#poor befuddled aaron

[bobbie-robron]

The pig started screeching again four in the morning. Did you not hear it?

22-Jan-2019

#robron #robert sugden #aaron dingle #isaac dingle #sebastian white #kyle winchester #pitter patter #that was spamella #the lads and kids #poor befuddled aaron #robert handling three kids #first scene #20190122 #Robron episodes 2019 #201901

[nataliedanovelist]

GF & MvsM - Wanna Talk About Dinos?

This crossover was inevitable. It just works too well. Maybe one day i’ll write a fic about how the folks at Gravity Falls handled the robot-apocalypse. Probably shrugged it off. “Eh. We’ve had worse.” Haha! What if Stan and Ford, cuz they were out sailing, had no clue what happened and when they came back they were like, “Wait, what?”

For now, please enjoy this fic of Aaron making a new friend...

(credit goes to @stephreynaart for her OC Jacob) ~~~~~~~~~~ “Hi, would you like to talk to me about dinosaurs?”

Aaron asked this question more times than he could keep track of, but that wasn’t going to stop him from asking it. It started as a dare from his big sister two years ago, but now it’s a fun hobby. When fifth grade isn’t overwhelming him, scaring him with mountains of homework and horror stories about how hard middle school is going to be, and when he’s run out of YouTube videos to catch up on, he is on the hunt for fellow giant-lizard-lovers like a hungry Ceratosaurus.

“No, okay bye.” But it did get a little tiring to always cross out names and phone-numbers on the phone book with red ink. Hey, a dinosaur of a way to find phone-numbers was appropriate. He read the next number, dialed it, and after a ring or two he asked, “How would you like to talk with me about dinosaurs? No, okay thank you.”

Aaron crossed out another name and sighed, taking a break since he reached the end of a line of numbers. Maybe he should just be grateful for Abbey and accept that no one else wants to talk about the Jurassic Period. Or the Cretaceous Period. Or the Triassic Period. But then a big, old, gray-tinted ad distracted him. He grinned, thinking it would at least be fun to give them a call, and he dialed the number.

Private home phone-numbers were fun, but businesses were also fun! Poor, bored workers would gladly talk to him rather than crabby Karens, and they got paid for it! So Aaron smiled as the phone rang, and he grinned when someone picked up.

“Thanks for calling the Mystery Shack, you’re talking to Mr. Mystery himself! How may I befuddle or bewilder you?”

“Hi! How would you like to talk with me about dinosaurs?”

“Oh, dude! I’d love to, but I’m scheduled for a tour of the Oddity Museum in three minutes.” The man said, and Aaron grinned continuously, because it sounded like Mr. Mystery really wanted to talk with him about dinosaurs. “But hey! Can you hold on for one minute, I think I know a guy!”

“Yeah, sure mister!” And Aaron was greeted by the sound of a catchy jingle about buying t-shirts and mugs and snowglobes. He smiled and wiggled his feet along to the music as he looked outside at the beautiful late-fall afternoon, entertained while he waited.

~~~~~~~~~~

Soos was on the hunt. He planned out the house in his head. Abuelita was taking a nap upstairs, Melody was organizing the upcoming tour, and Stan took Jacob out for ice cream, so he might be…

The owner of the Shack grinned when he stopped at the doorway and saw the man he was looking for, sitting in Stan’s chair, reading a book.

“Uncle Ford!”

The old sailor smiled up at the young man. “Yes, wh-...”

“Do you think you could answer the phone for me? I have a tour and I think this customer’s request is right up your alley.”

“Uh… sure, but w-...”

“Thanks, you’re the best!” And Soos was gone before he could address Ford’s confusion.

Ford was a bit lost, having little to no business with business, but he had learned at this point to trust Soos, so he picked up the phone beside him and was immediately greeted with a sweet, “How would you like to talk with me about dinosaurs?”

Ford grinned and closed his book. “I would love to! All three periods are equally as fascinating to study, but the Triassic contains some of my favorite dinosaurs!”

A young voice gasped on the other line. “Mine, too! Everyone thinks the Jurassic period is so great, and it’s pretty cool, but the Triassic gave us Plateosaurus and the Brachiosaurus!”

“That’s very true! You know, it’s very interesting, maybe depictions don’t include feathers at all, which is a bit frustrating, but perhaps after the news has spread they will incorporate more feathers on merchandise and textbooks.”

“YES! That’s what I wanna do when I grow up, help draw better-accurate dinosaurs!”

~~~~~~~~~~

The phone rang on Sunday. The Shack was closed today, so Stan lazily answered it and was greeted with, “Wanna talk about dinosaurs?”

“Sixer, phone for you!”

Ford ran into the living room, elbowed his twin out of the chair, and took the phone. “Hello again, Aaron! Now, where were we? Right, so Australopithecus. … No, I don’t think… Oh! No, homo habilis was erect, Australopithecus was never fully erect.”

“Maybe he was nervous.” Stan groaned, getting to his feet.

