Ferrell Studios announces its 4th Annual One Act Play Festival

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Deadline: August 30, 2025 at 11:59 PM

SUBMISSION FORM

Ferrell Studios announces its 4th Annual One Act Play Festival, "Our Time" at the mignolo Arts Center. We are looking for playwrights to submit their one-act plays to be produced in our intimate 40-seat black box space for this event. 

We invite playwrights to submit original one-act plays that explore themes of identity and community, and that speak meaningful dialogue. Submitted plays may follow any genre and be no longer than 30 minutes and should be achievable given our space and technical abilities.

Tech Dates: December 10-12, 2025 (6pm-10pm)

Performance Date: Saturday, December 13, 2025 (2pm and 8pm)

Rehearsal Schedule: There will be a brief workshop rehearsal process for each play. Rehearsals will take place at the mignolo Arts Center and via Zoom (when possible). There will also be one tech rehearsal prior to the event.

Location: mignolo Arts Center (272 Lake Ave Metuchen, NJ)

Open to all -  residents of New Jersey preferred.

Upload your play, along with other required information below as a PDF

Up to TWO submissions per playwright

Plays must be ONE-ACT with a run-time no longer than 30 minutes

Limit 1-5 characters

Scripts must be original and unpublished

Scripts should adhere to standard professional play format. The name of the play and page number should appear on all pages. Include a synopsis and cast/character breakdown

Content and technical requirements should be consistent with our intimate 40-seat black box space, where it will be produced

Ferrell Studios is a local community theatre with volunteer personnel. No one involved in this project will receive monetary compensation.

UNTITLED Musical Project Fall 2025 UNTITLED Writers' Group

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Deadline: August 30, 2025

SUBMISSION FORM

UNTITLED Musical Project is now accepting applications for the the Fall 2025 UNTITLED Writers' Group! UNTITLED Musical Project is a 501c3 not-for-profit organization dedicated to supporting musical theatre writers of BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, and their intersecting identities by fostering their work from inception. Through writers’ groups, developmental readings, dramaturgical support, and resources aimed to further artists’ professional careers in the creation of new musical theatre, UNTITLED creates a space and community where BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ writers can create bold, new, and challenging works.

The UNTITLED Musical Writers Group is a space for marginalized musical theatre writers of BIPOC/Global Majority, LGBTQIA+/Queer, and their intersecting identities to develop new musical theatre in community and engage in supporting and critiquing their colleague's work.

This Fall, we will be accepting one writers group meeting on Zoom for 12 Sunday evenings (7pm-9pm Eastern Time) on the following dates:

September 21st
September 28th
October 5th
October 12th
October 19th
October 26th
November 2nd
November 9th
November 16th
November 23rd
December 7th
December 14th
(note: no meeting November 30th)

THE PGE’S 7TH ANNUAL FACES OF AMERICA MONOLOGUE FESTIVAL

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Deadline: August 24, 2025

SUBMISSION FORM ON THEIR WEBSITE

On November 22, 2025, we will host the 7th Annual Faces of America Monologue Festival at The Marjorie S. Deane Theater in NYC.

We created the Faces of America Monologue Festival in 2019 in response to the inequality of opportunities available to marginalized communities.

Each year we celebrate the diverse stories that make up America by inviting writers to submit two minute monologues that showcase the broad spectrum of what it is to live, work and play in America. Our aim is to collect unique, captivating and beautiful stories and share them so that we learn, grow and hear each other.

We can’t wait to hear the incredible stories that will be submitted for this year’s festival.

To submit your monologue for consideration there are 4 few simple rules:

Your monologue must fit in the theme Faces of America.

Your monologue should represent America's incredible diversity. (BIPOC, AAPI, Latine, and LGBTQIA+ artists are all strongly encouraged to apply). Monologues can be historical or futuristic, cultural or political, comedic or tragic, spoken or signed!

Your monologue must be less than two minutes in length. 

We can't stress this one enough. If your monologue is longer it will not be considered.

Include the word "CATALYST" somewhere in your monologue.
If this word does not appear in the monologue it will not be considered.

Send your submission to us between July 5th- August 24th, 2025.
Late entries will not be considered. Submissions are limited to two per writer.

Discount tickets: 4 Daughters Minus One, 2000 A.D.

Upcoming performances for a new stage play called 4 Daughters Minus One, 2000 A.D. will happen at The Producers' Club located at 358 West 44th Street, New York, NY 10036. Performances will take place on Saturday (10/4/25), Sunday (10/5/25) and Monday (10/6/25). 

A 30% discount will be given for general admission tickets ($29.50) for the Monday, October 6, 2025, performance at 8pm. 

Use the following Eventbrite link and enter 4 Daughters Minus One, 2000 A.D. Tickets discount code: NYCPLAYWRIGHTS 

 

Doors open at 7:30 PM. 

For more information about the show, visit www.4daughtersminusone.com. 

 

About the play

What would happen if the Literary Committee decided to nominate God as the recipient of the 21st Century Literary Hall of Fame Award? Would he come? Which members of his Royal Family would show up?

4 Daughters Minus 1, 2000 A.D. is a stage play which takes place in Detroit where the 21st Century Literary Hall of Fame Award ceremony is being held. Four of Father Yahweh’s daughters (Queen Bathsheba, Ruth, Elizabeth and the Woman at the Well) are coming to speak on his behalf with Elijah. Everyone is excited that the world has finally recognized his inspired work of 66 books in the Bible. All is well until one uninvited daughter named JEZEBEL shows up who believes the literary work does not portray her fairly and she’s coming to confront the family.

They deal with issues women endure such as being single and caring for an elderly parent, infertility, living when your child has been murdered, having a reputation of being a loose woman and being in the spotlight married to the most powerful man whose heart is shared with other women.

Blue Ink Award 2025 seeks full-length plays

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Deadline: August 31, 2025 11:59 PM CT

SUBMISSION FORM

Each year, American Blues Theater accepts worldwide submissions of original, unpublished full-length plays. 

The winning playwright receives a monetary prize of $3,000.

Cash prizes are awarded to finalists and semi-finalists too.

There is no fee to submit.

Playwrights may only submit one (1) manuscript each year for consideration. 
Please see the next page for full competition rules and guidelines.

