The Blue Hill Public Library and ISLE Theater Company are cosponsoring a program on dramaturgy and playwriting with Georgia Williamina Zildjian on Thursday, July 3 at 7PM in the library's Howard Room.

What is the “world of the play” and how do theater artists shape compelling structures for it? What role does the audience play? And what exactly is dramaturgy?!

In this workshop with playwright and dramaturg Georgia Williamina Zildjian, participants will learn how dramaturgy can inspire their playwriting practice. We will identify the role and responsibilities of the dramaturg, explore dramaturgical techniques from across history, and apply those techniques to crafting original work. In addition to sharing examples from other playwrights, Georgia will share some of her own sourcebooks, including the one used to develop MARY, WAKE UP!, her newest play being produced by ISLE Theater Company later this summer. Come join us for this opportunity to engage with this essential-yet-often-overlooked discipline in the performing arts!

Participants are encouraged to bring a notebook, pen or pencil, and materials (images, text fragments, etc.) to inspire them in crafting their own sourcebook. Resources will be provided as necessary. By the end of the workshop, participants will leave with the seeds to jump-start their playwriting practice using dramaturgy.

Georgia Williamina Zildjian is an author, theater artist, educator, and dramaturg-historian from Castine. She is a proud alumna of the Visual and Performing Arts Department at Ellsworth High School, holds a BFA in Theatre Arts from Boston University, and will earn her MEd in Place-Based Education from Antioch University New England this fall. She is the co-founder of Tandem Theatre Collective, a triumvirate of tenacious women who have produced several of her plays, most recently The Bride in 2022. She is also the founder and director of the Castine Arts Association's Youth Summer Theatre Camp, which is celebrating its 15th year. Her essay "United or Loosened" was published in the collection Breaking Bread: Essays from New England on Food, Hunger, and Family in 2022. She currently works in Castine as the Manager of Museum Learning at the Wilson Museum and as the Drama Club coordinator at Adams Elementary School.