Ford shot him a look as thankfully the young boy on the other end didn’t catch that and happily shared some more fun-facts about homo habilis.

~~~~~~~~~~

While most college students were excited for Spring Break so they could get drunk or lose their virginity, Katie was excited because her family had planned a special secret roadtrip. She was careful to keep up with her family and talk to her parents and brother frequently, but Aaron had a hobby he wasn’t talking about that his parents found out and were thrilled about. Aaron had made another friend.

Rick and Katie did some research and the tourist attraction sounded right up their alley! In the middle of the woods, tons of weird stuff, and a fun roadtrip filled with diners and attractions. They decided to surprise Aaron, and they made up a lie that they would spend Spring Break in California with Katie so she could show her family around San Francisco, when in actuality they would be traveling up the state to the Redwood Highway and see the oddity place, and maybe even allow Aaron to meet his new pen-pal. Or, um, phone-pal.

So after bombarding Katie with hugs the Mitchells threw her luggage into the car and drove off. Aaron turned to Katie and excitingly asked, “So where are we going first? Can we go fix the Golden Gate bridge by painting it gold?”

Katie laughed and ruffled his hair. “Maybe later, right now I wanna show you guys this fun store right outside of town. Here, check out the videos I made for my classes!” And she pulled out some airpods and gave one to Aaron.

“Cool!”

Rick and Linda smirked at each other as they drove north. By the time they reached a little diner in Redding, CA, it was very clear to Aaron that they weren’t in San Francisco anymore. “Come on, just tell me where we’re going!” The boy begged as he fed Monchi a fry.

“The best kind of prizes are the surprises.” Linda quoted.

“Eric, Deborahbot5000, where are we going?”

“Sorry, Aaron, we cannot give that information.” Eric said, he and the other robot sitting politely in their seats, happy to be a part of the social interaction.

“Yes, Mother will bury us if we disobey.” Deborahbot said matter-of-factly.

“What?! No I won’t, sweeties.”

“Won’t you ground us?”

The family laughed and Aaron let the topic go; if he was honest, he loved a good surprise. The big family stopped in a motel just at the California-Oregon border, and the next morning after muffins and coffee and orange juice they were on the road again, passing dozens of trees that made Rick feel at home. Katie happily recorded the trip, trusted to be the documenter for another fun roadtrip, with hopefully not as much mortal peril.

Aaron watched as they left the highway for a simple road, and they passed a big sign. The boy gasped and caught what was happening. “No WAY! Really?!”

“You know, I hear this Mystery Shack even has a Sasquatch.” Rick commented while Linda pulled out a pamphlet from the glove box.

“It says here it’s full of odd things you’ll never see anywhere else, even a dinosaur footprint…”

“Wasn’t there a rumor of there being a Bottomless Pit?” Katie asked, pointing her camera at Aaron to get his reaction.

“Thank you thank you THANK YOU!!!” Aaron cheered, hugging his Dad’s neck and kissing his Mom’s cheek.

“Hey, no worries, buddy.” Rick eased, fixing his shewed glasses. “We wanted to see this place, too!”

“Why don’t we eat a quick lunch and then we’ll take the backroad for the attraction? There’s a coupon in here for a diner made from a giant log!”

And so after being served by a pretty blonde teenager at Greasy’s, they drove through town to get to the backroad. Signs made them confident that they were going the correct way, as well as Eric and Deborahbot5000’s GPS. Then as they turned a corner, a big triangle-shaped building came into view. Aaron grinned at the giant sign with a missing letter. People were already leaving, arms full of souvenirs and one or two already wearing their new hats or t-shirts. Once Rick parked in the Free Parking Lot, Aaron spilled out of the car and ran for the shack, but he stopped.

Katie caught up to him and patted his back. “You cool, man?”

Aaron shrugged, holding his hands in front of him and his shoulders up to hide his face a bit. “I-I dunno… What if… What if he doesn’t like me?”

“Hey, I get it.” Katie admitted. “When I first met my friends I was really nervous. I had talked to them online for weeks and I was worried it wasn’t gonna be what it was all cracked up to be, but it was. Your system worked! You found another dino-lover! You earned this moment. Just take in a deep breath and be yourself, cuz you’re a pretty cool dude.”

Aaron smiled up at his big sister. “Thanks.”

Trusting Eric and Deborahbot5000 to watch Monchi and make sure he used the bathroom, the Mitchells went inside the shack. On the porch there was an ice cooler, a sign reading schedule times for tours of the Oddity Museum, a Help Wanted sign, and two rocking chairs with a game of checkers between them.

Inside the store a few customers filled up the gift shop, alongside t-shirts, snowglobes, a vending machine, a door beside ti that read Employees Only, a bookshelf full of comic on one side and old newspapers claiming alien sightings on the other, a fish tank holding a monkey-mermaid, and barrels full of spaceship keychains and dino claws. A new section called Camping Stuff caught Rick’s eye, selling backpacks, lanterns, flashlights, batteries, canteens, and compasses. Katie opened a comic called Lil’Stanley and laughed at the swears, taking a pic and sending it to her friends’ group chat. Linda looked into the barrel full of patches and grinned at all the fun designs, while Aaron stared happily at the mer-monkey.

The Employees Only door opened and closed and Rick watched as a man in a suit, fez, and eyepatch walked up to the lady at the register and kissed her cheek. The woman smiled lovingly and left while the guy who resembled a gopher checked a customer out. Rick waited until the buyer left to approach the register, leaning an arm on the counter.

“Welcome to the Mystery Shack, dude!”

“Thanks! So, this is gonna sound weird, but my son Aaron talks to a guy here about dinosaurs…”

“No way!” The owner interrupted excitedly. “Good to see you, dudes! I’m Mr. Mystery! Wow, you guys came a long way, huh?”

“Nah, only from California. My daughter is attending art school there.”

While the men chit-chatted and Linda joined them, Katie noticed a guy walking up to Aaron and looking at the mer-monkey. She smiled and tried to read the comic without being too nosy, but she kept her senses on her brother.

“Hm, quite fascinating, isn’t it?” The man in the blue hoodie said. “But I think my favorite is the fossilized footprint. Could be Nanuqsaurus hoglundi.”

“The Polar Bear Lizard?” Aaron clarified, touching his chin as he looked at the dino-print, his back to the man he was talking to. “Maybe, but they’re from Alaska. It’s possible plate tectonics did cause some fossils to be relocated here, but it could also be a Nanotyrannosaurus lancensis footprint.”

“The Dwarf Tyrant? Could very well be. Would you like to talk about dinosaurs after your tour?”

Aaron’s eyes widened as the voice was finally familiar to him. He turned and looked up to find an old man smiling up at him. He had fluffy gray hair with a white stripe running around his scalp, wrinkles by his eyes due to smiling, a cleft chin, glasses, and wore a blue hoodie with a maroon sweater underneath. His hands were behind his back and he smiled down at Aaron warmly, while the boy was jittery and overly-excited. He took in a sharp breath and had to fight every muscle to keep from leaping through the screen door. 