Please follow these guidelines in preparing your manuscript:

• There is no fee to submit.
• This contest is restricted to plays written predominantly in English. Worldwide submissions are accepted.
• Submissions must be original, unpublished full-length plays. Adaptations are accepted with proof of rights held unless source text is in public domain. Translations, musicals, and children’s plays are not accepted.
• Playwrights may submit only one (1) manuscript per year.
• Plays that have been professionally produced or published are not eligible. Plays that have had a workshop, reading, or non-professional production will be considered.
• Plays may not be under option or scheduled for professional production or publication at the time of award announcement.
• American Blues Theater reserves the Right-of-First-Refusal to produce the world premiere of the winning manuscript for one (1) year beginning on date of the public announcement of the winner.
• Plays must be submitted digitally as a PDF or Word Document via the submission form at AmericanBluesTheater.com.

If you need technological accommodations to submit your play, you may send scripts to American Blues Theater, 5627 N Lincoln Ave, Chicago, IL 60659. Scripts are ineligible if received after Sunday, August 31.

Questions should be sent to info@AmericanBluesTheater.com.

Go Try Play Write August 2025

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Deadline: August 31, 2025

SUBMISSION FORM

We're proud to announce a new monthly playwriting contest in collaboration with Bamboo Ridge Press. Every month, Kumu Kahua's artistic director Harry Wong III will select a writing prompt on the first day of that month. We're looking for 5-page monologues or 10-page scenes based on that prompt; the due date for submissions are always the last day of the month. All entries must be written in traditional play format; instructions on this format can be found here (https://www.dramatistsguild.com/script-formats), courtesy of the Dramatists Guild.

There will be one winner each month. Scripts will be submitted to the judges anonymously. Winners will receive $100 and a subscription to Bamboo Ridge Press. Woo!

The prompt for August 2025 is:

A Pinocchio prompt. Write a ten-page maximum scene or an eight-page maximum monologue of a public figure who lies and whose body part either grows or shrinks with each lie. This is an ideal world where all lies are obvious to the public. Go big with your scenes… or small.

SCREAM SCENES: A Horror Playfest seeks short plays & monologues

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Deadline: September 8, 2025

They have closed their submission window - do not send.

brooklynONE productions (bkONE) invites twisted minds, dark dreamers, and fearless storytellers to submit their work for SCREAM SCENES: A Horror Playfest — a blood-curdling celebration of theatre that terrifies, shocks, and haunts long after the curtain falls.

Performances October 23 - 26

This festival is dedicated to stories that crawl under the skin, set hearts racing, and make audiences squirm in their seats. Whether it’s supernatural terror, psychological suspense, or gruesome acts of human horror, we want the nightmares only you can create.

What We’re Looking For:

• One-act horror plays (10–15 minutes in length)
• Monologues & written word pieces (poetry, prose, or performance text) that chill to the bone
• Stories that push boundaries, revel in the macabre, and keep audiences on the edge of their seats
• Minimal technical requirements (must be producible in an intimate theatre setting — we supply the shadows, you bring the fear)

Why Submit?

Selected works will be produced and staged at bkONE’s home, The Tom Kane Theatre, inside the eerie corridors of Industry City, Brooklyn.

Writers will collaborate with our creative team to bring their darkest visions to life.

Your work will be part of a festival that turns the stage into a haunted playground of nightmares.

The John DeSotelle Studio Series Short Play Festival 2025

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Deadline: August 25, 2025

They are no longer accepting submissions - do not send.

The John DeSotelle Studio Series Short Play Festival is seeking short plays (no more than 15 minutes), humorous or dramatic, that deal with the subject of commitment and the struggle it may bring; whether through relationships, love, religion, careers, culture, identity, self-growth, etc. Accepted submissions will be fully produced and performed at The NuBox Theatre at 754 9th Ave, NYC.

• Length: 10-15 minutes
• 4 character max
• Minimal set (black box friendly)
• Send in PDF format along with a short bio of the playwright (150 words max) as well as a 2-3 sentence summary of the play.

Selections will be made early September 2025. Submitters will be notified of selection via email by September 12th.

Festival performances – October 10-12, 2025 at The NuBox, New York City.

For Questions or More Information Email: info@desotellestudio.com

Playwrights are encouraged to submit more than one play. 

There is no restriction on plays that have been previously produced or published so long as it meets the theme, length, and set requirements and does not require licensing. There is no participation fee and all production responsibilities will remain with the John DeSotelle Studio.

The Ten-Minute Musicals Project 2025

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Deadline: August 31, 2025

SEEKING: Complete original stage musicals which play between seven and twenty minutes. Works which have been previously produced are acceptable, as are excerpts from full-length shows, if they can stand up on their own.

MUSICAL STYLE AND THEATRICAL FORMAT: Any musical style: pop, rock, show, opera, C&W, etc; or theatrical format: comedy, mystery, drama, etc.

CAST SIZE: Maximum of ten performers—five women and five men.

SUBMISSIONS SHOULD INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING:

1. A printed script. (Note: printed on paper; not sent as a computer file on disk.) And please make sure your POSTAL ADDRESS appears on it.

2. A CD or DVD of either the entire piece or just the musical material. (Please don’t send a USB flash drive.)

3. A stamped self-addressed large envelope if you want the work returned.

4. More than one work can be submitted at a time, in the same envelope or separately.

CONCERNING THE ABOVE, PLEASE NOTE: NO ELECTRONIC SUBMISSIONS — HARD COPIES ONLY

DEADLINE: Simply postmarked by August 31st. (Do not waste money on overnight express, registered, or certified mail. All that’s requested is that the package be postmarked by August 31—but even if you’re just a day or two late, don’t worry. This is not an officious arts bureaucracy.) Responses will be mailed out by November 30th.

FINANCIAL REMUNERATION: $250/US royalty advance for each piece selected, with an equal share of licensing royalties when produced.

