Woodward/Newman Award 2027/28

Website

Deadline: August 31, 2026

SUBMISSION FORM

The Woodward/Newman Award is an exclusive honor offered by Constellation Stage & Screen, started through the support of Joanne Woodward, Newman’s Own Foundation, and the Newman family, celebrating Paul Newman & Joanne Woodward’s tremendous history of work on stage and screen. It presents the best unpublished play of the year with a cash prize of $3,000 and a full production as part of Constellation’s Mainstage season.

Please note that there are significant changes to our submission and selection process from previous years. In order to make the Woodward/Newman Award accessible to all, we have eliminated submission fees as well as the contest format. The Woodward/Newman Award will continue to be awarded to an unpublished new play once per year and come with a $3,000 cash prize and a full production. 

Submissions will be accepted and reviewed by our literary team on an ongoing basis, and will be considered for the award as well as for all 7 production slots in our season. So a play that is not selected for the Woodward/Newman slot in our season, may still be considered and selected for production. 

This will allow us to now accept open submissions for all types of plays (including TYA shows). Plays submitted by midnight, August 31st, 2026 will be considered for the 2027-28 season, while plays submitted beyond that date will be considered for the 2028-29 Season. All submissions will be kept on file for 2 years after submission.

If you have questions regarding submissions to the Constellation Stage & Screen, please contact the Literary Manager at literary@seeconstellation.org.

GUIDELINES FOR SUBMISSIONS

We are currently accepting submissions for the 2027-28 Woodward/Newman Award. The award recipient will be announced by May 15, 2027. 

The winner will be awarded $3,000 and a full production.“Full-length” plays should have a complete running time of between 1 hour 15 minutes (75 minutes) to 2 hours 15 minutes (135 minutes). TYA shows should have a complete running time of over 40 minutes.

Plays submitted must be unpublished at the time of submission (independently published is acceptable).
Each play should be individually submitted at the following link: CONSTELLATION STAGE & SCREEN PLAY SUBMISSION.

You will be asked to submit your play as an attachment and all other information (bio, history, synopsis, character breakdown) will be entered into a form. Musical submissions may upload demos as an attachment or include a link to a shared folder.

Limit of 2 play submissions per year.

$3,000 cash prize is in lieu of royalties for the full production. Housing & transportation will also be provided.

Any unpublished play submitted to Constellation regardless of method (e.g. online form, agent submission, direct contact) may be considered for the Woodward/Newman Award.

Please note that we are moving away from a “finalists” model in lieu of keeping all plays under consideration for extended periods (2yrs). We will only announce a winner.

If you have any questions, please email literary@seeconstellation.org.

Script Consulting for Stage Plays and Musicals with Arianna Rose

In need of a pair of eyes on your stage script as you prepare for or continue with rewrites? Desire assistance with structure, character arcs, dialogue or plot? The play doctor is IN! I’ve helped playwrights and musical theatre writers with their scripts of all lengths.

“Arianna provided terrific advice as dramaturg on my new full-length drama… She was thoughtful and professional… Her comments were astute, perceptive and creative, and she never held back from challenging me in a positive manner… Her analysis has been rich and in depth…Long after I received her report, I continue to reflect on her analysis and be enriched by it.” 

            - Elan Garonzik, playwright

“Arianna!!!! Thank you so much. Genius. This is exactly the type of feedback and actionable brainstorming I was hoping for. I truly appreciate your thorough and thoughtful work. My mind is already drumming up ways to “show, not tell” this story…I'm going to spend some super quality time with your write-up and notes.”

~ Karen Campion, Award-winning Playwright and Screenwriter

“…[Arianna] excels in the kind of focused dramaturgy that supports AND stimulates a writer’s process. She is completely adept at breaking down, honing-in, and explaining (with clarity) wherever there may be issues or problems in the story. Her skill at examining details is only exceeded by her innate ability to ask the right questions that stimulate a writer to find and understand their path to making rewrites/corrections that stay true to their own style and voice… She IS the real thing!”

~ Jack G Hyman, playwright, author, actor, musical theatre writer

MY CREDENTIALS

• M.F.A., NYU Tisch School of the Arts Graduate Musical Theatre Writing Program
• Alumna, BMI-Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Writing Workshop
• Member, LMDA (Literary Managers & Dramaturgs of the Americas)
• Playwriting Instructor: Dramatists Guild Institute, PlayPenn Theatre.
• Dramaturg: “Plays in Progress” program for plays and musicals, Dramatists Guild
• Founder & Moderator, Plays on Purpose/New Musicals (Weekly Stage Writers Group)

MY RATES

I offer a discount to current Dramatists Guild members or South Florida Theatre League members, and the rates for short plays include rewrites. You can find my current rates, code of ethics, dramaturgical process, more testimonials and a contact form on my website page:

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

You can also email me at rockawayrose@gmail.com I look forward to helping you with your play or musical!

Axis Review seeks plays

Instagram

Deadline:  June 10, 2026 at 11:59pm EDT

SUBMIT VIA GOOGLE FORMS

Restrictions: For writers identifying as female or living in a feminized body.

Axis Review is a new literary magazine centering female and feminized bodies. We are currently accepting submissions for our inaugural Summer 2026 issue! We are looking for poetry, fiction (short fiction, flash fiction, plays), nonfiction (personal essay, cultural critique, scientific essay), and visual art (illustration, photography, mixed media, digital art, and more), particularly work that reflects an element of our mission statement: “Where the body sits at an axis. Where the intimate becomes political, the private becomes public, and the scientific becomes poetic.

