The Spotlight New Works Fest

Website

Deadline: February 3, 2026

SUBMISSION FORM

We provide the venue, festival staff, and the opportunity to present your work;
participating companies are responsible for producing and staging their own readings.

The Spotlight New Works Fest is a curated festival dedicated to showcasing exceptional new plays written for the secondary theatre market—including high schools, colleges, and community theatres.

Each year, educational and community stages produce hundreds of thousands of performances. The Spotlight New Works Fest exists to help new work find a place within that ecosystem by highlighting plays that balance strong craft, theatrical vitality, and real-world production potential for these stages.

This is not a competition. Instead, the festival brings together a selected group of plays that demonstrate both artistic excellence and a clear understanding of how theatre is made and shared in educational and community settings.

Please carefully review the information below before submitting.

Eligibility

We are seeking complete, original scripts that feel ready to be produced and shared.

Previously produced works are welcome, provided they are not currently licensed by another publisher.

Full-length plays (60-100 pages)

Full-length plays with music (60-100 pages)

Full-length musicals (60-90 minutes)

10-20 minute musicals

No fewer than six / no more than eight performers required, except for short musicals (doubling is encouraged)

Musical either needs only one keyboard or will include tracks.

Our readers consider:

• Dramatic structure and momentum
• Character development and ensemble potential
• Dialogue and theatrical voice
• Staging feasibility for educational and community theatres
• Overall clarity, craft, and production readiness

Who Should Submit

The Spotlight New Works Fest is for playwrights who are intentionally writing for educational and community production.

You may be a good fit if your work:

• Is designed to be produced by high schools, colleges, or community theatres
• Offers meaningful opportunities for student or community performers
• Demonstrates strong dramatic structure, clear storytelling, and theatrical imagination
• Balances artistic ambition with practical staging considerations
• Previously produced works are welcome, provided you hold the rights to submit the script.

Review & Selection Process

Submissions to Spotlight New Works Fest are evaluated by a committee of readers using a shared scoring framework developed specifically for the festival.

Each script is read and assessed across multiple criteria, including suitability for educational and community stages, dramatic structure, ensemble value, theatrical imagination, and audience resonance. Scores help ensure consistency across readers while supporting thoughtful editorial judgment.

Spotlight New Works Fest is a curated festival, not a developmental workshop. While we are unable to provide individualized feedback or critiques on submissions, every play receives careful consideration through the committee review process. Final selections reflect both cumulative scoring and the overall balance of the festival lineup.

Finalists will be notified around March 15, 2026. All selection decisions are final.

A Note on Rights and Future Productions

Spotlight New Works Fest does not claim ownership, royalties, or future participation rights in submitted works. We do not require acknowledgments, producer points, or revenue participation for future productions. Playwrights retain full rights to their work.


How to Submit

Submissions must be original works. If a piece is based on previously copyrighted material, writers must provide proof of rights ownership or documentation confirming the work is in the public domain.

Before beginning the submission form, please be prepared to provide one complete PDF that includes a cover page, artistic statement, play synopsis, production and casting information, and the full script—formatted using standard script conventions.

For musical submissions, you’ll also be asked to share a single link to demo materials, including at least three song demos reflecting the style of the show, along with either a representative musical track or a piano/vocal score.

Before you submit, please read all of the information in our FAQ Page.

Accepted Scripts

Accepted participants are responsible for casting and rehearsing their reading and covering any presentation-related costs.

Participants will be provided with a list of local suggested directors and rehearsal spaces.

Participants will also receive direct, hands-on mentorship in self-producing their work—valuable professional development at no cost.

If selected, participants will be required to sign a participation agreement. You may review the agreement here.

Selected participants will be asked to submit a fully refundable $100 commitment deposit to confirm participation.

Submissions are open January 3–February 3, 2026 for the Spotlight New Works Fest. Please review the submission guidelines before beginning the form.

BLACK WOMAN GENIUS ~ MY NAME IS CATHAY WILLIAMS: THE RIGHT AND TRUTHFUL GENIUS NARRATIVE OF CATHAY WILLIAMS (1844–1892) by Cornelia Weiss

Knowing that history is often used as an excuse to exclude women, Cornelia Weiss (a former US military colonel) excavates erased history while proactively seeking to create transformative policies and practices. Cathay Williams is her first foray into the world of writing for theater. The opinions and views expressed are her personal views and are not intended to represent in whole or in part the opinions of the US government, military, or any of its components.

ABOUT THE MONOLOGUE

In February 2025, the current US military administration ordered the removal of “DEI” materials. The order resulted in history deleted, from Tuskegee airmen to the first female fighter pilot General Jennie Leavitt. (For an incomplete listing of known erased materials, see smh-hq.org/archivedresources.html.) The present erasure highlights that past military administrations erased the history of military service by Black women through a strategy of omission: electing to not task military-funded historians to excavate, write, and publish histories of Black women. Cornelia Weiss originally wrote this piece in 2014 for Arena Stage’s “Our War” (Civil War) monologue competition. While Arena Stage did not select it, current visible efforts to honor Cathay Williams include a 2016 statue at the Richard Allen Cultural Center and Museum in Leavenworth, Kansas (womenofthe688th.org/monuments) and reenactments by storyteller Donna Madison (910hcav.org/about-us-2/photo-gallery/).

Links to examples of Cornelia Weiss’ work available online: 

• 2023 “Civil Dispute Resolution: An Ignored Winning Strategy for Afghanistan,” Military Review (January/February edition), Awarded third prize: 2022 General William E. DePuy Special Topics Writing Competition on “Insights from Two Decades in Afghanistan https://www.armyupress.army.mil/Journals/Military-Review/English-Edition-Archives/January-February-2023/Weiss/ 
• 2022 Review of Sara Bertotti, Gina Heathcote, Emily Jones, and Sheri Labenski
• “The Law of War and Peace: A Gender Analysis, Volume One,” Journal of Military Learning, 89-91 
• Banned/removed/erased in 2025 under the current U.S. Secretary of Defense/War women/gender policies; see removed/erased “update” version at https://www.armyupress.army.mil/Portals/7/journal-of-military-learning/PDFs/October-2022/update/JML-Oct-22-Book-update.pdf;  for original Table of Contents, see Wayback Machine at https://web.archive.org/web/20230608090445/https://www.armyupress.army.mil/Portals/7/journal-of-military-learning/PDFs/October-2022/JML-Oct-2022-TOC-UA.pdf and for review, see Wayback Machine at https://web.archive.org/web/20221017120500/https://www.armyupress.army.mil/Portals/7/journal-of-militar-learning/PDFs/October-2022/Weiss.pdf 
• 2022 “Gender in International Law Syllabi,” European Journal of International Law, Volume 33, Issue 1, 1-2, ejil.org/pdfs/33/1/3245.pdf 
• 2021 “Creating UNSCR 1325: Women Who Served as Initiators, Drafters, and Strategists” in Rebecca Adami and Dan Plesch (eds.), Women and the UN: A New History of International Human Rights, Routledge, https://taylorfrancis.com/chapters/oa-edit/10.4324/9781003036708-9/creating-unscr-1325-cornelia-weiss    
• 2021 “Twenty Years After UNSCR 1325: Equal Access to Military Education in the Western Hemisphere?” (with Eva María Rey Pinto), Revista Científica Estudios en Seguridad y Defensa, 15(30) 303-325, https://doi.org/10.25062/1900-8325.280
• 2020 “The Nineteenth Amendment and the U.S. ‘Women's Emancipation Policy’ in Post-World War II Occupied Japan: Going Beyond Suffrage,” Akron Law Review: Vol. 53: Iss. 2, Article 4, https://ideaexchange.uakron.edu/akronlawreview/vol53/iss2/4/ 
• 2020 “Discrimination Against Women, Rule of Law and Culture of Peace: Colombia’s ‘Peace’ Agreement,” The Fletcher Forum of World Affairs Vol 44:1 Winter 2020, 97-120, https://jstor.org/stable/48599282
• 2020 “The State of Civil-Military Relations Education: Falling Short?” Hemisferio Vol 6, https://publications.iadc.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/hemisferio/volume6/Civ_Mil_Weiss_22-July.pdf
• 2015 “Dismantling the arguments against women in combat,” The Washington Post, washingtonpost.com/opinion/dismantling-the-arguments-against-women-in-combat/2015/12/16/98071b8a-a349-11e5-8318-bd8caed8c588_story.html
• 2012 “Respecting Human Rights and the Rule of Law: The New Zealand Defence Force,” Ian Axford (New Zealand) Fellowship in Public Policy, http://www.fulbright.org.nz/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/axford-weiss.pdf