SEND TO:

The Ten-Minute Musicals Project
Michael Koppy, Producer
P.O. Box 461194
West Hollywood, CA 90046 USA

GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS“The more restrictions you have, the easier something is to write.” — Stephen Sondheim

“The enemy of art is the absence of limitations.” — Orson Welles

The single most important piece of advice we can offer is to caution that it will surely take much time and effort to create a quality work. (Occasionally a clearly talented and capable writer and/or composer seem to have almost dashed something off, under the misperception that inspiration can carry the day in this format. However, all the works selected in previous rounds clearly evince that considerable deliberation, craft, and time were invested.)

We’re seeking short contemporary musical theater material, in the style of what might be found on Broadway, off-Broadway or the West End. Think of shows like Candide or Little Shop of Horrors, pop operas like Sweeney Todd or Chess, or chamber musicals like Once on this Island or Falsettos. Even small accessible operas like The Telephone or Trouble in Tahiti are possible models. All have solid plots, and all rely on sung material to advance them.

Of primary importance is to start with a solid, complete story, even if it means postponing work on music and lyrics until that dramatic foundation is complete. This is one reason it is suggested (no; strongly, strongly recommended!) that musicals be based on a short story, play, film, poem or teleplay—either in the public domain (usually meaning it was originally published more than seventy-five years ago) or for which adaptation rights have been obtained. (While we’d love to have pieces based on works by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Rod Serling, James Baldwin, Raymond Carver, William Faulkner, Chinua Achebe or Stephen King, getting the rights to adapt a work still in copyright can often be quite difficult. Stories or narrative poems by writers from previous eras, like Jack London, Katherine Mansfield, Anton Chekhov, Ambrose Bierce, Mary Shelley, Robert Service, Franz Kafka, Geoffrey Chaucer, Anna Laetitia Barbauld, Banjo Paterson, Aesop of Samos, Louisa May Alcott, Jonathan Swift, Giovanni Boccaccio and Guy de Maupassant—among so many, many others—are in the public domain and can be freely adapted.)

We prefer works using larger casts. If from six to the maximum of ten voices are used it’s a plus, even if most are secondary or ‘chorus’ roles.

Fast-paced comedy material has an advantage.

If adapting a story, you might consider setting it in another time or place, adding or subtracting (or combining) characters, or even changing the character genders. Yet be wary of doing so on whim, sans firm rationale.

It seems from experience here that fairy tales may easily end up being too cute, trite.

A narrator often slows things down. Trust audiences to get the story through what characters say, sing and do. And it’s better for a character to share his or her reactions to what is happening than to simply describe events—we can see them unfolding with our own eyes.

Be wary of writing only introspective musical ‘moments’, as they usually stop the progression of the plot. Solo ballads should be thought of as icing on the cake, as you’ll surely still need other sung material—much of it uptempo—which advances the plot in duets, trios, and production numbers.

Don’t worry if an idea seems ‘unstageable’. That’s what directors, designers, choreographers—and rehearsals—are for.

Finally, please understand that NONE OF THESE OBSERVATIONS ARE GOSPEL. They’re simply recommendations based on what’s been learned from seeing works submitted previously. Given that, please take them seriously. However, nearly every one of these recommendations has been ignored by at least one of the works so far selected.

In the end what matters most will be the idea and aim of your piece and how economically, effectively, elegantly they are realized.

Distillery2026 Distillery New Works Festival seeks full-length plays

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Deadline: September 5, 2025
Unless cap of 600 scripts has been reached.

SUBMISSION FORM

The Distillery New Works Festival is a celebration of emerging theater and an opportunity for playwrights to gain valuable feedback on new work. Each play in the festival receives a live reading by a cast of professional actors, allowing it to live and breathe off the page. The readings conclude with a discussion of the play with the playwright, giving writers the chance to receive feedback from Seattle audiences and providing a platform for audiences to help shape new works in process.

Before submitting, please make sure your play meets the following criteria:

• Full-length plays. We are currently only accepting submissions for full-length scripts of any genre. Shorts and one-acts will not be considered. 
• One play per playwright. We will only consider one script per playwright for this year's Distillery Festival. 
• New works, development mindset. The Distillery Festival is intended to promote new works and help playwrights who want to actively update and improve their scripts. Selected playwrights are expected to approach the festival with a development mindset, and to attend/participate in the festival to the best of their ability. If you are completely finished with your script, the Distillery process is not for you. 

Festival attendance. Festival attendance is an important part of Distillery and is required for all playwrights. If you are from out of the area a travel stipend will be provided.

Feminism - your play passes the Macha Test. This year Distillery is being produced by Seattle Public Theater in association with Macha Theatre Works, and we are excited to use the festival to help lift up feminist works. Please review the Macha Test and make sure your play passes before submitting. We will not consider plays that do not pass the Macha Test.

Selection Process

We will review the first 600 scripts submitted to Distillery this year. Submissions will close when we reach the 600 play cap, or on September 5th, whichever comes first. We will then review these scripts and select a group to move on to the next round. This first review can take some time, so we thank you in advance for your patience. As we narrow down our play selection, we will announce which plays have made it to the next round both via email and publicly on our social media. Here is a rough timeline. While we may diverge this year, it will hopefully give you a framework for setting expectations about this process for 2025-2026:

September-December: Submission Review/Reading Period
December: Release of the LONG LIST (last year, 51 plays)
End of December: Release of the SHORT LIST (last year, 23 plays)

January: Playwright Interviews: Short-listed playwrights are expected to participate in a virtual interview with members of the Seattle Public Distillery team. After interviews, release of the SEMI-FINALISTS (last year, 13 plays)

February: Final review/director matching process. Release of the OFFICIAL SELECTIONS.

In the end, we expect to choose 6 OFFICIAL SELECTIONS from the process to participate in Distillery, along with one play from a Seattle Public Theater resident playwright. Last year we received ~750 Distillery submissions and included 7 plays in the final festival. We will be looking for an eclectic group of feminist plays to round out this exciting new works festival. We will prioritize playwrights local to the Pacific Northwest and those from traditionally underrepresented backgrounds in theater.

Distillery Goals

Traditionally, the distillery process involves heating a liquid, then allowing it to condense into a new product. Here at the New Works Distillery, we do the same thing with stories, allowing them to rise, change, and settle into something new. This is part of how we cultivate new plays that feature strong feminist themes. Whether playwrights are interested in testing out bold new ideas or putting the final touches on a nearly-finished script, the Distillery is here to help.

