Zareh Artinian

Zareh Artinian (he/him) is a playwright and published author who has had three shows produced in and around Boston, Mass. A member of the Dramatists Guild, Zareh’s most recent work-in-progress is writing the book for a two-act musical called The Glassblower’s Daughter. He also created an original translation and adaptation of The Canterbury Tales: A Childe’s Tale as a commissioned piece of children's theatre for the Revels of Watertown, Mass., and wrote the book for Beneath the Skin, a musical commissioned by Athena Louise Hyacinth Productions to tell the story of a woman dealing with mental illness and the de-stigmatization of asking for help. Zareh has published over a dozen short stories for middle school readers. His work appeals to both children and adults. Zareh has taught various...

Zareh Artinian (he/him) is a playwright and published author who has had three shows produced in and around Boston, Mass. A member of the Dramatists Guild, Zareh’s most recent work-in-progress is writing the book for a two-act musical called The Glassblower’s Daughter. He also created an original translation and adaptation of The Canterbury Tales: A Childe’s Tale as a commissioned piece of children's theatre for the Revels of Watertown, Mass., and wrote the book for Beneath the Skin, a musical commissioned by Athena Louise Hyacinth Productions to tell the story of a woman dealing with mental illness and the de-stigmatization of asking for help. Zareh has published over a dozen short stories for middle school readers. His work appeals to both children and adults. Zareh has taught various writing and media courses at Emerson College, Sacred Heart University, and Eastern Nazarene College. He has a B.S. from St. Joseph’s College and an M.F.A. in Creative Writing from Emerson College. An experienced editor, writer, and producer in a variety of media, Zareh believes that theatre has the potential to inspire and create opportunities for dialogue about many important issues we face today.

Scripts

The Glassblower's Daughter, or Shattered! An American Fairy Tale

by Zareh Artinian

Synopsis

A teenager living in an early American colony must defy her community’s expectations of what it means to be a woman to find her own voice and learn the secrets of her father’s magical glassblowing technique in order to rescue him from the prison of an evil colonial governor before her father is executed and the entire colony enslaved.

A teenager living in an early American colony must defy her community’s expectations of what it means to be a woman to find her own voice and learn the secrets of her father’s magical glassblowing technique in order to rescue him from the prison of an evil colonial governor before her father is executed and the entire colony enslaved.

The Big Brush

by Zareh Artinian

Synopsis

A recent immigrant enters a Bowery, New York, theater in the 1920s looking for a job, but has he really left all his troubles behind him in the old country? This play explores the premise that character is destiny in the context of the immigrant experience.

A recent immigrant enters a Bowery, New York, theater in the 1920s looking for a job, but has he really left all his troubles behind him in the old country? This play explores the premise that character is destiny in the context of the immigrant experience.

Today's América

by Zareh Artinian

Synopsis

América Jonze, who at age seven covered herself in her classmate’s blood and played dead to survive a school shooting, grows up to be the first female member of Gen Z elected to U.S. Congress. Determined to prevent future tragedies, she must face the greatest obstacle of her life: her fellow politicians. Will she prevent the next act of senseless violence, or will she instigate it? This 10-minute play presents a...

América Jonze, who at age seven covered herself in her classmate’s blood and played dead to survive a school shooting, grows up to be the first female member of Gen Z elected to U.S. Congress. Determined to prevent future tragedies, she must face the greatest obstacle of her life: her fellow politicians. Will she prevent the next act of senseless violence, or will she instigate it? This 10-minute play presents a pivotal moment in the life and career of América Jonze as she must face one of the darkest dilemmas of her young life.

Minimal set and props

The Christmas Affair of Richard the Third

by Zareh Artinian

Synopsis

It’s Christmastime at Baynard’s Castle, England, 1484. Elizabeth of York summons the spirits of the wronged women who have come before her to enlist their aid to claim the throne that her murderous uncle, King Richard III, has usurped from her dead father. Emboldened, she manipulates Richard into considering her a worthy rival for the throne. Meanwhile, in a ploy to consolidate his power over England, Richard...

It’s Christmastime at Baynard’s Castle, England, 1484. Elizabeth of York summons the spirits of the wronged women who have come before her to enlist their aid to claim the throne that her murderous uncle, King Richard III, has usurped from her dead father. Emboldened, she manipulates Richard into considering her a worthy rival for the throne. Meanwhile, in a ploy to consolidate his power over England, Richard contemplates marrying the popular Elizabeth. The machinations are on full display before the eyes of Richard’s ailing wife, Queen Anne, who grows increasingly desperate as she desires to cling to life and relevancy. Shakespeare alludes to Richard’s scheme to marry the young Elizabeth in Richard III, but we never hear from Elizabeth herself in the play. This is an attempt to rectify that missing point of view from the story.

Written in the iambic pentameter blank verse style of Shakespeare.