About Kelly DuMar, Playwright & Writer
Kelly began writing plays just after publishing her non-fiction book, Before You Forget – The Wisdom of Writing Diaries for Your Children in 2001. As a psychotherapist for many years, Kelly expressed her passion for theater by directing psychodramas in therapeutic settings. She now devotes her time to writing and directing her plays, offering writing workshops, and coordinating a variety of play development activities, including the Our Voices Festival of Boston Area Women Playwrights, now in its 6th year. Kelly has an M.Ed. from the Harvard University Graduate School of Education and a B.A., English, University of Mass., Amherst.
Selected Play Credits: Winner of the Susan McIntyre Play Festival, Kelly's full-length play, Weekend at the Dreaming Cloud, had a workshop production at Yellow Taxi, Nashua, NH, 2008, as well as a two-evenings of readings with the Nora Theatre, Cambridge, March 2009; (also a finalist in The John Gassner New Play Festival, Stony Brook Univ., NY & The Boston Actors Theatre). Her short play, The Acolyte, was produced in Boston and Provincetown in 2008-2009; and her short comedies, ENVIA! At Work & Play and No Strings were presented in Boston festivals, 2009; selection from ENVIA! were produced by the Playwrights' Platform Annual Festival, Boston, June 2009. Her one-act children's play, Rocky & Skye, was produced by the Youth Education on Stage Festival, North Dakota, June 2009 and in the Built on Stilts Festival, Martha's Vineyard, August 2009. Hothouse, a finalist for the Arts and Letters Prizes, The Robert Lehan Award, and the Nantucket Short Play Festival, was produced by the Hovey Summer Arts Festival, 2005, and is published by Heuer Publishing. Hovey also produced Kelly's one-act play, What We Save, also a finalist for the Arts and Letters Prizes and which was produced by the Boston Actor's Theatre, Cambridge, 2007. Bloom, produced by Playwright's Platform Summer Festival, 2005, won the Playwrights' Choice Award, and was produced at the Philipstown Depot Festival, the Samuel French Off Off Broadway Festival, & Flint City Theatre, MI, has been published by Heuer Publishing and was produced as an award-winning cable TV video by Studio Playhouse, Newton Cable TV. Spa Reservations was produced by the Boston Theatre Marathon, 2004. Practicing Peace was produced by the Playwright's Platform Summer Festival, 2003, where it won the Audience Choice Award and is published by Brooklyn Publishing.
Kelly has twice co-produced the Playwrights’ Platform Annual Festival at the Boston Playwright’s Theatre; she founded and co-produces the Our Voices Festival of Women’s Plays, held at Regis College in Weston, now in its 6th year; & founded & co-produced the Life Stages Play Festival, Sherborn, MA, funded by a Mass. Cultural Council Grant, now in its second year.
Kelly is a past president of Playwright’s Platform, a Dramatists Guild member, a certified psychodramatist & Fellow in the American Society for Group Psychotherapy & Psychodrama.
E-mail kellydumar@gmail.com