“H-H-Hi…” He peeped. He cleared his throat and tried again. “Y-Yeah, sure! I’d love to! I’m Aaron! Er, wait, you already knew that.” And he held out a hand to shake.

His phone-pal, Ford, chuckled and got on one knee to be eye-level. “Greeting, Aaron! It’s nice to formally meet you.”

Aaron shook his hand and noticed something. He had six fingers on his right hand. A quick glance told Aaron he also had six fingers on his left hand. Aaron grinned with sparkling eyes at his new friend, while the old sailor smiled warmly at the boy that reminds him of his niece and nephew when they were young.

#GF #mvsm #mitchells vs the machines #gravity falls #ford pines #soos ramirez #aaron mitchell #katie mitchell #rick mitchell #linda mitchell #eric and deborahbot5000

[blog-of-a-multitude-of-fandoms]

Bully- Luna Lovegood

Pairing: Luna Lovegood x Reader

Characters: Luna Lovegood, Draco Malfoy, Vincent Crabbe, Gregory Goyle

Warnings: N/A

Request: word- Psychology

Word Count: 627

Author: Aaron

Walking into the corridor, a wave of relief rushed over you, Flitwick forgot to ask for the homework which you forgot to do, giving you another two days to do it. Navigating through the confusing corridors of Hogwarts you started to walk to your next lesson, herbology, which you actually did have the homework for. You tried to walk through the doors leading to the courtyard, but were stopped by Draco and his usual goons.

“Where do you think you are going Y/N?” Crabbe and Goyle snickered behind him and menacingly crossed their arms, fully blocking the door.

“Draco, I am just trying to get to my lesson, please can you let me through?”

“Well…” Draco tapped on his chin “I could let you through… or I could petrify you and stuff you in an unused classroom for a few hours, it is your choice really.”

Your eyes rolled, almost into the back of your head.

“Even if I choose to just go through, you’re still going to petrify me, aren’t you?”

“Yeah…” and at that Draco pulled his wand.

“Patrificus totalis.” You felt your muscles tense up as you fell to the floor, Crabbe and Goyle took you and lifted you up, knowing full well that all teachers were in lessons.

“Put him down.” You heard a feint voice call out from the hallway. The two buffoons carrying you spun around, you saw a short girl with piercing blue eyes and pale, blonde hair standing in the hallway clutching her books, she seemed to have radishes dangling from her ears.

“I’m sorry what…” Draco called out and confronted your surprise guardian “and you are?”

The girl placed her books down and began to walk to Draco.

“I am Luna Lovegood, and I will not stand by as you torture this poor boy/girl.”

“Oh…” Draco pulled his wand out again and pointed it menacingly in the direction of Luna.

“I know you… you’re that weird girl, aren’t you? The one who sees things that aren’t there.” Draco, Crabbe and Goyle all let out a hearty chuckle.

“They are there, but with everything else at this school you just don’t take the time to notice them.”

“Oh really…” Draco took more steps towards Luna until they were basically nose to nose. “I think you just see them because daddy didn’t give you enough attention as a child? Is that right?”

“Well I think you are wrong Draco, I think if you read up on basic psychology you would know that you are wrong.” Crabbe, Goyle and Draco all turned to each other with confused looks painted on their face.

“Basic what…?” Draco asked befuddled.

“Psychology.” Luna repeated “Psychology is the science of behaviour and mind, embracing all aspects of conscious and unconscious experience as well as thought. It is an academic discipline and a social science which seeks to understand individuals and groups by establishing general principles and researching specific cases.”

“Ridiculous muggle talk.” Draco spat on the floor.

“Crabbe, Goyle, pick up Y/S/N, I know a lovely spot in the forbidden forest we can leave him.”

“Or…” Luna responded, taking her wand out of her robes and pointing it at the trio “you can leave him here before I make you all throw up slugs.”

Draco laughed at her, with a simple swish of her wand and a flash of light however Draco was running out of the courtyard leaving a trail of slimy slugs. Crabbe and Goyle followed after him, searching through their textbooks for a counter curse. Luna walked over to you and knelt down, she closed her eyes and pointed her flower-bud wand in your face.

“Oh you poor thing.”

She muttered a swift ‘Finite Incantatem’ and you felt your muscles begin to loosen.

#Bullying #Luna Lovegood #Draco Malfoy #Vincent Crabbe #Gregory Goyle #Luna Lovegood Imagine #Luna Lovegood One Shot #Harry Potter Films #Harry Potter Series #Harry Potter Series Imagine #Harry Potter Series One Shot #HP #HP Imagine #HP One Shot #Aaron

[raykiirianwarrior-blog]

Humans Are Weird

(I’m going to call this part 1 because I plan to write more if these posts and I wish to use the same characters, have them sort of link together. So if you like the post, check back for more later!)

(Fandoms, ships, etc.)

Zar'ak didn’t mind the Humans on his ship, they could behave well enough - except for that one male, Tyler, for the most part they did their various duties and treated the crew with respect. Yes they complained from time to time but so far they hadn’t been violent towards the alien members, and they insisted that their violence was all in “good fun” when they fought amongst themselves.

They came from a dangerous wold in the F-Sector and could endure extreme conditions, which made them useful, but also terrifying if he thought about it too hard. Cold wind and heavy snow? No problem, just layer more fabric and fur and they were ready to go. Harsh sun and extreme heat? So long as they had access to water they’d survive, their skin darkened or reddened a bit sometimes, but it didn’t slow them down. They’ve invented a plethora of killing gadgets and machines (none of which were allowed within a hundred meters of the ship), done unthinkable acts to their own species and the other species’ on their planet, but so long as you posed no threat to them or hindered their own personal agendas, they were mostly an agreeable species, he supposed.

If Zar'ak was honest, the thing that bothered him most so far about the Humans was how little he could understand of them. The smallest, most insignificant things could affect them in such large ways, reducing them to small acts of violence, often throwing things they happened to be holding, or breaking down entirely, their eyes leaking. Meanwhile a member of their species could be killed by a Varalian Panther, and if they didn’t know the human well, they usually wouldn’t be anything more than a little upset. Looking at the remains of poor Sophie was more than enough to instil such a fear of the Panther in his heart that he vowed never to set foot o their homeworld again, while the Humans would simply move on. Some even said the Panther was cute.

Zar'ak was constantly, he must admit, spying on the Humans in his crew. He had more than some other ships in the fleet, ten Humans in all. There were four females - Amy, Crystal, Laura and Hannah - and six males - Spencer, Gavin, Ian, Marcus, Jonathan and Tyler, the one the others referred to as “rebelliously difficult.” And he was, Zar'ak would not have missed him if he were to be sent to work for another crew. But here he stayed.