There’s something for everyone at the Playwrights Group

There’s something for everyone at TPG!

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

San Miguel de Allende Diez Minutos Festival 2026 seeks 10-minute plays

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Deadline:  June 30, 2026 midnight Central Time

Only the first 100 plays entered are guaranteed to be considered. 

Please email your submission to: diezminutosfestival@gmail.com. Any inquiries should be sent to the same address.

The San Miguel de Allende Diez Minutos Festival is very happy to be back after a 4-year hiatus. 

The plays will be fully staged and performed in the Santa Ana theatre in the centro historico of San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, in January of 2027.  

There is no fee for submitting. The audiences will vote on their favorite play. The winner will be given $50 USD as a prize, the second favorite $30 USD and the third, $20 USD. 

Each playwright whose script is selected and performed will receive two complimentary tickets to the production.

Submission Guidelines

Players Workshop may delete, without reading, any submission that does not comply with these rules. 

Only one play may be submitted per entrant. Send us your best!

Only the first 100 plays entered are guaranteed to be considered.

The theme of this year’s festival is: SMALL SPACES.

There must be no nudity, and suitability for performance before a general adult audience will be a factor in selection. No musicals or children’s plays, please.

The play must be submitted by email, as an attached PDF file, with a separate PDF listing playwright information. No Word files or other formats will be accepted.

We’re asking for blind submissions again this year; your name must not appear on the script. The second PDF shall include all contact information for the playwright, including name, address, telephone number and email address on a separate title page.

The script must be in standard play format, with a title page, a character listing, the setting, props, and any technical requirements or other production considerations.

The two PDF files should be titled "Submission [Name Of Play]” and "Title Page [Name Of Play].”

The play must be in English and no longer than 10 pages in standard format, with a calculated running time of no less than eight minutes and no more than twelve minutes.

Submission period opens on June 1, 2026. Entries must be received prior to midnight U.S. Central Standard Time, June 30, 2026. No late submissions will be accepted because of transmission problems.

The play must be unpublished but may have had previous productions. If the play has had previous productions, a production history must be included with the submission of the title page. The submitting playwright must own all rights to the play.

Selection of plays will be at the absolute discretion of the judges. Selection of a play does not guarantee production. Producers may decline to produce a selected play because of casting, directing or any other consideration.

Notification is expected to be made no later than October 1, 2026. Only playwrights whose plays have been selected for performance during the festival will receive notification of acceptance. Playwrights whose plays were received in the first 100 submitted will receive first-round notification. Producers reserve the right to consider additional plays not received in the first 100.

Plays are restricted to 4 or fewer characters. Small casts are preferable, as the stage size is modest, with minimal set, props, sound cues, and costuming.

Our talent pool is composed mostly of actors aged 40 and older. This will be a factor in selection.

Entering playwrights grant the producers of Diez Minutos permission to perform the play a maximum of twelve times during the Diez Minutos festival, and to make as many copies of the script as are necessary for production. All other rights remain with the playwright.

Thanks, in advance, for helping us to make Diez Minutos 2026 a great success. We look forward to reading your entry.

Players Workshop
San Miguel de Allende, Mexico

The script doctor is in the house! 🩷

Award-winning bicoastal playwright and screenwriter Sarah Congress is offering her coveted script doctoring services online, for a limited time. 

Whether you are a producer with a screenplay/series that needs reworking, a fiction writer in need of inspiration, or a playwright with a new play, Sarah is here to help you take your script to the next level. Many clients that have worked with Sarah have won major awards in film festivals as well as prestigious theatrical opportunities.

Visit Sarah's website to connect with her.

Script Services:

• Help clients get “out of their own way” and fully realize their work and writing potential
• Offer rewrite suggestions 
• Punch up jokes and humor
• Improve confidence 
• Fine-tune material to hook a reader’s interest
• Assist in finding submission and publication opportunities as needed
• Marketing strategy help 

Bio

Sarah Congress is a playwright and script doctor with LA representation. Her play "Last Sunrise" was produced by Nylon Fusion for their Gilded Age/Cage Festival at TADA Theatre (June, 2025). "Last Sunrise" was presented with writers John Patrick Shanley, Lyle Kessler, and Migdalia Cruz. Sarah’s play “Delulu” was a semifinalist for Centre Stage's 23rd Annual New Play Festival (1 of 40 plays from 800 submissions). "Delulu" was read at the Episcopal Actors' Guild October 2025 and published by Feels Blind Literary and read at AWP 2026. She co-wrote the screenplay "I Can't Hear You!" which won BEST COMEDY in the 2024 Jersey Shore Film Festival. Her play “Overdose” won 2nd place for BEST SHORT in the 2023 Downtown Urban Arts Festival at Playwrights Horizons.

Teaching Experience

Sarah has taught writing classes for the Hoboken Historical Museum, Project Write Now, The Knowledge Project, RTA and the Hudson Valley Writers Center - as well as private teaching.

Testimonials - many clients find that working with Sarah is like "therapy"

"Sarah Congress is a wonderful teacher. She's supportive, intuitive, knowledgeable about writing and the landscape of theatre, film and TV. She asks the right questions, gives great notes and the sessions are enjoyable and productive. If you want to take your writing to the next level I can't think of a better coach/script doctor. The sessions fly by but the lessons you learn endure. She's great."

