Touchstone Theatre presents its 21st “Young Playwrights’ Festival,” 3 p.m. May 17, Northeast Middle School, Bethlehem.

The festival is a showcase of short plays written by elementary and middle school students that is presented in partnership with the Bethlehem Area School District.

The festival is the culmination of Touchstone’s Young Playwrights’ Lab, an eight-week arts and literacy residency using theater to provide a platform for creative self-expression and encourage students to write.

Touchstone facilitators use improvisation, writing exercises and collaborative critique. Each student writes an original one-act play which is considered for performance at the annual festival.

The plays often include light-hearted elements like talking animals, space aliens, princesses and imaginary worlds. They explore universal themes of love, resilience, importance of family and bravery in the face of adversity.

More than 150 plays were submitted from this year’s program with four scripts chosen as finalists for fully-staged productions; three partially-produced semi-finalists; and six runners-up, each with a brief scene or dialogue performed onstage.

The plays and scenes are directed by a member of Touchstone’s ensemble along with guest directors Amy Putlock, theater director, Broughal Middle School, and Darah Donaher, Northampton Community College theater professor. The plays will be performed by Touchstone actors, community performers and students from area schools.

“We are thrilled to have given a platform to young, creative minds in the Lehigh Valley for over 20 years,” says Mary Wright, Touchstone Education Director. “‘The Young Playwrights’ Festival is a culmination of students’ hard work and passion for imagination, and we are honored to celebrate their artistic triumphs as a community by bringing their work to the stage.”

Finalists are “Rock, Scissors, And … ” by Keagen Frendt of Broughal Middle School, directed by Amber Charest, which looks at what happened when Paper is victorious over Rock;

“Adam Meets Eve” by Sofia Hernandez of Freemansburg Elementary, directed by Amy Putlock, a twist on the meeting of the two beings that kick-started the human race;

“The Last Three Days” by Ben Harney of Nitschmann Middle School, directed by Darah Donaher, which asks how you would spend your time if you had three days left on Earth, and

“The Dream” by Zori Sawyer of Spring Garden Elementary, directed by Matt Prideaux, in which a young girl must thwart a powerful villain planning to crush the dreams of everyone on Earth.

The semifinalists are “The IKEA is Gone but the Dragons are Not” by Mia Sanchez Tejeda of Northeast Middle School, directed by Lisa Jordan; “The Queen of Charity” by Julia Bombard of Farmersville Elementary, directed by Jordan, and “Mars” by Julia Coyle of Lincoln Elementary, directed by Jordan.

Runners-up are “The Wolf and Willow” by Nicole Young-Rivera of William Penn Elementary; “Katve’s Adventures” by Eva Williamson of James Buchanan Elementary: “The Bow Fiasco” by Layla Lopez of Donegan Elementary; “Sassy Girl” by Leslie Perez of Fountain Hill Elementary; “A Dessert Mystery” by Tyler Evans of Thomas Jefferson Elementary, and “The Pizza Place Killer” by Zecheriah Broughton Jr. of Governor Wolfe Elementary. The runners-up are directed by Touchstone Artistic Director Jp Jordan.

An award for excellence will be presented to “The Story of Zink” by Nathaniel Strausser of Governor Wolfe Elementary.

“21th Annual Young Playwrights’ Festival,” Touchstone Theatre, 3 p.m. May 17, Northeast Middle School Theatre, 1170 Fernwood St., Bethlehem. 610-867-1689, https://touchstone.org/

“Curtain Rises” is a column about the theater, stage shows, the actors in them and the directors and artists who make them happen. To request coverage, email: Paul Willistein, Focus editor, pwillistein@tnonline.com.