WEPC 2023 winner Jonathan Tessier
After months of reading, discussing, and writing page upon page of feedback, Post Productions has finally revealed the winner of its 2023 Windsor-Essex Playwriting Contest: Which Way, Millennial Man? by Jonathan Tessier. With this win Tessier becomes the second person to have won the annual contest more than once.
An often tense, frequently funny, and provocative drama, Which Way, Millennial Man? is an intense story about intergenerational conflict, masculinity, white privilege, complicated relationships, and infidelity. It tells the story of aspiring writer Chris who decides he can fill an overlooked niche by writing about a school shooting from a perspective not often heard – that of the shooter’s parents. Chris persuades Joe, whose son Bradley committed a school shooting many years ago, to sit for a series of interviews that will be turned into a book. However, Chris is not as in control of the situation as he believes. During the interview process Joe repeatedly forces him to confront his own biases and the preoccupations of his generation, gradually seducing him into questioning what is most fundamental about himself and his marriage. Their increasingly tense relationship leads to an ending that none of the characters see coming. Neither will the audience.
This year’s panel of judges – which included Shana Thibert, Matt St. Amand, Fay Lynn, and Michael K. Potter – were impressed by the maturity, nuance, and sophisticated perspective-taking in Tessier’s script. According to contest judge and Post Productions’ Artistic Director, Fay Lynn, “As a playwright, Tessier is becoming an effective voice of his generation. He also has an uncanny ability to write empathetically about characters whose perspectives are very different from his own. In lesser hands this story could have been a sermon. Tessier has the skill to create a nuanced and well-rounded story that doesn’t tell its audience how to think.”
Tessier, who has submitted a script every year since the Windsor-Essex Playwriting Contest was founded in 2018, last won in 2021 when his script Stuck shared the top spot with Pirate Attack on the 1C Bus Going Downtown by Joey Ouellette. He now joins Ouellette as someone who has managed to earn the top honour multiple times. Those who saw Stuck in October 2022 will no doubt remember its vivid characters, intense conflict, and fearless pursuit of an authentic ending. Although Which Way, Millennial Man? is more drama than thriller, it shares those same qualities.
Born in Windsor, Ontario, Jonathan Tessier began performing as a pre-teen and has since performed in multiple media – including theatre, film, music, and radio. Although he now works in the advertising industry, which has enabled him to travel and live across Canada, Tessier has no plans to stop writing. Stuck, produced by Post Productions in 2022, was his first produced script. Which Way, Millennial Man? is set to be produced by Post Productions in May 2024.
The Windsor-Essex Playwriting Contest was founded in 2018 to encourage writers of every experience level to write and submit playscripts for feedback in the spirit of continuous improvement. There are two rounds to the contest every year. From the first round of submissions the panel of judges selects a shortlist of scripts to become finalists in the second round. Finalists are given one month to use the feedback received by the judges to improve their scripts and resubmit.
At least one winner is chosen each year from among the finalists. Scripts that win the contest will be produced as part of Post Productions’ next season, and the winning playwright receives 10% of gross ticket revenue and is invited to participate in the audition and rehearsal processes. This year five scripts were chosen to advance to the second round, although only four playwrights resubmitted. As is usually the case, the judges found it difficult to decide on a winner. “The problem is that the scripts that become finalists are all good,” says Lynn. “So, when the playwrights spend a month making them even better, we’re in the position of having to choose a winner (or at most two winners) from a selection of scripts that we all enjoy. It isn’t easy.”
The deadline to submit to the 2024 Windsor-Essex Playwriting Contest will be 29 February 2024.
A full announcement about next year’s contest with all relevant submission criteria and guidelines will be made this November. So. . . start writing now!
