Tuesday, December 31, 2013

2013: Numerology and Tarot Cards


At the end of 2012, I was having dinner with a few friends, one of whom happened to be a numerologist.

Oh, do Aurin! Do Aurin!

She did me. The numerologist asked for my birthdate and a few other statistics. She did the 'math' in her head and foretold that 2013 was going to be a busy year. The word was going to be work.  But I had also been 'done' a month prior to this chance encounter. In November 2012 I met up with a group of friends; one of them was into tarot card readings.

Oh, do Aurin! Do Aurin!

So she did me too. She forecasted an up-and-down 2013, with a slow and financially arduous first few months followed by a boom around May and continuing throughout the rest of the year.

The results of both forecasts were pretty accurate. 2013 was filled with work, but the financial stuff kicked in over the last 6 months.

JANUARY: STARTING

1. BEACH!!!
Enjoying the last week of beach time in Miami before heading back to NYC.

2. "Holocaust Remembrance Project"
My first performing gig in years. I acted and dramaturg'ed an ensemble piece honoring the 80th year since the end of the Holocaust.

HRP: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EgWpOEuI8z0&list=FL23sf7zvQIKOzxezIT-Ffbg

3. African Americana
I wrote a short comedy that went up in a weekend festival at BAX

4. Evil Twink/Mister
The last of a series of videos I wrote and produced for MISTER was released this month

5. AmeriKids/Limitless Health Institute
Started a 6 month volunteer program between AmeriKids, Limitless Health Institute, and Be Do Fly. The program culminated in a performance at Nuyorican Poets Cafe with teenagers from Amerikids writing and performing their own work.

FEBRUARY:  FREEFALLING

 I wrote a short play that went up at Barrington Stage Company. It gave me the opportunity to see Pittsfield, MA and visit BSC

The play sparked a lot of great conversation and was later taped Play Cafe, a public TV show in Williamsburg.

MARCH: RWANDA

I got the opportunity to serve as a dramaturg and associate producer on "Rwanda," the second concert in the Holocaust Remembrance series.

APRIL: BEACH BIRTHDAY

Back in Miami on the beach. Writing and thinking.

MAY: DARFUR

The third Remembrance project I dramaturg'ed was about the on-going crisis in Darfur.

JUNE: BURSTING

1. "Freefalling" and Fiat Lux
I get the news that "Freefalling" won the Fiat Lux Prize from the Catholic Church. I'm invited to attend the Catholic Church Theatre conference next month.

2. Amerikids and Nuyorican Poets
Amerikids concert written and performed by the kids. A culmination of 6 months of volunteer work, planning, and coordination.

JULY: VIDEOS

1. Learn Liberty
I get a trial-run producing job with Learn Liberty. Greenlit to write/produce 3 videos on the NSA Scandal and Edward Snowden.

2. Hansberry & Baldwin: finish co-writing historical drama about meetings with Lorraine Hansberry, James Baldwin, and Robert F. Kennedy in 1963.

AUGUST: DOING IT!

1. Juilliard Playwright Fellowship
I find out that I got into the Lila Acheson Wallace Playwriting Fellowship.

2. NSA Scandal: Pt. 1
First in a series of videos I wrote and produced went out on Learn Liberty.  The topic was about the NSA Scandal and how our individual liberties are under attack.

3. NSA Video Pt. 2: Edward Snowden


4. reading of "Hansberry & Baldwin" for producers at Guthrie Theatre

5. BEACH TIME!
Miami, beach, family.

SEPTEMBER: AUTUMN

1. Start at Juilliard

2. Named Red Shirt Entertainment's resident playwright

3. "Defacing Michael Jackson" selected for workshop production in November
- rewrite
-auditions
- contracts and logistics

4. NSA Videos: Pt. 3


4. Holocaust Remembrance Project: Trail of Tears
I dramaturg the fourth project about the "Trail of Tears."

5. "Obama-ology"
 Wrote dark comedy about working on the campaign trail.

6. "A Collection of Miracles"
Finished rough draft of spiritual comedy about quantum physics and healing.

7. "RED MIND"
Completed rough draft of multimedia piece

OCTOBER: REHEARSALS

1. going into rehearsals for "Defacing Michael Jackson"

2. sign with Paradigm Talent Agency

NOVEMBER: DEFACING

1. "Defacing Michael Jackson"
Workshop production gets some good reviews. Good times.

2. greenlight to write/produce web series "Generation Debt" for Learn Liberty

DECEMBER: GRATITUDE

1. BOSNIA
Fifth Holocaust Project goes up at Nuyorican Poets Cafe

2. "Generation Debt" shoot

3. BEACH!!
Back in Miami for family, friends, and quiet time.

4.  Buddhist Tarot
A friend gives me an impromptu Buddhist Tarot Card Reading for 2014. I got the forecast. We'll see what happens!

Wednesday, December 25, 2013

Christmas Quatrains

In infancy and when we are grown
be it angelic or curmudgeon-ed tone
in millions murmured morning hums
let gifts, presents, and holy wishes come.

From the North, South, East, West
overtime workers and those in holiday rest
best of friends and enemies grievously wrong'ed
shine a beacon of warm light and a simple song.

Let our music inside arise and play
issuing a dance the body must obey
as joyous words circle and sail like gentle doves
and hearts precipitate passionate love.

Children look into cotton clouds overhead
for flying reindeer and men in Arctic red.
'Round knight tables and bachelors breakfast'ing alone,
make this "Merry Christmas" your very own.

- Aurin Squire

Sunday, December 15, 2013

Moments of Steve

I had not heard or seen Steve Nicholas in years. After graduation it seemed like he disappeared from my life. I could not get his phone number, my emails went unanswered. I wanted to hear about the musical he was writing, his new projects, his upstate New York jokes. The word it felt like was 'subtraction.' Like many others before him, I somberly accepted it as the city-way. You get to know people and then one day, the connections snaps. No arguments, no overt reason, no airing of grievances. Just a sudden subtraction.