If you enjoy a monologue published in the BLACK WOMAN GENIUS project, we encourage you to reach out to the playwright to tell them so. If the playwright has not included an email address or website, let us know at info@nycplaywrights.org and we'll pass along your message.

EXCERPT FROM MY NAME IS CATHAY WILLIAMS: THE RIGHT AND TRUTHFUL GENIUS NARRATIVE OF CATHAY WILLIAMS (1844–1892) 

     ~ Excerpt published by permission, all rights held by the playwright.

                

CATHAY 

 

When the Civil War ended, there was not work for all the freed people. The only living I knew was military. The military prohibited women from serving. But the military paid more for a Black male cook than a Black female cook was ever paid. So I disguised myself as a man and became a Buffalo Soldier in the 38th US Infantry, Company A. Only thing was, my fellow soldiers knew me by the name of William Cathay. Yep, I enlisted in the military as a man. Strange as it sounds, the military, which was fighting for the end of discrimination, discriminated against women. The Regulations forbade the enlistment of women. Does the military still discriminate against women?   

ALab Theater Festival 2-26

Instagram account

Deadline: February 1, 2026 at 11:59 PM

SUBMISSION FORM

ALab Theater Festival is a home for bold, exciting new work by both emerging and established performing artists. Our mission is to provide free resources and a safe performance space where theater artists can present new work to audiences at accessible prices. To date, we’ve programmed 25 performance groups across two festivals, presenting 50 total performances and supporting more than 220 artists.

This Summer's Festival will run from June 23rd to July 5th at The IRT Theater, 154 Christopher St, New York, NY. The performance space is a small, but versatile 33-seat proscenium black box with a full repertory lighting plot, sound system, and projector.

All programmed work will receive at least 4-6 hours of tech time, but there is no additional rehearsal time in the theater granted. Because many shows may be programmed in a single day, your show MUST have combined load-in/load-out times of under 75 minutes. Permanent set pieces are not permitted. Please keep these limitations in mind as you apply!

LEAD ARTIST COMMITMENTS

• Attending any/all mandatory meetings (initial one-on-one check ins, a technical production meeting, and a space tour)
• Promoting your performances to your communities! ALab runs because of the support from our wonderful, diverse audiences.
• Adhering to the tech/performance schedules provided by the ALab Team.
• Sourcing your own designers (lighting and sound) and a stage manager to run cues
• Staying in constant communication with us and our wonderful Lead Producer (and miracle worker) Blaise Hewlett

QUESTIONS: alabfestival@gmail.com or DM us on instagram @alab.theater

BLACK WOMAN GENIUS ~ LONELY by J. Lois Diamond

J.Lois Diamond’s work performed off-off b’way, regionally, Toronto, London, @ International Human Rights Art Festival, Inge Theatre Festival. Growl Downtown Urban Arts Festival, Theatre Odyssey, (runner up best play), Valdez Theatre Conference. Alicia semi-finalist, Utah Shakespeare Festival’s Words Cubed 2025. Clare, finalist Meanwhile Park Playwrights Prize 2026, Behind Two Walls TUBU Fest, 2025, The Snake Bird, Third Ear Productions, 2025. Are You Comfortable? produced, A Call to Conscience/Bread & Roses Missouri’s 2025 Social Justice Shorts Festival. Her monologue Menapace, semi-finalist, NYC Playwright’s Resisting Fascism Project. Purdah, Illuminating History Award Powerstories Voices of Women Theatre Festival, 2024. Monologues published Smith & Kraus’ Anthologies & Applause Books’ She Persisted. She is committed to telling the stories of historic women, as a way to promote the value of all women. Proud member Honor Roll!, Polaris North and The Dramatists Guild, where she recently studied with Tina Howe.

• jloisdiamond.com
• https://newplayexchange.org/users/20210/jlois-diamond

ABOUT THE MONOLOGUE

Lonely was inspired by the life of the late playwright Lorraine Hansberry. I wrote  this monologue  for The 365 Women A Year Theatre Monologue Collection, which aims to  promote the lives of theater women and empower and promote female playwrights around the world .

Hansberry became the first Black woman to be produced on Broadway with her play A Raisin in the Sun.  She won the New York Drama Critics' Circle Award, making her the first Black American dramatist, the fifth woman, and the youngest playwright to do so.

One of the things that struck me from my research was how she had to navigate the intersectionality of her multiple identities as an African American woman, who was  married to a  man from a very different  minority group, while knowing she was a  lesbian at a time when it was necessary to conceal that part of her identity.

Sadly, she died  of cancer at 34 years old. Had she lived longer,  there is no doubt  she would have had written many more powerful plays and inspired countless theater goers.

If you enjoy a monologue published in the BLACK WOMAN GENIUS project, we encourage you to reach out to the playwright to tell them so. If the playwright has not included an email address or website, let us know at info@nycplaywrights.org and we'll pass along your message.

EXCERPT FROM LONELY

     ~ Excerpt published by permission, all rights held by the playwright.

                

                            LORRAINE  

 

“Raisin” is based on my family. No. We weren’t poor. My father founded a bank and had a real estate business. In thirty-eight, he moved us to a house in a White section of Chicago. The “welcoming committee” threw a brick in the window which got this close to my head.

She gestures about an inch with her fingers.

I was eight.

                    BEAT

After that, my parents felt they had no choice but to leave the country, so they moved to Mexico. I stayed in Chicago for high school. I was about to join them when Daddy died. And I know that racism is what killed him. I enrolled in the University of Wisconsin, but dropped out after I got a “D” in drama. I moved to New York and started writing for Paul Robeson’s paper “The Freedom”. We spoke out against racism, colonialism and oppression.   

 

The night the play opened, all I wanted to do was get home before the reviews came out. After the final curtain came down, I stepped outside and people were lined up for my autograph! James Baldwin flew home from Paris to be there. We got to Sardis and all these White people cheered when I walked in the door.   

