2 local students win Palace’s playwright competition
Two Connecticut high school students won The Palace Theatre’s 2021 Ernie DiMattia Emerging Young Artist Award for their original one-act plays.
Chris Israel of Stamford, Nicole Talamo of New Canaan and Marco Greco of White Plains, N.Y. were awarded $500 each for their plays. The Palace will hold virtual readings of each of the student plays on March 14 performed by professional actors and Broadway veteran Luis Salgado.
“I am extremely excited about joining The Palace Theatre to share the work of young playwrights once again this year,” said Salgado, director of play readings. “The amount of talent that we at Salgado Productions experienced through reading the submissions this year was unbelievable. All the plays brought unique storytelling that was easily relatable.”
Salgado continued, “‘The Elevator Play,’ written by Chris Israel, was easily relatable to me as an artist, especially in a time like this when so much is unknown and we desire to be able to do our art again. The comedy is smart and the conclusion leaves you guessing,” Salgado said. “‘Cultural Reset,’ written by Nicole Talamo, highlights the generational differences in the world of communication and technology in society today. I applaud The Palace Theatre for their ongoing commitment to young artists like Chris, Marco and Nicole year after year.”
The Palace’s president and CEO Michael Moran also congratulated the three winners.
“At a time when students have lost so many valuable experiences, we’re working hard to provide opportunities for meaningful growth and connection — bringing the joy of arts education to students of all ages,” Moran said.
The playreading will be held over Zoom on March 14 at 4 p.m. The event is free and open to the public. For more information, visit palacestamford.org.