William "Bill" Mccann, Jr. Email & Phone Number

Since 2019 I have been the arts columnist for the Winchester Sun, a perfect intersection of my interests and my abilities. I have an MA in Theatre from the University of Kentucky; my thesis was a full-length play. I also have a degree in education from the University of Virginia's Curry School of Education. My columns reflect my interest in theatre, but they also extend into other arts as well. I try to keep my readers informed about what is going on in the arts locally and regionally. But in this age of the pandemic I have gone afar afield as to discuss topics and events as far from Winchester as Henderson in the west to Cincinnati to Somerset and Barbourville, Pikeville and Ashland. It had been my original intent to focus on an area within about 50 miles of Winchester. But because of the pandemic I have broadened out. Beyond just focusing on local events I have discussed events and places--museums and exhibits, most often-- done occasional book reviews and done "Three Question" interviews with people as diverse as playwrights, photographers, theatre producers, and more. In short, the pandemic forced me to stretch my wings to find more to talk about in the columns. I am still interested in and involved as a playwright. As a Member of the Dramatists Guild of America I regularly submit my plays to theaters and contests. As a co-founder and immediate past president of Kentucky Playwrights Workshop, Inc. (KPW). I am involved also in dramaturgy, contest administration and (rarely) as an actor, director, or producer.More often I have been an advocate for Kentucky playwrights. Op-Ed or historical essays written by me on topics related to that have been published in the Lexington Herald-Leader, KentuckyForward, the Northern Kentucky Tribune, and Kentucky Explorer Magazine. I have edited two books of plays by Kentucky playwrights. And I initiated and produced the first two seasons (2012, 2013) of the Kentucky New Play Series, short plays produced at the Kentucky State Fair; the next four seasons after that were produced by KPW, In 2019, the KNPS went in a different direction as I sought out theatres to produce winning plays at their own venues, instead of at the fair, as a way to get playwrights better opportunities.Beginning in October 2021 I was given the opportunity to join Eastern Standard, a radio news magazine, that originates out of Richmond, KY on WEKU (88.9 FM) a broadcast service of Eastern Kentucky University, as host of a Theatre series whose segments are broadcast about once a month. If you have an idea for a segment, contact me.

Listed skills include Editor, Grant Writing, Grant Administration, Non Profit Administration, and 46 others.