My Sunday was blocked out for a video shoot. A comedic web series. We were in the middle of filming an over-the-top death bed scene. The relatives of the lead character were carrying on, wailing, improvising lines that had the crew bursting with laughter. Many of the people in the room had experience death recently. The laughter and clowning was like a much needed gasp of oxygen. A few minutes into the mourning, I got the news about Steve Nicholas on my phone. Not knowing what to do with this information, I blurted it out to the nearest person. They didn't know Steve but they expressed the appropriate sense of subtraction. Satisfied that I had placed my 'floating feeling' into a 'call-and-response' exchange I continued working. The roar of laughter from the other room got louder.

MOMENT #1: Brother

STEVE
That's a good one, brother!

 When Steve first called me brother, I thought he was being sarcastic. We had been having a pleasant conversation as first-year grad students. I said something that made him laugh so hard he coughed until his throat was red. In his whiskey hoarse voice of his, he said 'you got that right, brother.' I cocked my head to the side, smiled, and excused myself. I wasn't offended, I just needed a moment to process that. It's not often middle-age White men call you brother, right? That's not how the world works. And although I've never been invited to the club, I don't think middle-age White men call each other brother.

I thought Steve was fascinating, funny, frustrating,

MOMENT #2: Marvin Gaye

ME
Brother, brother!
We don't need to escalate.
War is not the answer.
Cause only love can conquer hate.

STEVE
Who is that?

ME (along with a few other playwrights)
WHAT?!?!

Steve had been reading a part in one of my plays. One of the stage directions was for his character to vocalize his line in a Marvin Gaye falsetto. Steve circled something on his script and ignored the direction. At the end of the reading he asked, 'who is that guy?' I laughed. Surely, you're joking. I began sing/mumbling "What's Going On?" He stared at me like I farted.

"How can you call me brother and not know Marvin Gaye?" He just shrugged his shoulders.

"Were you under a rock in the 60s and 70s?" He eagerly nodded his head to end the discussion.

MOMENT #3: Charge of the Light Brigade

Another dull morning before class. The fluorescent lights tortured my early-morning eyes with its sharp glare. It was best to just put my head down and wait. Steve walked in. I always enjoyed listening to Steve in voice and speech class cause he was so consistently anti-voice and speech. He chewed his words, 'tawked' out of the side of his mouth, belted from the middle of his throat, had no connection to his chest voice. Glottal fry? Why yes, please. And can I have a shake with that?

Everything was wrong and it was pure poetry. His voice had a personality. It had style, substance, rhythm, and marched forward, oblivious to any instructions or international phonetic systems. Listening to him work through his vocal exercises was like "The Charge of the Light Brigade." Sweet beautiful doom.

MOMENT #4: STOP SMOKING!

ME
Steve, you need to stop smoking!

STEVE
Yeah. Whatever.

ME
Seriously. You can barely breathe after climbing a flight of stairs.

STEVE
(sotto)
...I know.

He smelled like cigarettes. He fell of the proverbial 'nicotine wagon.' We were in another class and I didn't know what else to say. I grew up with asthma so my lips have never even touched a cigarette. The desire to put smoke in a pair of healthy lungs and choke up the sustenance of life (breath), baffled someone who had enough problems trying to gulp down clean air. What I wanted to say was 'Steve, you are too smart for that. You know that, right? You are too smart, too important, too big, too much love. You have gone too far.

MOMENT #5: Hey, brother! You're right!

STEVE
You ever notice...that teacher...she looks different.

ME
Steve...(whispers) she had plastic surgery.

STEVE
Get outta here. Really brother?

ME
Yes. During the winter break. Just look at her eyes.

(Teacher enters. )

TEACHER
Welcome back, welcome back.

STEVE
Hey, happy new year.

(Steve glares at the teacher for a few uncomfortable moments. )

STEVE
(in a loud voice)
Hey, brother! You're right!

ME
(wanting to hide)
Thanks.

MOMENT #6: PACE

The last time I saw Steve, he was in a suit and tie. I was walking down the hallways of Pace University looking for a bathroom. Steve was dressed in a suit and tie, guiding some students to their classes.

I nonchalantly walked up to him. This had been years. No conversation, no investment.

ME
Where's the bathroom?

STEVE
Hey! How are you?

ME
Doing well. Looking sharp in the suit.

Steve said something self-deprecating about his suit and a 'monkey.' I nodded. He moved his lips and I thought 'wow, it's been years.' And then suddenly he was pointing me in the direction of the bathroom. My feet were moving. The interaction was complete. He was in the middle of work. I understood that. Freshman students needed to be guided quite literally to the right room in a maze of hallways. We made promises to keep in touch. I did something I consider 'weak.' In a romantic comedy, they say goodbye and then they look back one final moment. It's cheesy. Music should be playing. Well that's what I did: a lookback. I was headed down the hall toward the bathroom and I looked back. Subtraction one last time.

Steve was pointing a few students in one direction while he walked ahead. He didn't look back. He was too busy practicing addition and multiplication: pointing people toward their destination. I wanted to slip in the 'b' word one final time. Maybe I would shock him this time, or make him turn his head to the side and smile. But was it too late? The distance was widening between us. I could shout it down the hall, or sing it:

ME
HEY BROTHER!!!
BROTHER BROTHER BROTHER!
What's going on?

STEVE
WHO THE HELL IS THAT?

ME
Marvin Gaye! What's wrong with you? Were you born under a rock?

STEVE
(nodding quickly)
Yeah!

That didn't happen. Instead we kept walking.

My condolences to Steve Nicholas' family and friends. Even if he didn't know Marvin Gaye, Steve was born under the stars. My brother, brother, brother.


Thursday, December 5, 2013

Mandela is Gone

My sister sent me the text. In my mind I was rattling through a bullet-point list of assignments to complete and emails to send out. As I rushed up the steps of Juilliard to use the computer lab, I paused to look at my buzzing phone. I read her message, took it in for a moment, and continued climbing the stairs.

