Daphnie Sicre presents the AfroLatine Superfriends Playwriting Hour with Melissa DuPrey livestreamed on the global, commons-based, peer-produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Thursday 4 May 2023 at 1 p.m. PDT (San Francisco, UTC -7) / 3 p.m. CDT (Chicago, UTC -6) / 4 p.m. EDT (New York, UTC -7).
The AfroLatine Superfriends Playwriting Hour is an incredible opportunity to learn from AfroLatine-led playwrights and theatremakers from all corners of the United States. With a wealth of experience, they will share their writing practices, experiences, and insightful anecdotes on the process, inspiration, and practices of dramatic writing.
Each week, a different playwright will bring their unique perspective on how to write dramatic texts. They will offer valuable tips and prompts based on their social consciousness, approaches to theatrical style and form, and strategies to effectively communicate with their intended audiences. This series is designed for aspiring writers, students of dramatic writing, or anyone interested in creating thoughtful, visceral, and unique blueprints for performance, whether it’s for the stage, screen, or any other medium. Don’t miss out on this exceptional opportunity to hone your writing skills and learn from some of the most talented voices in the Latine community.
Dr. Daphnie Sicre (curator & moderator) will be online via HowlRound during each session.
Melissa DuPrey is an actor, comic, producer, emcee, musician, and playwright with roots from Humboldt Park, Chicago. She is a critically-acclaimed solo artist whose work spans over a decade with 5 full-length solo plays (SEXomedy, SUSHI-frito, Good Grief, SEXomedy 2.0, RISE OF THUNDERDOME) highlighting the intersections of diasporic Blackness, queerness, healing, liberation, and sexuality. DuPrey’s full-length play BRUJAJA, directed by Miranda Gonzalez, was digitized as a theatrical film by UrbanTheater Company in 2021 for its world premier. DuPrey’s stand-up has been featured in Chicago, New York, New Jersey, Philadelphia, and Los Angeles. She has been a regular guest on WGN’s talk radio show, Pretty Late, hosted by veteran comedian Patti Vasquez, a regular panelist on Feminist Wednesdays WBEZ’s “Vocalo” show, and panelist for WGN’s Windy City Live (Chicago). She was most recently seen as “Dr. Sara Ortiz” on Greys Anatomy (S17 & S18) and will recur in a new HULU series How to Die Alone (“Tamika”). She’s also been seen on Empire (FOX), The Resident (FOX), Chicago PD (NBC), and The Chi (Showtime). Her theater credits include works at Teatro Vista, Court Theater, The Goodman Theater, Steppenwolf, Free Street Theater, UrbantTheater Company, Victory Gardens, The Greenhouse Theater, Oracle Theater, and Teatro Luna. She is an Ensemble member at Teatro Luna and Africaribe. She hopes to continue creating and producing projects that fuse theatrical story-telling with comedy for theater, television, and film.