~ Jeff Perlman, Playwright & Non-profit CEO

"I had a breakthrough in my playwriting after working with Sarah. Her coaching made me realize I had the bad habit of undermining the power of my words.. I saw that after she pointed out one line in my play BIG FAT BABY IN HIS MOTHER'S ARMS which I went on to rewrite immediately and submitted for a serious Playwrights Fellowship. Just yesterday I heard from the UCROSS Foundation that I am the Alternate Fellow in the event one of the winners cannot attend in Spring 2025. I am honored to be acknowledged for the Fellowship and thank Sarah for her important coaching. Sarah will have you grow as a playwright/screenwriter in front of her eyes."

~ Tino Juarez, Playwright

"Sarah is a wonderful coach and mentor. She is tough and challenging and fun and really pushes me as a writer into places I didn’t know I was able to go. I have learned so much working with Sarah, not just as a writer, but also as a teacher, as I transition from novelist to playwright. I could not give a higher recommendation working with her. But I assure you, if I could, I would."

~ Jon Papernick, Novelist and Assistant Professor at Emerson College

CALL FOR AFRICAN PLAYWRIGHTS

Website

Deadline: June 7, 2026

APPLY BY EMAIL volunteer@afri-kana.org
Please note, this is not a volunteer position. That is simply the email we are using to receive submissions.

Afrikana is seeking African immigrant / first generation playwrights to submit scenes, monologues, short plays, or full-length works for an upcoming production centered on the immigrant experience.

All stories are welcome! The majority of the script must be in English, but multilingual stories and scripts are accepted and celebrated.

The final piece will be produced and brought to life on stage as part of a larger fundraising production supporting Afrikana’s mission and its goal of raising $1 million in seed capital to establish an endowment fund.

ABOUT AFRIKANA
Afrikana supports New York’s newest and oldest residents. We specifically focus on Black, Arab, and Muslim arrivals who face significant barriers to accessing services, including legal, shelter, workforce, and benefit assistance.

Subject Line: SCRIPT SUBMISSION 2026
Name:
Title of Play:
Genre:
Summary: 200 words maximum
*Link to Excerpt (Google Docs PDF):
Link to Script (Google Docs PDF):
Tell Us About Yourself: Optional, 100 words maximum

*For scripts longer than 10 pages, please include a separate PDF with a 10-page excerpt.

FORMATTING REQUIREMENTS
Scripts should be formatted in 12-point Arial font with 1.5 line spacing. All pages must be numbered in the upper right-hand corner, beginning with the Title Page as page 1. Please include a list of characters on page 2, as well as any additional contextual information you wish to share.

PAY
Selected playwright(s) will receive a stipend; details provided upon selection.

The Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature seeks one-act and full-length plays from current or former citizens of the Philippines

Website

Deadline: June 30, 2026

ONE-ACT ENTRY FORM

FULL-LENGTH ENTRY FORM

In the ONE-ACT PLAY/DULANG MAY ISANG YUGTO categories, an entry must be of sufficient length to approximate a performance time of forty-five (45) minutes and must include a separate one-page synopsis.

The theme is open and free.

7. In the FULL-LENGTH PLAY/DULANG GANAP ANG HABA categories, an entry must consist of two (2) or more acts and must include a separate one-page synopsis.

All entries MUST BE SUBMITTED ONLINE through the official CPMA website: www.palancaawards.com.ph –

please follow the instructions under the Contest page. Printed and/or email submissions WILL NOT BE

ACCEPTED.

F. ENTRY CONDITIONS

1. Authors may submit only one (1) entry per category; however, they may submit entries across multiple categories, provided that each entry is distinct.

2. An entry or excerpt thereof, may only be submitted in one (1) category and may not be entered in any other category.

3. A translation of an entry submitted in one (1) division shall not be eligible in any other division.

4. A work which has been awarded a prize in another contest before 12:00 M.N. of 30 June 2026 is not qualified for the awards.

5. Published/produced works which were first published or first produced between 01 July 2025 to 30 June 2026, and/or unpublished/unproduced works, may be entered in the contest. However, for the Novel and Nobela categories, which are opened every other year, authors may submit either published or unpublished works, provided that published entries were first published between 01 June 2024 and 30 June 2026. 

AWARDS

One-act plays

First prize 18,000
Second prize 12,000
Third prize 9,000

Full-length Plays

First prize 21,000
Second prize 14,000
Third prize 9,000

The Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature (Palanca Awards) was established in 1950 to commemorate the memory of Carlos Palanca, Sr. through an endeavor that would promote education and culture in the country.

The Palanca Awards aims to develop Philippine Literature in the following manner:By providing incentives for writers to craft their most outstanding literary works;
By being a treasury of the Philippine’s literary gems from our gifted writers; and
To assist in their eventual dissemination to our people, particularly students.

In 1950, the Palanca Awards called on Filipino fictionists to weave their best short story in either English or Filipino.

