American Gem 2006 Short Screenplay Competition - VINCENT'S EAR

Drew Miller has enjoyed a rich and extensive history in the theatre as director, playwright and lyricist, actor, musician, and set and props designer. Miller created props and special effects designs for numerous productions including Circle in the Square’s revival of Sweeney Todd, The Art of Success at the Manhattan Theatre Club and The Destiny of Me, Circle Rep. Triumphant set designs include those for Sean Lavery's premiere pas de deux of Romeo and Juliet, New York City Ballet and, in Baltimore, Maryland, A Salute to Heroes, honoring Howard Ashman, plus architectural and graphic design for Baltimore, Maryland’s revitalization project, the Royal Theatre Monument honoring musicians and performers who appeared at the historic venue.

A recent contributing writer and call-in personality to Western Connecticut’s number one wake-up radio program on I95 Rock, Drew would often draw upon his gift of characterization and offer up to the two hosts of the show a myriad of “listeners” as verbal sparring partners. Callers such as the cell phone guy, “Hans Freed” and the passive aggressive straight guy with the queer eye, “Jerry Fagala,” were only a small sampling of the inhabitants of Miller’s mind and latest project, a comedy CD entitled “ Holding My Own” in which he portrays all the characters. As a playwright/librettist, Miller, a BMI songwriter and an alumnus of the BMI Lehman Engle librettist workshop in New York has produced works including Somewhere in the World, a light-hearted musical about Christopher Columbus. that had critics agreeing it was "...a breath of fresh air." A later production of two one-act dramas, Hostages and Innocent Victims, was touted as being "An emotional carousel" and "...wonderfully dark, searching." Moment of Truth, a two act black comedy about six sisters' introspection of their lives and the domineering mother who raised them, was lauded as “...a thought-provoking adult drama...sure to evoke comment.” As a screen writer, Miller’s Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep, a dark comedy about a casket maker and his frumpy wife, garnered an honorable mention in the HBO writers project while the short screen play Vincent’s Ear was a finalist in the recent Gimme a Break screenwriting contest.