Heller Theatre receives record number of original plays By KAREN SHADE World Scene Writer 4/29/2006 Boards now break up the perfect white paint of the new cabinet. The shelves just couldn't take the weight of the 200 manuscripts that Heller Theatre has received.

"Hysterical Friction," was the winning entry of Heller's 2005 original playwriting contest. Annie Ellicott (left) and Kara Saunders starred in the play. A. CUERVO / Tulsa World file

But the burden will only get lighter from here as Heller hosts the first of several script readings in search of the next winner of its original playwrighting competition.

Heller's Whitson Hannah, who directed the 2005-06 season's winning entry in February, is heading up the readings with fellow actor Jason Watts.

The first reading is scheduled for 2 p.m. Sunday at the theater, 5328 S. Wheeling Ave.

"We had a huge turnout this year. We had something like 200 plays submitted from all over the world," Hannah said.

Plays -- comedies, dramas, everything in between -- arrived from all over the country, from Europe and even from as far away as India and New Zealand.

Julie Tattershall, Heller Theatre artistic director, said the previous record number of scripts was 115 about two years ago. On average, the theater receives about 70.

She owes the increase to a focused effort to put the contest's presence on the Internet. The theater has posted the competition on playwrighting and other related Web sites to catch the notice of ambitious writers.

The winning script will be given a fully staged production in the last half of the 2006-2007 season, which has not been announced yet.

"A lot of the companies are skittish about trying a new play, but if we don't give new playwrights a chance to show new works, how will they get feedback? They need the venue," Tattershall said.

"If they don't (have it), then where are the playwrights going to come from?"

The small theater run by the city park's department has turned out at least one new, untested work every season for most of the past two decades. As Heller Theatre prepares for its 25th season, these new works have an added bonus -- no expensive royalties. But it also means sorting through scripts to find something that fits Heller's contemporary identity and capacity, Tattershall said.

The first script scheduled for a reading is by a student attending a world-renowned performing arts institution, Hannah said.

"I think we've got a really good chance of doing something really special this year," he said.

The script readings are scheduled for 2 p.m. every other Sunday beginning this week and are expected to continue through early fall. The staff is looking for people to help read the plays out loud and offer feedback on the material, which will be used to select a winner.

For more information, call Heller Theatre at 746-5065.