SUMMER 2025 Online Class in Writing the Ten-Minute Play

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

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

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

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

Six Sessions, 3 hours each: choose one section

1. Mondays, 1 – 4 pm EST (June 9 – July 14)
2. Mondays, 6:30 - 9:30 pm EST, (June 9 – July 14) 

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

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

Discount: $20 discount for newcomers who are a member of The Dramatists Guild or South Florida Theatre League. 

Minimum 3 participants per section; maximum 10.

Course Description: 

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

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

Please contact Arianna Rose at rockawayrose@gmail.com, or via her website where there is more course information: https://ariannarose.net/playwriting-classes-and-other-workshops

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

Interested but not available?

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

One-on-One Private Dramaturgy

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

Venice Voices New Works Festival seeks 10-minute plays

Website

Deadline: June 20, 2025

SUBMISSION FORM

Venice, California

The Venice Abbot Kinney Memorial Branch Library invites you to celebrate 30 years of service at our 501 S. Venice location by submitting your short one act play to VENICE VOICES. To commemorate this event, we are calling on playwrights to contribute short, unproduced scripts – no longer than ten to fifteen minutes. (applications for longer plays cannot be accepted). Please be sure the plays concern themselves with historical, contemporary, or an imagined future in Venice, California. All genres are welcome.

Selected plays will receive a staged reading in mid-August and playwrights will receive an honorarium of One Hundred Dollars. There is no fee to submit. The event is sponsored by the Friends of the Venice Library.

John E. Frank
Venice Voices Executive Producer
Venice Abbot Kinney Memorial Branch Senior Librarian


Melanie Anthony
Venice Voices Literary Manager & Dramaturg

Further questions? Reach out to John at jfrank@lapl.org

Gallery Players 29th Annual Black Box New Play Festival

Website

Deadline: July 1, 2025

NOTE the post-marked date. Mail your submissions accordingly. 

The Gallery Players in Park Slope, Brooklyn, New York, is seeking plays for its 29th Annual Black Box New Play Festival to be held in January (exact dates to be determined) 2026. 

Each play selected will be given a black box production with non-equity actors. 

Playwrights must be available, if not in person, via Zoom or other virtual venue for some rehearsals and use this as an opportunity to continue work on their play. 

1). Plays must be un-produced (readings are ok); must be the play’s world premier 

2) Length of Plays: Plays should be 30 - 60 minutes. Plays must have at least 4 characters; more is even better. No monologues. No period costume pieces. You may only submit two (2) plays. 

3). Format: Pages must be numbered; A cover page with Title of the play and playwrights contact information is required, along with a page that gives plot synopsis of the play and a character breakdown 

4). Submit a copy of your playwriting resume, showing the names of plays and if produced, where produced. 

5). Playwrights cannot direct their own work 

6). Send three (3) copies of your play(s), along with your resume, to: The Gallery Players Black Box New Play Festival 199 14th Street Brooklyn, NY 11215. 

We will only contact you if your play has been accepted into the Festival. If you want confirmation that your mailing was received by us, please include a self-addressed stamped return postcard. We do not accept email submissions. We do not return scripts. Any scripts not chosen for the Festival will be destroyed to protect the copyright.

Eden Prairie Players Women's One Acts+ 2026 Submission Guidelines

Website

Deadline: none given

Submission Form - note you have to register for Theater Forms to fill out the form.

Eden Prairie Players is accepting submissions of unpublished one act plays for its 2026 Women's One Acts+ to be produced in May of 2026. Women's One Acts+ is an annual selection of short plays that are written and directed by those who identify as women and those with gender-diverse identities. 

Submission GuidelinesPlaywrights must identify as female and/or a gender-diverse identity (trans, nonbinary, intersex, two-spirit, etc.)

Plays must be English language. 

If selected, plays will be licensed for production under our license agreement for unpublished works.

You can preview this agreement here. If you submit your work, we will assume this agreement is acceptable to you. The playwright must be free to license performance rights to us directly.

It is acceptable for the play to have been published, e.g. in an anthology, as long as the playwright retains direct licensing rights.

We are seeking short one-act plays: dramas, comedies, etc.

Submit through the online submission form:Playwright contact information - name, email, address, phone.

• Name of play.
• Approximate duration.
• List of characters / descriptions: age, gender, race if one is required, etc. (please list allowable deviations) 
• Short synopsis of the play, including a description of recommended set pieces and props
• After the form is submitted, you will receive a confirmation email. 

Our Commitment to Inclusion

We commit to learning more about our own implicit biases, about authentically engaging the entire community, and about fostering diverse spaces. We pledge to practice inclusive and diverse storytelling in our performances and assure an equitable and safe space for all.

Compensation 

Selected plays will be paid a royalty of from $20 to $30 per performance. We plan to have 6 or 7 performances, which will be determined later.

No compensation for selection process: By submitting your play(s) for consideration, you give Eden Prairie Players permission to distribute to reviewers as needed for the selection process. You also give permission for your play to be performed without payment at an unrehearsed table reading as part of the selection process.

Details

Plays must be submitted as a PDF file. Plays may be submitted by the playwright only. Each playwright is allowed to submit 1 play. If a play was written by more than one person, be sure this is reflected in the Credited playwrights field.

Submitted plays must be at least 8 minutes and at most 25 minutes in length.

Submissions must be received by the end of the day on June 3, 2025 in the US/Central timezone. If the number of submissions exceeds the number we can review, the submissions to be reviewed will be selected by lottery.

In the selection process, the play will be made available through TheaterForms to reviewers authorized by Eden Prairie Players. By submitting the play, the playwright gives permission for this usage. The playwright must be free to give this permission and to accept licensing terms offered by Eden Prairie Players if the play is selected. (If a play is published after being submitted, and it is selected for Women's One Acts+ 2026, Eden Prairie Players will have the choice of accepting the publisher's licensing terms or choosing an alternate submission.)
FAQ

Q: Are works by international playwrights accepted?
A: Yes! We are now able to accept English language plays from playwrights worldwide.

Q: How are plays selected?
A: We provide access to each play to one or more authorized reviewers to read and rate as part of the selection process. Plays are narrowed down to a smaller group of finalist plays. Finalists are read at a public table reading and final selections are made by our Advisory Committee.

Q: What should I know about your theater?
A: Riley-Jacques Barn is a renovated barn in Eden Prairie. It is a fairly small stage. The main portion of it is 15’ wide by 16’ deep, but part of the downstage half extends the width to 23’ wide plus a few feet of extra wings on each side that are used for entrances and exits. There are also two entrances on either side of the upstage half. Because of the number of plays we do in a performance, we like to keep our set changes quick which means we prefer plays that can be done with simpler sets.

Q. What about language in my play?
A: While we bill these productions as intended for mature audiences due to subject matter and language, we strongly consider what our audience's reaction to each piece will be.

Q: How long has Eden Prairie Players produced unpublished one-acts?
A: 2010 was the first year that EPP produced unpublished works as part of our Collection of One Acts, and it was immediately successful. The response from our audience was overwhelmingly positive. We hope to carry that enthusiasm forward each year by continuing to introduce our audience to fresh new works written by exciting playwrights. 