 

All this should make me happy. But it doesn’t.

Amoeba Productions: The Best Worst Ten Minute Playfest

Website

Deadline: January 31, 2026

Submission Form

Thirty artists face off against theatre’s worst cliches in Amoeba Productions’ Best Worst Ten Minute Play Festival.

Amoeba Productions is a nonprofit performing arts organization based in NYC, launching its first 10 Minute Play Festival! We are seeking actors, playwrights, and directors to collaborate with other emerging artists and create original short plays from scratch. 

This process begins with a mandatory in person “Activation Day” on February 19th 7pm - 10pm, where artists will be paired with their teams and begin the development of their new play. Playwrights will have two weeks to write their 10-minute plays. 

Then each team will have three weeks of rehearsal time between February 19th and April 4th, with a minimum of five hours of rehearsal. Each team will receive a $100 budget to be used toward rehearsal space and/or props. The festival will culminate in a live performance on April 4th where artists will be called 4pm - 7pm at Caveat in NYC.

• Submission Deadline: January 31st, 2026
• Activation Day: February 19th, 2026 7pm - 10pm
• Rehearsal Window: February 19th - April 4th, 2026
• Performance Day: April 4th, 2026 4pm - 7pm

BLACK WOMAN GENIUS ~ NO (SOME) WAYS TIRED by chandra thomas

Originally from New York often found in Los Angeles, chandra thomas is an award-winning multihyphenate storyteller. As a playwright, her work has been presented at Primary Stages, McCarter Theatre, Barrow Group, Naked Angels, Echo Theater, Road Theater, Athena Arts Theater, Downtown Urban Theatre Festival, Vivid Stage, Passage Theatre, among others. chandra’s full-length plays, rom-com-drama THE BUZZER and multigenerational-family circus play ...OF CHAMPIONS, were named Finalists in the Blue Ink Playwriting Award. She was also a nominee for the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize.

 

chandra’s also a writer of television, film and narratives (Emmy Award-winning comedy MOM) as well as a performer (New York Theatre Workshop, LAW & ORDER: SVU). She earned BA degrees in Theatre and Sociology from Vanderbilt University, and holds an MFA in Acting from Columbia University. In the tradition of her proud immigrant family, chandra’s storytelling centers characters who are pushed to the margins while blending humor with emotional heart and social bite.

• instagram.com/chandrathomas
• https://newplayexchange.org/users/49438/chandra-thomas
• https://bsky.app/profile/chandrathomas.bsky.social
• imdb.me/chandra

ABOUT THE MONOLOGUE

It was happenstance, how Wilma Rudolph came into my world. (That said, i’ve had more ‘happenstances’ than i should be comfortable admitting. Perhaps speaking to a grander hand at work, but i digress. ) i was thumbing through a shelf at a bookstore selling previously owned books in New York when the autobiography WILMA literally fell in my hands. The book wasn’t in the greatest condition but i was so taken by the photo of a sprinting Ms. Rudolph on the cover and the description of a woman who defied seemingly insurmountable odds. So the book was a key purchase. That was many years ago. In that time, i’ve explored theatrical ways to contribute to the storytelling canon about this incredible woman, athlete, changemaker, as well as the people who helped her achieve greatness. Having an opportunity to do so with this monologue is an honor.

If you enjoy a monologue published in the BLACK WOMAN GENIUS project, we encourage you to reach out to the playwright to tell them so. If the playwright has not included an email address or website, let us know at info@nycplaywrights.org and we'll pass along your message.

EXCERPT FROM NO (SOME) WAYS TIRED

     ~ Excerpt published by permission, all rights held by the playwright.

                

WILMA 

 

Blanche found out I could get treated at Meharry Hospital, the Black medical college in Nashville—50 miles away. She took me there, twice a week, for two years. And this girl the world had written off but whose mother would never, walked —granted with metal braces, but I was walking. It took some more years before I could walk without crutches, braces and those kind of things. And, at age twelve, I set my eyes on becoming an athlete. 

 

            (takes her medal off) 

 

Blanche, and so many women like her, deserve these medals just as much as me. If for nothing else, for how we just keep going. No matter what, we keep going. Even when we feel very tired. But mark my words, there’s gonna be a time when we only gonna feel some ways tired. And when that happens, the world is really in for an awakening. 

Musical theater challenge for high school students 2026

Website

Deadline: February 3, 2026 3:00 AM

SUBMIT VIA SUBMITTABLE

ELIGIBILITY & GUIDELINES

Who can Participate in the Musical Theater Songwriting Challenge? High School Students from all 50 States, Washington D.C. and U.S. territories are eligible.

Entry Requirements

Each Participant can submit one original composition tailored for a musical theater production. The full musical does not need to be written, but the student will be asked to justify the song as a storytelling moment as part of the larger hypothetical work.

Collaborative entries (up to three Writers) are accepted, but all members of the team must meet the age and schooling requirements.

Limit of one solo entry and one collaborative entry per Participant.

Entries must be the wholly original work of the entrant(s) and should not infringe on any copyrights or any other rights of third parties.

If under the age of 18, the student must have permission from their parent or legal guardian by providing their parent/guardian’s signature and other requested information, which indicates their parent/guardian’s agreement and consent to the terms and conditions herein.

The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and the National Alliance for Musical Theatre (NAMT) advocate for creativity, originality and artistic expression. Any form of plagiarism will lead to disqualification.

What’s Not Allowed

• Remixes or covers of existing work.
• New works that sample or include stems/tracks from existing work.
• Adaptations of popular movies, books, TV shows and other pre-existing media.
• Songs promoting hate, discrimination or any form of offensive content.

Discount tickets - SPOONS by Ben Firke

 SPOONS 

by Ben Firke

Spoons is a two-hander about alcoholism and finding connection through the art of Professional Cuddling! 

Jan 30th - Feb 7th at the Barrow Group.

Tickets:

Tinyurl.com/Spoonsplay

For 20% off, use code: PLAYWRIGHTS

A is For seeks one-act plays on reproductive justice

Website

Deadline: January 18, 2026 at 11:59 PM EST

SUBMISSION FORM

A is For is currently accepting submissions for one-act plays about reproductive justice.

The A is For Playwriting Contest and the all it takes is ONE ACT Play Festival engages playwrights who are passionate about abortion rights and reproductive justice, and offers audiences the opportunity to see those stories performed by theatre professionals in live staged readings. Since the inauguration of our Playwriting Contest in 2020, we have received over 1,000 one-act plays about reproductive justice from all around the world, and have brought 12 of them to the stage!

A is For amplifies art and artists working to eradicate stigma against abortion. We believe that theatre deepens our relationship with the world around us by inviting us to empathize, and recognize our own belonging. We are looking for plays that challenge stigma against abortion. We want to hear the stories you want to tell.