MORE CONTEST RULES

2027 Open Stage Space Grant

Website

Deadline: May 31, 2026

2027 Open Stage Space Grant Application Form.

For over 100 years, EAG has provided emergency financial aid and career support to New York City’s professional performing artists. We take pride in our ongoing effort to find new ways to support our vibrant performing arts community. Understanding how challenging it is for emerging theatre companies to find affordable space for creating work in NYC, we introduced the Open Stage space grant in 2017. With Open Stage, we can support theatre companies by giving them an opportunity to create and present work without the challenges that come with finding and maintaining affordable space.

When a NYC theatre company is awarded an Open Stage grant, they will receive:

• a $6,000 credit to be used towards booking up to 80 hours in our historic theatre space at our EAG member rate of $75/hour during a two-month residency at Guild Hall (1 East 29th Street, NYC 10016),
• $1,000 from EAG's Teri Black Performance Fund to be used towards performer/director stipends, AND
• limited additional funding (amount TBD) for some specific line items in their production budgets thanks to NYSCA and NYC's DCLA. 
• During a grantee's residency, they can use their time booked in Guild Hall to meet, develop, devise, rehearse, tech, and perform the piece of their choosing. Each residency must culminate with 4-8 ticketed public performances in Guild Hall. The gross proceeds from these performances will be split evenly between the grant recipient and the charitable programs of EAG. 

All applicants are highly encouraged to familiarize themselves with our unique space before applying (www.actorsguild.org/rent-our-space). If you have not been to Guild Hall before and would like to see it in person, please call or email us and we will be happy to schedule an appointment for a walk through.

This year, we are accepting applications for ONE Winter 2027 (January/February) Open Stage grant and ONE Summer 2027 (July/August) Open Stage grant.

For our 2027 Open Stage grants, EAG is specifically looking to support NYC theatre companies that are seeking a residency to present:

• a staged reading of a new/original work with a larger cast,
• a developmental workshop of a new/original work with a smaller cast, OR
• a more fully realized production of a new/original solo show or two-hander.
• After several years of offering Open Stage grants, we believe that these options for the scale of a piece/presentation provide the most flexibility to grantees to successfully develop and explore a new work in our unique space while making mindful use of everyone's time and paying everyone equitably.

What makes for a successful Open Stage application?

A strong mission,
A demonstrated need,
A commitment to equitable pay for artists, AND
A demonstrated ability to achieve stated goals for the project (appropriate levels of staffing and funding to see the proposed project through, etc.)
You can preview the questions asked on this year's application here. All applications must be submitted online through this form in order to be considered for this opportunity.


TIMELINE
Application due: Sunday, May 31, 2026. No applications will be accepted after the deadline.
Finalist Interviews (in person at Guild Hall): The week of July 6, 2026.
Announcement of grant recipients: The week of July 13, 2026.

Unstaged Magazine is seeking experimental 1-minute plays, monologues

Website

Deadline: May 31, 2026 at midnight

To submit, send your work and a short bio to submissions@unstagedmagazine.org

Unstaged Magazine is seeking experimental 1-minute plays, monologues, poems, stories and other theatrical moments for publication in our upcoming themed-edition.

On the Theme: Burn This Script

The theme is fire. What do you see when you stare into it? Fire in the landscape, and the ghost stories we tell while burning our marshmallows.

Erasure. Censorship. The melting of ICE.

I read somewhere that pamphlets used to fall from the sky. Ironically, these were missives from the underground. Reading them could get you expelled from any decent school. What was in those pamphlets?

When my mother was just a child, their apartment on Main Street was caught in a terrible fire. I think about this more often than necessary. It wasn’t anybody’s fault. Fires happen. Once, I showed up to the aftermath of a house fire with another Red Cross volunteer. It was this family standing in the street and their life had turned to carbon and all we could give them was a blanket, a stack of phone numbers, and a few hundred dollars cash. That one was somebody’s fault. Actually, it was the son’s off-brand hoverboard that had basically exploded. This is a true story.

You can’t fire me, I quit.

Remember HTML message boards, back when the internet wasn’t trying to kill everybody? Submit something anonymous if you want. Submit something.
The Finer Details


We only publish unproduced work, but will consider a piece that's been workshopped or read. We prioritize short-form originals but will consider excerpts on a case-by-case basis.

We’re looking for a page or two, maybe 500 words max. The shorter the piece, the better the chances of publication, but feel free to send longer work if you truly can’t help yourself and we’ll see what we can do.

We can’t pay contributors yet, but we’re working on it. We’d be happy to offer other forms of support for contributors like beta reading or promoting your other projects on social. Let’s talk.

Submission Deadline: when the clock strikes midnight on May 31st, 2026 our submission window turns back into a pumpkin.

Eliza Moore Fellowship for Artistic Excellence 2027

Website

Deadline: May 31, 2026

The Eliza Moore Fellowship for Artistic Excellence is awarded annually to one outstanding, early-career artist who is developing new works that address plants, gardens, or landscapes in the broad sense. This award is open to visual artists, literary artists, dancers, and musicians. The award includes a $10,000 individual grant and requires a 2 - 5 week stay at Oak Spring. While at OSGF, the Fellow will be able to meet with staff, explore our 700-acre landscape and our efforts in sustainable land management, and visit our rare book library that holds over 19,000 objects, including many examples of botanical art.

