Press Opening was the natural time for a post-show speech. Gwen was desperate to get out of the theatre and into the night air – and she could tell Denise wouldn’t be too far behind her – but they’d sat on the opposite side of the theater from the door, and any attempt to leave might be seen as bad form, against the older man now standing onstage, holding a plaque.
“The writer of this play is the winner of last year’s Joining Sword and Pen competition,” the man crooned. “To create pieces of theatre with strong stage combat opportunities, centered on sturdy female roles. This is his third victory. If he’d like to come down to the stage, please.”
A second man, with a twirled moustache, emerged from the applauding crowd. The two men shook hands at center stage, and Arthur Jolly looked at his name on the plaque.
The Hanslick Girls 