Author: playonwordsanjose

Call for Submissions: Deadline December 1

| playonwordsanjose
Adam Magill, Brian Van Winkle, Melinda Marks and Julia Halprin Jackson at our July show in San Jose's St. James Park.
Adam Magill, Brian Van Winkle, Melinda Marks and Julia Halprin Jackson at our July show in San Jose’s St. James Park.

Deadline December 1

Big news: Our next show has been confirmed for Wednesday, January 6, at San Jose’s Cafe Stritch. We need solid content to produce–and so of course we are turning to you first.

We are looking for:

  • 5-10 minute plays
  • fiction & nonfiction under 2000 words
  • poetry

If you’ve got something that you feel fits the bill, email it to us as an attachment at playonwordssj@gmail.com.

Other fun stuff:

  • We are seeking day-of volunteers. If you are interested in volunteering with us, kindly check out our volunteer survey.
  • Feel free to forward this call to all the fabulous artists in your life or post the details to your social media. We love meeting new artists.

Andrew Tucker and Adam Weinstein Remind Us Not to Believe

| playonwordsanjose

Ever wondered what inspired the great Journey hit, “Don’t Stop Believin”? Andrew Tucker reinvented this classic song by inserting three careful periods: Don’t. Stop. Believin.’ Watch as Adam Weinstein interprets Andrew’s funny piece last month at our Words & Music show in San Jose’s St. James Park:

Big thanks to Andrew, Adam, and all the wonderful writers and artists who made our summer show possible.

We are currently on hiatus but hope to collaborate with more Silicon Valley artists this fall. If you have ideas for future shows, or are interested in volunteering with us, shoot us an email at playonwordssj@gmail.com.

Ryan Alpers’ Bowling Ball

| playonwordsanjose

Who, exactly, do you think would purchase a vintage bowling ball off Craigslist? And how exactly do you picture that exchange taking place? We loved Ryan Alpers’ hilarious piece, “Dick’s Balls,” as performed by Adam Magill in San Jose’s St. James Park on July 14:

Ryan Alpers teaches English and journalism in San Jose. He has a B.A. in literature from the College of Creative Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and a teaching credential from San Jose State University. While studying at the College of Creative Studies, he was published in the CCS Literary Magazine “Spectrum” and awarded the CCS Brancart-Richardson Award for fiction.

Adam Magill’s “Winston”

| playonwordsanjose

How does a dog comprehend loss? This summer we were taken by Adam Magill’s “Winston,” a beautifully written piece that hedges on a sharp turn. Here’s Melinda Marks reading Adam’s work on July 14 at our Words and Music show in San Jose’s St. James Park:

Adam Magill
Adam Magill

Adam Magill is a graduate of the Foothill Theater Conservatory and has received additional training at Seydways Studios in San Francisco. Recent credits include Stupid Fucking Bird at SF Playhouse and The Whale at Marin Theater Company. He is a regular contributor and company performer for the Play On Words literary performance series.

Marilyn’s “Snake” in “Paris”

| playonwordsanjose

We are huge fans of Marilyn Horn-Fahey’s short fiction–which is why we opened each act of our Words & Music show with one of her short stories. Here’s footage of Melinda Marks performing “April in Paris” on July 14 in San Jose’s St. James Park:

Thanks to Rick Alpers for filming our first act. Here’s Brian Van Winkle reading Marilyn’s second piece, entitled “Snake”:

Gary Singh’s Day in Question

| playonwordsanjose

Play On Words fans will surely recognize Gary Singh’s signature poetic style–declarative, language-focused, narrative poems. In case you missed it on July 14, watch the unbeatable Adam Weinstein perform two of Gary’s poems, starting with “”On a Mattress Above a Supermarket in the Capital of Silicon Valley”:

Here’s Adam reading Gary’s second piece, entitled “The Day in Question”:

Gary Singh is an award-winning travel journalist with a music degree who publishes poetry, paints and exhibits photographs. As a scribe, he’s published nearly 1000 works including newspaper columns, travel essays, art and music criticism, profiles, business journalism, lifestyle articles, poetry and short fiction. His poems have been published in The Pedestal Magazine, Dirty Chai, Maudlin House and more. He is the author of The San Jose Earthquakes: A Seismic Soccer Legacy (2015, The History Press).