Freshman Year was written for the SOURCE Teen Theatre, a nationally acclaimed and award-winning theatre for young people. The SOURCE is a traveling theatre company that creates and performs plays on important issues for teens. "It was written," the author says, "to shine a light on the difficult and sometimes life-altering situations that can happen to young women their freshman year of high school. Girls enter high school still precariously balanced between being a child and an adult. They are often misinformed about issues relating to dating, peer pressure, and sexuality. In this play I try to reveal the hidden cultural influences that can lead young girls into situations they are ill-equipped to handle. Misconceptions about dating and sexuality can have dangerous consequences for teenagers—and these misconceptions can lead to serious problems such as eating disorders, low self-esteem, drug abuse, and high-risk sexual behavior."

Ms. Curran is the author of some of our most popular Young Adult Awareness Plays—Dear God, Let Me Be Popular; Secrets, and The First Time Club. Working with the Planned Parenthood Association, Sarasota, Florida, and director of the SOURCE Teen Theatre, she is intimately aware of the problems, fears, and anxieties of teenagers and the devastating mistakes some of them make. Their lives and activities make a gripping play, which was developed on a tour of Southern Florida.

"The SOURCE Teen Theatre performed the play for 150 teachers during a teacher training session for Teen Pregnancy Prevention Week. The teachers gave the actors a standing ovation and many in the audience were crying. Several teachers spoke about how real the play was and that it needed to be seen by as many high school students as possible," Ms. Curran said.

Playing time is about one hour. Permission is granted to modify any language that may be offensive in your community. Directors are also allowed to cut the play, if needed, for one-act play competitions. Modern costumes. The playbook tells how the action may be mounted on a bare stage.

Other Curran Plays: The End of Summer, The Girl I Used to Be

See also: Awareness Plays for Young Adults