Deadline: May 1, 2023
SUBMISSION FORM
As an integral part of this new festival, Pablo Center is proud to introduce Improbable Fiction: A New Works series. Playwrights from across the region and country are invited to submit one-act plays in one of three categories: “Young Voices” (for writers ages 16-24), “Diverse Perspectives (for writers who identify as BIPOC), or “Shakes-pired” (for works inspired by or an homage to Shakespeare and his plays). Through a blind adjudication process, the festival will select three playwrights to showcase their talent and creative writing through the workshop and provide a stipend of $1,500 for each script selected.
Submission Deadline: May 1st, 2023
Notification of Selected Plays: Mid-May 2023
Entry Fee: None
Stipend per script selected: $1,500
What is it?: A single one-act play from each of the three categories will be chosen to be workshopped and staged as an integral part of the 2023 season of the Wisconsin Shakespeare Festival. The categories are as follows:
● Young Voices: Playwrights between the ages of 16 and 24
● Diverse Perspectives: Playwrights who self-identify as BIPOC.
● Shakes-pired: A new work that is inspired by, derived from, or an homage to Shakespeare, his plays, and/or his characters
Each selected play will be assigned a director, stage manager, actors, and dramaturg and/or writing coach, and be workshopped in collaboration with the playwright over the summer months, culminating in a public performance (fully-staged or a staged reading).
Guidelines:
● Please include a synopsis of your play in 50-100 words.
● Plays should run no fewer than 15 minutes, or more than 45 minutes in length.
● Plays must be typed in standard play format.
● Plays must not have been previously produced or published.
● Plays shall be full complete works, not a scene or act from a larger work or work-in-progress.
● The playwright’s name should not appear anywhere in the script.
● Include two title pages: One title page should contain a) the name of your play, and b) your name, address, phone number, and email address. The second title page should include only the title of your play, as this will be a blind read.
● Production criteria include scripts able to be produced with open staging and minimal design/technical support for a 400-seat black box theater. Scripts not fitting this criteria may be considered, but may be given a staged reading versus a full production.
● Playwrights retain full rights to all works submitted. However, WSF shall be named as “first produced”
● Selected plays will have a production mounted in late July 2023 at Pablo Center at the Confluence’s Wisconsin Shakespeare Festival with one public performance each.
● Playwrights are encouraged to attend rehearsals either via Zoom or in-person and collaborate with the director – the purpose is to both help the playwright to fine tune the script and the director to collaborate on a new script.
● Playwrights are requested to attend the performance of their work, either in person or via zoom and participate in a post-show discussion.
Submission process:
Please fill out this form with your submission: bit.ly/WSFimprobablefiction2023
Any questions should be directed to: Katherine Bauer at wsf@pablocenter.org with the subject line, “NEW WORKS QUESTIONS"