Three winners will be announced in late spring 2026, and will receive the following prizes:

1st Place - $5,000
2nd Place - $3,000
3rd Place - $1,500

The winning plays will be presented as staged readings during our ONE-ACT Play Festival in 2026 at a New York City theatre tbd. See what the 2025 winners had to say about their experience here:

BLACK WOMAN GENIUS ~ POSTURES OF RETURN by Catherine Noa Ashley

Catherine Noa Ashley is a multimedia designer and performance artist whose work spans sound, installation, performance, and moving image. As a playwright, Ashley writes experimental, music-infused one-acts that sit with time, relationship, and the absurd. Recent Credits: Spores, (Vocalist) Performa. Blue Seal, Blue Sea, (Sound Designer), The Makers’ Space. FAT HAM, (Sound Designer), Wilbury Theatre Group. Untitled Writers Group, Fall 2025. catherinenoa.com @inoaplace

ABOUT THE MONOLOGUE

Postures of Return is developing performance work that traces how the Black femme body navigates voice, posture, and movement across spaces that love, tolerate, and misunderstand it. The piece explores presence as something continually negotiated through repetition. The first public showing will be at The Flynn in Burlington, VT as part of their Snap First Person Arts Festival. 

   

If you enjoy a monologue published in the BLACK WOMAN GENIUS project, we encourage you to reach out to the playwright to tell them so. If the playwright has not included an email address or website, let us know at info@nycplaywrights.org and we'll pass along your message.

EXCERPT FROM POSTURES OF RETURN

     ~ Excerpt published by permission, all rights held by the playwright.

I’ve learned I can’t speak more than twice in a moment without someone deciding I’m doing too much, as if clarity and confidence were a spectacle. (said confidently)  

 

My perspective is valuable, I’m the only person in the room that thinks this way.  

 

A lauded voice presses on a bruise they pretend isn't there.    

 

Instead, I listen to lukewarm insights applauded like revelation, jokes that miss their own punchline, spoken by people who have never had to worry that one sentence too many will rewrite their character.  

 

I sit counting each one like a ration. 
Before they dissipate, I pour these unused thoughts onto paper or later drape them on the eager ears of friends.  

A beat  

I stand too tall.

Neck stiff, shoulders square, breath clipped.

I shrink too.

Arms folding in, chin tucked, breath uneven.

Sometimes I graze the doorframe, other times my feet float above the floor.

I have to do my hair before first call and yes, texture wasn’t considered in the timetable. Were they even thinking about me?

I wear the air wrong.
It drapes off my shoulders,
pools at my ankles,
nothing bespoke.

Every degree shifts the spine differently. I don’t want my body to split into two. 

BLACK WOMAN GENIUS ~ GENIUS by Kenndall Wallace

The judges have reviewed the semi-finalist monologues submitted for the BLACK WOMAN GENIUS project and they have selected GENIUS by Kenndall Wallace.

Excerpts from all the semi-finalists will be posted, every other day, beginning today, January 18.

Thank you to everybody who participated in this BLACK WOMAN GENIUS project. 

All our rights are being attacked now, but the current regime has made a special target of Black women, as discussed in the recent New York Times article 

Black Women Turn to One Another as Their Career Paths Suddenly Recede

From the first day of his administration, Mr. Trump sought to remove diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, both in the federal government and the private sector. Those programs were originally designed to eliminate historical biases in hiring. Many of the women interviewed, echoing broader criticisms, said Mr. Trump seemed to be deliberately misconstruing the term D.E.I., turning it into a reason to dismiss highly qualified Black people. D.E.I. professionals started to lose their jobs, but even Black women not involved in diversity work said they felt a chill.

In December, the head of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission issued an appeal to white men who felt they had been discriminated against, and Mr. Trump told The New York Times this month that “white people were very badly treated” as a result of protections from the Civil Rights Act.

The tone from the Trump administration is not lost on Black women looking for work. In Black Women Rising and other group texts, professionals are sharing worries and strategies as the job market shifts. Some are taking a step back from corporate careers and starting their own businesses. Those who worked in diversity and inclusion are wiping those references from their résumés.

“There are people who are hanging on for dear life and they’re calling out, like, ‘When will this season end?’” Ms. Obiekwe said.

AND ALL THE ANGELS CRIED by Jane Domenghini

  

AND ALL THE ANGELS CRIED

by Jane Domenghini

Ticket Link: https://makersensemble.org/calendar

Synopsis: Twins, Angelo and Hunter, used to be close... a long time ago, before the bad thing happened. But now Angelo's home for winter break and him and Hunter must grapple with the state of their current relationship. Can they learn to love each other or are they desperately holding onto the memories of the boys they once knew? Through music, a margin of arguments, and fragmented memories, the story of brotherhood is told in 70 minutes.

Dates: January 21st - February1st 2026

The Makers' Ensemble

281 N. 7th St. Brooklyn, NY 11211

Good River Review open for 10-minute plays

Website

Deadline: None given

SUBMIT VIA SUBMITTABLE

Dramatic writers may submit scripts for 10-minute stage plays or short films, including TV. We will also consider publishing video of produced scripts. Please wait to hear a response from us before submitting again. 

Good River Review is the journal of the School of Creative and Professional Writing at Spalding University in Louisville, Kentucky, which sits on the Ohio River. Ohio is Seneca for good river. We publish two issues a year and feature book reviews, craft essays, and other important literary news on a rolling basis on our website.

Good River Review is a home for writing that launches quickly, speaks to the universal through the particular, and is layered with meaning. We also love work that doesn’t fit neatly into genre categories. Our editors are attracted to writing that blurs boundaries, and so contributors will find their work published as prose, lyrics, or drama. In addition, we want to publish the most compelling writing for children and young adults that we can find. The editors of GRR work in collaboration with Spalding School of Writing graduate students who work in an editorial capacity.

Our submission period is open and ongoing. Please submit in the category where you think your work best fits. We allow simultaneous submissions, but please access your submission and withdraw it if it is accepted elsewhere. We do not consider previously published material or work currently in press elsewhere. Please do not submit entire book or chapbook manuscripts. Current students at the Naslund-Mann Graduate School of Writing at Spalding University are not eligible to submit.

Questions? Email goodriverreview@spalding.edu.

Labute Festival seeks one-act plays

Website

Deadline: January 21, 2026

Submissions should be sent to:
LaBute New Theater Festival, St. Louis Actors’ Studio, 360 N Boyle Ave, St. Louis, MO 63108

Created and staged exclusively each summer by STLAS, at The Gaslight Theatre in St. Louis and 59E59 Street and Davenport Theaters in New York.

Submissions will be accepted October 1, 2025 through January 31, 2026(Postmarked).

​PROFESSIONAL SUBMISSIONS

Successful entries will have no more than four characters and be crafted specifically to exploit our intimate performance space. (18′ x 18′ stage) Changes in scenery or setting should be achievable quickly and with few major set moves. Our focus is on fundamental dramaturgy: plot, character and theme.

Professional, new and previously unproduced one-act play submissions should include a letter of inquiry, a synopsis and a 10-page sample from the script. Running time for each performance should not exceed 45 minutes. Up to Eight plays will be chosen. In addition, a new piece from Mr. LaBute will be performed every night for the run of the festival.


For more information: 314-458-2978 or help@stlas.org

Go Try Play Write - January 2026

Website

Deadline: January 31, 2026

SUBMISSION FORM

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 January 2026 is:

A dog whistle prompt. Write a ten-page maximum scene or an eight-page maximum monologue using the phrase, “I don’t see color.” Whether true or false, whether sincere or disingenuous, I’d argue that such a phrase masks a pre-judgement of someone based on skin color (prejudice), or a willful ignorance of systemic and historical inequities against persons of one color (racism). There are many phrases that mask prejudice and/or racist rants, diatribes, and reasonable arguments. But use, “I don’t see color,” for this prompt.