He spent much time following the humans, observing them and keeping notes on what he saw, trying to discern some form of pattern in their behaviour, but he hadn’t been successful thus far, they remained a mystery to him. He hadn’t yet given up though, scared as he was to be caught snooping and eavesdropping, he wasn’t sure such an act would anger the Humans, but he didn’t wish to find out.

Currently he was standing a few feet away from Amy, who appeared to be reading a manual, a weird one, thicker than normal but smaller in width and length. The cover was not at all like a manual, and it had the words “Ignite Me” along the front and spine of the cover. Her face was tense and drawn, as though experiencing some sort of emotional turmoil beyond not being capable of understanding the manual, if that is what it was. He nearly lept out of his scaly skin when she let out a short screech of frustration and slammed the covers closed.

“Human Amy, is something wrong? Your noise sounded distressed, is there something you cannot understand in your manual?” He step forward, not daring to be caught spying when she was in such a state, and instead pretending as though he just happened to show up at that moment.

“ Manual?” She questioned in a calmer voice than her earlier noise had been. “ Oh, you mean the book?” She lifted it slightly, her head tilted to the side.

“Book? What is this book? What does it teach you of?” Zar'ak questioned, preparing to scribble down her explanation.

“Oh, books don’t have to teach you something, some of them are just stories you read for fun.”

“For fun? What is the purpose of reading something that will not educate you?”

“You know, fun. To do something you enjoy for a while? Sometimes you can relate to characters in the stories, that always makes a book better.” She glanced at his hand, which was paused midway through his notes. “Do you guys really not read for fun?”

“To be perfectly honest, Human Amy,” Zar'ak looked down nervously, “I’m not entirely sure what that word means, story. And how it could be enjoyable to read anything that does not further your knowledge of the universe.”

“Oh, okay so you know history books then, right?” At his nod, she continued, “Well stories are kind of like that, events and people and stuff, but none of it is real, none of it has happened or existed.”

“I see…?”

“So we read them for fun, sometimes to distract ourselves, other times to escape into their world.”

“Your story books have portals to other worlds?” He backed a step, unwilling to be near a portal that could release who knows what from who knows where. “That sounds horribly dangerous! Even for your species.” It took Zar'ak by surprise when Amy started laughing, apparently these creatures feared nothing!

“Oh Zar'ak, they aren’t literal worlds, we just read the words on the page and our imagination paints the stories in our head so it’s like being in the world, even though we aren’t.”

“So that screech of distress and/or frustration you made when I found you, did something in your imaginary story world hurt you?”

“No no, I’m just conflicted, I used to ship Juliette and Adam - two of the main characters, but now I kinda want to ship Juliette and Aaron, but she can’t have both and AGH how do I choose?”

“I don’t understand, ships are water or space vehicles, unless you mean to ship the two characters to somewhere else in your imagination?”

“Oh, back home the fandoms use “ship” as another way of saying you want to have those two characters date each other, you know, choose each other as their mate.“

Zar'ak was struggling desperately to keep up with his notes, and none of it made sense. “Fandom?”

“It’s a term we use to describe a fan group of certain books and TV show, or movies. If you are a fan of the book, you’re part of that fandom.”

“I see, I think I understand.” He was nowhere near understanding. “So this failure to ship both, I assume males, with that female character distresses you?”

“Yeah, at first Adam was perfect for her but now I love Aaron so I want Juliette to love him because he needs someone to love him since I can’t.”

Zar'ak paused, looking from his notebook to Amy’s face. “You love a character in a story? An imaginary place that exists only in the book? Despite your statement that none of it is real?”

“Another way of knowing you’re in that fandom, you fall for the characters as if they were real.” She smiled, thinking of her many fictional boyfriends.

“What purpose does it serve? How does your mating drive allow you to fall for this one fake Human?”

“Oh, there’s more than one fake that I love, I’m part of many fandoms. And like reading the books in general, its just something we do, it makes us happy. Sometimes, if the characters we love die, well that always just, Ugh. John Green is horrible for that.”

“ I see,” he mumbled, his brain overloaded with confusion. “ Thank you for your time, Human Amy.” Zar'ak turned and wandered out of the room, more befuddled than before, wondering if there was any hope of getting to understand a species that could read fake history when it gained nothing but “fun” and create populations called fandoms that seemed to revolve around these fake history “stories”. A species that could fall in love with people who never existed.

#humans are weird #space australia #space orcs #aliens #humans #fandom #books #movies #ship #shatter me

[bazzledazzled]

Constellations

Words: 3.8k Genre: Hogwarts AU, fluff, bit of angst, mutual pining Ship: Kalek Warnings: none

Description: This is a little gift for @alexfierrno​ for her birthday. Thank you for being such an amazing friend and I hope you enjoy this little Hogwarts AU featuring our favourite people to torture XD

Two first years sat eagerly, waiting to see to which house they would be sorted into. The one was a muggleborn girl with long blonde hair that reached down to her waist with a lavender colour touching the tips. She had a bad case of acne and black-framed glasses with thick lenses. She seemed like the girl people would warn you to stay away from if you wanted to have any chance of being cool. But still she chatted with the kids beside her, asking what house they thought they would be in, how cool magic was and how she always knew it was real, even though the kids in her muggle school started making fun of her for still believing it at age 10.

On the other hand, the other girl, a halfblood, stood off to the side, not really wanting to draw attention to herself. She had black hair with a few shocks of red running through it done, unlike the other girl, with magic. She lived in a household surrounded by it 24/7 to do simple tasks that nobody could really bring themselves to do. Cooking, cleaning, making their beds, laundry. Everything. Magic was a thing that seemed to be around every corner of the girl’s life that she already knew she wouldn’t get as excited as the blonde during her years at Hogwarts. What fascinated her the most is how the girl managed to get her hair that wonderful shade of lavender without using magic….

“Alicia Tamsen Middleton!” Professor McGonagall called, startling the black-haired girl. Taking a deep breath, she stood up, deciding not to draw more attention by correcting the headmistress. Everyone’s eyes trailing on her, not leaving for a second makes her want to run away so she doesn’t ever see another person again. It made her heart pound as she rushed to the stool on the stage. Delicately, the worn hat was placed on her head.

She sat there for a full five minutes. The hat debated back and forth, not sure if her traits were those of a brave Gryffindor or an ambitious Slytherin.