We added The Women's One Acts production specifically to feature the work of women playwrights in 2018, and in 2023 we proudly rebranded the event as the Women's One Acts+ to include historically underrepresented gender identities. 

Thank you for your hard work, we are honored that you are considering EPP for your submission!

Woodward/Newman Award 2026-27

Website

Deadline: August 31, 2025

Each play should be individually submitted at the following link: CONSTELLATION STAGE & SCREEN PLAY SUBMISSION.

We are currently accepting submissions for the 2026-27 Woodward/Newman Award. The award recipient will be announced by May 15, 2026. 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).

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.

Ars Nova Artists in Residence Program

Website

Deadline: June 6, 2025

SUBMISSION FORM

THE RESIDENCY 

The Artists in Residence Program is an individually tailored, development-based residency for early career performing artists of all disciplines to explore a project in house at Ars Nova over the course of a season. The residency is a unique opportunity for artists who develop work in 

non-traditional ways to make use of Ars Nova’s customized, flexible support to discover new things about their project and process, and to build community and peer relationships with artists across genres in the residency cohort. Residents will be invited to develop a specific project in house at Ars Nova for a season, working toward goals and benchmarks for that project that are defined at the beginning of the residency. The focus of an artist’s residency at Ars Nova is on a fruitful process and the development of an artistic practice, not on a finished product. Through a wide range of development tools, institutional resources and hands-on artistic support, residents are encouraged to think big, take risks and push their creative potential as they make work under Ars Nova’s roof. Residents will also have the opportunity to connect with one another and with the wider Ars Nova community through events, monthly get-togethers, and more.  

RESIDENCY EXPECTATIONS 

• Resident Artists will be in residence with Ars Nova from early September 2025 through end of June 2026;
• Resident Artists will attend monthly cohort gatherings led by a member of the Ars Nova Artistic Team;
• Resident Artists will work with the Artistic Team to design a development trajectory for their residency at the beginning of the season.

RESIDENCY RESOURCES 

• A monthly residency stipend
• A budget, managed by Ars Nova, to support their development in the residency;
• Hands-on support and mentorship from the Ars Nova artistic team on their artistic trajectory;
• Access to the space and resources in the Ars Nova building, including, but not limited to, rehearsal space, theater space, jump desks, printers, and more;
• Participation in a retreat at some point in the season;
• Complimentary tickets to Ars Nova shows;
• The opportunity to present work onstage at the Ars Nova Theater.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Q: I create with a collaborator. Can I apply with them?
A: We will accept applications from individuals, duos, or trios collaborating on a project.

Q: What kinds of artists can participate in this residency?
A: We would love to receive applications from early career generative artists of all types in the performing arts. This could include—but is not limited to—playwrights, composers, devisers, curators, comedians, clowns, choreographers, and directors. Are you a generative artist who doesn’t yet have a name for what you do? We’d love to meet you!

Q: What kind of projects are you looking for in this residency?
A: Projects that are either new or in early stages of development will benefit most from the resources offered in this residency.

Q: Is this residency open to artists outside of New York City?
A: Given the frequency of cohort gatherings and onsite development work, this residency is best suited to artists who live in the New York area.

Q: What will the full application process look like?
A: Interested artists should submit an Intent to Apply form by June 6. After reviewing all submissions, Ars Nova’s Artistic Team will invite a selection of those artists to submit a full application to the program in July. A select group of those applicants will be asked to interview with the Artistic Team in August, with the goal of finalizing the cohort by the end of August for an early September start.

Q: I want to apply to Play Group, CAMP, the Vision Residency, or Maker’s Lab. When are those applications opening for next season?
A: You should apply to this program! This year, we are putting our energy into a program that connects artists working in all mediums rather than siloing them into separate programs. The Artists in Residence Program will support all the same genres of art-making that Play Group, CAMP, Vision Residency, and Maker’s Lab supported. And ideally, its flexible nature will make room for artists who might not have found a home in any of those programs!

INTENT TO APPLY FORM INSTRUCTIONS 

Please fill out the Intent to Apply Form which includes a few short answer questions and an artist statement. The deadline for submitting an Intent to Apply Form is June 6. We invite interested artists to submit their artist statement via a written piece, audio or video recording – whatever form best supports your self-expression. If you are submitting a written statement, it should be no more than a page. If you are submitting a video or audio link, please keep the statement under two minutes. For technical or process questions, please email artistic@arsnovanyc.com.  

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.

Cimientos 2026 call for submissions

Website

Deadline: June 30, 2025

SUBMISSION FORM

From June 1st to June 30th, 2025, IATI Theater is accepting scripts for its 2026 Cimientos Season. Submissions are only accepted through the electronic form. 

Make sure to read guidelines before completing the submission form. 

For more information: iatitheater.org or contact: guillermo@iatitheater.org 

Cimientos is IATI Theater’s Play Development Program. We provide playwrights the opportunity to develop new, never-before produced plays through a community of cutting-edge theater artists. Through the PPP* and SRP*, Cimientos amplifies as clearly as possible the voice of the author who lays the foundations from which a dramatic work is conceived. Like IATI Theater, Cimientos is committed to supporting playwrights and works that push conventions and explore the avant-garde. We recognize, however, that what is different and ground-breaking is not always what is unconventional and, therefore, we also welcome plays that explore realism and naturalism in innovative ways.  

1. The online form is the only method of submission. No submissions will be accepted via email. Once submitted, no changes can be made. Please ensure that you submit the correct file. The submission button will be active during June.

2. This program is open to authors worldwide who have original works in English or Spanish and are interested in feedback from a New York audience.

3. The playwright must commit to participating in the PPP (Pal Playwrights Panel) meetings, which will be held online. The PPP will meet for ten (10) consecutive weeks from December 2025 to February 2026.

4. The playwright must commit to participating in their post-reading talk-back, either in person or via video conference. Staged readings will take place at our theater space in the East Village in June 2026.

5. Applicant must be the original creator of the submitted work and the sole owner of its rights. By submitting their work, applicants grant IATI Theater permission to use the submitted material for the Cimientos Program.

6. The submission must be a completed, new, full-length play that has not had a previous professional production. The playwright must state on the online form if the play has undergone a workshop, staged reading or development of any kind. We welcome plays in an early stage of development.

7. Submissions must be non-published work. Published plays in any format are not acceptable.

8. Only one play may be submitted per playwright per season.

9. Scripts must be between 45–90 minutes in length.

10. The play must have five (5) actors or fewer. Plays that have more than five characters that do not provide a clear double-role explanation for staging will not be reviewed. This must be clearly expressed on the online form.

11. The author’s name(s) should not appear anywhere within the script or file. Any authorship information must not be visible in the play document or file. Cimientos reads submissions ‘blind’, in an effort to let the quality of the work speak for itself and to keep our judging process as equitable as possible.

