Center Theatre Group’s regional finalist Tyla Uzo, 17, took third place in the August Wilson Monologue Competition (AWMC) National Finals held virtually on Monday, May 3.
Uzo attends Ramon C. Cortines School of Visual and Performing Arts and took second place in the 2020 regional finals. She was joined in the national competition on Saturday, May 1 by the top performers of the 2021 August Wilson Monologue Competition (AWMC) Regional Finals, Hazel Eko, and Stephen Moran. Uzo advanced to the Finals on Monday where her third-place award earned her a scholarship of $1,000.
This is the tenth consecutive year that Center Theatre Group has hosted the Los Angeles component of the national monologue competition. The program is designed to inspire and educate Los Angeles youth using monologues from August Wilson’s “American Century Cycle,” a 10-play cycle that details the complexity of the African-American experience in the 20th century.
All participants in the Los Angeles Regional Finals received a one-year subscription to CTG’s Digital Stage+ and $250 credit to use towards any Center Theatre Group production. Los Angeles Regional Finalists are also offered scholarships to Los Angeles City College’s three-year conservatory program should they choose to attend.
Eko, Moran, and Uzo received masterclasses provided by Center Theatre Group allowing them to refine their performances while gaining valuable acting techniques.
Center Theatre Group also offers an in-school residency as part of the larger August Wilson Program. The August Wilson In-School Residency is a semester-long program that provides students from Title 1 schools with an in-depth study of the work of August Wilson.
AWMC is a national program presented by Kenny Leon’s True Colors Theatre Company and Jujamcyn Theaters and hosted in cities throughout the country. Each city runs its program differently and each experience is designed to provide learning opportunities for high school students to study and practice the craft of acting through the work of August Wilson.
Center Theatre Group honors its long-standing relationship with August Wilson through its August Wilson Program, as well as through its continued production of Wilson’s work. Center Theatre Group has presented nine of Wilson’s “American Century Cycle,” including two world premiere productions. Most recently, Wilson’s “Jitney” had a successful run at the Mark Taper Forum in 2019.
More information on Center Theatre Group’s August Wilson Monologue Competition can be found at CTGLA.org/AugustWilson.