OSGF intends to award the Fellowship to an exceptional artist whose works show remarkable promise to contribute to a deeper understanding of the natural world, and humankind’s place in it. The Fellow will be scheduled to visit when there are other Interdisciplinary Residents or Fellows on-site. This scheduling will allow the Fellow to join in communal meals, and optional activities and field trips with other artists, ecologists, researchers, or scholars working on projects related to OSGF’s mission. Beyond time devoted to their projects, a Fellow’s typical day at Oak Spring might include a walk to enjoy the landscape or birds; an appointment to visit the Oak Spring Library; and/or a morning spent volunteering at the BCCF or in the formal garden. These optional activities provide Fellows time to learn from, and interact with our staff. None of these activities are required, and we understand that some Fellows might want to spend most of their time in their writing or working independently. We support and enable Fellows to use their time as they best see fit.

At the culmination of their stay, we encourage, but don’t require, Fellows to give a 20 – 30 minute presentation with time for questions, to Oak Spring staff and any other Fellows, Residents, or program participants who might be on site.
Application Process

The application portal will open on February 14, 2026 and close on May 31st, 2026. Please note that there is one application for all of our 2027 Residency and Fellowship programs, and you will be prompted to select which programs you would like to be considered for. You will be asked to submit:

A resume/curriculum vitae (not to exceed two pages);

200 - 300-word statement describing your current body of work, creative projects, scholarship, or research.

200 - 300-word statement explaining why Oak Spring Garden Foundation and why now. Please consider how your work aligns with our mission.

200-word or less statement describing a time when you were part of a community. What role did you serve in the community, and what aspects of being in community did you enjoy the most?

Work samples.

For visual artists: 5 - 10 images, please include the dimensions, year, medium, and title of each work sample. 

For creative non-fiction, fiction, essayists, or other writers: 7 - 10 pages total that demonstrate your current interests. Please use 12-point font, 1-inch margins, and double-space your writing sample. Do not include photocopies of published work, title pages, tables of contents or HYPERLINKS. Please be sure to state the genre of the work sample.
For time-based artists, including: filmmakers, musicians, dancers, and performance artists: 10 minutes cumulatively of work samples. OSGF encourages video files to be uploaded directly to Submittable, but when necessary, we also accept links to vimeo or other external sites as long as the appropriate passwords are provided.

For poets and playwrights: you may submit 7 - 10 pages total. Poetry may be spaced as needed, and scripts should follow standard script formatting.

NOTE: When applying to this Fellowship, you will be asked if you are interested in being considered for one of our other residencies, if you are not selected for the Fellowship. To learn more about our residencies, visit www.osgf.org/residencies.

Eligible applicants must be early-career artists not enrolled in an undergraduate degree program in 2027. We will consider individuals with a proven track-record of professionalism, but who are yet under-recognized, as early-career. Eligible early-career applicants will have some recognition in the form of exhibitions, commissions, performances, grant awards, residencies, Fellowships and/or publications.

Individuals who have participated in an extensive number of solo exhibitions, or who have published a significant number of books will be considered established or late career, and are not eligible for the Eliza Moore Fellowship. We encourage those who are not eligible for this Fellowship to apply to the Interdisciplinary Residency.

The successful Fellow must be self-directed and able to work independently while on site. Applicants are expected to show dedication to their artistic practice, clear connection to the natural world in their work, exceptional promise, and good communication skills.
Dates

The $10,000 individual grant associated with this award can be put towards travel to and from OSGF, materials and supplies purchased for their residency, and other items that will support their work, before or after their stay at OSGF.

The selected Fellow should make travel arrangements to Dulles International Airport, where Oak Spring will arrange ground transportation for them to our estate in Upperville, VA. The Fellow will be housed in nicely appointed shared accommodations. The Fellow will have a private bedroom and bathroom, and share a living room and kitchen with 1 – 3 other Residents or Fellows.

BREAK A LEG PRODUCTIONS annual One-Act Slam

Website

Deadline: June 1, 2026

Email scripts to plays.balproductions@gmail.com with the subject line "[PLAY TITLE] – [PLAYWRIGHT'S NAME]." 

This year's theme is NEW YORK STATE OF MIND: New York City (or tristate area) writers writing plays about the New York City experience. 

PLEASE INCLUDE ON THE COVER PAGE OF YOUR SCRIPT A SHORT PARAGRAPH ABOUT YOUR CONNECTION TO NEW YORK CITY.

Plays should run 15-20 minutes. The Slam will be on September 26th. 

The audience votes on their favorite short play, and the winner receives $100.

Only one submission per playwright, please. 

TIGER’S HEART PLAYERS' Mark McQuown Memorial Short Play Literary Competition seeks short plays

Facebook group

Deadline: when they receive 150 submissions

DO NOT SEND - THEY HAVE REACHED THEIR SUBMISSION LIMIT

Please submit your 10-15 minute plays (one only per playwright)


There is no theme.
There is no Submission Fee.
Be certain to paginate.

The file attachment should read: play title—whatever follows is unnecessary. (This conforms to our filing system).

Subject Line: SUBMISSION: THP/MARK
Please follow Dramatists Guild formats.

Please do include all your contact info on the title page. No need to “blind” the script. We intend to support playwrights, not simply plays.

If you’d like to submit a bio or cv in a separate attachment please feel free to do so.

1st Place Winner is Awarded $150
2nd Place Winner is Awarded $100
3rd Place Winner is Awarded $50

And there will be one or two Honorary Mentions

All will Receive Public Readings

On Zoom at a time TBD.