A few months ago I decided to join a new project: a musical about Mandela and de Klerk. The musical has the booming bass of their older selves along with the rock operatic rage of a younger and fiery Mandela and a racist de Klerk. Every week we meet on Thursday to go over new pages, new songs, outlining scenes. The collaborative team of director, composer, lyricist, and I have a strong first act and we're on pace for finishing the book by the end of the year. Some of the songs are so epic and sweeping that it's become a 'can you match me game.' I try to write the next scene so that it crackles with the humor, subtext, and strategy that I imagine these two men must have had during the close negotiations to end apartheid. The music team comes back with these colorful, rich African songs inspired by the region and the prison choruses of the men who were wrongfully jailed during apartheid.

This Thursday evening was different. I didn't have any pages, they didn't have any songs. We just sat with the news. We went around the room and talked about what makes a man great, what made Mandela a part of a movement necessary in this world: forgiveness.

We each spoke about the ingredients of greatness. Love, vision, courage, a sense of fatherhood or motherhood for others. One of the elements that's underestimated about civil rights icons and inspirational leaders is strategy. Crowds just see the Dalai Lama smiling, Gandhi waving, Mother Teresa blessing the poor, Malcolm X kneeling at Mecca, and Martin Luther King standing in front of thousands of people talking about his dream and a nation's hope. These succinct snapshots become the short-hand for humility, love, grace, greatness. What doesn't come across is the strategist and tactician. These great figures were amazing organizers of large throngs of people and knew how to use them effectively, and for clear goals. In the Dalai Lama's case he remains a supreme balance of spiritual leader and thoughtful tactician maneuvering against a hostile Chinese government with only his words and carefully selected ambassadors.

Mandela ranks up there with the greatest civil rights strategists and thinkers. He would have his apostles fan out across the world to media centers like London, Paris, and New York City. They would carry the message of anti-apartheid in their own unique way crafted for their particular audience. This didn't go on for months, but decades. From this consistent and insistent message arose boycotts, international pressure, and diplomatic animosity toward apartheid.

What was put before South Africa's racist government wasn't a gun, but something much worse: a mirror. That was the only thing Mandela could arm himself with and give to his followers. Their words made the South African government see what their policies had done. It had turned them into the very monsters they thought they were shielded against with apartheid. The putrid ugliness of a system rooted in a lie and supported by a gun could no longer be denied. Once the ugliness can be traced back to an irrational hatred then that institution is finished. When the monster is forced to look at themselves, they turn back into the scared children of Cain who -in a desperate search for security- re-enact the same crime done by man against their own kind since the beginning. No system, however cleverly designed and brutally enforced, can overcome a spirit in despair or a society blinded by its hypocrisy.

The message of the mirror is undeniable when delivered from a loving heart. These inherent truths are in the gospels of the Bible and the sutras of Buddha. The conscience of an awakened populace is not only more powerful than a bomb; it is the bomb that ends the world in order to bring about the new.

Mandela was one of the few in the 20th century who ushered in a new way of life by lifting the mirror.  We ended the meeting in the African tradition of joining hands in a circle. We each had a moment to speak a eulogy to him. It was our moment to bring the spirit of Mandela into our circle. As we raised the mirror up to our faces, I saw his light in our simple words of gratitude. Thank you, Father Mandela. You can rest now.

Sunday, December 1, 2013

Get What You Want: December 2013

Happy holidays! This is GET WHAT YOU WANT:  December 2013.

This month there are 22 contests, fellowships, and submission opportunities. Enjoy!

1.
HartBeat Ensemble: Plays on Mental Health
Deadline: Dec. 30th


HartBeat Ensemble is looking for new plays with a mental health theme - for a health series curating next season- Anyone have one? please send to steve.ginsburg@hartbeatensemble.org.


Especially looking for plays from new emerging playwrights - it doesn't need to even be a finished play, HartBeat can workshop it.


This is for 14-15 season.
HartBeat Ensemble: hartbeatensemble.org



2.
SCI-FI Fest
Deadline: Dec. 15th


SCI-FEST: The 1st Annual Los Angeles Science Fiction One-Act Festival is now accepting submissions of one-act plays that deal with sci-fi themes.  The festival’s producers are David Dean Bottrell, Lee Costello and Michael Blaha.   The festival (currently scheduled to open in Los Angeles in May, 2014) will consist of two evenings of rotating one-act plays.  Each evening will contain four to five one-acts ranging in length from five to twenty minutes.  Because we are producing under the AEA 99-seat small theatre plan, we will only be able to offer a small fee to license the one-acts.   However, it is our intent to secure the best venue possible to put the majority of the money raised into the physical production and promotion of the festival.
If you would like to submit something, here are a few guidelines:


The deadline for submissions is December 15, 2013


The running time of your script needs to be 5-20 minutes.  20 minutes is the absolute maximum running time.  We are primarily seeking 10 minute plays.  Shorter is better.
The material has to work as a theatre piece.  Pulling a scene from a screenplay or pilot probably won’t work unless you can adapt it.


The story structure doesn’t have to resemble a “Twilight Zone” episode (although that’s an excellent format).  It can be as “out there” as you like.  It just has to work dramatically on stage.


We will have the best directors and design team we can assemble, so feel free to challenge them.  However, keep in mind that this is live theatre so we cannot compete with TV and film when it comes to massive special effects.  That said, we will definitely be able to do video projections and are reaching out to some fantastic make-up / prosthetic artists.


In our experience, the best stage material in this genre asks the audience to use its imagination.  When writing, consider the power of lighting and sound to create events (off-stage and on) and in some cases to generate entirely new worlds.


Even though the material is short, please make sure that it delivers both suspense and a surprise of some kind.


The story doesn’t have to occur in the future or on some alien world.  Some of the best sci-fi stories occur in simple commonplace situations that suddenly become bizarre and threatening.


Although the bulk of the plays will probably be dramatic, we are definitely open to both serio-comic and comic material.


