A Niskayuna native has been writing plays for local theaters since she was a teenager, and after being recognized for a script about tamales her passion for drama isn’t cooling off.
Kit Goldstein, a Union College graduate, was awarded third place in the 2012 Jackie White Memorial National Children’s Play Writing Contest, presented by Columbia Entertainment Company, for “It’s Raining Tamales!” a family musical comedy.
The contest is aimed to promote new scripts for family audiences to enjoy. “It’s Raining Tamales!” premiered last year at the Schenectady Theater for Children, which also toured the show to Capital District elementary schools and libraries.
The play is based on the Mexican folk tale “The Day it Rained Buñuelos,” said Goldstein. The 29-year-old Latham resident said during her childhood she heard the story and eventually thought it would make for a good play.
“It’s Raining Tamales!” follows the story of a clever wife who helps her husband outwit a bandit after the husband finds a bag of money in the woods. The wife doesn’t want her husband to tell others about the money out of fear the bandits would want it back, so she fools her husband into believing a wild tale that it had rained tamales that later saves the husband from the bandits.
Criss Macaione, president of Schenectady Theater for Children, praised the play for being well received by both the young and old during its local showing.
“While our target audience is elementary school children, ‘It’s Raining Tamales!’ provides fun for all ages in its delightfully witty script and lyrics, and its wonderful music,” Macaione said in a statement. “Children, older siblings, parents, teachers and grandparents, everyone has enjoyed the experience.”
Goldstein has another play, “Androcles and the Lion,” being staged in the fall at the Theater for Children, and the group is planning to visit local schools and perform the play.
Goldstein started writing plays at 13, and penned shorter works even earlier in life.
“My family always encouraged creativity and we did a lot of writing,” she said.
Being homeschooled also helped her family embrace creative learning endeavors and she went to many theater shows, which helped her become familiar with classical music shows.
Hearing people react to the play and hearing kids laugh is what Goldstein said she enjoys most about her work. She also has written plays geared towards adults. The end result might be the most gratifying aspect, but she said working with technology is usually her main challenge while crafting a play.
“You have to spend a lot of time alone when you write plays, so sometimes there is a lot of alone time,” she added.
When not working on plays or performing productions, she works at her family’s Tough Traveler store in Schenectady. Her supportive family, which also employs her, has helped her take time off when needed.
Her passion for playwriting is constantly refreshed, too.
“Every time I go see a great play or musical I get excited about how good theater can be,” Goldstein said. “You just get excited with new material.”
The area’s theater community has helped her hone her craft.
“It is really a very supportive community. I have a lot of people in the area that have been really supportive in the area,” she said. “It seems the interest keeps up. This area just seems to get more and more interested in community theater generally over the last bunch of years.”
For anyone interested in getting into playwriting, Goldstein recommends studying older shows that are appealing to an individual and trying to figure out what is great about the play.
She said receiving the Jackie White award has spurred her to shoot for bigger goals. Also, she is now more focused on recording her plays, so she can submit her works for more awards and honors.
For information on Kit Goldstein and her works visit her website at www.KitGoldstein.com.