Farmington Area Artist of Residence Stephen Mack Jones leads Young Playwrights Program

Not everyone wants to be an actor," says Stephen Mack Jones, author and award-winning playwright, of those interested in theater. For this reason, he's leading Farmington Hills Youth Theatre's new Young Playwrights program. It'll give students in grades 7-12 the opportunity to write a full-length script to be turned into an actual stage play.

Cultural arts coordinator Jessica Guzmán says the city toyed with the idea – and, when Jones was named the 2017 Farmington Area Artist of Residence, the timing was right. "This is just another opportunity for our teens to be heard," she says.

Jones, who is also a Kresge Arts fellow, says, "What excited me was the opportunity for young people to learn more about the theater, to become actively involved in the theater and to express what is most important to them at this stage in their lives." Jones is finishing up his second novel; his first, August Snow – a thriller set in Detroit – is available at independent bookstores and on Amazon.

Application deadline: Jan. 12

248-473-1856