In the end, the hat roared, “SLYTHERIN!” There was a roar as students welcomed their fellow house member. On the benches, the blonde girl sat practically bouncing, wondering what house she would be in. Maybe she’d be in Slytherin with the Alicia girl, or maybe the house of the famous Harry Potter who she had only just started learning about. She was so lost in thought that she almost didn’t hear them call her name.

“Kathryn Madison Rayburn!”

“It’s Katie,” Katie murmured as she walked up to the stool slowly. She sat on it and closed her eyes as the hat was slowly put on her head. It seemed like forever, but the hat had barely touched her head before it called, “HUFFLEPUFF!” The Hufflepuff house table all stood up, cheering excitedly, making Katie fill with joy. Finally she would belong somewhere.

Two years later they were on their way to their first Hogsmeade trip. Katie was practically the sun she was so full of energy. Alek watched from far away, a small smile on her face. She had to admit, the Hufflepuff girl had more light than the brightest star in the galaxy. She was constantly waving to people in the halls, even if they were total strangers that she had never seen before that day. As much as Alek tried, Katie always seemed to try and drag her into something to make her time at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry worthwhile, even if she was just planning to go day to day with nothing eventful. She organized study groups, book clubs (which was actually starting to become really popular. Students especially enjoyed the muggle story about Percy Jackson), and was always sitting with another student everyday, including those from other houses.

Everyone knew Katie Rayburn, everyone liked Katie at least a little bit, but nobody seemed to be her real friend. There was nobody that seemed constant enough, and sometimes it bothered the poor girl late at night when she was supposed to be asleep. Sure, it was all fun and games, socializing and laughing a few good laughs with a few nice people, but nobody sought her out the next day or asked if they could walk to class with her.  She was the girl that was there for you, but nobody was there for her. It bothered Katie more than it should.

Now, getting ready to depart, she walked towards Alek, a girl she never talked to much because, well, she never seemed to want to. But something in her features… it showed loneliness, and nobody should be lonely on a day such as this.

“Hi!” Katie says, standing in front of Alek with a blinding smile. Alek, who was sketching on a notepad, jumped, turning to her. The first thing she noticed were her big hazel eyes, framed with the black glasses. They were an awkward shade where you could argue that her eyes were green, but if you looked close enough brown took over with the occasional shock of gold. Alek, the artist that she was, could spend hours describing and colouring the beauty that was Katie’s eyes, but she had other things to worry about. Like the fact that someone was talking to her. Great.

“Hello?” Alek says, her voice raising in pitch to a question, not sure how to respond.

“Whatcha drawing?” Katie asks, sitting down beside her. Alek scrambled to turn the notebook over, not wanting the girl to see.

“N-nothing.” Katie, bless her, just shrugged and said, “Okay.”

“Are you excited for Hogsmeade?” she said, practically bouncing up and down with energy. Alek shrugged.

“Sure I guess. I’ve been there before, though.” Katie gasped excitedly, and her energy levels went from 5 to 924837328210 in two seconds.

“OH MY GODS YOU’VE BEEN TO HOGSMEADE??? OH GODS WHAT WAS IT LIKE?” Alek shifted over a little, wary.

“It was okay I guess. A good place if you want all your money to go down the drain. Especially Honeydukes.”

“Honeydukes?” Katie asks, tilting her head with curiosity. Alek found herself flushing.

“Y-yeah it’s this candy store that sells all kinds of weird sweets. But they’re really good. I wouldn’t mind some myself,” she says, her stomach growling.

“Okay that is our first stop.”

“Our?” Katie looked away.

“I-I--well--I assumed that you might want to--um--”

“You want to spend the day at Hogsmeade with me?” Alek says, sounding shocked.

“Well… yeah. But only if you want to,” she says in a rush, her words practically melting into each other. And then, for the first time in a long time, a grin broke on Alek’s face as she stood up.

“That would be nice,” Alek half-sings, not realizing she’s doing it. Katie gives her a befuddled look.

“W-was that…? Was that a Hamilton reference?” Alek’s ears turn bright pink.

“IT WAS WASN’T IT!” Alek says nothing. Katie coughs.

“Well then let’s start over, shall we?” Alek looks at her, furrowing her brows.

“‘Pardon me, are you Aaron Burr, sir?’” Alek might’ve died.

“‘That depends, who’s asking?’” Katie giggles.

“‘Oh sure, sir. I’m Alexander Hamilton, I’m at your service, sir. I have been looking for you--’”

“‘I’m getting nervous.’” Alek actually starts to shift. Katie stands up and takes her hand.

“I found a Hamilton fan I am actually lowkey dying.” Alek looks away.

“My mom likes--liked--it.” There’s a question in there somewhere that should be asked, but Katie decides against it. The way Alek seemed to fold in on herself told her that it was a subject she didn’t want to talk about.

“Oh cool. I just heard about it through social media and stuff.” Before either of them could get another word in, the teachers started to round everyone up to go to Hogsmeade and the subject of Hamilton was abandoned in favour of the subject of Honeydukes and some drink called Butterbeer (which still, to this day, shocked Alek that Katie had never heard about it). For once, Alek was glad to be in the presence of another person.

“Would it be bad if I hurled this textbook in the lake so that the merpeople could get educated instead of me?” Katie says, groaning and closing her textbook with a thump. Her and Alek were sitting on the lawns of Hogwarts, studying for their OWLs. Katie loved magic, probably more than anything, but there come a point in one's life where they have had enough of reading about what herbs go to which potions and which plants are the most dangerous ones known to magic.

Alek chuckles. “That would be unfair to the merpeople, Katie.” She doesn’t look up from her Defense Against the Dark Arts textbook.

“Okay you’re right… but that still doesn’t make me want to hurl this book as far as I can.” Alek looked up, a small, teasing smile on her face.

“Alright Rayburn no need to get vicious there….”

“I know you want to do it too.” Alek acts like she’s debating back and forth between the two choices, but really there was no choice.

“Yeah true.” Katie sets her textbook aside and scoots closer to Alek.

“How about we don’t study.”

“What?”

“Let’s do something else.”

“Who are you and what have you done with Kathryn Rayburn?” Katie wrinkles her nose.

“I hate being called Kathryn.”

“Why?”

“Because.”

“Wow great reason Katie.”

“I know right? It’s the best reason known to man.” Alek rolls her eyes, her smile widening by the second.

“You’re a dork.”

“Says the dork.”

“Why am I a dork?”

“Because you’re a dork.”

“Okay we definitely need to work on your reasoning skills.” Katie sticks her tongue out, making Alek giggle uncontrollably. Only Katie had that power.

“But seriously,” Katie says, pulling Alek’s textbook away and pushing the notebooks and pencils away. “When was the last time we had any fun?” Her eyes are sparkling.