Other ways to get involved

After our script selection process, we enjoy connecting with talented directors and actors to help bring these new scripts to life. If you're interested in getting involved, feel free to contact us at literary@seattlepublictheater.org to learn what openings are available this year.

Support Distillery

The Distillery series makes it possible for writers to take risks and discover their voices. Donate here to support the development of new work!

DQT PlayTime 2025-26 Application

Website

Deadline: September 2, 2025

SUBMISSION FORM


Tuesdays 10/21/25 -- 12/9/25, from 6pm - 9pm EST, via Zoom.

PLAYTIME is a new play development and presentation program that centralizes Female-identifying or BIPoC playwrights with early drafts of plays. This program is for playwrights who already have a full draft of a play.

PT is conducted online and uses an instructor-led curated classroom format with the goal of working constructively toward advancing each matriculant’s vision for their play.

Since public engagement is an equally important component of both the PT experience and the DQT mission, up to three excerpts of pieces developed in PT are chosen by the artistic and executive directors for presentation in an online showcase.

To be eligible for PT, you must be BIPoC or Female-identifying, have an early draft of a play, and submit the required materials by deadline. Additionally, participants must be able to attend all 8 sessions in their entirety

Up to 12 matriculants will be selected based on early drafts of their plays, interviews, and other submission materials (i.e., artistic statements, resumes, etc.)

PlayTime will be conducted via Zoom from 6-9:00pm (EST) on 8-consecutive Tuesdays between October 21 – December 9.

DQT is proud to announce this season's PT instructor will once again be OBIE Award winner Carmen Rivera Tirado. 

Actors Theatre Playhouse Seeking Original Scripts for Ten-Minute Play Festival

Website

Deadline: September 30, 2025

All scripts will be accepted ONLY thru email at tenplays19@gmail.com

TWO SUBMISSIONS ONLY PLEASE.

The Actors Theatre Playhouse of West Chesterfield, New Hampshire, and Brattleboro, Vermont, is accepting ten-minute play submissions for its festival in June of 2026.

Email is best for us to get your manuscript to our review committee as quickly as possible. Please include a title page with your contact information attached to the script. Ten-minute plays should play in one scene, have minimal scenic requirements, not exceed ten-twelve pages in length and have two to six characters. Upon acceptable receipt, a return email will confirm your delivery to us.

The number of scripts we can process for this year’s festival is limited, so submit soon if you want to be considered for production this year. 

We will keep excess scripts for consideration next year. Approximately 12 finalists will be selected and notified, with eight winners announced following auditions and casting in Jan 2026.

We regret that we cannot offer any financial prizes at this time. The winners will receive production of their play as part of our next Ten-Minute Play Festival and multiple tickets should the authors be able to attend.

The goal of the festival is both to encourage the production of new works, while exposing our actors and directors to the techniques and practices of working with playwrights and producing new plays.

For information about the theatre, go to www.atplayhouse.org

FALL 2025 Online Class in Writing the Ten-Minute Play

Fall online classes in Writing the Ten-Minute Play are now open for enrollment.

Award-winning playwright and musical theatre writer Arianna Rose is offering two online sections in Writing The Ten-Minute Play.

Arianna has taught this course for the Dramatists Guild Institute, Delray Beach Playhouse, and other playwriting venues both online and in-person in NY and FL.

"Writing for the Stage: The Ten-Minute Play"

Six Sessions, 3 hours each, September 4 – October 16 (no class 9/11) : choose one section

1. Thursdays, 1:00 – 4:00 pm EST
2. Thursdays, 6:30 - 9:30 pm EST 

Newcomers Tuition: $299 early bird through September 1st; $329 after

Course Repeaters Tuition: $150 early bird through September 1st; $165 after

Discount: $15 discount for newcomers who are current Dramatists Guild or South Florida Theatre League members.

Minimum 3 participants per section; maximum 10.

Course Description:

Ten-minute play festivals continue to grow in popularity around the world, with readings, productions, and publications at every level of theatre. While short-form plays share some similarities with full-length storytelling, the dramatists who excel in this form have learned how to write into the differences. I can help you join their ranks and give you the tools to write to the highest level of craft.

This eight-session course is a combination of lecture, reading, discussion, and most importantly, in-class sharing of your work for feedback. Whether you’re a new or seasoned dramatist, Writing The Ten-Minute Play will assist you in your craft. Topics include the elements of a successful 10-minute play, dramatic structure, generating ideas, character development, giving and receiving constructive feedback, effective rewrites, formatting your play, submissions, and log-keeping.

Please contact Arianna Rose at rockawayrose@gmail.com, or via her website where there is more course information:

https://ariannarose.net/playwriting-classes-and-other-workshops

Arianna Rose is the Dramatists Guild Ambassador for South Florida, a Dramatists Guild Institute Instructor and Pip Mentor, professional dramaturg, Theatre Professor, and an award-winning playwright and musical theatre writer. Recipient of the MAC Song of the Year Award, the York Theatre NEO, and numerous best short play awards. Her work has been produced in 37 states and ten countries. Published: Smith & Kraus, Applause Books, Theatre Odyssey, Ghostlight Publications & Gemco Australia. 2019-2021 Miami-Dade County Playwright Development Program, moderated by Kia Corthron. She created and moderates the weekly Plays on Purpose/Miami New Musicals stage writers group, in its sixth year. M.F.A., NYU Tisch Graduate Musical Theatre Writing; B.A. Theatre, Bucknell University; BMI-Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Writing Workshop. Memberships: ASCAP, LMDA, MAESTRA, Musicians Union, New Play Exchange, South Florida Theatre League, Dramatists Guild of America http://www.ariannarose.net

Interested but not available?

If you are interested but don't have availability for that day and times, please email me at rockawayrose@gmail.com and I'll compile a list for another section or future course.

One-on-One Private Dramaturgy

If you prefer one-on-one coaching, I am a member of the Dramaturg and Literary Managers Association of the Americas (LMDA) and the Dramatists Guild Plays-in-Progress Mentor Program. More information here:

http://ariannarose.net/dramaturg-for-hire

Theater production seek playwrights interested in collaborating

Website

Deadline: August 24, 2025

(the sooner the better)

Send a sample of your work to Alex Baker at a@creativeimmigrant.com

Secrets, a new interactive play seeks playwrights interested in collaborating with us for the next Secrets script and joining our writer's room.

