The Women’s Playwright Initiative in Connecticut

Since 2015, Laura Copland has served as the Director of Play Development at the Ivoryton Playhouse. Her talk will provide an overview of the Women Playwrights’ Initiative she founded, now in its second season. The Initiative develops new one-act plays by and about women and the issues that shape their lives. It provides a safe, nurturing environment for play development, and culminates in a staged reading festival. In February/March 2018 the festival Passion, Power, Prose: Women Playwrights’ Initiative will once again feature interactive talkbacks with the playwrights, directors, actors, and audience. The presentation will cover some recurring themes of this year’s submissions. Using two of the plays from last year, the residents will read scenes and discuss acting approaches. 

Classically trained at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School in England, Laura Copland played numerous roles on Broadway, Off-Broadway, and in regional theater around the U.S. She is a voice artist, performing audiobooks, and voice over narrations.
Laura earned a JD from Fordham Law School and practiced in New York. She then earned an MA in Historical Studies, and served as an assistant dean at Lang College the New School for Liberal Arts in NYC.