The 2026 Fresh Fruit Festival MainStage

Website

Deadline: January 16, 2026

SUBMISSION FORM

MAINSTAGE 2026 DATES: Monday APRIL 20 through Sunday MAY 3 and YES, we are back home in the WILD PROJECT!, For Our 24th Year!

Please do NOT attempt the application form on a cell phone. 

Look the sample form over* and write any ‘essay’ type questions in advance to paste-in to the online form. 

Text attachments must be in .RTF, .PDF, or .DOC file formats only. You can always simply give tested “links” to your own files when uploads are asked for (large files like sound or video media must always be given as links only- but be sure any passwords or other permissions are sent along in the application. *Get the condensed sample form below, which is pretty close to the online questions, but lacks most expanding fields, text-help and samples:

Sample-App-2024Download

WE PROVIDE a high degree of hand-holding and support: One of our TWO alternating Technical Directors to run the Booth for you; a full Front of House staff; On-site logistics people to help you organize your load in and out, and assign storage for costumes and props; Full ticketing services, plus many group sales and discount options; A glossy, full-color Festival-wide brochure to hold your own show’s program; inclusion in all our own publicity and press releases; highly discounted rates at our designated rehearsal studios in Midtown plus a Technical Rehearsal on stage . . . All with NO APPLICATION FEES and no required “participation fees.” All shows receive a % share of the box office (currently 15%) over a small house minimum at no charge, with higher percentages available for experienced producers.

WE EXPECT a fully rehearsed, well directed and produced theatrical work, with all costuming, sound, and video cues well prepared in advance of the Tech Rehearsal. Your show, regardless of size, must have an experienced Stage Manager as point person. You must provide a PRINTED program with at minimum a full cast bio listing, plus a standard Press Kit for reviewers (which may include a “QR” code linking to more material if you wish). A QR-code alone is not a program.

APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS

One MAINSTAGE work per author will be considered. APPLY EARLY AS POSSIBLE, the earlier you apply, the more attention you will get (Revisions are expected, but must stay within your time limit, including any required intermission). If you are torn between 2 works please write us a note about them on our ‘contact us page’ for advice. All submissions are evaluated by a team of readers with specific primary interests (comedy, music, trans & other LGBT interests)
Do not upload video or audio files; give Links to them only. Applications: Open December 15.
Deadline for Full-Lengths: Monday January 16th, 2026
Deadline for Small Cast Shows & 1-Acts: January 30, 2026
Announcements Throughout January & early February.

For Plays (not Solo works): 

Please attach a complete current version of the play. One-Acts (at least 25-35 min. long) and Full-Lengths (45 to 100 min) will both be considered. (Shorts are ineligible for this Festival; but we do have short play festivals throughout the year.) Submissions are primarily in English only.

For Solo Plays/Performances: No solo works are accepted for this Mainstage; BUT PLEASE CONSIDER our Monologue To Film series, and our Radio Shorts! Those programs are well subsidized and will have their own schedules.

13th Annual New Play Festival PLAYWRIGHTS’ REVOLUTION 2026 seeks full-length plays

Website

Deadline: March 6, 2026

Or when the 350 maximum submission limit is reached

DO NOT SEND - THEY HAVE REACHED THEIR MAXIMUM.

As a part of our mission to develop new plays and playwrights, Capital Stage presents its 13th Annual New Play Festival PLAYWRIGHTS’ REVOLUTION in July 2026. Up to 350 new play submissions will be accepted from January 6 – March 6, 2026. 

By May 2026 Capital Stage will choose the 4-6 finalists for this year’s festival. One-night-only staged readings will be presented during the last week of July 2026. Q&A sessions between the audience and artists immediately to follow each staged reading.

Only submissions that follow these guidelines are acceptable:

• Play submissions that are full-length.
• Plays that have not had a full-scale, professional production prior to submission. (Workshop, reading, or non-professional production acceptable.)
• Only one submission per playwright is allowed each year.
• Do not submit a musical.

Preference will be given to those plays that are aligned with Capital Stage’s mission to create transformative, thought-provoking theater experiences that challenge, inspire, and connect. 

Visit the Production History page to see the kind of work that Capital Stage produces.

The Selection Process

Capital Stage’s competitive selection process consists of two rounds. During the first round, up to 350 10-page play excerpts submitted are reviewed. After which, only selected playwrights will be contacted and asked to provide a full manuscript of their play. Finally, Capital Stage invites the final 4 to 6 playwrights to have their work presented in the Playwrights’ Revolution staged readings in July of 2026.

How to Apply

Complete the online submission form to provide Capital Stage with information about the playwright and the play, and to upload the submission application.

In order to be accepted, your application must be submitted as a single PDF file that includes the following:

• File name must be “Author Last Name_Title of Play” (ex: Miller_Death of a Salesman)
• The first page(s) of the file must include: Title of play, character breakdown and descriptions, and a synopsis of the play (these pages do not count as your 10-page sample)
• A 10-page sample of the play
• DO NOT include the name of the author on any pages
• DO NOT send full scripts until requested

Only submissions that follow these instructions will be considered.

Some Recommendations

Make sure that your synopsis sets the reader up to understand what is going on in your sample. Remember that the reader only has this synopsis and the 10 pages that you provide to get to know your work, and that is difficult to do if they are confused about the plot. Also, make sure you are submitting the best 10 pages of your work! The sample does not need to be the first 10 pages of the play; you should select whichever 10-page section you think presents the best argument for why we should want to read the whole thing.

2026 Deadline

Submissions will be accepted only from January 6 – March 6, 2026. Or until the 350 maximum submission limit is reached. Local, national, and international playwrights are encouraged to submit. Only the first 350 submissions will be accepted.

Liminal Space Productions seeks short plays for one-night showcase

Instagram

Deadline: January 15, 2026

Liminal Space Productions, the new theatre wing of Laughpack Productions, is curating a one-night short play showcase at the East Village Basement on Sunday February 15th. 

We're seeking submissions of 6-30 minute casted plays. This is a great opportunity for playwrights to see their work staged in front of a live audience and connect with fellow theater makers.

There is no submission fee and no cost to participate. We welcome plays from creators of all identities, cultures, and backgrounds. A small performance stipend is available for selected acts. There will be a tech and dress rehearsal space provided at an East Village venue the week before. The deadline for submissions is January 15th, 2026.

To submit for booking consideration, please use the following form:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScFsV-SJvFUPcOc5717zfFKL-9ec_j9_iZ7CIqe9pajeAdxdw/viewform

Curtain Rising: Staged Readings of New Works seeks short plays

Website

Deadline: January 12th, 2026

To submit your play, follow this link. 

Playwrights may submit more than one play.

Plays will be announced in early February 2026. 

The 2nd Stage at Burlington County Footlighters Theatre in Cinnaminson NJ is producing our fourth annual Curtain Rising: Staged Readings of New Works as part of our 2025-2026 season. 

This thought-provoking event will showcase short one-act plays which explore the underlying theme of If Not Now, Then When?