This is a compensated opportunity ($1,500) to rework an existing ~64 page script, with the potential to work on new volumes of Secrets in the future.

Learn more about the project here: https://secretsbar.com/about.

LOCUST part one by Daniel S. Park - free tickets

LOCUST part one staged reading

7PM - Sunday August 17
The Attic @ the Tank Theater

It is the winter slowly turning into spring, and Katharine has been planning to move out of her apartment in New York to escape to a spiritual retreat in the Amazon once her apartment lease is up for the summer. 

However, things get a bit strange when her former roommate curses her for not extending the lease,  while a new subletter for a spare room turns out to not quite be who he seems to be.

Link for free tickets to RSVP. https://www.ticketleap.events/tickets/audaciousowl/locust-staged-reading

The Larking House Playwright's Intensive 2025

Website

Deadline: August 17, 2025

SUBMISSION FORM

Do you have a play that’s ready to get off the page and into the rehearsal room? The Larking House is now accepting unproduced plays for the 2025 installment of our Playwright’s Intensive, a writer-driven program to jumpstart your new play and lead the shape of its development.

This season, we're seeking 6 new scripts by local and remote playwrights to be workshopped and presented over their own weeklong programs. Each play will be cast and directed over a series of playwright-oriented workshop rehearsals, culminating in a staged reading and response session from invited respondents. The intensives will take place between October 26th and December 13th, with one playwright’s work explored and developed each week. This year we will have four remote sessions for playwrights anywhere, and two in-person readings for California-local playwrights in the Orange County area!

Submission Guidelines:

• Unproduced or lightly-produced plays.
• One-acts or full length plays between 30~120 pages. (Unfortunately, no musicals.)
• Casts of 1 to around 15 performers.
• One play per submission, and one submission per playwright (or per writing team).
• Please send your script in .PDF format only.
• Include on your first page: title, author’s name(s), submission email, and relevant contact info.

The Playwrights Group ~ Script Consultations

 Script Consultations

If have a script you want feedback on — just send a PDF of your script and you’ll get a critique via email and/or video conference. See website for rates.

Richard Caliban has worked with individuals on their scripts from all over the world — Indonesia, China, Greece, Australia, Serbia, as well as right here in New York. A script consultation will provide you with feedback on the structural soundness of your story, the dramatic arc of your protagonist, thematic unity and much more.

 

Online One-on-One Courses

If you’re looking for more, check out our One on One Online Playwriting Courses:

• The Art of Playwriting
• Write a Play in 10 Weeks
• 3 Hour Short Course

All are with instructor Richard Caliban, and since it’s One on One, the courses can be adjusted to fit your level of experience.

 

The Weekly Workshop

 

 

Join our nationwide community of playwrights on Zoom. It’s a great way to stay connected and motivated.

Participating in a weekly workshop can give you the kick you need to see your script through from beginning to end. You can bring in anything you’re working on — a full length script, a musical, a TV pilot, whatever. And when your script is ready — we’ll present it in a Public Reading. We also bring in Guest Speakers, like Pulitzer Prize winner Margaret Edson (Wit).

Sit in on a session and see for yourself!

Thursdays 7 - 9:30pm EST

Please visit our website for further Info and Rates: 

www.theplaywrightsgroup.com

Contact us at 

scripts@theplaywrightsgroup.com

RFI Media Productions seeks playwright/dramaturg

Website

Deadline: August 18, 2025

Submissions to scott@rfinyc.com

Please submit a cover letter describing your experience with similar projects.

We are looking for a collaborative playwright/dramaturg to help develop and finalize a new immersive live show inspired by the final, mysterious days of Edgar Allan Poe.

The piece blends site-specific staging, atmospheric projection, and audience interaction, and walks the line between psychological horror and poetic beauty.

Ideal collaborator: Experience in live theatre or immersive experiences

Strong in character-driven storytelling

Bonus: background in horror, Gothic, or historical fiction

This is a paid, passion project (modest budget, pending fundraising) set for Fall 2025 in NYC. Fee based on experience and work on project.

The Yale Drama Series 2026

Website

Deadline: August 15, 2025 EDT 

SUBMIT VIA SUBMITTABLE

Hardcopy submissions are also possible - no staples:

Send the manuscript to Yale Drama Series, P.O. Box 209040, New Haven, CT 06520-9040.

The Yale Drama Series is seeking submissions for its 2026 playwriting competition. The winning play will be selected by the series’ current judge, Branden Jacobs-Jenkins. The winner of this annual competition will be awarded the David Charles Horn Prize of $10,000, publication of their manuscript by Yale University Press, and a staged reading at the Schwarzman Center at Yale University. The prize and publication are contingent on the playwright’s agreeing to the terms of the publishing agreement.

There is no entry fee. Please follow these guidelines in preparing your manuscript:

1. This contest is restricted to plays written in the English language. Worldwide submissions are accepted.

2. Submissions must be original, unpublished full-length plays, with a minimum of 65 pages. Plays with less than 65 pages will not be considered.

3. Translations, adaptations, musicals, and children’s plays are not accepted.

4. The Yale Drama Series is intended to support emerging playwrights. Playwrights may win the competition only once.

5. Playwrights may submit only one manuscript per year. Only manuscripts authored by one playwright are eligible.

6. Plays that have been professionally produced or published are not eligible. Plays that have had a workshop, reading, or non-professional production or that have been published as an actor’s edition will be considered.

7. Plays may not be under option, commissioned, or scheduled for professional production or publication at the time of submission.

8. Plays must be typed/word-processed and page numbered. Plays with images are not accepted.

9. The Yale Drama Series reserves the right to reject any manuscript for any reason.

10. The Yale Drama Series reserves the right of the judge to not choose a winner for any given year of the competition and reserves the right to determine the ineligibility of a winner, in keeping with the spirit of the competition, and based upon the accomplishments of the author.

Before submitting your play, please:

1. Omit your name and contact information from your manuscript and submission file name.

2. Begin your manuscript with a title page that shows the play's title, a 2-3 sentence keynote description of the play, a list of characters, and a list of acts and scenes.