12. All documents must be submitted in PDF format. Other formats will not be accepted.

13. Submissions for the 2026 Season will only be accepted from June 1 to June 30, 2025.

Community Players Theater - Page to Stage 2025

Website

Deadline: July 31, 2025

Please note new deadline
Deadline: August 31, 2025

Page to Stage: An Original Staged Reading is an opportunity for playwrights to submit their work to be performed through Community Players Theatre (Bloomington IL.) To those wishing to submit their work, please make sure it follows this criteria:

• The script must be unpublished
• It is fine if the script has gone through workshops or readings
• No more than 2 locations within the script
• Cast size 2-6
• Can feature a child but the majority of the cast must be adults
• Few adjustments will be allowed once the script has been submitted
• PDF or Word Doc formatting
• No musicals
• A playwright is not limited on how many they can submit
• This process is for the benefit of audiences to hear new plays and new playwrights

Please submit all scripts to Ashleigh Rae-Lynn (playreading@communityplayers.org)

Writers' Cohort: "Queerspeech"

Instagram

Deadline: June 5, 2026 at 11:59 PM

Submission form

(Note, the form gives a deadline of May 29, but their Instagram says June 5.)

QUEERSPEECH is a bold and affirming initiative for early-career queer artists developing new theatrical work. Running from Fall 2025 through Summer 2026, this cohort-based program offers hands-on support at every stage of the creative process—whether you're shaping a brand-new idea or refining a first draft.

Rooted in collaboration and community, QUEERSPEECH provides structured, bi-monthly check-ins where selected artists will share progress, exchange feedback, and set goals—from table reads to development workshops. In addition to creative guidance, artists will receive producing support and assistance identifying and applying to relevant opportunities, ensuring their work reaches the audiences it deserves.

The program culminates in a showcase in Summer 2026, offering a platform to celebrate the cohort’s evolving works in front of a wider public.

Who We’re Looking For:

• Early-career queer artists working in any form of theatrical expression
• Projects can be at any stage—from seedling ideas to early drafts
• Artists seeking both artistic and producing support
• NYC-based or able to travel to NYC regularly

To Apply:

Submit a 200-word pitch describing your project’s current stage, your artistic background, and your creative vision. Share the journey of your piece so far—where it began, how it’s grown, and where you hope to take it. We want to hear your voice.

Nomad Theatre seeks short plays for Order in the Court

Website

Deadline: June 16, 2025

SUBMISSION FORM

Nomad Theatre seeks 6-10 short plays to be a part of our upcoming show, Order in the Court in September 2025 in Normal, IL. Submissions will open on May 12th and close on June 16th, 2025. Nomadtheatre.org

Experience the drama and intrigue of the courtroom like never before with "Order in the Court," a selection of original plays specifically crafted to be performed in the McLean County Courthouse. We hope to delve into themes of justice, morality, and the human condition, set against the authentic backdrop of a courtroom, immersing the audience in the tension and intensity of legal battles.

Selected plays must take place in a courtroom. We encourage you to use the space creatively. They must be unpublished and unproduced at the time of submission.

Mclean County courthouse is a historical landmark housed in the Mclean County Museum of History, and many historical court cases have taken place here. We encourage you to be inspired by local Mclean County History cases, or include themes that showcase at the Museum of History and themes surrounding America 250, such as Unfinished Revolutions; Power of Place; We the People; American Experiment; Doing History: 250th Anniversary – AASLH

You can also browse the exhibits at the museum for inspiration: Digital Exhibits

A picture of the space has been included for your reference. PLEASE NOTE: the jury box will house audience members - so plays can only include one or two actors that sit in the jury box.

This call is open to all playwrights in the United States. Selected playwrights receive a $25 honorarium, full production of their show and a ticket to attend. We encourage anyone to submit, even if you’ve never written a play. We want to support underrepresented playwrights, including women, LGBTQIA+, BIPOC, disabled, neurodiverse, etc, and encourage you to submit.

Entries will be judged on the following criteria:

· How well it meets the theme of ‘Order in the Court’

· Overall writing quality (Plot - we like different or quirky, weird, out-of-the-box theatre; Character Development; Dialogue)

· Suitability for our actors and space - low tech, 1-4 characters, flexible casting

Submissions will open on May 12th and close on June 16th, 2025. Selected playwrights will receive notification by August 25, 2025. If you have not received notification from us by that date, we did not choose you for the production.

Submission Guidelines:

· One submission per playwright

· a running time of 10-12 minutes long

· A cover page should include the title, the playwright’s name, contact information, a brief synopsis, and character descriptions.

· Pages should be numbered.

· Minimum of 1, maximum of 4 characters

· Label your document as TitleOfPlay_LastName

· Must take place in a courtroom.

· No musicals.

We suggest formatting similar to the Dramatist Guild Guidelines: https://www.dramatistsguild.com/sites/default/files/2020-01/General-SFI-Formatting-Guidelines-Complete.pdf

If you have questions or need any accommodations for submission, please email nomadtheatresubmissions@gmail.com

Nomad's mission is to provide an immersive theatre experience by exposing audience members to eclectic and moving stories, taking theatre outside of a traditional theatre space and into site-specific locations.

If you have questions or need any accommodations for submission, please email Nomad Theatre at nomadtheatresubmissions@gmail.com

Fall 2025 Spark Theatre Festival NYC

Website

Deadline: June 2, 2025

SUBMISSION FORM 

Submissions for the Fall 2025 Spark Theatre Festival are now open through June 2, 2025. 

The Fall festival will take place Sept. 8 – 28, 2025. 

Please read our submission guidelines below.

The Emerging Artists Theatre (EAT) Spark Theatre Festival NYC is a three-week festival of self-produced work for the stage that allows artists of different disciplines to produce one performance of a polished “work-in-progress” with audience feedback.

Beginning in Fall 2025, EAT is excited to announce that the upcoming festival will now be broken into two categories: workshop productions and fully developed new work. Additionally, some productions may be given more than one performance slot.

Many pieces selected for the festival will have never been performed before an audience, while some selections have been performed previously but feature new material. We are not interested in presenting established pieces of theatre. We want to see something brand-spanking-new hit the stage for the first or nearly the first time. This festival is an opportunity to present work for a paying audience for the first, or newly the first, time.

There is no submission charge and no obligation to participate if chosen. Plus, participants receive 50% of the box office. Artists are held to an audience guarantee equal to one ticket buyer per minute of your show. Successful Fringe, NYMF, and Off-Broadway shows have been born out of this series, and Emerging Artists is excited to present a new round of opportunities to local artists for yet another year.

We accept submissions for the following new works:

• Solo Shows
• Dance
• Cabaret
• Musicals (Short and Long)
• Short Plays (60 min or less)
• Subway Musicians
• Storytelling Show
• Sketch Comedy
• Interactive
• Other … Out of the Box

HOW TO APPLY

PART ONE: Read the FAQs carefully. 

Note: the FAQ page may not work if you use Safari as your browser - you will have to switch to another browser like Google Chrome.

Please pay special attention to the audience guarantee section to ensure you are ready to gather an audience for your work. 