We are currently accepting script submissions (previously unproduced) and will select plays for minimally staged readings to be performed on Friday February 27th & Saturday February 28th, 2026. The 2nd Stage is our black box performance space, seating about 30 people. Playwrights agree to have their work be presented with no monetary compensation. Playwrights will receive production stills and two (2) comp tickets (one for the playwright and one guest) for Saturday night’s performance.

Playwrights must be present at the Saturday evening performance to see their work and participate in our audience talkback session. Playwrights should be aware that our 2nd Stage is not ADA accessible. There is a staircase that attendees need to climb to access the space. If you cannot access the space, please let us know when you submit. We do have an alternative plan to accommodate playwrights with mobility challenges.

In order to be considered:

Plays need to fit within the theme, have no more than five characters, be performed in 10-15 minutes, and have minimal staging/technical requirements. Plays should not have been formally produced.

Questions? Contact Heidi at curtainrising@bcfootlighters.com

https://www.facebook.com/2ndStageAtBCF

Live & In Color’s June Bingham New Playwright Commission 2026

Website

Deadline: January 15, 2026 at 11:59 pm EST

SUBMISSION FORM

Thank you for your interest in Live & In Color’s June Bingham New Playwright Commission. This commission opportunity provides resources and support toward the creation and development of a new play by early-career women/femme and/or non-binary storytellers. 

This opportunity will culminate in a 60-90 min 2 person play that will be workshopped and presented as a reading for an audience. This workshop is anticipated for one week in mid-September 2026.

The commission, named after the late artist and playwright June Bingham, seeks to honor her creative legacy by empowering femme artists to create poignant, evocative, and timely new plays that push boundaries and reflect the nuance of the times we are living in. Previous recipients and projects have included Erlina Ortiz’s award-winning play, La Egoista (2021) which received it's world premiere at the Actors Theatre of Louisville, AriDy Nox’s The Wetlands (2022) which had a presentation on site at the Giacomi Wetlands, Raquel Almazan's Goddesses Return to the Temple (2023), Esmé Ng's I Know Why Iris Chang Died (2024), and Vaibu Mohan's Bound to You (2025) which will have it's NYC presentation in 2026.

This application is designed as the first of a three-round selection process that will be conducted virtually. Please fill out the form below to the best of your ability. Please note that this opportunity is open to all early-career writers who identify as cis-femme, trans-femme, and/or non-binary.

The total fee for this commission will be $3,000; housing, meals, and travel for the retreat are also provided. Unfortunately, at this time, we are unable to consider international applicants. To be selected for this opportunity you must be a U.S. resident with ability to work in the U.S.

This submission form will close on 1/15/2026 at 11:59 pm EST. You will be notified by 2/15/2025 if you are selected as a Semi-Finalist.

We define “early-career” as artists who have written pieces previously, or have engaged in writing via books, film, TV, etc. but have not had theatrical work that has been extensively professionally produced by commercial or non-profit organizations and have less than two full-length plays that have been published in print.

If you have questions about your eligibility or any portion of the application, please email Junebinghamcommission@liveandincolor.org.

Glass Ceiling Breakers: 2026 A Festival of Short Plays by Women Artists

Website

Deadline: January 17, 2026 at 11:59pm

Plays must be submitted here: https://forms.gle/nm27B6khACXkT6YbA

Theatre Revolution is proud to announce submissions are open for  Glass Ceiling Breakers: 2026 A Festival of Short Plays and Films by Women Artists

GCB 2026 is scheduled for June 5, 6 and 7, 2026 at the Philipstown Depot Theatre in Garrison NY.

Plays must be written by female or female identifying playwrights.

They can be produced or unproduced plays. Feel free to send us plays that were produced years ago that you'd like to revisit! Plays that are currently being workshopped are also welcome.

Plays should be no more than 10 minutes (we mean it!) 12 pages max (excluding the title page) in standard play format. Type size (12) with 1” margins.

If the play is 12 pages but longer than 10 minutes (lots of text) playwright may be asked for revisions if selected.

Save File as follows in PDF only: LAST NAME_TITLE OF PLAY_GCB26

Monologues are accepted but we prefer plays. Monologues should not be more than 3 pages.

BIPOC playwrights are strongly encouraged to submit.

Theatre and/or Playwrights will be informed in Early March.

If selected, playwrights and/or theatre companies are responsible for producing their play. There is no compensation for plays. Theatre Revolution may provide some production assistance (not financial) by connecting producers to possible actors, directors, and props. 

Only non-union actors may be cast in plays.

In all cases, Theatre Revolution will provide limited set pieces, lighting and sound equipment, and production staff. There will be a mandatory pre-production meeting via ZOOM for all playwrights or their representatives in March 2026. 

Questions? Email us. theatrerevolution1@gmail.com We are looking forward to reading your work!

Working Theater submission guidelines

Website

Deadline: none given

If you think this is your play, please complete this short form. If you have any questions, reach out to literary@theworkingtheater.org.

Working Theater is a new American play incubator for work by playwrights which centers the lives of working people, by telling their stories in new and unexpected ways. How do we define “working people”? At Working Theater, we’re a broad church. Is your humanity impacted, affected or transformed by your work? You’re a working person, congratulations! Welcome to Team WT.


WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR:

• Stories for, about or made with working people, and/or the issues which affect them, in mind.
• We invite plays which disrupt traditions of “working-class theater.”
• We want your play to make us laugh, make us cry, and make us feel a little dangerous.
• Does your play deal with themes of work, labors visible and invisible, labor history? Is your play pro-worker, pro-union or anti-capitalist? It’s probably a play for us.
• Does your play come at these themes in unexpected and novel ways? It’s probably a play for us.
• Full-length plays and musicals.

WHAT WE ARE NOT LOOKING FOR:

• We are not interested in stories in which working people are passive victims of an oppressive system.
• “Issue plays,” issue plays is our least favorite oxymoron – all plays have issues, but we are interested in plays which center people.
• We are not interested in agit-prop (until you show us an agit-prop play that blows our minds!)
• We are not interested in clichés about the working class – show us something we’ve never seen before, baby!

James Madison University New Works Laboratory

Website

Deadline: January 10, 2026

SUBMISSION FORM

Seeking: Full-length plays to be workshopped with a community of artists including JMU faculty and students at James Madison University (JMU) in Harrisonburg, VA. Submissions should respond to contemporary questions/issues in our world. Diverse perspectives and/or theatrical approaches welcome. First 200 submissions will be accepted or until 1/16/26. Selected plays will be announced by 4/15/26.

Please note, though we do work on musicals in our development process, the 2026 season is looking for plays and not accepting musicals.

What is Madison New Works Laboratory?