3. Enter the title of your play, your name and contact information (including address, phone number, and email address), and a brief biography where indicated in the electronic submission form.

For more information about the Yale Drama Series, please visit:
yalebooks.com/drama
dchornfoundation.org
or email us at yaledramaseries@yale.edu

The Garden State New Play Festival 2025

Website

Deadline: August 15, 2025

SUBMISSION FORM

The Garden State New Play Festival (GSNPF), a partnership between Jersey City Theatre Center and The New Jersey Play Lab, is an innovative new play development festival celebrating the unique way in which art can impact, unite, and inspire.

The mission of the Festival is to marry community engagement around issues relating to social justice with a rigorous dramaturgical process, resulting in the presentation of a slate of new plays by a diverse group of writers that have the clarity of intention necessary to spark rich conversation and an open exchange of ideas and perspectives.

The four pillars of the Festival are:“Community and Advocacy” To engage a broad spectrum of New Jersey artists and arts organizations, audiences, and community advocates around the power of theatre as an agent for change 

“Awareness and Connectivity” To explore how writing about local and personal politics and issues connects to a larger global context

“Artistic Equity and Exchange” To bring together a diverse group of artists of varying career levels under an umbrella of learning, sharing, and artistic expansion

“Craft and Excellence” To champion and execute best practices in new play development and to be a resource for NJ Professional Theaters to identify new plays for production.

The Festival is designed to foster a supportive and responsive environment for each participating playwright through an individualized approach of tailored dramaturgical guidance, community workshops, artistic and advocacy exchange opportunities, and a flexible focus on process versus product. Through this more holistic and welcoming approach to play development, the Garden State New Play Festival aims to cultivate a vibrant ecosystem that values and champions the power of playmaking.

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS

This Festival is open to playwrights of all career levels residing in the state of New Jersey or the Metropolitan Areas of New York City or Philadelphia.

The Garden State New Play Festival is a play development festival focused around community engagement and social justice. The time commitment spans from November 2025 to May 2026. The Festival presentation itself takes place from May 1st to May 17th, 2026, and will feature readings of all the plays selected for inclusion in the Festival.

Selected playwrights are expected to engage in a rigorous dramaturgical process around their plays, and to offer workshops and classroom visits within New Jersey communities. Selected playwrights are expected to have flexibility within their schedules, and be able to be present in and around the Jersey City area on multiple occasions, both during the festival itself and in the months leading up to it.

Interested playwrights should submit in one of two categories:

“Early Career” (You may have written a play or two, or you may be writing your first play; Perhaps you have had a few readings, but most likely no professional productions; You may be coming from another art form or career, or be right out of University.)

“Emerging or Professional” (You have written several plays; You have had numerous readings and/or professional productions; You have some experience in play development settings; You may or may not have a graduate degree.)

Please note that each selected playwright will be supported based upon their level of experience and the stage of development of the play. Each development process will look different.

Playwrights should submit: 

• The FIRST 20 pages of a full-length play focusing on some element of social justice. This is a very broad subject and we encourage you to think outside of the box of what this can mean and what this means to you personally.
• Plays can be completed or in process, and may be unproduced or previously produced. However, as this is a play development festival, playwrights should only submit work they feel is in need of further development.
• The play must not be currently under development in another long-term development process with another entity that will overlap with the work around the Festival.
• Musical submissions will be considered if they are small musicals (a cast of 4 or less) and can be accompanied by a solo musician.
• There is no limit on cast size for plays, but cast size may be considered within the selection process.
• A brief cover letter.
• Your playwriting resume (Please also include any additional resumes regarding any other work that you feel is pertinent to your artistry or experience.)
• A synopsis of the play (1 page maximum. This is not a marketing blurb or summary. This is a full synopsis of the play.)
• A character breakdown (Please include any doubling so we can assess the number of actors needed to perform the play.)
• A list of the development history of the play

Please upload your PDF documents to this Google form. You will be notified when we have received your submission. Please note submissions open on July 1st, 2025.
The deadline for submissions is August 15th, 2025.
Requests for full scripts will go out by September 15th, 2025.

SOME THOUGHTS ON WHAT KIND OF PLAYS WE ARE LOOKING FOR….

• Art is deeply personal and thus highly subjective. That being said, we believe in the value of trying to be as explicit as we can about what currently guides us in selecting plays for the Festival. This is not a checklist, nor is it a “how-to.” It does not connote empirical quality or intrinsic value judgments of any play. It is merely a collection of attributes that we have identified amongst the plays we have felt pulled towards in the past.We are committed to artistic excellence in craft above all else, recognizing the many traditions and styles that can inhabit and inform craft. 
• We gravitate toward contemplative theatre as opposed to consumptive theatre; plays of substance that instigate thought long after the curtain has fallen. However, we firmly believe that just because a play is about something important doesn’t automatically make it an important, or well-structured play.
• We believe that well-told stories come in all voices, tones, and styles.
• We are drawn to work with the potential to resonate beyond its immediate story and circumstances to illuminate or explore a larger, more expansive idea, and we believe that plays which reside in the gray areas of morality and impulse are the plays poised to have the greatest impact.
• We gravitate toward plays that are ambitious, either in an attempt at something new/challenging/complex or by excelling at an established form, as well as plays that challenge our preconceived notions and pose questions as opposed to providing answers.
• We are attracted to plays that have a textured language that lifts the text off of the page, a theatricality that embraces the medium of the stage (i.e. it couldn’t equally be a film), and a heart that seeks to move us by expressing something specifically or deeply human.

If you have any questions, please email submissions@njplaylab.org.

Thank you for your interest in our Festival.

Seventh Annual International Human Rights Art Festival

Website

Deadline: August 15, 2025

Submit all work to costanza@humanrightsartmovement.org

International Human Rights Art Festival
December 8th - 14th, 2025
The Tank
312 W 36th St., New York, NY 10018

Results announced to applications by September 8, 2025

Full schedule announced by October 1.

The submission window is now open for performance work in any form - every discipline!
Work may not have been produced within the last year in NYC, or be scheduled in the next six months of December 14th, 2025.

