Relentless Award – American Playwriting Foundation
Deadline: January 1, 2026
Website: https://americanplaywritingfoundation.org
This award changes careers. The Relentless Award is not just a financial windfall—it’s a declaration to the American theatre ecosystem that a playwright’s voice is significant. Winners receive a large cash prize, but more importantly, they receive industry advocacy, meaningful development support, introductions to theatres and producers, and often subsequent productions. The foundation is highly intentional about championing the playwright, not simply rewarding them. Scripts tend to be daring, emotionally ferocious, politically aware, and theatrically explosive—plays that take big risks rather than coloring inside the lines.
Mudhouse Artist Residency (Crete, Greece)
Deadline: January 1, 2026
Website: https://mudhouseresidency.com
This is a creative immersion experience. Writers receive two weeks of distraction-free time in a stunningly beautiful, remote Cretan village, along with housing, studios, curated artist talks, shared meals, and a serious, thoughtful artistic cohort. It’s perfect for playwrights who need deep reflective time, want to break a creative block, draft something new, or reconnect to joy and curiosity in their process. It’s less “industry development” and more “soul restoration and artistic deepening”—which sometimes is exactly what makes the next great play possible.
Kumu Kahua / University of Hawai‘i Playwriting Contest
Deadline: January 2, 2026
Website: https://www.kumukahua.org/playwritingcontest
This contest is mission-driven: plays must center Hawai‘i, Pacific Island life, or Pacific diaspora experience. Winners receive cash awards, prominent recognition, and serious artistic engagement from an institution that has cultural responsibility at its core. This is one of the few spaces truly designed to honor these stories with artistic rigor rather than token interest. Writers gain legitimacy, community grounding, and meaningful institutional partnership.
Papatango New Writing Prize (UK & Ireland)
Deadline: January 6, 2026
Website: https://papatango.co.uk
One of the most career-transformative opportunities in the UK. The prize guarantees:
A fully staged professional production
Publication by Nick Hern Books
Professional development and mentorship
Deep industry exposure
Career advocacy
And uniquely: every single entrant receives written feedback. That alone is remarkable at this scale. For many writers, Papatango is the bridge from talented unknown to working professional with a production track record and national legitimacy.
McKnight Fellowship in Playwriting – Playwrights’ Center
Deadline: January 8, 2026
Website: https://pwcenter.org/programs/mcknight-fellowship-in-playwriting
This is a major mid-career fellowship, offering:
A substantial financial stipend
Year-long artistic support
Access to the Playwrights’ Center’s development engine
Dramaturgical guidance
Workshop and reading opportunities
National institutional visibility
It is designed not just to recognize a playwright’s existing body of work, but to protect their time, deepen their craft, and expand their future possibilities.
JMU Playwrights Festival – James Madison University
Deadline: January 10, 2026
Website: https://jmu.edu/theatredance
Selected playwrights receive:
A staged reading or production
Time in rehearsal
Collaboration with student and professional artists
Community conversation and engagement
Honorarium support
University festivals like this offer a rare balance of curiosity, safety, and experimentation. It’s a place where a play can “grow up” in a supportive environment while still being respected as serious art.
The Leah – Leah Ryan Fund
Deadline: January 12, 2026
Website: https://leahryanfund.org
This award is deeply personal, political, and artistic. The winning playwright receives:
A $5,000 cash prize
Development residency at Vassar’s Powerhouse Theater
A creative team of world-class collaborators
Continued advocacy from the Leah Ryan community
It prioritizes women, trans, and nonbinary playwrights and celebrates imagination that refuses limitation. The Leah is known for its warmth, seriousness of purpose, and genuine care for playwrights as human beings.
Anderson Center Artist Residency (Minnesota)
Deadline: January 13, 2026
Website: https://andersoncenter.org/apply
Residents receive:
Private studio
Housing
Meals
A peaceful natural environment
Cross-disciplinary artistic community
This residency creates the rare gift of time with structure and nourishment. Writers often complete major drafts here, or do the kind of high-focus rewrite that’s impossible in day-to-day life. It is contemplative, serious, and protective.
Wichita State University Playwriting Competition
Deadline: January 14, 2026
Website: https://wichita.edu/playwritingcompetition
Benefits often include:
Staged reading or production
Invitation to campus
Engagement with faculty and students
Blind submission fairness
Artistic conversation space
It’s an academically rigorous yet creatively open contest—perfect for a play that would benefit from thoughtful rehearsal room exploration.
Provincetown Community Compact – Dune Shack Residencies
Deadline: January 15, 2026
Website: https://thecompact.org/dune-shacks.html
Writers receive:
Total isolation
No electricity
No internet
Deep connection to environment
Support for underrepresented artists
Some fellowships include $500 support
These residencies are historic, raw, and spiritually charged. They’re for writers who want to strip away distraction and listen deeply to themselves and their work.
Jesse L. Kearney Playwriting Initiative – Black Broadway Men
Deadline: Opens January 15, 2026
Website: https://www.blackbroadwaymen.org/jlkplaywriting
The selected playwright receives:
A professionally cast 29-hour reading in NYC
A $1,000 honorarium
Professional director
Mentorship from Black theatre leaders
Industry presence at the presentation
This is pipeline, visibility, craft support, and economic respect rolled together. It is not symbolic support—it is real resources.
Ucross Residency – Wyoming
Deadline: January 15, 2026
Website: https://ucross.org
Residents receive:
Private studio
Housing and meals
Breathtaking wilderness
Structured time
Name recognition that resonates nationally
Many nationally celebrated playwrights have developed career-defining work at Ucross. It is an artistic reset button of the highest caliber.