Madison New Works Laboratory (MNWL) is an incubator for the development of new plays and musicals. Each selected artist is provided an opportunity to develop their work with a community of artists through conversations, rehearsals, and a festival of public readings. MNWL aspires to the following goals:Develop new works by and for various ages, cultures, and populations
Foster theatrical innovation in the development process in an artist-friendly environment
Identify new work for eventual production in the JMU Mainstage and Studio Season
Support professional playwrights in the development of their work
Provide opportunities for JMU student-artists to work with professional artists on new work

Description of Residency:

• $1250 honorarium for each playwright selected
• Round-trip transportation and housing for the playwright
• Access to student performers selected through an audition process. (Maximum of 6 actors, may include double casting.)
• Available resources include director, stage manager, and supportive artistic staff. 
• Development and rehearsals will be held 8/20 – 8/26
• Public readings will be held for the JMU and Harrisonburg community the weekend of 8/27-8/29

Play Selection: 

• Preference will be given to unpublished plays/works that are seeking development and accomplish the following Address contemporary issues, stories and questions
• Include characters that are suitable for college-age actors for both the development process and potential production in our mainstage season
• Include no more than 6 characters (If your work has more than 6 characters and can be accomplished with character doubling, the character doubling must be articulated in the script.)

The School of Theatre and Dance at James Madison University believes that equity, access, and inclusion are moral imperatives and artistic obligations. Diversity—in the stories we represent, the students we serve, and the audiences we engage—is vital for the health and relevance of contemporary performing arts practice. The School of Theatre and Dance, therefore, welcomes diversity of perspective, ethnicity, religion, socio-economic status, gender identity, sexual orientation, and ability.

Any questions email lngrid De Sanctis desancie@jmu.edu

Brave New Work, a short play development series seeks 10-15 minute plays

Website

Deadline: January 16, 2026

APPLICATION FORM

New York Shakespeare Exchange and The CRY HAVOC Company are thrilled to debut our collaborative project Brave New Work, a short play development series that invites NYC playwrights to create original work inspired by, expanding, reflecting upon, remixing, and critiquing the plays of William Shakespeare.

Across several weeks, four writers will craft short plays responding to a Shakespearean prompt through development workshops facilitated by NYSX and CRY HAVOC, culminating in a public reading of all four plays. Applicants need to be local to the NYC area to participate and we are especially seeking artists from underrepresented communities for this project. No fee to apply or participate; writers are paid a stipend for the use of their work in the public presentation.

In year one of this project—Shakespeare as Prologue—we are looking for playwrights interested in exploring the aftermath of Shakespeare’s plays. Apply with an idea for a new short two-character play that takes place after the end of a Shakespeare play (the moment after the play ends, five years later, 50 years later, 500 years later…)
The Guidelines

• You do not have to be a “Shakespeare Nerd” to participate in this project (but if you are, you are also welcome!)
• Select a single Shakespeare play as your starting point.
• We are looking for a proposal for a 10-15 minute play with two characters.
• One character must be from your chosen Shakespeare play; the other can be invented.
• Writers will be developing their plays in a workshop feedback process; we are looking for playwrights that are interested in discussing their work and supporting the work of others!

How does the collaboration work?
Each writer is paired with a facilitator—a CRY HAVOC or NYSX artist—to confer with before and after each feedback session. Facilitators moderate each session in support of the playwrights and their goals. The feedback sessions will include a combined roster of artists from the NYSX and CRY HAVOC communities, the Brave New Work writers, and their invited guests and colleagues.

The Schedule (all sessions will be in the evening)

Sun. 3/1: welcome meeting with playwrights and staff

Tue. 3/10 and Thu. 3/12: 1st draft feedback workshops

Tue. 3/17 and Thu. 3/19: 2nd draft feedback workshops

Tue. 3/24 and Thu. 3/26: 3rd draft feedback workshops

Tue. 3/31 and Thu. 4/2: rehearsal draft feedback workshops VIA ZOOM

Thu. 4/16: public reading of the play collection

ABOUT US

The CRY HAVOC Company believes that writing a script doesn’t have to be a solitary experience. Feedback at key points in the writing process can bring you closer to your goals. Our approach to script development places your writing goals at the center of the workshop discussion, ensuring that collaborators are offering feedback in service of the play you are trying to write.

New York Shakespeare Exchange uses Shakespeare's body of work as a starting point and toolkit for building stronger, more empathetic communities. We invite our fellow New Yorkers to form a relationship of “exchange” with Shakespeare’s legacy, creating new opportunities for artistic expression, social connection, and mutual learning. This active exchange between centuries-old works and contemporary points of view honors an essential quality of Shakespeare’s creative spirit - to search the world around us for inspiration, and our own imaginations for innovation.

Strongbox Theater second annual short play festival.

Website

Deadline: January 8, 2026

Submit a PDF via email to info@strongboxtheater.com

Seeking 10-minute plays

Strongbox Theater is now accepting submissions for its second annual short play festival. 

Only comedies will be considered for this year’s show. 

All plays will be fully produced. Playwrights will be paid a $100 fee for accepted plays. 

Please submit only one of your best comedies. This is your opportunity to be a big part of Strongbox history as we produce our first production in our long-awaited theater. 

We are expecting sold-out nights. 

Almost Adults Productions seeks plays under 12-minutes

 Facebook page

Deadline: January 21, 2026

Or until they receive 200 submissions

DO NOT SEND - THEY HAVE REACHED THEIR SUBMISSION LIMIT.

Almost Adults Productions (https://www.facebook.com/almostadultstheatre/) seeks plays under 12-minutes for a fully staged short play program called People Have the Power 2.0, inspired by the Patti Smith/Fred 'Sonic' Smith song. 

 An article about our sold-out production in 2025 can be found Here.

This will be performed at Teatro Paraguas in Santa Fe, NM April 11th and 18th at 7:30 pm and April 12th and 19th at 2 pm. The plays in some way should be about social activists making a difference in their communities and therefore the world at large. They can be based on true stories/people or can be works of fiction. We're especially interested in works that address issues such as reproductive justice, LGBTQIA rights, immigration, aging discrimination, and disability justice. 

Please send to January 21st with the play as a PDF attachment to aarontheatresantafe@gmail.com. Submitting ASAP is recommended since there is a cut-off of 200 submissions.

One play submission per playwright. 

There are no restrictions on previously produced or published plays. 

 No fee to submit.

BLACK WOMAN GENIUS ~ SEMI-FINALISTS

Congratulations to the playwrights who were chosen as semi-finalists for the BLACK WOMAN GENIUS project.

Thanks to everybody who shared their work with us.

The award-winner will be announced Sunday, January 18, 2026.

We will begin posting excerpts daily (with permission) from the semi-finalist scripts and award-winning script  beginning Sunday January 18.

Listed in alphabetical order:

• AUNT KATHY by Rex McGregor
• CRY ALOUD! by Paula Ralph Birkett
• GENIUS by Kenndall Wallace
• HARRIET POWERS by Grace Cavalieri 
• I AM FIRE by Elizabeth Nafula
• INTELLIGENCE by Stacy Nathaniel Jackson
• JOY by Shaneisha Dodson
• LONELY by J. Lois Diamond
• MY NAME IS CATHAY WILLIAMS: THE RIGHT AND TRUTHFUL GENIUS NARRATIVE OF CATHAY WILLIAMS (1844 - 1892) by Cornelia Weiss
• NO (SOME) WAYS TIRED by chandra thomas
• POSTURES OF RETURN by Catherine Ashley 
• THE PAUSE THAT CHANGES EVERYTHING by Robert Csoma
• YOUNG, GIFTED AND GENIUS by Niki Gee

11th Annual Pyro PlayFest 2026 Call for Plays Theme: "Spark of Creation: Humanity, Invention, and Expression"

Facebook page

Deadline: January 12, 2026

 SUBMISSION FORM

Paris Junior College Department of Drama's 11th Annual Pyro PlayFest is now accepting submissions!