THP reserves the right not to award any prizes.

We would like to add that THP is seeking Readers for the Competition.

Please let us know if you are interested. At: Tigersheartplayers@gmail.com More details to follow]

Thank you.
Tiger’s Heart Players

Syracuse University New Voices/New Works 2027 seeks musicals for residency

Website

Deadline: June 1, 2026 at 11:59 PM EDT

SUBMISSION FORM

The Syracuse University Department of Drama is seeking submissions for its Spring 2027 New Works/New Voices (NW/NV) initiative.  NW/NV supports the development of musicals by writers and composers whose perspectives have been historically underrepresented in the musical theater canon. 

NW/NV is seeking completed musicals or musicals-in-progress from teams who are interested in developing their work with undergraduate BFA students.  One musical will be selected, to receive a two-week developmental reading in the Spring 2027 semester, directed and music directed by SU Drama faculty and performed by SU Drama students.  NW/NV is open to any writers and composers who feel their perspectives have been historically underrepresented in the musical theater canon.

All creative team members must be 18 years of age or older.

Applicants may submit more than one musical work for consideration.

Applicants may re-apply with works submitted in previous years but must include an explanation of any development and/or changes that have occurred since the prior year’s submission.

All creative team members must indicate their availability for an in-person residency in Syracuse from January 10-17, 2027, on their application.

Questions? Please email Kathleen Wrinn, artistic director of NW/NV and assistant professor of musical theater in the Department of Drama (kawrinn@syr.edu).

• The 2027 NW/NV selection will be developed and presented as part of the New Works/New Voices Festival of New Musicals.
• The work will be directed and music directed by Department of Drama faculty and performed by students in the B.F.A. musical theater and acting programs.
• Rehearsals begin January 5, 2027, with writing team members in residence beginning January 10, 2027.
• The work will receive two public staged reading presentations during the weekend of January 16-17, 2027, at the festival.
• Each presentation will be a maximum of 90 minutes to accommodate the festival schedule; for works exceeding this length, a 90-minute curated version will be developed during rehearsals.
• Presentations will be followed by facilitated audience talkbacks.

Creators must be in residence in Syracuse from January 10–17, 2027, and may be asked to participate virtually in rehearsals prior to arrival.
Travel to-and-from Syracuse and lodging in Syracuse will be provided.
Writing team members will be housed in a shared apartment with kitchen and laundry facilities, located just down the street from the Department of Drama, with off-street parking available.

The script doctor is in the house! 🩷

Award-winning bicoastal playwright and screenwriter Sarah Congress is offering her coveted script doctoring services online, for a limited time.

Whether you are a producer with a screenplay/series that needs reworking, a fiction writer in need of inspiration, or a playwright with a new play, Sarah is here to help you take your script to the next level. Many clients that have worked with Sarah have won major awards in film festivals as well as prestigious theatrical opportunities.

Visit Sarah's website to connect with her.

Script Services: 

• Help clients get “out of their own way” and fully realize their work and writing potential
• Offer rewrite suggestions 
• Punch up jokes and humor
• Improve confidence 
• Fine-tune material to hook a reader’s interest
• Assist in finding submission and publication opportunities as needed
• Marketing strategy help

Bio

Sarah Congress is a playwright and script doctor with LA representation. Her play "Last Sunrise" was produced by Nylon Fusion for their Gilded Age/Cage Festival at TADA Theatre (June, 2025). "Last Sunrise" was presented with writers John Patrick Shanley, Lyle Kessler, and Migdalia Cruz. Sarah’s play “Delulu” was a semifinalist for Centre Stage's 23rd Annual New Play Festival (1 of 40 plays from 800 submissions). "Delulu" was read at the Episcopal Actors' Guild October 2025 and published by Feels Blind Literary and read at AWP 2026. She co-wrote the screenplay "I Can't Hear You!" which won BEST COMEDY in the 2024 Jersey Shore Film Festival. Her play “Overdose” won 2nd place for BEST SHORT in the 2023 Downtown Urban Arts Festival at Playwrights Horizons.

Teaching Experience

Sarah has taught writing classes for the Hoboken Historical Museum, Project Write Now, The Knowledge Project, RTA and the Hudson Valley Writers Center - as well as private teaching.

Testimonials - many clients find that working with Sarah is like "therapy"

"Sarah Congress is a wonderful teacher. She's supportive, intuitive, knowledgeable about writing and the landscape of theatre, film and TV. She asks the right questions, gives great notes and the sessions are enjoyable and productive. If you want to take your writing to the next level I can't think of a better coach/script doctor. The sessions fly by but the lessons you learn endure. She's great."

~ Jeff Perlman, Playwright & Non-profit CEO

"I had a breakthrough in my playwriting after working with Sarah. Her coaching made me realize I had the bad habit of undermining the power of my words.. I saw that after she pointed out one line in my play BIG FAT BABY IN HIS MOTHER'S ARMS which I went on to rewrite immediately and submitted for a serious Playwrights Fellowship. Just yesterday I heard from the UCROSS Foundation that I am the Alternate Fellow in the event one of the winners cannot attend in Spring 2025. I am honored to be acknowledged for the Fellowship and thank Sarah for her important coaching. Sarah will have you grow as a playwright/screenwriter in front of her eyes." 

