Shortlist announced for Heretic Voices monologue competition

The shortlist has been announced for the inaugural year of the, Heretic Voices monologue competition.

The nine shortlisted pieces are Cameraman by Jon Barton, Dogwalker by Alison Carr, Woman Caught Unaware by Annie Fox, Dean Mcbride by Sonya Hale, A Hundred Words For Snow by Tatty Hennessy, Party Politics by Lorna Martin, Three Mothers In Search Of A Son by Henry Martin, Vacation by Dan Pick and Lost Crystals by Anni Swinburn.

Chosen from 1,136 applications, the remaining pieces will now go through to a final judging stage, where they will be examined by a panel composed of The Guardian critic Michael Billington, playwright and actor Lolita Chakrabarti, playwright and actor Monica Dolan and literary agent Mel Kenyon.

The four winners will be revealed on 27 November, with the monologues then going on to receive a full production at the Arcola Theatre from 9 to 13 January.

Artistic director of Heretic Productions Max Gill says: "Narrowing a long list of brilliant work to just nine plays was a fantastic challenge and we are thrilled to announce our shortlist. The writers come from many different walks of life but they are united by an exceptional talent and I do not envy the panel in choosing the final plays for production."