Q&A with Ben Boecker

_The department of dramatic art announced Tuesday that the script for senior Ben Boecker’s one-act musical, “Spellbound!”, won the Sam Selden Prize for Playwriting.

Undergraduate students submit unproduced, student-written one-acts and full-length plays to the contest for a cash prize and the option to have a public reading of their work.

The contest is held annually by UNC’s department of dramatic art.
Boecker’s script was his senior thesis project. A reading of the piece was performed April 2 in a workshop setting, rather than as a full production.

In addition to writing the dialogue for the show, Boecker also composed the music and wrote the accompanying lyrics.

“Spellbound!” is the first play he has written. Its plot centers on a witch and her search for the perfect man.

Staff writer Britton Alexander spoke with Boecker about receiving this year’s prize, the inspiration behind the script, and his plans for the future._

DAILY TAR HEEL: Why did you decide to submit your script for the Selden Prize?

BEN BOECKER: It was recommended to me by my adviser that I apply. It looked like a good opportunity and I had done so much of the work that it really would have been silly not to.

I have seen some of the plays that have won before and I have been really impressed, so to think of myself as potentially being in that group of plays was definitely alluring.

DTH: What is the script of “Spellbound!” about?

BB: My submission was a one-act musical comedy that is also a fairy tale.

It tells the story of a witch who is looking for true love and her evil aunts who are trying to steal love from her heart in order to use it to produce their own magic. Andrea, the main character, runs away from home in search of true love and she has a crazy adventure.

DTH: What was your inspiration for the play?

BB: I would just say magic and the fairy tales I read as a kid — “The Wizard of Oz,” “ The Chronicles of Narnia” and “Dorrie the Little Witch.” I think they had a big impact.

I knew I had to write something magical, and then it was just a matter of what was going to happen.

DTH: What did winning the Selden Prize mean to you as the playwright?

BB: It’s a big honor. I feel really proud and excited that the work is receiving the attention it’s getting. I am overwhelmed. To say that this show won the Sam Selden Prize — and to be able to tell that to someone who might be interested in looking at it — is really crazy.

It’s exciting, too, because there were a lot of people who helped me with this, who helped me put on the performance of my thesis in April. I share this with them too, and it’s an exciting thing for all of us. It’s really crazy.

DTH: Do you plan to write more plays in the future?

BB: Yeah. I do have some ideas that I’m really excited about, but I don’t want to spoil the surprise quite yet.

DTH: Will you opt to have the public reading of your script that is offered — along with a cash prize — for winning the Selden contest?
BB: The reading is an optional thing, but I’m thinking about it. There are lots of different options, and I wouldn’t say it is beyond the realm of possibility.

I think it would be a lot of fun if it does work out.

DTH: What are your plans after you graduate in May?

BB: I am going to move back to Long Island and live with my family. I am applying to a once-a-week workshop with Broadcast Music and will hopefully move into the city at the end of the year.

Contact the Arts Editor at arts@dailytarheel.com.