It’s our goal to assemble as many different types of Sci-Fi material as possible.  Here are some subjects (and sub-genres) that we’re interested in: genetic modification and mutation, global climate change, war (both on and off the surface of the earth), video games & gaming, Japanese sci-fi, aliens, spacecraft, space travel, colonization, overpopulation, scientific & medical experimentation and ethical issues, iconic locations like Roswell & Area 51, comic books, graphic novels, fantasy, time travel, black holes, period pieces, cryptids, meteors, intergalactic treaties and politics, conspiracies, justice, alternative worlds, undiscovered dimensions and mind-bending adventures.  Surprise us!  Here’s a fun link that might inspire some ideas:  http://myscienceacademy.org/2013/01/03/27-science-fictions-that-became-science-facts-in-2012/


We sincerely look forward to reading any 5-20 minute material you (or your colleagues) send to us.


For now, send your submissions to DavidDeanBottrell@gmail.com and please put the word “SUBMISSION” in the subject line.  Again, please be aware the final slate of one-acts will not be announced until late December or January of next year.
\
3.
Premiere Stages Play Festival
Deadline:  January 15th


Premiere Stages, the professional theater company in residence at Kean University seeks submissions to the 8th Annual Premiere Stages Play Festival. The yearly competition for un-produced scripts offers developmental opportunities to four playwrights born or currently residing in the greater metropolitan area (New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, and Connecticut). The winner of the festival will be awarded $2,000 and a full Equity production in Premiere's 2013 season. The runner-up will receive $750 and an Equity workshop in June; two other writers will receive Staged Readings in March and a cash prize of $500.


Through the uniquely accelerated Play Festival process, Premiere Stages provides an encouraging and focused environment in which playwrights can see their work move quickly from page to stage. Premiere Stages also actively advocates for Festival writers, helps playwrights reach out to other theaters to secure subsequent productions, and partners with other organizations and theaters to extend the profile and life of the works developed. "What makes Premiere unique is that we fast track plays from a sit-down reading to a fully staged production within a few short months, keeping highly topical plays relevant while affording playwrights the benefit of retaining the world premiere rights," stated John Wooten, Producing Artistic Director of Premiere Stages. "Second productions of new plays are extremely rare, and demanding the 'world premiere' brand often stops a play dead in its tracks."


All entries are evaluated by a panel of theater professionals in consultation with the Artistic Director and Resident Dramaturg. Agents may submit full scripts; playwrights may submit a synopsis and script sample directly. Postmark deadline is January 15, 2013. No entry fee. Complete submission guidelines available atwww.kean.edu/premierestages.


For more information on Premiere Stages please visit out website at: www.kean.edu/premierestages



4.
MoveOn Fracking Fighters
Deadline: Dec. 3rd (for artist/activist)


Applications are due this Tuesday, December 3, at 10 p.m. local time—so don't wait any longer to apply.
From award-winning director of “Gaslands” Josh Fox:
Traveling all across the U.S., I witnessed the destruction that drilling and fracking brings to communities, to public health, and to the environment. Water so contaminated it lights on fire, air so polluted it causes multiple health problems, and communities overrun by this destructive industry.
And along the way, I've seen that our only way out is to organize—to rally together, to petition our elected officials, to get out into the streets.
That's why I'm very excited about MoveOn's new initiative to support the fracking movement at its heart, and why I hope you'll apply to be one of 50 MoveOn #FrackingFighters.
You can also help by forwarding this email to friends or family who might be affected by fracking. Or click here to share this opportunity with folks in your network on Facebook. Nearly every state is touched by some part of the fracking process, and the climate change caused by the fossil fuel industry truly affects us all.
If you're selected as a FrackingFighter, you'll receive a $500 grant to use for your campaign, a toolkit of materials like banners and clipboards, and training from experienced organizers. And you'll join a network of grassroots leaders fighting fracking across the country—from the oil fields in California and Texas, to the gas fields in Pennsylvania and Colorado, from the Midwestern dunes being mined for the silica sand used in fracking, to the New Jersey and North Carolina neighborhoods threatened by pipelines and export terminals that would transport fracked gas.
In my town, after years of meetings, letters, and phone calls, we won. This summer, the two biggest gas companies fracking in Wayne County, Pennsylvania, announced they were canceling all leases and backing out of fracking in our county.
It's only the start of what our movement can make possible. We need more victories like that across the country—andyou can be part of it by applying to be a MoveOn #FrackingFighter before the deadline at 10 p.m. this Tuesday, December 3.
P.S. La solicitud para #FrackingFighters también está disponible en español aquí: http://moveon.org/frackingfighters/solicitud/index.html?source=email. Please forward this email to friends and family or click here to post about #FrackingFighters on Facebook, so that we can reach even more people with this exciting opportunity. Applications are due this Tuesday, December 3, at 10 p.m. local time.
Want to support our work? MoveOn Civic Action is entirely funded by our 8 million members—no corporate contributions, no big checks from CEOs. And our tiny staff ensures that small contributions go a long way. Chip in here.


5.
National Latino Playwriting Award
Deadline: Dec. 31st.


Seeks unproduced, unpublished full-length & one-act plays (50 pp min) on any subject by Latino playwrights currently living in the US, its territories or Mexico for the Latino Playwriting Award. Submissions may be in English, Spanish or combination. Winner receives $1,000 & poss inclusion in Arizona Theatre Company’s Café Bohemia play reading series.


2014 National Latino Playwriting Award Guidelines:Latino playwrights residing in the United States, its territories, or Mexico are encouraged to submit scripts for the Award.  Each script will be read and evaluated by a culturally diverse panel of theatre artists. Finalists will be judged by ATC artistic staff.


Deadline for Submission:
Scripts must be postmarked by December 31st .


Submission Procedure:
We respectfully ask that you adhere to the following application requirements:



  • Submit one script, securely bound by brads, a three ring binder, a presentation folder or any other non-permanent binding system. Please do not send a script that has been spiral-bound.
  • Please include a title page on the script that includes the play's title, the author's name and contact information (including a phone number, mailing address and email) on the front page.
  • Include a cover letter of no more than one-page, describing the play's developmental history and any other relevant information about the play.


Mail manuscripts to:
National Latino Playwriting Award
ATTN: Katherine Monberg, Literary Assistant
Arizona Theatre Company
343 S. Scott Ave.
Tucson, AZ 85701
We do not accept scripts via email.


One playwright will be awarded $1,000 and the possible inclusion of the winning play in Café Bohemia, ATC's unique play reading series.