PART TWO: Fill out the application form. You will be asked to provide information on the following:

• How you heard about Emerging Artists Theatre’s Spark Theatre Festival NYC
• Why your show would be a good fit
• Show title, running time, and production history (if applicable)
• Description of your production
• Support materials including a script, video, or other means of sharing 
• Contact information, website, social media handles, and professional bio(s)

Hit SUBMIT to submit your application'

GETTING ACCEPTED

If you are accepted into the Spark Theatre Festival NYC, there will be a required information session/meet-and-greet on a date to be determined. 

APPLY

Submissions for the Sept 8-28, 2025 Spark Theatre Festival NYC are now open. Click below to continue to the FAQs and access the application.

Screaming Media & Gi60 International seek submissions for Gi60 NYC

Instagram

Deadline: June 1, 2025

• Submissions must not last longer than 60 seconds
• Your submission needs your name, play title, geographic location, and contact information in the document as well as filled out in this form
• You may submit as many one minute plays as you wish, but only one submission per form entry
• All work must be totally original and the author's own work
• Plays should not have been previously produced
• Please do not submit plays that have been submitted to Gi60 prior to 2025 for consideration
• Entries from schools should include a teacher's contact and the school name, as well as that of the author
• For consideration in Gi60 NYC, plays must be submitted by June 1, 2025

TERMS AND CONDITIONS:

• There is no submission fee, prize or payment for Gi60 participation
• Copyright remains with the author
• Plays lasting longer than 60 seconds may not be considered
• The organizers may use individual plays to promote the Gi60 festival
• Final play selection will be announced on the Gi60 city websites and social media
• Gi60 NYC is staffed and created by professionals who are volunteers and give their time free of charge
• The organizers reserve the right to cut scripts without notification where necessary. (E.g. if a play is running significantly longer than 60 seconds, we may delete some small lines if their intention is communicated elsewhere in the script)
• Gi60 festivals may be recorded and made available for viewing on the Gi60 YouTube Channel. To view past plays: Gi60 Channel YouTube

PLEASE NOTE: We annually receive between 700-900 submissions. Due to the high volume of plays we receive each year we are unable to write to individual playwrights to notify them if their play has not been selected.

Gi60 NYC | The International One Minute Theatre Festival
theatre in a New York minute
gi60nyc@gmail.com
Instagram | Facebook

North Park Playwright Festival 2025

Website

Deadline: June 30, 2025

Our goal in building the North Park Vaudeville and Candy Shoppe was to provide a small theater to produce new, untested plays. In support of this goal we have produced the North Park Playwright Festival each October. The festival provides a platform for brand new, short (ten minute), plays written by playwrights from around the world. Over the past seventeen years more than 600 new plays have been produced. We encourage new directors and actors to become involved in theater through the festival as well. Through the North Park Playwright Festival over ninety playwrights, directors, and actors each year are able to showcase their talents. We invite interested playwrights to submit work to the festival. Please follow the guidelines below.

We are looking for:

1. Short new plays (no more than 12 pages, less is fine) that are easily staged and have casts with no more than four people. Our theater is very small and we normally use a minimal set concept in this festival. We have to be able to change sets in just a few minutes as we do six to seven plays each evening of the festival. We don't have space for large casts.

2. We request new work. A play that has had workshops or one or two previous productions is OK, but we are not interested in work that has been produced in numerous other places. Our goal in building the theater was to have a place to produce brand new work and let playwrights have a chance to see their work done for the first time.

3. We seek complete plays rather than excerpts from a larger work.

4. Work will be chosen by the directors we have in the festival. It is not a "contest" and we are not really judging plays in the formal sense. The directors choose the plays we will produce, within the production budget guidelines we give them.

5. Most subject matter is OK. We don't do nudity or off color humor.

6. We ask that all submissions be sent to us via snail mail at the theater. Address is: North Park Vaudeville and Candy Shoppe, 2031 El Cajon Blvd., San Diego, CA 92104, Attn Summer Golden, Artistic Director. We have too much trouble with differing email, word processing, and computer platform issues to take them via email. Additionally, our selection process requires the directors read the plays submitted and the cost of printing all the plays we receive each year is prohibitive. Please insure submissions have a title page with complete contact information (including email), a character summary, and are in proper script form. There is no charge to enter. No need to go to the post office. You can just staple your play together, put in a business size envelope and drop in the mail. You can print on both sides if you want to save postage.

7. Submissions must be postmarked by June 30, 2025. Please do not send plays by any method that requires a signature from us. We are not often at the theater when delivery occurs. We will email notice of receipt to all playwrights submitting plays.

8. Send only one script. Multiple submissions do not increase chances of production.

General information:

We are trying to support new work and involve actors, playwrights, and directors of all experience levels. We have had a wide variety of artists involved from very experienced to first time directors and actors, to an 8 year old playwright (very short, well received play). We feel having a wide range of experience involved helps the new people learn from the more experienced.

We really appreciate your interest in our theater.

Jeff Bushnell and Summer Golden
North Park Vaudeville and Candy Shoppe
2031 El Cajon Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92104
www.northparkvaudeville.com

Scenes from the Staten Island Ferry 2025

Website

Deadline: September 15, 2025

Sundog Theatre in NYC is seeking one-act plays for “Scenes from the Staten Island Ferry 2025”

This is Sundog Theatre’s 24th presentation of
new and original, one-act plays about our favorite boats.
This year’s theme: It’s About Time!

Plays can be comedies or dramas. However, humor is always appreciated.

-Original plays not previously produced or published, with a signed note affirming that.

-10-25 minutes in length and set on the Staten Island Ferry.

-Set in a contemporary time period. Strong priority will be given to plays with 2 characters, however, 3-character plays will be considered. No special set pieces other than benches or railings found on the Ferry, as well as limited and easily accessible props/costumes, and no unusual sound or lighting effects.

-Avoid overt and unnecessary sexual/violence situations and language since we cater to a broad audience.

-No musicals, long monologues, poetry, rants or verse

–Theme: It’s About Time!

Some ideas for the theme are: time travel; lost time you can’t get back; something dreadful looms in your future and time is racing by; you’re looking forward to a special event and time slows to a crawl; or…?

Submission Guidelines:

Please send two hard copies, bound or stapled, blind submission (removable cover page with title, author and all contact information) with page numbers and the name of the play on each page to:

Sundog Theatre, “Scenes 2025” PO Box 10183, Staten Island, NY 10301.

-Submissions should include a brief play synopsis (2-3 sentences at most), a 70-word bio, and a full resume of the writer.

–DEADLINE: Must be postmarked from now through September 15, 2025.

-We are not accepting plays electronically. Reasons: hard copies are easier to pass around/make notes on; protects your work; can’t get lost in email chains; and…easier on reading eyes. We will let you know by email that we have received it.

-NO SUBMISSION FEE

-Questions: info@sundogtheatre.org/Susan Fenley, Producer.

6 plays are chosen by a reading team; writers each receive $200 and plays are produced in five November 2025 performances in Staten Island, NY. Plays are cast in NYC, rehearsed, and performed on stage.

Playwrights of selected plays will be contacted in September and their names/play titles listed on Sundog’s website in Fall 2025.