• The performances must be fully produced by you; IHRAF is a presenting platform.
• Considering performances 10-20 minutes long
• We accept just one proposal for each application.

Submit HERE


We are jurying work with the following interests, for performance blocks:

Climate Change Action
Immigration
LGBTQIA
Celebration of Women/Women in Power
Celebration of Black Men/Undiscovered Women
Shalom/Salaam
With Love from Africa
Any other social justice concerns you might have

Plus: Ten Minute Play Festival and a Ten Minute Performance Festival

All accepted performers will receive:

Performance stipends of $200

PR and marketing support

30-minute tech rehearsal

Festival TD and SM

Free photographic documentation of the performance

Free video documentation of the performance


SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

Please email our Festival Assistant Producer Costanza Bugiani at costanza@humanrightsartmovement.org with the following, and any questions:

A brief description of your piece, including approximate running time - we’re accepting 10-20 mins works.

A cover letter, including details regarding the piece’s discipline, issue of concern treated and a brief summary of your artistic goals

Your bios or resumes and the names of any collaborators already on board

A sample of work (scripts, pics, videos, songs, any other links or file that could help us to know more about your project)

As email subject, please type IHRAF Festival 2025, then add Association-Company-your name (i.e. IHRAF Festival 2025, Joan Doe)

Please note:

Work may not have been produced within the last year in NYC, or be scheduled in the next six months of December 14, 2025.

The performances must be fully produced by you; IHRAF is a presenting platform.

We accept one proposal for each application.

Also, let us know if you already had part of our previous festivals as a performer or in the audience!

We are encouraging New York and Tri-state area based artists. Unfortunately we cannot cover any travel/lodging expenses.

Troy Foundry Theatre 2025 Half-Baked Festival

Website

Deadline: August 19, 2025

Submission Email & Contact: tftsubmissions@gmail.com

Troy Foundry Theatre is now accepting submissions for the 2025 Half-Baked Festival celebrating works-in-development and the presentation of in-process creative projects which will be presented September 18 - 28, 2025 in Troy, NY.

We seek projects that wrestle with the absurdity of our time – politics, climate change, capitalism, digital dissonance, identity, and societal transformation. We're drawn to projects that are unhinged, hilarious, desperate, or beautifully broken in their honesty.

We welcome:

• New plays or devised work-in-progress that push theatrical boundaries
• Lecture-performances or artistic investigations that blend research with performance
• Short-form experiments or provocations that challenge audiences and conventions

Pieces directly or indirectly inspired by Samuel Beckett and the absurdist tradition

The Half-Baked Festival of Emerging Work celebrates the unfinished, the audacious, and the revolutionary in theatre-making. We believe some of the most exciting theatrical discoveries happen in development – when work is still breathing, evolving, and finding its voice.

Please note: We do not accept projects that have already been presented in full professional productions. Projects will not perform every day of the festival; we'll collaborate with selected artists to create a performance schedule that serves everyone's needs.

Please compile a complete submission package that includes the following to help us learn about your project:

1. Contact Information

Your name, email, phone number, and location (state/region)

2. Artist Statement

Who you are as an artist and your creative mission

3. Project Overview

Project description: What is your piece? What world does it inhabit?

Artistic exploration: What themes, questions, or provocations drive this work?

Development stage: Where is your project in its creative journey?

Title and materials: Working title, any existing scripts, visuals, media, or documentation

Synopsis and technical requirements: Brief project summary and any needs beyond our standard festival setup (basic lighting, sound capabilities, stage wash)

Creative roles: Are you creator and performer, or seeking direction/casting support?

Production specs: Number of performers required and current runtime

Special technical needs: Any essential requirements beyond our basic festival infrastructure

4. Development History

Previous presentations: workshops, readings, public showings (if any), including dates and venues

Getchell New Play Award 2025

Website

Deadline: September 15, 2025

THEY HAVE CLOSED THEIR SUBMISSION WINDOW - DO NOT SEND.

Dedicated to the discovery, development and publicizing of worthy new plays and playwrights.

NOTE: some of their online documentation might still say submissions are only open to SETC members, but that is no longer correct.

The awardee receives:

• $1,000 honorarium
• Certificate at Recognition
• Acknowledgement at the Saturday evening Gala
• Staged Play Reading at the annual SETC Convention
• Travel and hotel accommodations.
• Acknowledgement in an SETC publication

The Charles M. Getchell New Play Contest considers only plays that meet the following requirements:

1. Submitted work must be by one playwright only. No collaborations or adaptations will be considered.

Submitting a jointly written play under the name of only one author, or a play that was developed in

collaboration with other artists such as a collaboratively produced devised work, adaptation of

another writer's work, or in conjunction with librettists and/or composers will not be considered.

2. Submitted work must be either a full-length play or thematically related one acts which constitute a

full-length play when performed together. No musicals or children's plays will be considered.

3. Plays must be unproduced (no professional productions) and unpublished. Readings and workshops

are acceptable. Any play which has had more than one consecutive performance by a non-college or

university theatre which charged admission and/or had a review will not be considered.

4. Plays submitted in prior years may not be resubmitted.

Submission Guidelines

1. Only one play submission is allowed per playwright.

2. Plays must be submitted via our online application in Microsoft Word or PDF format under the

following guidelines:

• Scripts should be in a standard format, such as Dramatists Guild Modern Stage Play.
• Text should be in 12 pt type and in a standard font such as Times New Roman.
• Script must include page numbers at the bottom of each page.
• The author's name MUST NOT appear anywhere in the script.
• DO NOT include resumes, playwright biographies or a history of the play.

Winning Playwright:

1. The winner, selected by a panel of readers, will be announced in November of each year.

2. The playwright will retain all copyright to the submitted material.

3. The playwright will be expected to attend the SETC convention (Chattanooga, Tennessee March 3–7, 2026) at the expense of SETC, attend the response session, and receive the cash award at the annual banquet.

4. The winning play will be considered for publication online via the SETC website*. Promotional

information will be published in an issue of Southern Theatre magazine, including:

• Profile of the playwright/winner
• Short abstract of the play
• A powerful “snippet” from the play to gather attention and interest
• A sidebar noting that the whole play can found on the SETC website, with a link to the play.