Eligibility
The award is open to all Latino playwrights currently residing in the United States, its territories, or Mexico.


Scripts may be in English, English and Spanish, or solely in Spanish. (Spanish language and bilingual scripts must be accompanied by an English translation.)


Plays must be unpublished and unproduced (professionally) by the time of submission.


Full-length and one-act plays (minimum length, 50 pages) on any subject will be accepted.


Selection Process
Scripts will be read by a culturally diverse panel of theatre artists. The award-winning play will be selected from a group of finalists by ATC's senior artistic staff.


Scripts
Scripts become the property of Arizona Theatre Company and will not be returned. In this case, "property" means the physical property of the theatre, not the intellectual property or any rights to the play.


Announcement
The winner will be notified by August 1, 2014.


For More Information:
Katherine Monberg, Literary Assistant
kmonberg@arizonatheatre.org



6.
Dr. Floyd Gaffney Playwriting Competition
Deadline: January 31st


The University of California San Diego’s Theatre and Dance Department seeks from all enrolled undergraduate students submissions of previously unproduced, unpublished scripts highlighting the African-American experience in contemporary or historical terms. Adaptations from books and other forms not allowed.


A $1000 honorarium will be awarded to the winning playwright.


A staged reading, April 19th, of the winning script will be presented here on campus in the MFA Baldwin New Play Festival attended by many national theatre professionals.Travel and housing cost for the winning playwright to and from UC San Diego to be present for the reading is provided.
Additional info can be found at http://theatre.ucsd.edu/playwritingcontest/



7.
Thistle Dew Theatre
Deadline: ongoing


Call for play submissions: monologues, short plays, one act or full-length plays  for stage and radio.  

Rules for engagement: 
✍   Your play can be either a comedy or a drama. 
✍   Your play calls for one (1) to six (6) characters. 
✍   Your play exhibits freshness, sufficient conflict and engaging text. 
✍   Your play is in simple standard format, 14pt. Times or Times Roman font. 
Example:
"JANE:  (Interrupts.) I prefer my script writing format: KISS."
✍   Your complete play is in .doc format or .pages with numbered pages.
✍   Page One: Your Title, contact information and 200 word biography. 
✍   Page Two: Your Character breakdown and 300 word synopsis. 
✍   The subject line of your email submission to tddtheatre@aol.com reads
"TDDT Play Submission".
✍   There is no submission fee. 
✍   There is no deadline for submissions: ongoing.
✍   Address your queries to Tom at tddtheatre@aol.com.
For more info click here


8.
Queer Shorts 9
Deadline: January 1st


StageQ invites you to submit a short play for our ninth annual festival of short queer plays, Queer Shorts 8. Queer Shorts 1 – 8 were sold-out smash hits, and you could be part of the fun during our 2014 playfest!


Please include a one-page précis, including:


• One-paragraph description of the plot
• Casting requirements (number of actors, gender, ages, special requirements, if any)
• Set requirements (remember, this is a playfest with 10 – 12 plays in one evening; we use cubes to create the sets; simple is better!)
• Running time (no more than 15 minutes!)
• Special technical requirements, if any
• Who is the intended audience?
• Is there lesbian, gay or other queer content? (Required)
• Is there nudity? Adult language?
• If a musical, is there a written score?
o If a musical, what are the instrumental requirements? Vocal requirements?


Please send us no more than 3 scripts. You can email your script and précis to QueerShorts@stageq.com.


We have a strong preference for receiving scripts electronically. But if that’s not possible for you, send via snail mail to:


Queer Shorts c/o StageQ
113 E Mifflin Street
Madison, WI. 53703


We acknowledge all scripts received, so if you don’t hear back from us within a couple of weeks, we didn’t receive your submission. We’ll also let you know by early April, 2013 whether or not we selected your script, but please don’t start bugging us about it on April 1st. Queer Shorts 8 will be performed June 7-15, 2013 at the Bartell Theatre in Madison, Wisconsin, with possible teaser performances as part of other events in the spring and summer of 2013.



9.
LaBute New Theater Festival
Deadline: Dec. 31st


Each July, beginning in 2012, St. Louis Actors' Studio will produce the "LaBute New Theater Festival." The Theater Festival will run yearly at the Gaslight Theater, 358 North Boyle Avenue, St. Louis, MO 63108( Inaugural event July 5-28, 2013)


Submissions will be accepted October 1 through December 31, 2012.Successful entries will have no more than four characters, and be crafted specifically to exploit our intimate performance space. (18' x 18' stage) Changes in scenery or setting should be achievable quickly and with few major set moves.  Our focus is on fundamental dramaturgy: plot, character and theme.


Professional, new and previously unproduced one-act play submissions should include a letter of inquiry, a synopsis and a 10-page sample from the script.


Eight plays will be chosen: four to be performed in the first two weeks, four in the second two weeks. Submissions should be sent to:


LaBute New Theater Festival
360 N Boyle
St. Louis, MO 63108



10.
Actors Theater of Charlotte
Deadline: starting Dec. 3rd -Dec. 31st
(website says submissions start on Dec. 3rd and guidelines are identical to last year. Here are the guidelines from last year)