“543 days, 34 hours, 21 minutes, and 13 seconds ago why?”

“Geeze Alek what the freak?”

“What I get bored.” Katie shakes her head, laughing.

“We have two days before our OWLs and we’ve been cramming this stuff in for two weeks. Let’s do something else.”

“Like what, your royal majesty?” There’s a mischievous glint in Katie’s eyes.

“Like this.” And then, she grabs Alek’s hand, pulling her to her feet, and runs to the nearest body of water, jumping in and dragging Alek with her. They break to the surface and and Alek gasps.

“KATIE WHAT THE FRICK???” Katie laughs and pushes her wet dreadlocks out of her eyes.

“We’re having fun.”

“You just jumped off a cliff into a lake.”

“Alek there was barely a drop.”

“Still.” Katie shakes her head.

“Just swim with me Alek.” And so they did.

Later, they sat in the woods, their clothes damp and hair wet, laughing at a joke that Alek made. They watched the sun disappear through the trees, fading into night, the stars starting to blink into existence. Katie lies in Alek’s lap, naming off the different constellations.

“...And this one is the--” She falls silent, her voice fading into a snore and Alek looked down to see that she fell asleep, a small smile on her lips, her hazel eyes closed and glasses starting to fall off her face. Alek’s face cracked into a smile as she slowly picked up Katie in her arms, making sure to hold her gently, and carried her back to Hogwarts. Katie fidgeted in Alek’s grip, turning around and wrapping her arms around Alek, mumbling, “Mr. Snuggles you give the best hugs.” Alek snorted, going into the Hufflepuff dormitory and setting Katie gently on her bed (they both know how to get into each others dorms).

“Night,” she whispers, hovering at the door for a second before leaving. There should be more people like Katie Rayburn in the world.

Katie didn’t know when it started. How her mind suddenly inverted the picture that was Alek Middleton and saw something that was a lot different.

Maybe it was when she commented on her hair when she got it cut to her shoulders. Maybe it was when she admitted that she missed Katie’s all-too-nerdy glasses when she got contacts. Maybe it was when her arm casually brushed Katie’s as she reached across the table for the butter.

There was two things that Katie was sure of though. 1) Alek was extremely hot. Hotter than any person has a right to be and (dare she say it) more beautiful than the goddess of beauty herself, Aphrodite. 2) Katie was very, very gay for Alek Middleton.

It was a weird sense of vertigo when she realized it. One moment, she was planning on finding someone to take to the school dance, the next she didn’t want to go with anyone but her. Where one moment she wanted to give her a hug, the next she was wondering what it would feel like to kiss her.

Maybe these thoughts were with her all along. That’s how most things are. But now they demanded her attention, and Katie had no idea what to do with them.

I’m in love with my best friend.

“Today you will be making the amortentia potion with your partners,” their potions teacher says, displaying the potion for all to see. There was a chorus of oohs and ahhs, everyone knowing the effects of this powerful love potion.

“We have already learned about this potion before, so I won’t explain it, but now it is time to make it. Turn to page 461 in your books, please.” Everyone did as told and Alek turned to Katie and pretended to gag, which made Katie giggle.

“Work on this with your partners, without help, and we’ll see how many of you get yours to the lovely shade of pink we see here.” Immediately, students started to work, eager for the challenge. Alek rolls her eyes.

“What possible use is a love potion?” Katie shrugs, getting her tools and ingredients out.

“Sometimes people just need someone.”

“But resorting to a love potion? Not only is that shallow but it’s… wrong.” Katie starts to cut herbs.

“Maybe so. But the teacher told us to do it so we’re doing it.” Katie, for one, was eager to see what she would smell. Would it be baking cookies? Or maybe old books? Or candles. She really likes candles.

But perhaps it wouldn’t be much of a change. She was already standing close to Alek, considering the cramped room and all, and she was able to smell her rosemary shampoo that made her hair so soft (like really soft). Knowing the fact that she was helplessly in love with Alek, she would probably smell the same thing she smells now.

They worked quickly and efficiently, chopping ingredients, grinding herbs, pouring them in the boiling pot. Soon, theirs turned the same shade of pink as the one on display.

“Well done girls!” their teacher disappeared again to critique someone else's who messed up horribly.  Alek wrinkles her nose.

“Geeze Katie did you use the whole bottle of perfume this morning?” she asks. Katie quickly went through her morning routine, trying to remember if she even chose to wear perfume today. She woke up late and mostly stumbled around, half asleep. She brushed her teeth, took out her retainer, and left the bathroom without any makeup or perfume. Um.

“Alek… I’m not.. Um… wearing perfume today…” Someone behind them laughs, trying to cover it up with a cough. Alek ignored them, freezing on the spot. She sniffed again. Yep that was definitely Katie’s rose perfume she stole from her mom. But if she wasn’t wearing it today then that meant….

“Oh gods.”  Alek rubbed her eyes, sitting down. Was she….? Did she….?

“Alek?” Katie steps closer, concern in her beautiful hazel eyes. She’s drawn them a million times, never quite satisfied with how they came out. She could never capture the sparkle and kaleidoscope of colours.

“Katie?”

“Yeah?”

“What do you smell?” She thinks for a second, choosing her words carefully.

“Rosemary.” No freaking way. Did Katie…? No of course not. Alek was just trying to sort through her mess of emotions while being hopeful of something that didn’t exist. Their friendship wasn’t like that…. Was it?

Suddenly, Alek rethought her whole life.

Oh gods I do like her.

“I-I gotta go. I think I’m going to be sick.” Katie stands up.

“I’ll go with you.”

“N-no I’m fine.” And then, she got up and rushed out of the room, spilling a bottle of powdered moonstone.

And then, she locked herself in the bathroom for the rest of the day.

Katie couldn’t find Alek anywhere. She wasn’t in her dorms, she wasn’t outside, she skipped all of her classes for that day, she just disappeared. It was worrying, and Katie didn’t know what she would do with herself if something were to happen to Alek. Alek was her best friend who was always there for her, even when in fourth year that boy broke her heart by cheating on her with some Gryffindor girl. Alek who was ready to punch a kid in the face for any of her friends, especially if they made a rude comment regarding Katie’s weight. Alek, who she’s been in love with for at least a year now. Alek with her beautiful bronze skin and brown eyes that made Katie melt like chocolate. The small dimples that appeared on her face when she smiled. But now Alek was gone, and Katie could do nothing but hope that she wasn’t doing something stupid.

Meanwhile Alek was on the Astronomy tower, staring at the stars. It started to become a coping mechanism for her. When she was lost an alone, she would go up here as the cool wind blew lightly on her face, wrapped up in one of her old quidditch sweaters. If it was night, like it usually was when she woke up from a nightmare, she would stare at the stars, hearing Katie’s voice sing the names of the constellations, sometimes telling her stories about Orion or other heroes featured in the stars. She could even hear her voice now, even though it was broad daylight, telling her about stars that weren’t visible with the sun shining brighter than them all.

