By Taylor Griggs
In keeping with observance of Women’s History Month in March — some would say “herstory” — Oregon Contemporary Theater in downtown Eugene will host the fifth annual SWAN Day (Support Women Artists Now) readings of plays by women, about women, or both.
The purpose of the event is to encourage watchers to think about the gender dynamics pertaining to theater: Who are the directors and playwrights whose works achieve performance, and whose stories do these plays elevate?
“SWAN Day has been a really important opportunity to bring women back into history,” OCT’s associate producer Tara Wibrew said. “Women are super-present in the arts in history, but we don’t often see ourselves on stage.”
This year’s SWAN Day readings includes a set of eight plays written about women and in all but one case by women. Readings are not fully staged productions, so they focus on the importance of the writing and the stories, unshadowed by any flashiness of sets and technical craft.
Connie Bennett, co-producer of the SWAN Day readings and also a founder of the NW10 Festival of 10-minute plays that recently celebrated its 11th season at OCT, has written Walking Florida Now, one of the plays included in the March 16 show.
She said the inspiration of her play came from the lives of environmental activist Marjory Stoneman Douglas and youthful gun control activist Emma González, who survived the Feb. 14, 2018 shooting at the high school in Parkland, Fla., named for Douglas.
“My play intertwines their two stories,” Bennett said.
The local play readings are part of a national annual project called the 365 Women a Year Playwriting Project, in which hundreds of playwrights from around the country write plays about real women, living or historical, one to represent each day of the year.
Each year since 2017, when the project began, a new set of women who have not been written about before is chosen. Instructions on how to select a subject and claim her story can be found on the project website at 365womenayear.wordpress.com/2019.
In addition to Bennett, the Eugene-area writers whose plays are part of the SWAN Day readings this year are Nancy Hopps, Lolly Ward, Jan Eliot, Dorothy Velasco, Kim Kelly, Rachael Carnes and Paul Calandrino.
Hopps, who has participated in the playwriting project and SWAN Day readings for three years, chose Elizabeth Fishman Loftus, a cognitive psychologist and memory expert, as her subject this year. Her play is titled And Nothing But the Truth.
She sees the project as “a structured opportunity to become part of a really important community.”
“You feel a sense of belonging to a community of people that recognize the importance of recognizing contributions that women have made and will continue to make,” Hopps said.
If thinking of a new set of 365 women a year to write about seems daunting, that’s part of the problem, Wibrew said. On the other hand, “How many famous, important men can you list off in your head right now?” she asked. “Theater isn’t just something written by and about dead white guys.”
That doesn’t mean that famous male playwrights the likes of Oscar Wilde, William Shakespeare and Tennessee Williams should be diminished for their opportunities and successes, Wibrew said. But efforts like the SWAN Day readings are important for giving talented women such as Lorraine Hansberry and Lauren Gunderson — who at this time actually is America’s most-produced living playwright — their due.
“In theater, if we’re doing our jobs right, (we will) create a more empathetic community,” Wibrew said. “SWAN Day is a great opportunity to tell human stories.”
SWAN Day Matinee Concert Readings
When: 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, March 16
Where: Oregon Contemporary Theatre, 194 W. Broadway, Eugene
Admission: Free; donations to benefit Ophelia’s Place for girls
Information: octheatre.org/swan-day
