April Allridge


*April Allridge* *Playwright, filmmaker, teacher*

Seven Wrongful Acts—An Injustice-Prevention Campaign Seven Wrongful Acts is a series of fictional dramatic stage works. Each play focuses on a different cause of wrongful convictions, as documented by The Innocence Project. Each play is based on solid research, mentoring from an expert in the field, and inspiration from real-life cases. Seven Wrongful Acts came about in response to a personal family tragedy. A family member was wrongfully convicted of murder. In witnessing the trial and verdict, I came to understand how jury misperceptions and ignorance can lead to wrongful convictions. My mission is to create a public discussion about the causes of wrongful convictions and to educate as many potential jurors as possible about these issues. THE BELIEFS OF STRANGERS is the first play of the series. It centers on eyewitness testimony and mistaken identity—the leading cause of wrongful convictions. The second play, MIRANDA SAYS SILENCE IS GOLDEN, deals with Miranda rights within the context of a wacky game show. The next play, ONE FALSE WORD, revolves around false confessions and accusations, the second-leading cause of wrongful convictions. Future plays in the series will address issues such as confirmation bias, junk science, and police informants. STAGE PLAYS MIRANDA SAYS SILENCE IS GOLDEN, a short comedy about Miranda rights, was presented at the George Street Playhouse by Shared Spaces Theater in residence, with a discussion led by criminal defense attorney Allan Marain, Esq. LEARNING TO LABEL, a one-act play about prejudice and tolerance, received a staged reading at the Bruno Walter Auditorium at Lincoln Center in NYC and an additional reading at The Dramatists Guild, also in NYC. LEARNING TO LABEL was presented in a workshop production as part of the "Art and the Invisible Reality" conference in Munich, Germany. THE CONTRACT, a one-act play, was presented in a workshop production at Eccentric Circles Theatre in NYC. THE LAST ONE'S THE CHARM (one-act) and SLAVES OF NEW BRUNSWICK (one-act) were both read at the Franklin Villagers Theater, Somerset, NJ as part of the New Jersey Wordsmiths presentation. THE KITCHEN SINK (one-act) was published in New Voices literary magazine. FILMS STOP THE VIOLENCE/THE "V" WORD (10m) explores the creative journey of a child in different environments, ranging from safe to dangerous. The script for this project received an award from the New York Film Academy and the Black Filmmakers Foundation, whose judges included Spike Lee, Robert Townsend and Gregory Hines. STOP THE VIOLENCE/THE "V" WORD has been screened at film festivals across the U.S., including the San Francisco Black Film Festival, Minneapolis Children's Film Festival, Chicago International Children's Film Festival, Boston International Film Festival, New Jersey International Film Festival, Highland Park (NJ) Film Festival, and the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey African-American History Month Celebration. THE BEASTS OF ALL HALLOWS EVE (1m) is a short comedy that shows the confusion of a man haunted by the "beasts" from "the old country" that he believes have followed him to America. THE BEASTS OF ALL HALLOWS EVE has screened at the New Jersey International Film Festival and 20,000 Leagues Under the Industry Film Festival (Cleveland, OH). AWARDS Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation Fellowship, New Jersey State Council on the Arts Fellowship, New York Film Academy and Black Filmmakers Foundation, Hawaii International Film Festival, Houston International Film Festival, Philadelphia Writers Conference, New Jersey Wordsmiths TEACHING/LECTURES Rutgers Film Co-op/New Jersey Media Arts Center, Middlesex County College, Brookdale Community College, Union County College, Raritan Valley Community College, New Jersey Press Women's Association, Sisters in Crime Central Jersey, Garden State Horror Writers, Woodbridge (NJ) Writers Block CONTACT April can be reached via e-mail at aprilallridge (at) gmail.com. .