Imagine Performing Arts is looking for 6 great short plays filled with hope and happiness

Website

Deadline: July 1, 2025

(Only the first 100 scripts submitted)

 Connersville, Indiana

Questions and submissions can be emailed to Imagineperformingarts@yahoo.com. 

Imagine Performing Arts is looking for 6 great short plays filled with hope and happiness. The night of short plays to be presented February 13 - 22, 2026.

The theme for the shows is “Hope and Happiness”

If you are interested in making a submission the play should be written in the format recommended by the Dramatists Guild: https://www.dramatistsguild.com/sites/default/files/2020-01/General-SFI-Formatting-Guidelines-Complete.pdf . 

Scripts should fit into the theme of “Hope and Happiness” and should be no more than 15 minutes in length. The play reading committee will be taking into account our audience demographic that is both midwestern and rural. They don’t like vulgar language and are generally conservative. Playwrights can submit up to 3 plays.

Contact Infomation
406 N Central Ave, PO Box 540
Connersville, Indiana. 47331
765. 273. 3554

Qutub Minar Review seeks short plays

Website

Submission Deadline: June 20, 2025

Submission Email: editorqutubminarreview@gmail.com

Qutub Minar Review is inviting poetry, short stories (maximum 500 words for each story), one minute plays, interviews, book reviews, memoires and travelogues for July 2025 issue. Submission guidelines are as follows:

1 All submissions must carry a cover letter and a short literary bio-data (about 70 words) of the author.

2. We accept submissions only by email. All submissions must be sent to editorqutubminarreview@gmail.com

3. All submissions must carry:

• Full legal name of the author
• Pen name (if any)
• Postal address

Drama: You can submit up to 3 one minute plays at a time.

USAGE RIGHTS
By submitting your work you accept that you hold the copyright of the work and there is no need to get permission of any third party to publish your work. After publication the copyright of the work will revert back to the author.

NOTIFICATIONS
We notify the authors through email regarding acceptance of their works.

PAYMENTS
Unfortunately, there is no pay at this time.

June Fest at Brooklyn Bathhouse

Website

Deadline: June 9, 2025 at 11:59 PM

SUBMISSION FORM

A performing arts festival set in Brooklyn's most unique performing space: The Whole Picture Theatre at Brooklyn Bathhouse. This intimate, 38 to 50 seat cabaret theater is on the second floor of Brooklyn Bathhouse. Attendees have the option of purchasing "show-only" tickets, or a "combo ticket" that grants attendees access to the bathhouse facilities before or after the show.

The festival features a fresh line-up of Music, Theatre, Dance Comedy, and mixed-media performance. To apply, please read the details below and submit the application no later than JUNE 9th, 2025 at 11:59PM

Performance Dates:

• Wednesday June 25th
• Thursday June 26th
• Friday June 27th
• Saturday June 28th
• Sunday June 29th

Performance times: 7pm-9:30pm Wednesday + Thursday, + Sunday | 8pm- 10:30pm Friday + Saturday*
*Please note that tech and dress rehearsals will occur in the morning/afternoon of each performance date. Performers must be available for the entire day of their performance date.

Event Address: 

The Whole Picture Theatre at Brooklyn Bathhouse, 731 Flatbush Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11226
Contact us at (718) 874 - 6550 or hello@broooklynbathhouse.nyc

* Indicates required question

Please Read the details below before applying!

The festival seeks to present established and mid-career artists, and fostering emerging artists who have developed a substantial body of work and a clearly defined voice.

We are NOT interested in presenting short pieces, first time performers, or K-12 student work (We will accept collegiate-level applicants and performers).

Please read the following stage and Technical Specifications BEFORE APPLYING:

Stage dimensions: 8' deep X 20' wide. (160' sq feet) There is no scrim ,cross-over, or wings. Please do not submit work that requires these technicalities for entrances and exits of your performers.

Stage floor is wood
Stage height: 18 inches
Ceiling height (from stage): 9 Feet we do not have rigging points for arial work or circus performers.

Available Tech Specs:
-Basic PA system with sound mixing board
- cabled microphone with stand
- projector and projector screen
-Be prepared for "festival style" lighting : Basic looks, lights up, lights down.

2 shared dressing rooms are available.

REQUIREMENTS FOR APPLICANTS AND PERFORMERS

-Accepted Genres and mediums:
Music, theatre, spoken -word, comedy, dance, and multi-media performances. All work must have an element of "live performance".

- Applicants must apply with a piece, act, or set of work that is at MINIMUM 15 minutes long and at Maximum 2 hours long.

-Performers must be available for the entire day of their performance date. Tech/dress rehearsal is in the morning/afternoon of each performance date.

- Work must be adapted for minimal light cues ("Festival-style" lighting) and minimal set pieces and props. Set peices (if any) must be able to be removed from the stage in 5-8 minutes maximum in order to prepare the stage for the next performer.

-Applicants and performers must be at least 18 years old. If you need an exception to this rule for a performer, please explain why in your application below. Exceptions will be offered on a case per case basis.

- Sound restrictions: The use of amplifiers and microphones for June Fest performers is permitted, but must be kept to appropriate levels for the size of our theater space. Out of respect for our neighbors and our bathhouse customer's downstairs, Excessively loud performances will not be accepted.

- Audience interaction: Audience interaction and participation is acceptable, however, you must describe in detail what interaction you are planning. We do not accept any work that will dirty, soil, or soak our audience members or performance space. Any planned audience interaction must be safe and respectful.

Community Players Theatre seeks full-length plays

Website

Deadline: August 31, 2025

Bloomington IL

Playwright will be notified of acceptance by October 1st, 2025

Submit to Playreading@communityplayers.org

Enhanced Staged Reading: There will be set, costumes, and props. It is a short rehearsal process which is why we are not requiring memorization.

Restriction: Story must take place in no more than 2 locations. Cast no larger than 6. Must be in English.

Playwrights are more than welcome to submit as many scripts as they would like.

There is no restriction on if a show has been performed before. We just ask that you let us know so it can be properly advertised.

The Playwright will not be required to pay any fees.

New Works, New Voices 2026 seeks musicals

Website

Deadline: July 1, 2025 at 11:59pm EDT

SUBMISSION FORM

New Works/New Voices (NWNV) is an initiative at the Syracuse University Department of Drama created to support the development of musicals by writers and composers whose perspectives have been historically underrepresented in the musical theater canon.

The Syracuse University Department of Drama is seeking submissions for its Spring 2026 New Works/New Voices (NWNV) initiative. NWNV was created to support the development of musicals by writers and composers whose perspectives have been historically underrepresented in the musical theater canon. 

NWNV 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 3-week developmental workshop in the Spring 2026 semester, directed and music directed by SU Drama faculty and performed by SU Drama students. NWNV 2026 will take place from 4/3/26 - 4/26/26. The writing team will participate virtually in the evenings during week 1, and will be in residence in Syracuse during weeks 2 and 3 of the rehearsal process (4/12/25-4/26/26), travel and lodging provided. 

Semi-finalists will be contacted for additional materials in late summer/early fall 2025. Please submit the details of your musical work in the submission form. 