Actor’s Theatre will begin taking submissions for new, previously un-produced plays by emerging American playwrights. Actor’s Theatre envisions nuVoices being a springboard for new plays to catapult to the national stage through our existing relationship with the National New Play Network, as well as a program to mentor the next generation of professional artistic talent in the Charlotte region.
The goals of nuVoices are three-fold:
  • To celebrate and cultivate new plays by emerging American playwrights.
  • To incubate professional artistic talent in the Charlotte region.
  • To educate the public on the process of taking new plays from page to stage.
nuVoices for a nuGeneration was created by Actor’s Theatre of Charlotte to honor and encourage emerging playwrights of the American Theatre. Four authors of selected works will be awarded a $500 honorarium, with transportation and housing provided. There will be a seven-day residency and two script-in-hand public readings to take place in August 2014. Following the end of the four-day festival, the festival winner, who will be determined by a panel theatre critics and audience members, will be invited by the Theatre for a full production in the 2014 – 2015 season.
Theatre staff will select the four festival plays, and the decision will be announced in May.
Eligibility
  • Scripts must be unpublished and non-professionally produced at the time of the Festival. Workshops and readings are acceptable.
  • Selected playwrights must be in attendance for the Festival in August.
  • Previous submissions to the nuVoices festival will NOT be considered.
Guidelines for Submission
  • All submissions MUST be received electronically.
  • Email subject line must read: “nuVoices Script Submission” (see note below on NNPN Only submissions).
  • One script submission per playwright.
  • Full-length, original plays only (no musicals, translations, adaptations or children’s plays).
  • Your resume.
  • Submitted using Microsoft Word (.doc or .docx) or PDF formats with observance to the following:
    • Text in 12pt type and in a plain font such as Times New Roman.
    • Script must include title and page numbers at the bottom of each page.
    • Script must include title page and list of characters and settings.
  • Email you submission to nuvoices@actorstheatrecharlotte.org.
***Entries for the 2014 festival will be accepted through December 31st at 11:59pm EST. Entries received after this time will not be considered.
Please Note:
  • Submissions not adhering to all guidelines will not be considered.
  • Plays not selected will be deleted.
  • Upon submission you will receive an email confirmation within one week.
  • If you do not receive confirmation, please email us at nuvoices@actorstheatrecharlotte.org.
*NNPN Submissions:
Actor’s Theatre of Charlotte is a contributing member to the National New Play Network (NNPN). All submitted scripts will be considered for entry into the nuVoices for a nuGeneration Festival, as well as into the NNPN’s National Showcase of New Plays. For more information on the National Showcase, please NNPN’s website.
I’m interested in being considered for a mentorship. What types of artists is nuVoices looking for?
Although we are currently not announcing mentorship opportunities, Actor’s Theatre will accept applications for emerging/aspiring directors, designers, technicians and actors. We will announce the application process soon.
I have more questions!
Please email us at nuvoices@actorstheatrecharlotte.org.



11.
Denver Center Theatre Company
Deadline: ongoing


The Denver Center Theatre Company accepts original, full-length, un-produced plays. All plays should be submitted through an agent, with the exception of plays by residents in the Rocky Mountain states of Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, Arizona, New Mexico and Utah. We have a special interest in African-American and Latino plays, as well as plays by women.


Adaptations will be considered only if the playwright has secured underlying rights. We do not accept children’s theatre plays. We cannot accept e-mail submissions. Please include a self-addressed stamped envelope if materials are to be returned. Plays may be sent directly, without prior synopsis or dialogue sample. Due to high volume of submissions, response time may take up to six months. Plays are accepted year-round and should be addressed to:



Attn: New Play Development
Denver Center Theatre Company
1101 13th St.
Denver, CO 80204-5319



12.
Portland Stage Company
Deadline: January 1st


Portland Stage Company: Little Festival of the Unexpected


Little Festival of the Unexpected is an annual event dedicated to public readings of new works. Three to five playwrights are in residence each year at the festival as they continue to develop their scripts with input from actors, directors and audience members.Each playwright in residence receives a stipend as well as housing during the festival. Limited support for travel is also available.


Past Little Festival of the Unexpected scripts have a successful track record of full productions both here at Portland Stage and at other professional theaters around the country. Almost Maine, which was developed at the 2003 Little Festival, went on to become the most commercially successful mainstage production in PSC history. Many other Little Festival works have gone on to productions elsewhere, including successful Off-Broadway runs and television filming for PBS’ American Playhouse.
Little Festival of the Unexpected Submissions Submissions for the upcoming Little Festival of the Unexpected are accepted year-round on a rolling basis. All submissions received after January 1 will be considered for the following year’s festival. Only one submission is accepted per playwright.
Plays are eligible for development at The Little Festival of the Unexpected only if they have not previously been professionally produced or workshopped with Equity actors. This restriction includes Actors Equity showcase and waiver productions. Plays that have had readings or non-AEA productions are still eligible.
Literary agents may submit complete scripts at any time.
Playwrights may submit 10-page dialogue samples for consideration. Dialogue samples must be accompanied by a synopsis, production history and character breakdown.
Submit by mail to:
Portland Stage Company
Attn: Literary Manager
PO Box 1458
Portland, ME 04104



13.
Kitchen Dog Theatre 2014 New Works Festival
Deadline: January 1st


Kitchen Dog Theater is now accepting full-length script submissions for its 2014 New Works Festival.

DETAILS
Scripts must be received by January 1, 2014 to be considered for the 2014 Festival.
Each year, Kitchen Dog Theater selects one original script to receive:
* A fully staged production (as part of our regular season – a five-week run)
* Paid travel to Dallas, TX (if necessary) to work with the Director, Cast and Crew
* Royalty stipend (amount TBD)
* Seven other original scripts will be selected for staged readings as part of the Festival (travel not included).  
Prospective scripts must meet the following guidelines:
* Full-length plays only (preferably one hour or longer)
* Submitted scripts must be type-written
* Completed scripts only
* Do not include a synopsis and/or reviews (if any) of the play
* Ideally have between one and five actors (character doubling acceptable)
* There are no restrictions on play content.
* Only one script per playwright may be submitted.
All un-produced scripts will be recycled.
Please send your script with cover letter to:
Attn: Tina Parker, Co-artistic Director
Kitchen Dog Theater
3120 McKinney Avenue, Ste. 100
Dallas, TX 75204.


