Oswego Players Announces 2024 McCann Playwriting Contest Winners

OSWEGO – The Oswego Players announces the winners of its 2024 Donald J. McCann Memorial One-Act Playwriting Contest! The competition is a great opportunity for budding playwrights who are eager to see their creations brought to life on-stage.

The first-place winner of a $250 prize is Michael Brumm of Ardsley, N.Y., with his play, “A Matter of Measurements: The Uncut Version.” The play is a farce about a fictional meeting between Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald.

Brian Leahy Doyle, of Hastings-on-Hudson, N.Y., received $150 for his second-place play, “Maybe Tomorrow,” a tender look at a budding romance between two middle-aged colleagues.

Two plays are tied for third place and each playwright will get a $75 prize.

“Like Clockwork” by Andrada Angilieri, of Brooklyn, N.Y., sparkles with the repartee of an urbane couple before giving the audience an emotional, surprise twist at the end.

“Birthright” by Lydia Merritt, of New York City, explores the fear of letting go of the familiar and the excitement of emerging into something new in a poetic piece of theater.

Members of the volunteer judging committee read 90 submissions from writers throughout the state, the most submissions the Donald J. McCann Memorial One-Act Play Writing Contest has received in one year.

“Especially noteworthy this year was the breadth of subjects and styles,” said committee member Mark Cole, of Oswego. “It was a daunting task, but the plays were inspiring to read.”

The committee named 11 finalists and from that group, selected the winners.

Other finalists included “Fifty-Four Years,” by Andy V Ambraziejus; “Merely Players,” by Danielle E. Moore; and “The Dry Line,” by Joe Nelms, all from New York City. “G Is for Grief,” by Kate Hertz, formerly of New York City and now of Colorado Springs; “Grilled Cheese & Tomato Soup,” by Taylor Maxim, of Painted Post, N.Y.; “Justice Served,” by Ed Friedman, of Peekskill, N.Y.; and “Mistaken Identity,” by Richard Weill, of Katonah, N.Y. were also finalists.

“The Don McCann One-Act Playwriting Contest has become a cornerstone in the Oswego Players’ mission to encourage and spotlight new voices in the world of theater,” said Oswego Players President Norman Berlin III, chairperson of the contest. “The organization’s dedication to fostering the creation of original plays remains as strong as ever.”

Founded in 1938, The Oswego Players remains one of the oldest, continually active community theater groups in America. Presentations of contest-winning plays in previous years have attracted sold-out audiences.

All four plays will be produced by the Oswego Players, from March 7 to 9, 2025, in the Frances Marion Brown Theatre at the Oswego Civic Arts Center at Fort Ontario. Directors of the winning plays will be named soon and tickets for the shows will go on sale in January.

 For more information, call the Oswego Players at 315-343-5138 or visit its website at  www.oswegoplayers.org.

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