Questions? Please email Kathleen Wrinn, Artistic Director of NWNV and Assistant Professor of Musical Theater at SU Drama (kawrinn@syr.edu). Thank you for submitting to NWNV! We look forward to reading and listening to your work.

First Ever International Human Rights Art Festival: Queens version

Website

Deadline: June 15, 2025

QUEENS-BASED ARTISTS ONLY

September 26-28, 2025
Court Square Theater44-02 23rd Street, Long Island City, NY 11101
(Just 10 minutes from Times Square; 7, G, and E trains within a 4-minute walk.)

Results announced by mid-July, 2025

The submission window is now open for performance work in any form - every discipline!

Work may not have been produced within the last year in NYC, or be scheduled in the next six months of September 28th, 2025.

Please note:
the performances must be fully produced by you; IHRAF is a presenting platform.

Considering performances 10-20 minutes long.

We accept just one proposal for each application.

Submit all work to costanza@humanrightsartmovement.org

We are jurying work with the following interests:

• Ten Minute Play Festival 
• Climate Change Action
• Immigration
• LGBTQIA
• Celebration of Women/Women in Power
• Celebration of Black Men/Undiscovered Women
• Shalom/Salaam
• With Love from Africa
• Queens historyAmerica's Slide Into Authoritarianism
• Any other social justice concerns you might have

All accepted performers will receive:

• Performance stipends of $150
• PR and marketing support
• 30-minute tech rehearsal
• Festival TD and SM
• Free photographic documentation of their performance

…and bragging rights as participants in this vital and growing NYC creative-activist institution!

SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

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

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

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

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

As email subject, please type IHRAFQueens 2025, then add Association-Company-your name (i.e. IHRAFestival 2024, Joan Doe)

We are seeking artists who use their creativity as their weapon of justice, and operate under our signature values of
Beauty as a fundamental artistic principle;
Sincerity and Vulnerability of presentation;
Celebration of Diversity, and opening doorways of engagement with all members of society.

Connect with Us

Facebook
Instagram
LinkedIn
YouTube

Episcopal Actors’ Guild is accepting applications for their 2026 Open Stage Space Grants.

Website

Deadline: May 31, 2025

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 $5,600 credit to be used towards booking up to 80 hours in our historic theatre space at our EAG member rate of $70/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 2026 (January/February) Open Stage grant and ONE Summer 2026 (July/August) Open Stage grant.

The open Stage application will be open May 1, 2025 through May 31, 2025. No applications will be accepted after the deadline. Finalists will be invited to interview with the selection committee at Guild Hall.

For our 2026 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.

EAG's Open Stage space grant program is supported by the Teri Black Performance Fund, and by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council and the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Kathy Hochul and the New York State Legislature.

The Soliloquist Journal seeks submissions of poems and soliloquies for Summer 2025 issue

Website

Deadline: July 5, 2025

Following the introspective depth of Unfinished Dialogues, our second issue invites soliloquies and poems that explore duality, reflection, and the fractured self—"Echoes in the Mirror."

We seek works that grapple with:

• The masks we wear (public vs. private selves)
• Confrontations with the past (ghosts, memories, alternate versions of
• oneself)
• Bodies and distortions (dysmorphia, aging, transformation)
• Whispers of the subconscious (dreams, repressed desires, inner chaos)
• Literal and metaphorical mirrors (as truth-tellers, liars, or portals)

Send up to 5 poems (no more than 40 lines each).
Include a brief bio in third person (50–100 words).

Submissions must be original and unpublished.

Email your work to thesoliloquistmag@gmail.com
with the subject line “ Summer 2025 Submission
– [Your Name].”

Publication Date: July 15, 2025
Notification Timeline: Within 1 week of submission.

Blank Page Theatre Co. 2025 SUMMER NEW WORKS FESTIVAL

Website

Deadline: June 6, 2025

Please submit your plays to: blankpagetheatreco@gmail.com

Blank Page Theatre Co. is looking for playwrights and directors for our 4th Annual Summer New Works Festival.

Blank Page Theatre Co. is a theater company whose mission is to raise questions about our social climate to facilitate conversations about the world that we find ourselves living in today.

Every year, Blank Page Theatre Co. picks a theme that reflects the social climate of the year and focuses on pieces and works that support the theme. 

This year's theme is: DEI

The new Trump administration has, through coercion and brute executive force, practically outlawed DEI initiatives in the United States. These programs have existed for years to bring America closer to an equitable country. The removal of these programs is the start of bringing the United States back to a bygone era. We are in search of plays that showcase all aspects of DEI (LGBTQIA Rights, Women’s Rights, BIPOC Rights, etc.). and speak to why they are so important for the future of our society


For Playwrights:
We are seeking 3/4 works to produce this summer:
2/3 Short Plays - 10-15-minute works
1 Longer Play- 20-60 minute works

You are welcome to attend the entirety of the rehearsal process, whether in person or on Zoom- we will make sure you can see your work in process!

The summer festival is a workshop process. Be prepared to work closely with the actors, directors, and playwrights to adjust the shows over our three-week rehearsal process.

Playwrights and Directors will also be provided with high-quality show photographs, as well as a recorded livestream from one of the performances.

If you want to see past years' productions, check out our social media: @blankpagetheatreco on Instagram, as well as on blankpagetheatreco.com

If you have any additional questions, please feel free to reach out to the email below. We are excited to read over your plays.

Important Dates (Tentative)- Rehearsal: July 7-July 25, Tech Week: July 28- August 1 Performance: August 2-3

The Ten-Minute Musicals Project 2025

Website

Deadline: August 31, 2025

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

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

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

SUBMISSIONS SHOULD INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING:

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

SEND TO:

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Fast-paced comedy material has an advantage.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Breakthrough Theatre Company Crazy Little Thing Called HORROR seeks short plays

Website

Deadline: June 30, 2025 at 11:59 PM

Winter Park Florida

For season 17, the Breakthrough Theatre Company will produce 8 original 10 minute short plays under the title, "Crazy Little Thing Called HORROR".

1. The play must be only 10-12 minutes long. (Seriously)
2. It may be comedic or dramatic.
3. It must fit the theme "Crazy Little Thing Called Horror" (whatever that means to you)
4. I'm looking for plays with characters of all ages.
5. I will only choose 1 play per playwright, but you may submit more than one.
6. I'm not interested in plays that have previously been produced in Central Florida.

The plays will be presented in October/November 2025.
If interested, please email your script to wadehair1966@gmail.com by 11:59 p.m. on June 30, 2025.

If you have any questions, feel free to send a message to Wade Hair on Facebook or to wadehair1966@gmail.com.

Thank you, and happy haunting!

2025-26 PlayGround-NY Writers Pool

Website

Deadline: May 31, 2025 at  11:59pm PT

SUBMISSION FORM

2025-26 Writers Pool Submission Guidelines

Applications for the 2025-26 PlayGround-NY Writers Pool are being accepted now through May 31, 2025.

– 25 early-career playwrights as well as 3 alternates will be competitively selected from applications to form the Writers Pool.