Katie was like the sun. She was bright, she brought happiness, she made the normal fog of the school days lift and felt Alek with a warmth that she wasn’t able to explain. Until now.

I’m in love with my best friend. 

Katie Rayburn, the girl who talked about stars like they weren’t just dots flickering across the sky like scattered marbles. Katie with hair made of gold and eyes Alek could spend days and days talking about. Katie with the personality of an overexcited puppy as she dragged Alek through Hogsmade, forcing them to eat candy until they were sick. 

Katie who could never possibly love her back. Alek hugs her arms around her knees, her worn cardigan slipping off her shoulders slightly. The sun was just beginning to dip below the horizon, bringing with it the cold night chill that seemed to reside deep into her bones. The only warmth came from the fires of love burning in Alek’s heart. They’ve always been there and they always made her content with her life, but now they were slowly dying, the look of embarrassment on Katie’s face flitting through her closed eyelids, as if it was a bad thing for your best friend to love you. 

Alek turns at the sound of footsteps, ready to growl at anyone who decides to comment on her tearstained face or laugh at her for being gay and outing herself in front of the whole class, and more importantly, Katie. 

But it was not a petty Gryffindor marching up to make fun of a Slytherin, as things usually went at Hogwarts. No. It was a girl with bright red cheeks from the cold bundled in a jacket and yellow and black scarf and matching hat. She had freckles like the constellations she loved so dearly and golden locks that Alek wanted to run her fingers through as she pressed her lips to her lip glossed ones. 

“K-Katie?” Alek says, her teeth chattering. Upon further inspection, Alek sees that Katie’s eyes are red and puffy like she’s been crying. She breaths out a sigh of relief and rushes over to where Alek is sitting, scooping her into a hug. Alek is too surprised to react. 

“Don’t you ever do that again,” Katie says, burying her face in Alek’s hair, breathing in the scent of rosemary. Alek’s confused.

“W-what?” 

“Alek you can’t just.... disappear like that. I was so worried and when I heard where you were--” Katie falters, fresh tears falling her eyes. Alek turns to her. 

“Oh Katie I... I didn’t realize--” Katie just shakes her head, then puts her hands on both sides of Alek’s face.

“Just promise me you won’t run off like that again, okay?” A tear falls from Alek’s eye as she realizes she screwed up massively. But she nods.

“I promise, Katie.”

“Good.” And that’s when Katie Rayburn, the brightest star of all, kisses her. 

Alek doesn’t know how to describe it. It’s like walking into your home, its familiar scent enveloping you in a warm hug, but at the same time it’s like exploring a vast new territory full of adventure and heart racing risks. Kissing Katie feels like a fire consuming her from the inside of her stomach out until her whole body is reduce to a pile of ash, but it also feels like she’s holding her together. Alek reaches her hands up into Katie’s soft hair, leaning forward so she’s closer. She can’t seem to be close enough.

Katie’s the first to pull away, gasping with a huge smile on her face, her lip gloss smeared and her hair a tangled mess. 

“You have no idea how long I’ve been wanting to do that.”

“I.... I don’t understand.” Katie giggles, touching her forehead to Alek’s.

“Don’t you see? I’ve loved you for years, Alek.”

“You have?”

“Of course. Who couldn’t love you? You’re-you’re... perfect.” A small blush spreads across Alek’s face. She’s no longer cold anymore. Katie’s embrace is one of the warmest she’s ever received. 

Alek gives Katie an eskimo kiss, laughter starting to bubble out of her chest. “I could say the same about you, Katie.” Katie’s ears go red. 

“Katie I... I love you.”

#YAYYYYYY #ITS DONE #AFTER SO MANY MONTHS OF WORK #hogwarts #harry potter (ish) #kalek #katie rayburn #alek middleton #candy and alex's ocs #HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAN U WONDERFUL HUMAN BEING ILYSM

[savetopnow]

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[newyorktheater]

Below is the list of nominations announced tonight for the 15th annual New York Innovative Theater Awards, which celebrates the best of the city’s independent theater — aka Off-Off Broadway. The winners will be announced at a ceremony on September 16th, 2019. This year’s nominees include 147 individual artists and 64 productions presented by 73 theater companies!

Entangled by The Amoralists

In The Bleak Midwinter by Stuffed Olive

Queen by Astoria Performing Arts Center

Truth/Dare by Project Y

#YourMemorial by Pigeonholed

Red Emm and the Mad Monk by The Tank

OUTSTANDING ENSEMBLE

Alex & Eugene Isle of Shoals Productions, Inc. Aja Downing, Reggie Herold, Katherine Leidlein, Joseph M. Mace, Rori Nogee, Noah Pyzik, Jae Shin, Anna Stefanic, Brittany Zeinstra

Hamlet (What Dreams May Come) Ript Theater Company in association with The Secret Theatre Lindsay Alexandra Carter, Ade Otukoya, Chauncy Thomas, Nathan Winkelstein

The Maids The Seeing Place Theater Erin Cronican, Christine Redhead, Gaia Visnar

Plan G Randomly Specific Theatre Allan Hayhurst, Lauren LeBeouf, Tiffany May McRae, Sarah Misch, Larry Phillips, Forrest Weber

Spring Awakening Gallery Players Taylor Bloom, Aaron Braden, Harrison Bryan, Jacob Anthony Cain, Brendan Charles, Osborn Focht, Nick Godfrey, Gaby Greenwald, Nathaniel Gregory, Mikaela Kafka, Raquel Kahn, Isabella King, Thomas Kuklenski, Nicole Lopez, Gaby Mank, Tyler Moscaritola, Mariela Flor Olivo, Amanda Starr

Who Am I This Time? (And Other Conundrums Of Love) Wise Fish Theater Collective in association with Martina Bonolis & Meghan Ginley Zach Gamble, Meghan Ginley, Robin Johnson, Kent Koren, Franco Pedicini, Isabel Shill, Stephen Zuccaro

OUTSTANDING SOLO PERFORMANCE

Amie Cazel Pregnant Pause Good Pilgrim

Kim Katzberg Dad in a Box Eat a Radish Productions

Larry Phillips The Art of Acting: A Master Class with Fozzie Bear Larry Phillips

Laura Sisskin Fernandez You Hold a Pole Everday Playful Substance

OUTSTANDING ACTOR IN A FEATURED ROLE

Bruce Barton Hamlet Hudson Warehouse in association with Susane Lee

Daniel Burns She Calls Me Firefly Parity Productions in association with New Perspectives Theatre Company

Connor Chaney The Harrowing of Hell American Theatre of Actors in association with Collectio Musicorum, Inc.

Desmond Dutcher Mary, Mary Retro Productions

David Leeper Stupid Fucking Bird Stripped Scripts

Jacob Lewis Lovendahl Experimenting with Katz New Ambassadors Theatre Company in association with Julia Botero

Federico Mallet Eight Tales of Pedro The Secret Theatre

Scott McCord The Head Hunter One Shot Deal

OUTSTANDING ACTRESS IN A FEATURED ROLE

Maybe Burke Red Emma and the Mad Monk The Tank & Emma Orme

Adiagha Faizah You Wouldn’t Expect American Bard Theater Company

Melissa Glasgow A Chorus Line Gallery Players

Meghan E. Jones Mary, Mary Retro Productions

Meredith M. Sweeney Catch the Sparrow Isle of Shoals Productions, Inc.

Jo Vetter The Poor of New York Metropolitan Playhouse

Yokko Shinka Ren Gyo Soh

OUTSTANDING ACTOR IN A LEAD ROLE

Adam Belvo The Brutes spit&vigor in association with Jay Michaels Arts & Entertainment

