ReOrient 2026 Call for Short Plays

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Deadline: April 30, 2025

UPLOAD SUBMISSION VIA THIS FORM

Golden Thread Productions is seeking short plays for consideration in ReOrient Festival of Short Plays 2026. ReOrient Festival showcases the diversity of voices and aesthetics from the Middle East and its worldwide diaspora in a curated festival of short plays produced biennially in San Francisco.

Length: 10-30 minutes
One submission only per playwright

Eligibility:

• Playwrights of Middle Eastern heritage writing about any topic
• Playwrights of all backgrounds writing about the Middle East
• The plays must be in English (Translations of plays originally written in other languages are also welcome)

Areas of Interest include:

• Plays that engage with urgent contemporary issues, reflecting the social, political, and cultural landscapes highlighting the Middle East and its diaspora
• Plays that center Palestine and the Palestinian diaspora
• Plays that experiment with non-realistic forms, non-linear or physically-based storytelling and innovative performance styles
• Comedies
• Plays that explore and demonstrate aspects of daily or family life
• Adaptations of classical texts and or historical figures
• Exploration of Middle Eastern performance traditions

Production Expectations:

5 to 7 plays will be selected for development and production in the fall of 2026.
Each play is supported by a director and a dramaturg.
All plays are performed as part of one evening with an ensemble that is shared amongst different productions.
The design elements for all plays are handled by one design team.

For questions, please email:
submissions@goldenthread.org
Subject Line: ReOrient 2026