– Members of the Writers Pool may submit scripts to be considered as part of the Monday Night PlayGround-NY staged reading series. Four times each season, September through March (see tentative schedule below), PlayGround-NY will announce a prompt and Writers Pool members have just four-and-a-half days to generate an original short script (max. 10 pages) inspired by the prompt. The top six scripts each round will be staged publicly with leading local directors and actors. Those not selected may submit their scripts to Recess for cold readings via zoom (see below).

– From the plays staged throughout the season, up to six will be selected for Best of PlayGround-NY (produced in April 2026).

– Writers Pool members can gain peer feedback on their work by participating in Recess cold readings (one week after each Monday Night PlayGround-NY and generally via Zoom) as well as through a staff one-on-one session (available upon request). New this year, Writers Pool Alternates will have full access to Recess.

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES

– Writers must reside within the five boroughs of New York City

– NEW THIS YEAR: Writers Pool members must commit to submitting for ALL FOUR Monday Night PlayGround-NY events in a given season (see below for schedule, subject to change). Writers failing to meet the eligibility requirements must sit out the remainder of the season and one additional full season. Alternates are asked to submit each round and may be admitted to the Pool should there be an opening during the season.

– The submission of a script to Monday Night PlayGround-NY grants PlayGround-NY the exclusive option to stage the play as part of the Monday Night PlayGround-NY and, should it be so selected, to present the world premiere as part of Best of PlayGround-NY and non-exclusive option to publish the script in a “Best of PlayGround” anthology.

– Current members of the Writers Pool must reapply in order to be considered for the following season.

WHAT TO SUBMIT

– Playwrights must submit a 10-page max, properly formatted script as PDF attachment. Both previously produced and unproduced scripts are eligible. See below for formatting examples.

– The script must have the playwright’s name, address, email and phone number at the top of the first page and include a detailed cast breakdown, and all pages must be numbered.

– The script title must be labeled by Lastname, Firstname_Title (e.g., Shakespeare, William_The Tempest).

– Excerpts from longer works are not accepted but short plays that meet the above requirements and are derived from a longer work are accepted.

– BIPOC, trans/gender-non-conforming & playwrights with disabilities are encouraged to apply.

– Applications must be received by 11:59pm PT on Saturday, May 31, 2025.

To view sample script formats, click the link(s) below.
Submission Format #1
Submission Format #2

WRITERS POOL ANNOUNCEMENT
– Applicants will be notified of selections on or before August 1, 2025.
– Selected writers must attend a mandatory company meeting on Sunday, August 24 (time to be announced).

2025-26 SCHEDULE (subject to change)
MNP1 Topic Announced: September 19, 2025
MNP1 Scripts Due: September 23, 2025
MNP2 Topic Announced: October 31, 2025
MNP2 Scripts Due: November 4, 2025
MNP3 Topic Announced: December 19, 2025
MNP3 Scripts Due: December 23, 2025
MNP4 Topic Announced: January 30, 2026
MNP 4 Scripts Due: February 3, 2026

For any questions not answered above, email to info@playground-ny.org

BREAD ~ a short play by Daniel S. Park

BREAD

A short play by Daniel S. Park

Playing in a theater festival run by Audacious Owl Productions, a new theater company.

At the Chain Theatre

• June 10 @ 7 pm 
• June 14th @ 2pm. 

Synopsis:

After losing their nest home to a construction company and real estate contractors,  two of the last OWLS on Earth debate whether they continue to try and survive elsewhere or to simply indulge in their last supper before their inevitable doomed end by the humans. An existential take on "Waiting for Godot" with birds. A dark comedy.

Tickets:
https://www.ticketleap.events/tickets/audaciousowl/audacious-owl-theatre-festival-program-1#

The A Chronicles: A Ten-Minute Play Festival

Website

Deadline: July 25, 2025

SUBMISSION FORM AT THE BOTTOM OF THIS PAGE

The A Chronicles invites submissions of ten-minute plays that take a wide-angle lens to reproductive rights.

We’re looking for work that ignites the stage—whether triumphant, tragic, or comedic—and illuminates the diversity of experiences surrounding reproductive rights.

Submission Guidelines

• Plays should feature 2 to 5 characters
• Must be performable in 10 minutes or less
• All are welcome to submit
• Previously published or produced work is accepted, as long as the playwright retains submission rights
• Include a 50-word synopsis with your submission

We’re interested in:

• Originality of plot
• Strong character development
• Engaging, authentic dialogue

Selected plays will receive:

• A $50 honorarium per production
• Billing credit in all programs, advertising, and publicity
• A professional staged reading at the Museum of Contemporary Art of Connecticut (Fall 2025)
• Playwright bio and contact info featured in the program

For more information, visit www.AChronicles.org or email Jennifer.Bangser@gmail.com or achronicles@gmail.com

Little Plays Big Murder short play festival

Website

Deadline: June 30, 2025

​

Email a Word or PDF file of your script to producer@westchesterplays.com. We will respond that we have received the script. All communications will be via email. Read the format section above for what to include.

Westchester Civic Theater (WCT) is holding another round of our 8x10 Play Festival. It will include 8, ten-minute scripts that are new. We hope one (or more) will be written by you!

WHO KILLED THE DIRECTOR?
Your job as the writer is to come up with a 10 min play using the characters provided in the opening as well as any other characters you feel you may want to add to enhance the play and solve the crime as to who killed the director and why. One catch, the opening of your play must have a character start your play by saying, "This is what happened."

At the start of the show, the attached scene: view here will provide the setup your play will be one of the 8 short plays that follow.

GRACE GODPLOP, 20's, young and a bit naive when it comes to the theatre world, originally from the south and acts like a Southern Belle. Many eyes are on her due to her charm and looks.

DONALD SPEAR, 50's, older actor and a bit of a grump, seems to be stuck doing Community Theatre and wants to some day breakout, he does not suffer fools

MORRIS CATROPHY, also in 50's, this guy IS a fool, nice man but clueless to the point where others think he cannot be that dumb

DEBBIE LITTLE, 50's-60's, loud mouth and intelligent but puts her foot in her mouth too many times, is never afraid to speak her mind and one not to mess with

KAT CROTHERS, older than 40, female, all business and no pleasure make this person a dullard

JOHNNY NICER, 30's, works with the lights and has the hots for Grace, he knows his job well and hopes to someday break away from lighting and maybe direct his own show one day

You must incorporate the theme but feel free to color outside the lines.

From script submission to performance - the process:

Phase 1: Script Submission - Due by June 30

Requirements

Ten Minutes - This is about 8 pages of dialogue in 12 pt font. While we will read all scripts, if they are much over 8 pages they will not be considered for production. 

Subject Matter - Write the best story that incorporates the theme in some way. 

Cast Size - No requirement.​ If your script is on the convention hall floor, know that we'll add in extras as appropriate to pass by in the background. 

Playwright Location - We don't care where you're from. Have an amazing script, submit it!

**Format - PDF or Word. On the title page include your Name, location and email address. Do not include your name on the script pages.

Never Performed Material - We want scripts that have never been performed with set, cast and all the drama. If it went through a stage reading or two, okey doke.