SPARC Ten-Minute Play Contest
Deadline: January 16, 2026
Website: https://nycplaywrights.org
Benefits include:
Live presentation
Professional environment
Festival audience exposure
Visibility inside a curated artistic event
If you write short plays that land cleanly and powerfully, this festival respects the form and presents it well.
Madison New Works Lab
Deadline: January 16, 2026
Website: https://jmu.edu/theatredance/experiences/madison-new-works-lab.shtml
Selected playwrights receive:
A 10-day development residency
Director + cast
Dramaturgical attention
Paid support
Housing and travel generally supported
Public sharing opportunity
This is work. Not literary committee talk. Not surface-level “feedback.” Actual rehearsal, script interrogation, and growth.
Glass Ceiling Breakers – Theatre Revolution
Deadline: January 17, 2026
Website: https://theatrerevolution.org
Playwrights receive:
Full festival production
Actor + director collaboration
Curated audience dialogue
A platform explicitly designed to elevate marginalized voices
It is politically conscious, artistically empowered, and community rooted.
Fenimore Art Museum Short Play Initiative
Deadline: January 18, 2026
Website: https://fenimoreartmuseum.org
Playwrights gain:
Integration of theatre and museum culture
Context for art-inspired storytelling
Live performance alignment with historical and cultural narratives
A strong platform for writers drawn to art history, archival thinking, or site-inspired performance.
Valhalla Tahoe WordWave
Deadline: January 19, 2026
Website: https://valhallatahoe.com
Benefits include:
Staged reading with professional artists
Audience engagement
Cash prize
Lodging support
A festival steeped in natural beauty
It feels like a celebration of creativity rather than a competitive grind.
Core Writer Program – Playwrights’ Center
Deadline: January 22, 2026
Website: https://pwcenter.org/programs/core-writer-program
This is a three-year artistic partnership, not just a credit line. Writers receive:
Travel support
Multiple development workshops
Dramaturgical support
National networking
Institutional belonging
It is structural support that stabilizes and accelerates artistic life.
LaBute New Theater Festival – St. Louis Actors’ Studio
Deadline: January 31, 2026
Website: https://stlas.org
Playwrights receive:
Full production
Professional actors and direction
St. Louis AND often NYC presentation
Visibility for darker, intense, provocative work
It rewards playwrights who write sharp-edged, fearless contemporary drama.
Equity Library Theater Festival
Deadline: January 31, 2026
Website: https://equitylibrarytheater.info
Benefits include:
No submission fee
Hybrid performance formats (live and online)
Broad accessibility
Community-forward ethos
Perfect for getting work performed without financial barrier.
Old Miner TYA Contest – Utah Valley University
Deadline: January 31, 2026
Website: https://uvu.edu
Benefits include:
Developmental support
University community engagement
Consideration for future production
Respectful, serious TYA platform
Ideal if you write children’s theatre with artistic sophistication.
FEBRUARY 2026
Heartland Theatre Ten-Minute Festival
Deadline: February 1, 2026
Website: https://heartlandtheatre.org
Full productions, strong audiences, professional energy, and a festival known for quality and integrity. A meaningful résumé credit and a joyous theatrical process.
Princess Grace Theater Awards
Deadline: February 2, 2026
Website: https://pgawards.org
A signal honor placing you in lineage with some of the most impactful theatre artists in America. It opens doors and rewrites professional trajectories.
New Works of Merit
Deadline: February 2, 2026
Website: https://newworksofmeritplaywritingcontest.com
Validation for socially urgent playwrights. Offers advocacy, legitimacy, and a powerful mission-driven platform.
Core Apprentice – Playwrights’ Center
Deadline: February 5, 2026
Website: https://pwcenter.org
Career entry point. Mentorship. Partnerships with theatres. Paid development. A clear step onto the national radar.
Forestburgh Playhouse – In the Works / In the Woods
Deadline: February 16, 2026
Website: https://fbplayhouse.org
Retreat setting + professional workshop + audience engagement. A space to push your play and grow it.
Inkslinger Playwriting Contest – Southeastern Louisiana University
Deadline: February 20, 2026
Website: https://southeastern.edu
One of the rare programs that guarantees a full production. If your script needs staging, this may be the opportunity that gives it life.
MARCH 2026
Tennessee Williams / New Orleans Literary Festival – One Act
Deadline: March 1, 2026
Website: https://tennesseewilliams.net
Prize money, festival recognition, and cultural prestige intertwined with literary heritage.
Scribe Playwriting Competition
Deadline: March 7, 2026
Website: https://scribeplaywriting.weebly.com
Serious artistic evaluation, international participation, credibility, and recognition.
Arkana Micro Play Issue
Deadline: March 16, 2026
Website: https://arkanaliterarymagazine.submittable.com
Publication + artistic experimentation + literary visibility. Perfect for bold miniature theatrical forms.
Teatro Salón Reading Series – Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center
Deadline: March 31, 2026
Website: https://guadalupeculturalarts.org
A deeply culturally-rooted development space with meaningful dramaturgy, community conversation, and institutional care.
Weathervane 8×10 Festival
Deadline: March 31, 2026
Website: https://weathervaneplayhouse.com
Full production, enthusiastic audiences, thoughtful staging, and vibrant festival energy.
Central PA Playwriting Festival
Deadline: March 31, 2026
Website: https://centralpatheatre.com
Community warmth + artistic seriousness. A great place to build production history and regional artistic relationships.
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