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2004 Winners

“Playwrights talk among themselves, and the Jackie White Competition is considered among the ten most significant in America for children’s theatre plays. It is well-respected as a venue which has encouraged the development and production of new works for young audiences, and I’m very proud to have won it.”
- Evan Guilford-Blake, 2006 Jackie White Memorial Play Writing Winner

"The Jackie White Competition has become an important part of my development as a writer.   More important than the result was the feedback I received from the panel of readers.  Plays are always read by multiple readers, so one reader's opinion is never the deciding factor.  I can always count on an honest evaluation of my work from the CEC panel.   I am grateful for the opportunities I have had with the Jackie White Competition and hope to enter again in the future."
-Stephen Murray, various finishes

2004 JACKIE WHITE MEMORIAL
PLAY WRITING CONTEST WINNERS

FIRST PLACE: FIVE FROGS AND A PRINCE

Book & Lyrics by Vicki Bartholomew, Sherwood, OR Music by Linnea Brooks

A lonely king is granted three wishes, through which he gains a wife who truly loves him, finds a daughter to adopt, and saves his son from drowning (resulting in the boy being changed into a frog). His sad queen devotes much of her time reading to their son the frog until her adopted daughter overcomes her revulsion for “ugly, repulsive, slimy, hideous, disgusting, slithery, nauseating, vile, sickening, green” frogs and bestows a kiss that saves the day. The beautiful songs reinforce the emotions of the characters in a story that transcends the ususal fairy tale to present real people with real emotions and needs. This charming and amusing musical is for audiences of all ages.

SECOND PLACE: THE PATCHWORK GIRL OF OZ

Book & Lyrics by William S. Kilborne, Fort Wort, TX Music by Ricardo Veiga

This clever musical adaptation of the 1913 Oz book of the same name introduces us to the title character, a happy go lucky gal who is also quite bright (young Ojo the Unlucky slipped her some extra brains while no one was looking). After Dr. Pip the Magician brings the Patchwork Girl to life, she accidently turns Ojo’s Unc Nunkie and Dr. Pip’s wife Margolette into statues and brings a garden statue to life. Ojo sets out on a quest with Scraps the Patchwork Girl and Natasha the Stone Girl to find five ingredients needed for a magic formula which will unfreeze Unc Nunkie and Margolette. Old favorites the Scarecrow, the Tin Man, and Glinda the Good mingle with new friends Ojo, Scraps, the Stone Girl, the Woozy, and Ozma of Oz as the lovely music moves the plot along and both the Scarecrow and the Tin Man find true love in this delightful return to the magical kingdom of OZ.

THIRD PLACE: THE ROSE SLIPPERS

Book, Music & Lyrics by Rosa Soy and Sue Hadjopoulos, Montclair, NJ

When Pilar, a rich and privileged girl in the Caribbean of the 1890s, accidently meets poor, sickly Aurora, she suddenly realizes not everyone is as fortunate as she. In this earlier era, life was slower paced than today and children believed in fairy tales and fantasies, in magic and miracles. Pilar and friends encounter many adventures as she tries to restore Aurora’s health by magical means. The beautiful and haunting music makes this an enchanting story set in a place far away in time and space. Audiences of all ages will be moved and entertained by this unusual musical.

HONORABLE MENTION: THE HAPPY FAMILY

Marilyn Fesus, Barberton, OH

HONORABLE MENTION: THE LEGEND OF WENCESLAS

Walt Vail, Pitman, NJ

HONORABLE MENTION: TALES FROM JAPAN

Patricia Montley, Baltimore, MD