Harrison Bryan Spring Awakening Gallery Players

Braeson Herold Worse Than Tigers The Mill in association with New Ohio Theatre

Milo Longenecker The Fantastical Dangerous Journey of Q Rebel Playhouse in association with 14th Street Y

Vinnie Penna Twelfth Night Boomerang Theatre Company

Olivier Renaud Stupid Fucking Bird Stripped Scripts

Evan Teich Assassins The Secret Theatre

Ronnie Williams Man Frog and Other People Necessary I. T. E. M. S. Project

OUTSTANDING ACTRESS IN A LEAD ROLE

Heather E. Cunningham Mary, Mary Retro Productions

Naomi Lorrain Entangled The Amoralists

Lori Elizabeth Parquet Operating Systems Flux Theatre Ensemble

Mahima Saigal Queen Astoria Performing Arts Center

Lisa Strum whatdoesfreemean? Nora’s Playhouse in association with The Tank

Shannon Marie Sullivan Worse Than Tigers The Mill in association with New Ohio Theatre

Gaia Visnar The Maids The Seeing Place Theater

OUTSTANDING CHOREOGRAPHY/MOVEMENT

Shiloh Goodin Spring Awakening Gallery Players

Eddie Gutierrez A Chorus Line Gallery Players

Alex Johnson Alex & Eugene Isle of Shoals Productions, Inc.

Joey McKneely Shadows, a dance musical Go Joe Enterprises

Shoko Tamal The Tempest The Secret Theatre

Yoshiko Usami Shinka Ren Gyo Soh

OUTSTANDING DIRECTOR

Adam Knight Stupid Fucking Bird Stripped Scripts

Katie Lindsay Red Emma and the Mad Monk The Tank & Emma Orme

Lauren A Shields Assassins The Secret Theatre

Sara Thigpen Twelfth Night Boomerang Theatre Company

Owen Thompson The Tempest The Secret Theatre

Yoshiko Usami Shinka Ren Gyo Soh

OUTSTANDING LIGHTING DESIGN

Annie Garrett-Larsen And Then There Were None The Secret Theatre

Asa Lipton Alex & Eugene Isle of Shoals Productions, Inc.

Anthony Logan Cole The Tempest The Secret Theatre

Kia Rogers Operating Systems Flux Theatre Ensemble

Kia Rogers Real Rodrigo Nogueira in association with The Tank

Cha See Honors Students Tavine Productions

OUTSTANDING COSTUME DESIGN

Michelle Beshaw Duke Oldřich & Washerwoman Božena, the True Story GOH Productions in association with Czechoslovak American Marionette Theatre

Sarah Marie Dixey Hamlet (What Dreams May Come) Ript Theater Company in association with The Secret Theatre

Julia Kulaya Experimenting with Katz New Ambassadors Theatre Company in association with Julia Botero

Marissa L. Menezes Once Upon a Mattress Gallery Players

Ben Philipp Mary, Mary Retro Productions

Yunzhu Zeng Where Is My Maple Town MapleTown Production Company

OUTSTANDING SET DESIGN

Matt Carlin Worse Than Tigers The Mill in association with New Ohio Theatre

Jack Cunningham & Rebecca Cunningham Mary, Mary Retro Productions

Gabriel Firestone Whirlwind Jordan’s Play Lab in association with Rebecca Crigler & Barn Owl, LLC

Lily Guerin The Year of the Solar Eclipse Kyoko & Ezra

Daniel Hogan Friendly’s Fire The Rising Sun Performance Company in association with the Theatre at the 14th Street Y

Matthew D. McCarren Goodbody The Crook Theater Company

Tim McMath Cannibal Galaxy: a love story Between Two Boroughs Productions

OUTSTANDING SOUND DESIGN

Beata Bocek Duke Oldřich & Washerwoman Božena, the True Story GOH Productions in association with Czechoslovak American Marionette Theatre

Margaret Montagna Queen Astoria Performing Arts Center

John Salutz Red Emma and the Mad Monk The Tank & Emma Orme

Aj Surasky Worse Than Tigers The Mill in association with New Ohio Theatre

Jeanne Travis Honors Students Tavine Productions

Fan Zhang Cannibal Galaxy: a love story Between Two Boroughs Productions

OUTSTANDING INNOVATIVE DESIGN

Hao Bai, Eric Marciano & Ildiko Nemeth – for Projection Design Electronic City, The New Stage Theatre Comapny

Yana Birykova – for Projection Design Cannibal Galaxy: a love story, Between Two Boroughs Productions

Magnus Pind Bjerre – for Video Design The Neurology of the Soul, Untitled Theater Co. No. 61

Raquel Cion, Maia Cruz Palileo, & Kim Katzberg for Video Design Dad in a Box, Eat a Radish Productions

Sarah George & Sonya Plenefisch – for Properties Design Whirlwind Jordan’s Play Lab in association with Rebecca Crigler & Barn Owl, LLC

John J.A. Jannone – for Video Design The Female Role Model Project, Transforma Theatre, Inc.

Keo X-Men – for Graffiti Design This Is Modern Art, Blessed Unrest

OUTSTANDING ORIGINAL MUSIC

Karen Bishko, Maxim Moston, & Edison Woods Shadows, a dance musical Go Joe Enterprises

Beata Bocek Duke Oldřich & Washerwoman Božena, the True Story GOH Productions in association with Czechoslovak American Marionette Theatre

Luis D’Elias Eight Tales of Pedro The Secret Theatre

Joe Jung A Midsummer Nights Dream Smith Street Stage

Teresa Lotz Red Emma and the Mad Monk The Tank & Emma Orme

Francesco Santalucia MacBeth First Maria Ensemble

OUTSTANDING ORIGINAL SHORT SCRIPT

Eliza Bent The Beyoncé Adjusted Realists

Kathleen Jones Pregnant Pause Good Pilgrim

Kim Katzberg Dad in a Box Eat a Radish Productions

Teresa Lotz She Calls Me Firefly Parity Productions in association with New Perspectives Theatre Company

Larry Phillips The Art of Acting: A Master Class with Fozzie Bear Larry Phillips

Carrie Robbins The Dragon Griswynd Days of the Giants LLC

OUTSTANDING ORIGINAL FULL-LENGTH SCRIPT

Emily J Daly #yourmemorial Pigeonholed

Gabriel Jason Dean Entangled The Amoralists

Tori Keenan-Zelt Truth/Dare Project Y Theatre Company

Dorothy Lyman In The Bleak Midwinter Stuffed Olive, Inc. in association with Allison Threadgold & Tana Sirois

Alexis Roblan Red Emma and the Mad Monk The Tank & Emma Orme

Madhuri Shekar Queen Astoria Performing Arts Center

Charly Evon Simpson Entangled The Amoralists

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE ART PRODUCTION

The 11th Dimension ETdC Projects’ Lab in association with Roi Escudero & Valentin Ewan

Arkham Part of the 10th Annual H.P.Lovecraft Festival Radiotheatre in association with Theatre At St.John’s

Befuddled 101 Amnesia Wars Productions

Electronic City The New Stage Theatre Company

The Harrowing of Hell American Theatre of Actors in association with Collectio Musicorum, Inc.

now my hand is ready for my heart: intimate histories LaMaMa Experimental Theater Club In Association with Mount Tremper Arts

OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION OF A MUSICAL

Assassins The Secret Theatre

Caroline, or Change Astoria Performing Arts Center

A Chorus Line Gallery Players

Into The Woods Theater 2020

Red Emma and the Mad Monk The Tank & Emma Orme

Spring Awakening Gallery Players

OUTSTANDING PREMIERE PRODUCTION OF A PLAY

36 Juniper Wrong House Productions

In The Bleak Midwinter Stuffed Olive, Inc. in association with Allison Threadgold & Tana Sirois

Queen Astoria Performing Arts Center

Shinka Ren Gyo Soh

Whirlwind Jordan’s Play Lab in association with Rebecca Crigler & Barn Owl, LLC

Worse Than Tigers The Mill in association with New Ohio Theatre

OUTSTANDING REVIVAL OF A PLAY

And Then There Were None The Secret Theatre

Hamlet (What Dreams May Come) Ript Theater Company in association with The Secret Theatre

The Maids The Seeing Place Theater

Mary, Mary Retro Productions

Stupid Fucking Bird Stripped Scripts

The Tempest The Secret Theatre

The New York Innovative Theatre Foundation is a not-for-profit organization recognizing the great work of New York City’s Off-Off-Broadway,

NYIT Award Nominations 2019: Off-Off Broadway’s Finest Below is the list of nominations announced tonight for the 15th annual New York Innovative Theater Awards, which celebrates the best of the city’s independent theater — aka Off-Off Broadway.