*Posting the play online would be upon agreement with the author and would include a disclaimer about not using it for production.

The Winters Theatre Company Ten Minute Play Festival 2026

Website

Deadine: August 15, 2025 at 5PM PDT

SUBMISSION FORM

The Winters Theatre Company will welcome submissions of original scripts for consideration in our 2026 10-minute play festival beginning on Friday, August 1 through Friday, August 15, 2025.

We will only accept original submissions (all submissions must come directly from the original playwright/author) for the festival. You must be 18 years of age or older to submit an application, and there is a limit of 1 submission per author. Every play must be 10-minutes or less.

There is no specific theme for the festival so all 10-minute scripts are welcome. There is NO FEE for the author to submit or be selected to participate in the 10-Minute Play Festival. There is NO COMPENSATION for director/author/cast member(s).

The festival will be held in the historic Winters Opera House on Main St. in downtown Winters on February 20-21 & 27-28, 2026.

Please follow us on Facebook or check our website on August 1 for submission application forms and instructions. We will not provide the submission application form, or accept submissions, prior to August 1, 2025, for the 2026 festival.

Rules and Requirements:

Any play submission must come directly from the original playwright/author of the play.

Every play must be fully performed in 10-minutes or less.

Script should not rely on more than minimalist props.

You must be 18 years of age or older to submit an application for the 10-Minute Play Festival.

There is a limit of 1 play submission per author for the 10-Minute Play Festival.

If the selected play runs over 10 minutes, the director and producers reserve the right to edit the script to meet the 10-minute requirement. Author will be contacted in advance.

General Information:

There is NO THEME.

There is NO FEE for the author to submit a play or to participate in the 10-Minute Play Festival.

There is NO COMPENSATION for author/director/cast member(s).

The festival will consist of 8 play selections (all 10-minutes or less) in 2 acts.

The festival performance dates are February 20-21 & 27-28, 2026.

We will announce the plays selected for the festival by 11/01/2025. Given the volume of submissions, we will only contact the authors whose plays have been selected.

Winters Theatre Company will select directors for each selected play.

Winters Theatre Company will advertise for the 10-Minute Play Festival via their website, social media, printed media, and press releases. The website will include a short synopsis of each play, author bio and link to author website and/or social media.

Plays will be selected, in part, based on their portability, overall length, transition time, and the ability of the script to tell the story without excessive reliance on props or costumes.

Direct questions to amkormos@gmail.com and jimhewlett@yahoo.com

46 Minutes Collective Writer's Group Fall 2025

Website

Deadline: August 6, 2025

APPLICATION FORM

The 46 Minutes Collective Writer’s Group will be launching its Fall 2025 Cohort program.

If you have a particular project you finally want to get down on paper with writers who inspire you, this is the group for you! Led by two of the collective’s writers, our playwrights can receive feedback on their new work, get to hear their new work said out loud, and be held accountable for getting new pages and edits out.

The Fall 2025 cohort program will be 10 weeks long, with each writer presenting their work every other week. 

We will be meeting every Saturday at 11 am, starting on September 13 and ending on November 15. 

Writers must be able to commute to Brooklyn for every meeting.

The Theater Center Fall Incubator Festival

Website

Deadline: August 15, 2025

SUBMISSION FORM

Open to writers and creators of plays and musicals

Must be able to produce your show in NYC (no travel or housing provided)

Cast size: no more than 9

Running time: 100 minutes max

Plays and musicals not submitted in standard play format will not be considered

What’s Provided​

3 hours of tech time on stage

Basic lighting and sound package

Your show must supply its own stage manager and production team

No rehearsal space provided

Marketing / PR

The Theater Center will promote the festival as a whole.

Productions are responsible for their own audience-building and marketing.
​
Submission Materials Required

• Full script
• At least 3 demo recordings (if musical)
• Synopsis
• Production history (if applicable)

We will reach out on August 25, 2025 if your show has been selected

Submissions will be reviewed by The Theater Center team, with consideration given to:

• Originality and voice
• Commercial feasibility
• Cast size and length
• Stageability
• Diversity of voices and perspectives

Limit: 1 submission per artist/company.

American Bard Theater Company second Playwright Invitational seeks full-length plays

Website

Deadline: September 1, 2025

American Bard Theater Company is opening its second Playwright Invitational.

We are seeking full length plays for consideration for our Corner Stone Reading Series. These readings will be free and open to the public, with required reservations.

This invitational will focus on works by female and female-presenting playwrights.

We are accepting the first 100 submissions between August 1 – September 1, 2025.

SUBMISSION RULES:

· One electronic submission of a single full-length play per playwright, written in English.

· Play must not have been previously produced as a fully staged production.

· No joint authorships, adaptations, translations, children’s plays or musicals.

· Maximum of 8 actors, regardless of number of characters in the play.

· All characters must be performed by adult actors (18 years or older).

· 75 - 90 minutes running time with NO intermission.

· At least one lead role must be for a woman, age 50 – 60.

· Plays written by female and female-identifying playwrights.

HOW TO SUBMIT:

In one email, please attach your playscript in PDF format. Email Subject Title: Submission-Playwrights Name, PLAY TITLE IN ALL CAPS, (Example: Submission-Shakespeare, TWELFTH NIGHT)

Submission should follow standard playwrighting convention and include a cover page (with title & author’s name center page, contact information on the lower right corner), a Cast of Character list & breakdown, Scene and Time descriptions below the character list, main text pages numbered in the upper right hand corner, and have 1 inch margins for the top, bottom and right side with 1½ inch margin on the left. Font: Courier 12 point.

Simultaneous submissions accepted, but please withdraw if accepted elsewhere.

Please name your file like this:

Your Last name TITLE OF PLAY.pdf (Example: Shakespeare TWELFTH NIGHT.pdf)

Note: The TITLE of the play is in ALL CAPITAL LETTERS

Please send to: americanbardco@gmail.com

Plays selected for the Finalist Round will be notified by email by October, 2025.
Thank you - we look forward to getting to know you and your work!


NOTE: This programming was started in 2015 as an opportunity to connect with our alumni artists a, meet new talent, and invite our audience into the incubation process of a potential fully staged production for American Bard.