 

~ Tino Juarez, Playwright

"Sarah is a wonderful coach and mentor. She is tough and challenging and fun and really pushes me as a writer into places I didn’t know I was able to go. I have learned so much working with Sarah, not just as a writer, but also as a teacher, as I transition from novelist to playwright. I could not give a higher recommendation working with her. But I assure you, if I could, I would."

~ Jon Papernick, Novelist and Assistant Professor at Emerson College

49th Annual One-Act Playwriting Competition at the Little Theatre of Alexandria (LTA)

Website

Deadline: May 30, 2026

Or the first 200 scripts

SUBMISSION FORM

All plays must be sent as a PDF file. Any other electronic format will not be accepted.

To participate in the 49th Annual One-Act Playwriting (Alexandria Virginia) competition, you must follow all of the guidelines on the following pages. Any questions can be directed to the One Act Chairs at oneactslta@gmail.com.

Entries will be accepted on a first come, first served basis, up to the first 200 scripts. If an entry is found ineligible, additional entries will be accepted in the order they were received.

Prizes of $350 for 1st place, $250 for 2nd place and $150 for 3rd place will be awarded.

For the play to be considered for this competition, the submission(s) must be original, unpublished, and unproduced — it cannot have been staged or be scheduled to be staged for a paying audience (including ticketed festivals) as of the date of entry and up to the end of the submission period on May 30, 2026.

LTA will perform the winning scripts as staged readings with paid tickets during LTA’s Night of One Acts on January 18, 2027.

LTA shall have the right to produce winning scripts without payment of royalties. Shows that receive a paid production during the submission period must be withdrawn, with another play allowed for substitution through May 30th. All production and publication rights remain the property of the playwright.

How to Submit Your Show

Please submit your show via our submission form. You will be asked for some information about yourself and your show and to upload your show directly to the form.

If you have any issues submitting your show, please email us at oneactslta@gmail.com. Please note that the form will only allow you to upload a file if you are using a gmail account. If you do not have one, please email us for additional instructions.

Script must be in blind copy formatting (meaning, no identifying information about the author should appear in the script, including name, address or contact information).

Script must include a list of characters with descriptions, a brief synopsis of the show, and numbered pages. See sample here

There are a number of acceptable formats and writing programs available. An improperly formatted script is difficult to read and may be rejected. If you are unfamiliar with proper formatting, please keep in mind the following guidelines:

All text should be single-spaced, in a readable font, such as 12 point Times New Roman.

Text should be double-spaced between speaking parts.

Speakers' names should be isolated from their dialogue in some manner.

A page showing only the title of the play must cover the manuscript. The title page should never be numbered.

Include a list of characters before the first page of dialogue. When separating characters’ lines or longer stage directions, double space.

Page one should be the first page of the play

Ideally, scenes will also be included in the pagination.

Script Content

The run time of the show must be 20 to 50 minutes.

Shows cannot include nudity. However, strong themes and language are welcome.

The submission must be a stage play. Film, TV or other scripts will not be accepted.

The show cannot be a musical or a play with live instrumentation. Incidental music cues or musical numbers that are a small part of the show are acceptable.

The show cannot be the same submission from the year prior unless significant

re-writes have been made to the script. For more information, email the chairs at oneactslta@gmail.com.

Scripts that do not meet the above guidelines will not be scored.

Judging

Scripts will be judged on the following categories:

Concept and quality of show
Production Elements
Dramatic Action
Characterization
Dialogue

Finalists will be notified in September 2026, and final winners will be selected later that month . All playwrights will be notified of their final status by October 1, 2026.

LTA is proud to offer feedback to authors who request it. Feedback will be provided to all authors who request it by the end of January 2026.

Questions?

If you have any questions about the submission process, please email oneactslta@gmail.com.

Northern Michigan Asylum Playwriting Contest

Website

Deadline: December 31, 2026

The Northern Michigan Asylum Playwriting Contest invites playwrights to submit original works inspired by, connected to, or thematically centered on the history, architecture, culture, or personal stories associated with the Northern Michigan Asylum (also known as the Traverse City State Hospital). Works may be dramatic, comedic, historical, speculative, or musical in style, but all submissions must honor or explore the site in a meaningful way.

Contest is hosted by Old Town Playhouse (OTP), a community theater serving Traverse City, Michigan, and The Minervini Group LLC (TMG), redevelopers of The Village at Grand Traverse Commons, the original site of the Northern Michigan Asylum.

The contest opens January 19, 2026, and all submissions must be received by December 31, 2026.

Eligibility

• Open to writers of all experience levels.
• Writers must be at least 18 years old at the time of submission.
• Co-authored works are permitted.
• Submissions must be written in English.

Content Requirements

Subject Matter: The play must contain significant themes, settings, characters, or plot elements directly related to the Northern Michigan Asylum/Traverse City State Hospital.

Allowed Formats:

o One-act plays
o Two-act plays
o Musicals

Northern Michigan Asylum Playwriting Contest — Submission Guidelines 

Length Guidelines:

o One-act: 20–60 minutes
o Two-act: 60–150 minutes
o Musicals: 45–180 minutes

• Originality: Only original, unpublished, and unproduced works are eligible.

Prohibition on AI-Generated Content

To preserve artistic integrity and honor the spirit of the competition:

• No portion of the script may be generated by artificial intelligence tools (including ChatGPT, other LLMs, AI story generators, or automated scriptwriting tools).