Set - When writing your script, know that we have limited space, tech, and no projection. Single set works best but if things need to come in and out, that's cool we'll figure it out. We use chairs and simple items to represent the area.

You can submit as many scripts as you'd like! More the merrier

**SPECIAL OPTION - Feel like submitting 3, 2-3 minute scripts that are vignettes telling one story? Do that. We will weave each of the 2 minute scripts in-between the other 7 scripts. You can submit them in one document.

Scripts remain your property. If selected, we will produce them, perform them, take production pictures, and record them in production. The pictures will be shared and the recordings will live on our YouTube page. Beyond that, they are yours.

We look forward to reading your scripts! 

Phase 2 - July 1 - July 20, 2025

We have an awesome group of people who will read all the scripts to determine which are the best fit for WCT and the production. Keeping to the ten minutes is critical! This team will reduce the submitted scripts down to 15-20. These scripts will enter Phase 3 - director matching.

Phase 3 - Script/Director Matching - July 21 - 30

8 Scripts, 8 Directors

The narrowed down selections will be shared with 8 directors (director spots still open). The directors will read the scripts and determine which they would like to direct. The core WCT team will do some fancy analysis of the 8 director's responses and complete the final matching. From there...on to casting.

Phase 4 - Three Performances

Friday, September 5, 7:00pm

Saturday, September 6, 2:00pm

Saturday, September 6, 7:00pm

Cry Havoc Play List 2025

Website

Deadline: June 23, 2025

SUBMISSION FORM.

We are pleased to announce the third annual cycle of PlayList, a short play development series. Each participating playwright will complete the project with a submission-ready 10-minute play and the project will culminate in a public presentation of the play collection. PlayList is for writers of any background, identity, education or experience level who are interested in honing their work on a short script with a room full of artists experienced in new play development. Applicants need to be local to the NYC area to participate, and CRY HAVOC is especially seeking artists from underrepresented communities for this project. No fee to apply or participate, and writers are paid a stipend for the use of their work in the public presentation.

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.

If you are interested in seeing how our structured feedback process can support your work, apply to be one of our PlayList writers!

PlayList participants will write new 10-minute scripts inspired by creative prompts linked by a theme. The 2025 theme is Cover to Cover; each writer will draw inspiration for a two-character play from a cover song and an album cover.

What’s the Process?
SELECT: Playwrights apply to the project, sharing a writing sample and a cover song and album cover to serve as inspiration for a ten-minute play.
SHUFFLE: The songs and album covers are reassigned randomly among the five selected playwrights.
CREATE: Each PlayList writer drafts a ten-minute, two-character play inspired by another playwright’s prompts.
COLLAB: Writers develop their drafts over several feedback sessions in the CRY HAVOC Workshop.
PLAY: Actors and directors join the process to present the PlayList collection as a public Equity 29-Hour Reading of the plays.

How does the collaboration work?
Each writer works with a facilitator—a CRY HAVOC artist to confer with before/after each feedback session. Facilitators moderate each session in support of the playwright and their goals. The feedback sessions will include our roster of artists with years of new play dramaturgy experience, the other PlayList writers, and their invited guests and colleagues.

PlayList applicants are asked to commit to participation in a preliminary welcome meeting via Zoom, six in-person workshop sessions in NYC, two final-draft Zoom workshop sessions, and the public reading in NYC. See schedule below (all sessions will be in the evening):

Wed. 8/20: Welcome Zoom meeting
Tue. 9/2 and Thu. 9/4: In-person workshops, 1st drafts
Mon. 9/8 and Wed. 9/10: In-person workshops, 2nd drafts
Mon. 9/15 and Wed. 9/17: In-person workshops, 3rd drafts
Wed. 9/24 and Thu. 9/25: Zoom workshops, rehearsal drafts
Wed. 10/8: Public presentation

Who is PlayList for?
This program is for writers of ANY background, especially if you are:
- looking for tools to support the development of new work
- searching for a community to serve as a “home base” for creative feedback and support
- not sure what you are going to write next
- an artist at any stage of your career, from emerging to established, who is looking for new collaborators

What are we looking for?
CRY HAVOC is looking for artists who are interested in:
- discussing their work and their goals
- supporting the work of others
- exploring a system for structured feedback

How can I apply?
If you are interested in participating in PlayList, please submit:
- a 10-page writing sample and brief description why/how is this sample representative of your work?
- a cover song that has particular significance to you and brief explanation - why this song?
- an album cover and brief explanation - why this album cover?

Veterans' 10 Minute Playwrighting Contest 2025

Website

Deadline: June 30, 2025 11:59 PM

SUBMIT VIA SUBMITTABLE

All playwrights, regardless of military affiliation, are invited to enter Salem State University’s 10-Minute Playwriting Contest. However, preference will be given to those with a direct military connection. This includes active-duty military, reservists, National Guard, Veterans, and direct family of any of these.

The theme of the play should directly touch on military service and/or how military service affects a community. The contest and festival look to recognize and celebrate those that have served and currently serve. We are looking to bring together a variety of voices exploring both the challenges and the victories and positive influences that Veterans have on our community.

Judges will select finalists, whose plays will be part of a series of staged readings in November 2025.

Important Dates

June 30, 2025 - Entry deadline

August 15, 2025 - Notification of finalists

November 2025 – Staged readings with post-performance discussions. Additional details forthcoming.

Contest Rules

• Only submissions through Submittable will be considered.
• One submission per playwright.
• Only original plays, not-yet produced or published, are eligible.
• All plays are judged blind. Do not include any personal, identifying information anywhere on your submission.
• Musicals and adaptations are not eligible.
• Simultaneous submissions are allowed. If your play is accepted elsewhere, please let us know immediately. If your play is chosen to be performed, you agree to withdraw your play from all other places where it is under consideration.
• By submitting, you agree to allow Salem State University to produce the first staged reading of your play.
• Scripts meeting the rules and submitted by the deadline will be reviewed by judges.
• Judging will be done by SSU faculty and members of the SSU Veterans’ community.

Judging Criteria

StoryPlot seems fresh, intriguing and original
Something happens; sufficient conflict and tension throughout the play
Plot is active, vital and dramatic on stage
Story moves along; pace is engaging

VoiceStrong, interesting writing style
Clear viewpoint that’s well integrated into the play

CharactersInteresting and compelling characters
Characters seem credible and real
Main character evolves or develops through the course of the play

DialogueDialogue suits the characters
Dialogue sounds natural and credible for the plot and location
Each character has own unique voice
Dialogue seems fresh and compelling (not dull, boring, or generic)

AppropriatenessThe play can be staged in the 10-minute time allotment in a black box theatre with limited set, sound, and design.

Overall effectPlay is transformative and memorable

Submitting Your Work

The script must be in standard playwriting format with 12-point Courier font. Use double spacing when changing from one character to another. Use single spacing everywhere else. If you are unfamiliar with standard playwriting format, please check out this example.

PLAYS THAT FAIL TO MEET THESE CRITERIA WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED.

Questions: email arts@salemstate.edu