In a season celebrating new voices, we are looking for bold, original short plays that explore the heart of creativity — the human spirit, invention, imagination, and the drive to express. Whether you tackle these ideas literally, abstractly, or metaphorically, we want to experience the spark that fuels your storytelling!

The chosen submissions will receive a full production on our 3/4 thrust stage space performed by students and community members in late April 2026, right here in Paris, Texas, on the Duane Allen Stage in the Ray E. Karrer Theater.

Please note: This is a non-paying opportunity. While we are unable to offer financial compensation at this time, selected playwrights will have the opportunity to have their work brought to life in front of a live audience by a dedicated team of emerging artists and community members.

Submission Guidelines

• Unpublished, minimally produced plays (readings okay; no full productions).
• Length: 10 minutes or less.
• Page Limit: 10 pages max (standard format, 12-pt font, with page numbers).
• Cast: No more than 6 characters.
• Technical Requirements: Keep it simple — minimal sets, basic lighting, and modest props.
• Theme Connection: Must explore creation, humanity, invention, or expression in some form.

Content Note: Please keep language and themes suitable for a general adult audience.

Important Dates:
• Submission Deadline: January 12, 2026
• Festival Dates: April 22-26, 2026

How to Submit:
Please submit your scripts (Up to three) in PDF format through this Google Form: New Works Submissions

Include a cover page with the following information:
• Play title
• Playwright's name
• Contact email
• Short synopsis (2-3 sentences)
• Character breakdown

Please make sure that your name is not on any part of the play except the Cover Page as we submit our shows to a panel, blind.

Feels Blind Literary welcomes plays for Issue #13

Website

Deadline: January 31, 2026

NOTE: send on Monday to avoid submission fee

Submissions for Issue #13 should be sent to feelsblindliterary@gmail.com. Please include a short bio written in the third person. 

Feels Blind Literary welcomes submissions of short fiction, creative nonfiction, plays, and art from new and emerging creatives who are women, nonbinary, trans, genderqueer, genderfluid, agender, etc. 

The submission fee is always waived on Mondays.

​​We are adamant about not creating a barrier in terms of who can submit and how often, which is why every Monday is a free submission day during opening reading periods. On other days, we have decided to start collecting fees. Here's why—we've noticed many literary magazines and organizations expressing solidarity with social justice movements and we've been considering how to do the same. Feels Blind Literary is committed to speaking out against social and environmental injustice, police brutality, and unconstitutional attacks on our bodies and the free press. With that being said, we didn't feel just saying we're committed to these causes was enough. Rather, we knew we needed to demonstrate that commitment in tangible ways, both by continuing to elevate marginalized voices in the work that we publish and by raising money for causes we believe will help directly combat the -isms in this country.

​As such, all non-Monday submissions must include a $3 submission fee through the donation tab below. A portion of the fees for this reading period will go directly to a nonprofit addressing these issues in a tangible way. For this cycle, submission fees for Issue #11 with go to Aid Access, one of the largest suppliers of abortion pills in the country. The site enables women to pay on a sliding scale based on need and other women can donate to help offset costs for those in need. They also ship abortion pills discreetly to all 50 states. They reported receiving 10,000 requests for the medication in the first 24 hours after the election was called, so they could use all of the help they can get. We also are launching a special issue to coincide with AWP and all submission fees will go to ECDC, an organization based in Silver Spring, Maryland and Arlington, Virginia providing crucial services for refugees.

If you include a $10 donation, we will guarantee a 10-day or less response time to your work. If you include a $20 donation, we will guarantee a 72-hour or less response time to your work.

Glass Ceiling Breakers: 2026 A Festival of Short Plays and Films by Women Artists

Website

Deadline: January 17, 2026 at 11:59pm

Plays must be submitted here: https://forms.gle/nm27B6khACXkT6YbA

Theatre Revolution is proud to announce submissions are open for GCB 2026 is scheduled for June 5, 6 and 7, 2026 at the  Philipstown Depot Theatre in Garrison NY.

Plays must be written by female or female identifying playwrights.

They can be produced or unproduced plays. Feel free to send us plays that were produced years ago that you'd like to revisit! Plays that are currently being workshopped are also welcome.

Plays should be no more than 10 minutes (we mean it!) 12 pages max (excluding the title page) in standard play format. Type size (12) with 1” margins.

If the play is 12 pages but longer than 10 minutes (lots of text) playwright may be asked for revisions if selected.

Save File as follows in PDF only: LAST NAME_TITLE OF PLAY_GCB26

All plays must be received by 11:59pm on January 17, 2026.

Monologues are accepted but we prefer plays. Monologues should not be more than 3 pages.

BIPOC playwrights are strongly encouraged to submit.

Theatre and/or Playwrights will be informed in Early March.

If selected, playwrights and/or theatre companies are responsible for producing their play. There is no compensation for plays. Theatre Revolution may provide some production assistance (not financial) by connecting producers to possible actors, directors, and props. Only non-union actors may be cast in plays.

In all cases, Theatre Revolution will provide limited set pieces, lighting and sound equipment, and production staff. There will be a mandatory pre-production meeting via ZOOM for all playwrights or their representatives in March 2026. Questions? Email us. theatrerevolution1@gmail.com We are looking forward to reading your work!

Queens Short Play Festival Winter 2026

 Website

Deadline: January 31, 2026

PLEASE NOTE: PLAYS ARE ACCEPTED ON A ROLLING BASIS. WAITING UNTIL THE DEADLINE TO SUBMIT IS NOT ADVISED.

Apply HERE: https://form.jotform.com/253154851790158

Following our successful Feastival at our new location we are pleased to announce that Queens Short Play Festival is now accepting plays for its Winter 2026 festival. The Secret Theatre seeks to promotenew work and emerging playwrights through our biannual One Act Festival. Last year's festivals were a success, and this year we are excited for more!

No fee to submit or produce.

• $250 Cash Prize for Best Play
• $100 Cash Prize for Best Director
• $75 Cash Prize for Best Actor
• $75 Cash Prize for Best Actor

• Each Play is guaranteed multiple performances [the exact number is decided once our final selection is made. Factors include the length of plays but is not usually less than 4 performances.

Guidelines:

• Plays must be between 10 and 15 minutes in length. Preference given to plays that havenot been produced before. Timings must be accurate; please overestimate if not sure. We will reject any play longer than 15 minutes. A rule of thumb is one minute per page if using 12pt Courier/Times Roman

• Playwrights are responsible for selecting the director and cast.

(We can help you if you do not have a director but preference will be given to playwrights who can provide their own directors and actors.)

• Easy to produce. (If you have a play that, for instance, includes a swimming pool, a large amount of sets and props, or anything else too elaborate or is impossible to cast, we may reject it.)

• Excerpts limited to 15 mins are acceptable

• Please submit plays in PDF or Word format only.

• We will divide selected plays into more programs, and selected Playwrights will be informed on a rolling basis.

• We offer discounted rates for rehearsals from $10 per hour for participants

 

QR:

The Secret Theatre
1010 44th Ave, LIC, NY 11101

HAPPY NEW YEARS 2026 FROM NYCPLAYWRIGHTS!