14.
Clockhouse
Deadline: February 1st
Clockhouse, the literary journal published in partnership with Goddard College, seeks short dramatic works from emerging and established writers for its 2014 issue.  Dramatic works can be either a standalone piece or a self-contained excerpt from a play or screenplay, and up to 15 pages in length. Deadline is February 1, 2014.  
For mission statement, submission guidelines, and to submit your work visitwww.clockhouse.net.
All submissions must:
  • Be original, unpublished work written by the author
  • Follow the industry-standard formatting guidelines appropriate for the genre as well as the applicable guidelines below:
Dramatic Work for Stage or Screen: Short dramatic works in traditional and experimental styles, either a standalone piece or an excerpt from a one-act or full length play or screenplay. (Up to 15 pages)
  • Use the spaces provided to tell us more about you and your work:
  • Who are you? (A short bio of no more than 100 words.)
  • How did you hear about Clockhouse?
  • Something else. A few more sentences. For example, about one of the following:
  • Why this piece in this journal?
  • What’s your hot topic right now?
  • If you could, what would you say over the reader’s shoulder as they read this piece?
  • And, please indicate if your work is under consideration elsewhere. Simultaneous submissions are fine provided that you promptly withdraw your submission via the submission manager if your piece is accepted elsewhere.
  • Be submitted only through our online submission manager. No email submissions will be accepted.
  • Submissions that do not follow these guidelines will be discarded unread.
Submission period for the Summer 2014 issue will close at 11:59 p.m. on February 1, 2014.
Please expect to wait up to four months for a reply. After that time, if you have not yet received a reply, please check on the status of your submission by sending an e-mail to editor@clockhouse.net. Indicate the title of your piece, the genre, and the original date of submission.
Upon acceptance
By accepting any offer of publication by Clockhouse, the author will grant the magazine first serial rights. Upon publication, rights to the work revert back to the author. The author retains all other rights to the work. Any subsequent publication will note that the work was first published in Clockhouse. Payment for publication in Clockhouse is one contributor’s copy in which the work appears. As appropriate, we may also choose to nominate published work for awards or other recognition.
Please send general questions about Clockhouse to editor@clockhouse.net. Submissions are not accepted at this address.


15.
T. Schreiber Short Play Festival
Deadline: January 1st


T. Schreiber Theatre is looking for short plays (10 minutes or less) that deal with, or question, the concept of national identity.   
DETAILS
T. Schreiber Theatre is looking for short plays (10 minutes or less) that deal with, or question, the concept of national identity. Plays should be in English, but submissions from playwrights outside the U.S. are strongly encouraged.
Sets, props, and costumes should be all be minimal (tables, chairs, etc. – nothing that will require construction or a significant purchase).
T. Schreiber Theatre encourages submissions that make creative use of sound and lighting. (Plays will be fully produced, and we have a wide variety of sound equipment and lighting instruments available).  
Submission Deadline: January 1, 2014
Plays will be produced at the Gloria Maddox Theatre at T. Schreiber Studio & Theatre in March 2014.
There is no fee for submission. Please send all scripts in pdf or Word format to: tschreibertheatre@gmail.com with “Schreiber's Shorts” and the name of your play in the Subject line.


16.
HERE Artists Residency Program
Deadline: January 3rd


HERE seeking residents of the New York metro for their Artist Residency Program.
DETAILS
HERE has been one of New York’s most prolific producing organizations since 1993, and today, stands at the forefront of the city’s presenters of daring new hybrid art. We have a long history of supporting unique and innovative artists, ensuring them the opportunity to develop and perform original work as well as assist them in enhancing their skill in all areas of artistic work. Through the HERE Artist Residency Program (HARP), artists are able to develop their work in a peer-based program designed to nurture new and unique work. Our community of mid-career resident artists meet monthly, show works-in-progress, develop workshop productions, and mount full-scale productions.
HERE is currently accepting applications to HARP which commissions and develops new hybrid works over a 1- to 3-year period. Our deadline is 12 noon January 3, 2014
For more information regarding the HERE Artist Residency Program and how to apply, please visit: http://here.org/programs/harp


17.
The Juilliard School: Lila Acheson Wallace Playwright Program
Deadline: Dec. 15th


The Lila Acheson Wallace American Playwrights Program encourages and aids the development of new and diverse voices in the American theater.


Under the direction of Christopher Durang and Marsha Norman the Playwrights Program offers one-year, tuition-free, graduate level fellowships to four writers. Selected playwrights may be invited to continue their studies through a second academic year, thereby completing a total of 52 credits for the two-year fellowship period and earning an Artist Diploma in Playwriting.


Juilliard’s Playwrights Program is purposely small and allows the artists to focus on the practical aspects of dramatic writing while at the same time they are encouraged to take advantage of the wealth of resources within Juilliard’s walls, and those afforded via the School’s prime location on Broadway — the greater New York City theater scene. Students may take any class in the Drama Division and are encouraged to see productions around the city by receiving free or discounted tickets to many events on- and off-Broadway. The essence of the Playwrights Program lies in the weekly master class with the playwright heads focusing on dramatic structure and the cultivation of each writer’s individual voice. Twice monthly lab readings of the students’ work allow the writers, with the help of Juilliard acting students and alumni, to tackle the practical aspects of creating a new play. In addition, seminars centering on other aspects of the theatrical profession are planned on a quarterly basis. The year’s end culminates when students in the playwrights residency present their work to professionals from New York and around the country in a showcase evening. The intention is that these events will create a bridge for these artists between Juilliard and the larger community.


Click on link for list of application requirements:



18.
Outworks 2014 Festival
Deadline: Dec. 6th


The Louisiana State University Department of Theatre in Baton Rouge, LA is pleased to announce that we are now accepting submissions for Outworks 2014, a festival of new lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgendered or queer (LGBTQ) themed one-act plays.
Submission Guidelines:
Submissions must be the author’s own original work. Each entry shall be free from copyright restrictions and the author agrees to hold LSU, its officers, and directors free and harmless from all copyright claims.
Scripts must be LGBTQ-themed.
  • Submissions must be one-act plays, ranging from (10) ten to (30) thirty minutes in length.    
  • There is a limit of two scripts per playwright.
  • All Entries should be submitted in Microsoft Word or PDF format via e-mail tooutworksfestival@gmail.com with “Outworks 2014” in the subject line.
  • Deadline is December 6, 2013
  • Scheduled production dates are April 29 – May 4, 2014
Submissions will be read and scored by a faculty/student committee. The committee will select six plays.  These six playwrights will receive $150 in monetary compensation, each play selected will be guaranteed three staged performances, and each playwright will receive a video of his/her production.  Playwrights wishing to attend the festival are responsible for all travel expenses.
The LSU Theatre Lab season retains all rights and privileges concerning casting, production, and programming for Outworks. LSU Theatre reserves the right to:
  • Reproduce as many copies of the play as are necessary for distribution to the judges and participants in the production.
  • Videotape the performance for archival purposes.
  • Use the title, author’s name and images from the production for publicity purposes related to the Outworks Festival.   
The final play list will be announced January 16, 2014.
Submissions sent via email are preferred.  Please send submissions or inquiries to:
Macy Jones, Outworks Festival Curator, at: outworksfestival@gmail.com and put “Outworks 2014” in the subject line.



