Patricia Loughrey's play "Dear Harvey" will be presented in a concert reading with professional actors at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. during the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival (KCACTF) this April. KCACTF is a national theater program involving 18,000 students from colleges and universities nationwide which has served as a catalyst in improving the quality of college theater in the United States.
"Dear Harvey" was commissioned by Diversionary Theatre in December 2007. Diversionary staged the world premiere in April 2009, which was directed by Diversionary Executive & Artistic Director, Dan Kirsch. The commission for the play was underwritten in part by The James Irvine Foundation New Connections Fund and community member Carlos Malamud.
Harvey Milk was the first openly gay elected official in California. He was assassinated in San Francisco's City Hall in November 1978. "Dear Harvey" uses first-person stories about Harvey Milk from the people he knew and the lives he changed - intimate, sometimes surprising stories, about the impact of his love and his courage. The play is based on interviews with California Assemblymember Tom Ammiano, former San Diego City Councilmember Toni Atkins, AIDS Quilt founder Cleve Jones, California State Senator Christine Kehoe, Harvey Milk campaign manager Anne Kronenberg, nephew Stuart Milk, activists Nicole Murray-Ramirez and Robin Tyler, and others. The play also uses historical materials, excerpts from the Milk Forum as published in the Bay Area Reporter, and photos by San Francisco LGBT photographer Daniel Nicoletta. An original score was composed by Thomas Hodges.
San Diego State University School of Theatre, Television and Film produced the show as part of their season in September 2009. The production was selected to participate in the Southwest Regional Finals for the Kennedy American College Theatre Festival at Dixie College, St. George, Utah in February 2010. The national committee from the Kennedy Center saw the production, and Gregg Henry, Artistic Director of the KCACTF invited "Dear Harvey" for a concert reading. Loughrey and Hodges have been given fellowships to attend the weeklong national Festival in Washington, D.C. The concert reading of "Dear Harvey" will be presented Friday, April 16 at 5:00pm at The Kennedy Center Family Theater.
On May 22, 2010, California will celebrate the first "Harvey Milk Day!" On October 11, 2009, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a law setting aside a day to commemorate Harvey Milk. Under the measure, each May 22nd will be declared Harvey Milk day in California, coinciding with Milk's birthday. While it will not be a state holiday, schools will be encouraged to hold lessons remembering the life of Harvey Milk, recognizing his accomplishments and familiarizing students with the contributions he made to California. In signing Harvey Milk day into law, Schwarzenegger reversed his position from 2008, when he vetoed the measure. According to his spokesman, the decision by President Barack Obama to award Milk the presidential Medal of Freedom and an Academy award-winning film about Milk's life persuaded Schwarzenegger to change his mind.
"Dear Harvey" has been endorsed by Stuart Milk of The Harvey Milk Foundation. Portions of the play will be read as part of the Foundation's first gala event at the California Museum in Sacramento on May 12, 2010.
Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival
The National Festival at the Kennedy Center
April 13-17, 2010
www.kennedy-center.org/education/actf/
Tuesday, April 13
A Special Event
THE ROAD WEEPS, THE WELL RUNS DRY
By Marcus Gardley
A concert reading, directed by Chay Yew
Featuring national finalists of the Irene Ryan Acting Scholarship
Presented in partnership with the Lark Play Development Center, the American Voice New Play Institute at Arena Stage, Howard University, and with the assistance of the Smithsonian's Museum of the American Indian.
7:30pm
Wednesday, April 14
A Millennium Stage Showcase of one John Cauble Award finalist and two Ten-Minute Play Award finalists
[titles TBA]
6pm EST, simulcast on the Kennedy Center Website
www.kennedy-center.org/programs/millennium/
SHOT!
(Requiem for a Bullet)
By Kimmika Williams-Witherspoon
Conceived by Kimmika Williams-Witherspoon, Douglas C. Wager and Eugene Martin
Temple University
Terrace Theater, 7:30pm
Thursday, April 15
ANTON'S UNCLES
By Richard Alger and Tina Kronis
Los Angeles City College Theatre Academy
Kennedy Center Family Theater, 7:30pm
Friday, April 16
DEAR HARVEY Stories of Harvey Milk
By Patricia Loughrey, California State University-Long Beach
Music by Thomas Hodges, San Diego State University
Commissioned and produced by Diversionary Theatre, April 2009
Produced by San Diego State University, September 2009
A concert reading, directed by Rebecca Hilliker
Kennedy Center Family Theater, 5:00pm