• Writers may not use AI to draft, plot, or produce dialogue or lyrics.

• AI-assisted proofreading (e.g., spelling/grammar checks) is permitted, but no AI content generation may be used at any stage.

• Entrants will be required to attest that all creative content is human-authored.

Submission Requirements

• Format:

o PDF file only
o Standard script formatting preferred (12-point font, standard margins)
o Include a title page with:

▪ Play title
▪ Author’s name
▪ Contact email
▪ Contact phone number
▪ Whether the play is one-act, two-act, or a musical
• Page Header: Include the play title and page numbers on each page.

Northern Michigan Asylum Playwriting Contest — Submission Guidelines Page 2• Synopsis: Include a 150–300 word synopsis at the beginning (separate page).

• Character Breakdown: Provide a list of characters, including vocal ranges for musicals.

• Optional: A brief (100-word) playwright biography.

Submission Process

• Submissions open January 19, 2026 at 12:00 AM EST.

• All entries must be submitted by December 31, 2026 at 11:59 PM EST.

• Submissions must be sent by email to contest@oldtownplayhouse.com either as a PDF attachment or unrestricted link to cloud storage.

• Each entrant may submit up to two plays.

Evaluation Criteria & Winning

Entries will be judged on:

• Quality of storytelling and dramatic structure

• Creative integration of Northern Michigan Asylum themes

• Originality and artistic vision

• Character development

• Stage feasibility

• Musical quality (for musicals)

One work will be chosen to be fully workshopped and produced in late 2027 or early 2028 by Old Town Playhouse. The performance will take place at Kirkbride Hall located in one of the original Northern Michigan Asylum buildings. [Note: A staged reading may be presented in lieu of a full production if material warrants such].

Judges panel will be comprised of two representatives from Old Town Playhouse, two representatives from The Minervini Group LLC and one outside representative designated by Old Town Playhouse to serve on the panel.

Winning playwright will be notified no later than February 28, 2027.

Northern Michigan Asylum Playwriting Contest — Submission Guidelines 

Rights and Permissions

• Playwrights retain all rights to their work.

• By entering the contest, playwrights grant the organizers permission to excerpt, read publicly, or stage readings for purposes of event promotion from the time the winning script is selected and announced until the closing performance of the OTP production produced in late 2027 or early 2028.

Dappled Things magazine seeks fiction and drama

Website

Deadline: May 31, 2026 at 11:59 PM

SUBMIT VIA SUBMITTABLE

You may submit one fiction piece at a time. 

Please wait until you have received a response before sending more work. We recommend that you look through previous editions of the journal to get a sense of the type of work we tend to favor. You may use this category to submit short stories, flash-fiction, and drama. 

Dappled Things pays $100 per published piece in this category.

Please include a byline in your cover letter that we can use in our contributor notes if your piece is selected for publication.

Dappled Things is a Catholic magazine of ideas, art, and faith, and this raises the question of what Catholic culture is in the first place. Rather than give you a pat answer, we invite you as a contributor to help us explore that question. You should, however, keep in mind the following:

• Catholicism has a profoundly rich history; we tend to favor pieces that seriously engage and are informed by those riches. At the same time, we seek work that does not simply put old wine into new wineskins. Rather, we encourage innovation that is in reverent creative conversation with the riches of Christianity’s tradition in art, thought, and practice;
• We cherish wit, but have little patience for pretentiousness, cynicism, or sneering. We expect that, at their core, pieces published in the magazine will grow out of a love and understanding of the cardinal virtues of wisdom, justice, temperance, and fortitude; the theological virtues of faith, hope, and love; and the redemptive theme that transpires from the Nicene Creed.
• At the same time, we value work that is truthful through and through, meaning that it explores reality honestly and unflinchingly, without whitewashing or sugarcoating. To unveil the truth about the beauty and goodness of the world, one must not hide the facts of the Fall;
• Pieces need not be overtly religious to be eligible for publication. Remember that Catholic means universal;
• Whatever else your piece succeeds in doing, quality of craftsmanship is a sine qua non.

Once Upon a Crocodile seeks short plays for the next issue

Website

Deadline: May 31, 2026 by 11:59 PM GMT

Send your play pasted into the body of an e-mail with “Submission” in the Subject line, to: onceuponacrocodile@gmail.com

WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR

• Humorous Fantasy (high, dark, low, light, wet or dry, we don’t mind, so long as it’s funny)
• Humorous Sci-Fi
• Dark humour / tongue-in-cheek horror
• The Absurd
• Funny animal stories
• Parodies
• Pastiches
• Short funny plays / vignettes
• Funny poems of any form (limericks, senryu, haiku, etc)

• DO NOT send us stuff written with AI.

As long as it makes us laugh, we will be interested to read it.

SHORT PLAYS
2000 words maximum.
Black, 12pt Times New Roman font, please. Make sure to proofread your work before flapping it at us.

Theater for the New City Free Memorial Day Weekend Festival

MAY 22-24, 2026

Memorial Day weekend

Artistic output of this fabled neighborhood will be showcased in three days of free showings for live audiences.

In and around Theater for the New City, 155 First Ave. (at E. 10th Street)

FREE (donations accepted)

Info: www.theaterforthenewcity.net, (212) 254-1109

Lineup of performances: http://www.jsnyc.com/season/LES-2026.htm

More information here.