News: BOWL-A-THON for the 6th floor theater project!

Dear Friends,

Most playwrights began writing in order to avoid sports. This fear of balls, hard objects and asphalt has terrorized writers for years.

But there comes a time in every writer’s life, when he or she must face her fears in order to build a better theater.

This Holiday Season, the Youngblood Gang is gearing for our most ambitious fundraising project yet. At the YOUNGBLOOD BOWL-A-THON on November 23rd, this group of Professional Playwrights/Amateur Bowlers is gonna knock down pins for the sake of theater. And you can help by sponsoring a playwright.

Youngblood's 2005 Bowl-a-Thon - with (l. to r.) alumni Sam Forman, Annie Baker and Emily Conbere (kneeling), and current member Sharyn Rothstein

We’re tossing aside our laptops for one night only, in order to raise funds to renovate the 6th floor theater at Ensemble Studio Theater. This theater is home to Youngblood’s annual UNFILTERED studio productions. As budding playwrights at the beginning of our professional careers, these productions are vital to the development of our plays. It is of upmost importance that we improve the state of the 6th Floor Theater in order to present our plays in the best way possible.

Reviving the 6th floor theater is the most ambitious project in Youngblood's history. It will have a vast, immediate, concrete and lasting effect on the way EST and Youngblood are able to develop plays, and the opportunities they can provide to resident artists.

We are calling upon friends, family, coworkers and strangers to sponsor a playwright as he/she bowls his/her heart out for the sake of good theater.

Sharyn Rothstein laces up at the 2005 Bowl-a-Thon

How, you might ask, can I help a writer bowl? Many of us are most likely beyond help in the bowling department. But if you would like to sponsor one of us, the bowl-a-thon works like so:

• Youngblood members reach out to family/friends/co-workers to sponsor them on a "per point" basis. Depending on your ability to give, this could range from $0.25 per point up to a few dollars per point. All contributions are tax deductible.
• On November 23rd, Youngblood goes bowling. Each sponsored writer bowls two games. The bowling alley is still TBD, and will be announced soon - watch this space! You are welcome to come down and cheer on your playwright.
  
• The Playwright’s best score of the two games is used to calculate his/her sponsors final donation. For example, if you sponsored a Playwright for $0.25/point, an 80 game would mean a $20 contribution.
  

If you would like to sponsor a specific playwright, you can contact them directly and let them know how much you would like to give per point. The playwright will proceed to bowl on the 23rd, and we'll let you know their best score of two games and how much you should contribute. If you’re interested in giving a specific sum, please let us know as well.

We hope that you will join us in the Bowling Alley for the sake of all things theater.

Happy Holidays,
Youngblood