for the feature film Sleeping Dogs Lie that is currently in development with Portrait Strange Productions, having been recently workshopped in the PACS ScreenLab. He is currently working on the forthcoming web series Graphic for Shotgun Empire Productions. Andy is researching for his Post-Graduate qualifications at Curtin University in postcolonial literature.

Eva Bujalka
Eva is currently in her final year of a double degree in creative writing and journalism at Curtin University.  She is also currently an editor for dotdotdash magazine, practices violin and guitar with ever emerging passion, and studies taxidermy and German in her free time.  Occasionally she still bathes and eats, but only when it appears necessary for her to do so.  She was in the finals for PICA’s ‘Putting on an Act’ in 2009 and has performed at various poetry slams.  She has had her work published in a variety of journals, books and newspapers, including Sitelines (2008, 2009), The Western Independent (2007), Vibewire (2006), and A Circle in a Room Full of Squares (2005).

Chris Isaacs
Chris has worked in independent and professional theatre for the past four years.  He has credits as a writer, performer, stage manager, mechanist and lighting designer.  His debut play The Forlorn (Weeping Spoon Productions 2006) received positive reviews and began his work in the arts.  Chris has a double major in English and Writing from Edith Cowan University, completed in 2006.  He can also be seen regularly improvising his way through scenes with the comedy troupe The Big Hoo-Haa at Lazy Susan’s Comedy Den.

Gita Bezard
Gita is a writer and performer with the independent Perth company The Duck House. She has a Bachelor of Arts in Contemporary Performance from Edith Cowan University and is a regular player with improvised comedy group, The Big Hoo Haa. As a writer she has been a finalist in The Maj Monologues with The Many Secret Thoughts of Oscar (2008) and written three new works; Oscar (Rechabites’ Hall , 2008); Then Awkwardly We Danced (Co-Writer, City Farm 2007); and De La Lune (Artrage Festival, 2006). She is currently working on a new play, I Don’t Know You, to be presented at PICA in 2010.

Will O'Mahony
Will graduated from WAAPA with an Advanced Diploma in Performing Arts (2007) and a Certificate in Music Theatre (2004).  While at WAAPA, Will performed in a number of plays. In addition to his training, he has performed with Riverside Theatre, Perth Theatre Company and had a role in the movie Hi, My Name is Billy.

Demelzar Rogers and Steve McCall are also in the Young Writers' Program.