Standout Spartan: Hayden Ashworth '23

Congratulations to Hayden Ashworth ’23, who has been accepted into SPARC’s New Voices for the Theater program. New Voices is a statewide playwriting competition that offers students the opportunity to bring their original one-act plays to life on the stage for the public each summer for SPARC’s Festival of New Works.  Hayden was one of eight students selected out of hundreds of applicants from across the Commonwealth. His virtual two-week residency will take place June 21-July 2, during which he and his fellow young playwrights will receive mentorship from a professional playwright-in-residence. Hayden’s play, “Crystal Clear,” is about a talk-show host who can see the future and struggles with living a life where he knows everything that can possibly happen. 

“I was inspired to write it because I noticed that audiences in talk shows had very predictable, inauthentic reactions to the hosts' remarks,” said Hayden, “and I wondered what would happen if that extended beyond the studio.” He’s most excited about collaborating with other New Voices in the Theater playwrights to improve his own work. At Steward, Hayden is a junior representative for the Diversity Club, an editor for Steward Ink, and a member of the yearbook staff and the Creative Writing Club. Way to go, Hayden!