19.
Playwrights Horizon: Submission Policy
Deadline: ongoing


GUIDELINES FOR WRITERS

Playwrights Horizons accepts unsolicited manuscripts of full-length, original plays by living American writers.


As a writers’ theater who believes there are as many distinctive styles and voices as there are playwrights, we remain open to as wide a range of plays — and approaches to playwriting — as possible.  We are looking for idiosyncratic, accomplished, original theatrical voices.


Ultimately, of course tastes are always subjective, but here are some guidelines that may help determine whether a play is right for us:  As a rule, we do not produce adaptations (musicals excepted), translations, children’s theater, screenplays, musicals without original scores, one-acts (or collections of one-acts, thematically linked or not).   We tend not to produce plays of a chiefly biographical or historical nature or plays that are primarily topical “issue” plays.  Playwrights Horizons does not produce plays that have already received New York City productions.  We respond primarily to plays with a sure command of language and a clear dramatic action that truly use the resources of the theater.


If you wish to submit a play, please include a complete manuscript, bio, resume, and any other print supporting materials (e.g. reviews) that might help pique our interest in you and your work.  If you would like your script returned, you may also include a SASE.


We don’t consider synopses and dialogue samples and will not respond to them.  We also don’t accept unsolicited scripts via email.


Due to the small size of our staff and the sheer number of scripts we receive, we are only able to accept one script at a time from the same author and cannot consider resubmissions, including those which have been significantly revised. Thanks in advance for your patience while we process your script; our typical response time is 6-8 months.


Play submissions should be sent to Adam Greenfield, Director of New Play Development. Musical submissions (script and CD) should be sent to the attention of Kent Nicholson, Director of Musical Theater.


Our mailing address is:
Playwrights Horizons
416 West 42nd Street
New York, NY 10036

COMMISSIONS

We award 4-6 commissions a year. We choose the recipients from a group of writers whose work we already know and wish to encourage. The best way to become a candidate for a commission is to start submitting your work.



20.
Purple Rose Theatre
Deadline: ongoing


SCRIPT SUBMISSIONS

The Purple Rose is dedicated to the development and production of new plays and emerging playwrights. We receive hundreds of synopses and inquiries each season, and our staff reviews each submission.
If a synopsis submission shows promise for possible production, a full script will be requested. Each requested script is read by at least two of our readers, so a waiting period of seven to nine months for a response is not uncommon.
SUBMISSION GUIDELINES
At this time, we are accepting synopsis submissions only. Please do not send full scripts. Please note: the Purple Rose does not accept, discuss or evaluate screenplays!

PAPER SUBMISSIONS

Please include:
  • a one-page synopsis of the script
  • a character breakdown
  • a 15 page dialogue sample
  • a self-addressed, stamped envelope
Send your synopsis submission to:
The Purple Rose Theatre Company
ATTN: Michelle Mountain, Literary Manager
137 Park Street
Chelsea, MI 48118
Synopsis materials sent in hard copy are not returned.

ELECTRONIC SUBMISSIONS

Please attach the following as text-only files:
  • a one-page synopsis of the script
  • a character breakdown
  • a fifteen-page dialogue sample
Send your electronic submission, as well as any questions about our script development program, to literary manager Michelle Mountain.
We look forward to hearing from you!



21.
ObamAmerica Festival (London)
Deadline: February 15th


Over Here Theatre Company is seeking submissions of fifteen minute playsfor ObamAmerica, a festival of new writing to be produced at Theatre 503 in London in the spring of 2014. The festival, which will run 27 May to 7 June, is about life under the Obama administration, looking at all aspects from political to personal.


Barack Obama is a powerful and charismatic figure, one whose election promised great change and provided hope for a difference to American society and the world at large after eight years under George W Bush.  Did Obama fulfill those dreams of the American people or has he offered more of the same?  Has foreign policy changed?  Race relations? How have President and Mrs Obama affected the way society sees African Americans?  Is he really on the side of the poor or caught up in the machinations of Capitol Hill? What about his controversial use of drones and the assassination of Osama Bin Laden? ObamAmerica will explore a wide variety of viewpoints and issues through thought provoking and entertaining short plays.


Over Here is accepting submissions from both new and more seasoned playwrights. Playwrights need not be American but should have an ear for the uniqueness of American speech patterns and a good knowledge of the United States. Although this is not a paid opportunity, selected plays will receive a full production.


Submissions should be sent in PDF or Word Documents to overherescripts@btinternet.com.


Deadline is 15 February 2014


For more info: http://www.overheretheatre.co.uk/

22.
CAPE COD THEATRE PROJECT
Deadline: 12/31/13

Applications for the 2014 Season will be accepted after September 1, 2013.
The Cape Cod Theatre Project has an open application policy.

Playwrights may send us one play per season for consideration. The proposed play must still be in development and cannot be receiving a professional production prior to August 2014.

To apply, please email a PDF of the script to capecodlit@gmail.com. Please label the document using your first and last name as well as the play’s title. For example: janesmithplaytitle.pdf
In addition, please include in your email a short biography and a brief artistic statement on how you propose to use your development time at CCTP. The bio and statement of intentions should be one page combined, sent as a PDF or Microsoft Word Doc and labeled with your first and last name. For example: janesmithbio.doc

As of November 1, 2011, we no longer review hard copies of scripts sent by mail.
Applications will be accepted from September 1, 2013 through December 31, 2013.
The CCTP staff regrets that we cannot provide feedback on any submitted materials.


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