The following is a list of theatre groups that produce/workshop new playwrights. If your group was not included in this list, and you wish to be listed next time, please contact us at Back Stage, 1515 Broadway, 14th fl., New York, NY 10036, Attn: Listings Editor or fax info to (212) 536-5318.
Abingdon Theatre Company
P.O. Box 110
Radio City Station
New York, NY 10101-0110
(212) 802-8383
New plays are read at a bi-weekly reading series. Plays are then re-worked and read again in a staged reading series open to public, with the goal of a full production. Two full productions a year on Theater Row. Readings are open to interested playwrights, but call first. No musicals.
The Maxwell Anderson Playwrights Series
Box 671
West Redding, CT 06896
Attn: Bruce Post, Executive Director
(203) 938-2770
Group invites author to professional staged reading (script in hand) at auditorium in Greenwich Library. "This program is designed for the writer who needs to hear his script before he can move much further." Review is a running process. Submit full, bound scripts. Seldom uses musicals.
42nd Street Workshop
432 W. 42nd St., 3rd fl.
New York, NY 10036
(212) 695-4173
Weekly readings and critique sessions, as well as workshop productions. Members of group include writers, actors, and directors. Submit query letter, synopsis of proposed script, and SASE. Best bet: Go to several of the Monday workshops and talk to people. Get to know the goals of the company and the people driving it. $20 a month fee for members of the workshop.
Genesius Guild
P.O. Box 2273
New York, NY 10108
Attn: Tom Morrissey, Artistic Director
Peter Coston, Literary Manager
(212) 946-5625
Membership group which also produces work generated "outside" the group. Member actors and directors present scripts at weekly Monday sessions for critique and reworking. Group is expanding full workshop and production schedule this fall. Accepts full script. If musical, send tape of score. Synopsis is helpful. "Diversity is our thing."
Manhattan Playwrights Unit
338 W. 19th St., #6B
New York, NY 10011-3982
Attn: Saul Zachary, Artistic Director
(212) 989-0948
Scheduled meetings at which writers present their work for critique and analysis by other writers. "Group is fairly stable, but occasionally we have a few openings." Submit cover letter with resume and SASE.
National Playwrights Conference
O'Neill Theater Center
234 W. 44th St., Suite 901
New York, NY 10036-3909
Attn: Mary F. McCabe, Conference Administrator
(212) 382-2790
Playwrights, screenwriters, television writers. Development work, culminating in staged reading at four-week conference at O'Neill Center. Send SASE for submission guidelines. Deadline for 1997 program is Dec. 1.
New Directors/New Works
The Drama League of New York
165 W. 46th St., Suite 601
New York, NY 10036
(212) 302-2100
Material must be submitted with a specific director. The program offers writers and directors as mentors. Each team is awarded a stipend of $1,000 for production expenses and up to four weeks use of a rehearsal space in New York during the summer months. Call for guidelines and deadlines. Scripts at various stages of development given one rehearsal and public reading as part of year-long reading series.
New Dramatists
424 W. 44th St.
New York, NY 10036
Attn: Admissions
(212) 757-6960
Seven-year group membership entitles playwright to unlimited readings/workshops upon request, networking opportunities, research library, and access to grants, fellowships, and awards. Phone for application. Applicants are reviewed by member playwrights, alumni writers, and noted industry professionals. Deadline: Sept. 15
The New Group
85 Fifth Ave.
New York, NY 10003
Attn: Kevin Scott
Playwrights. New plays developed through readings. Submit full script or synopsis with a 10-page sample and SASE.
New Perspective Theatre Company
750 8th Ave., #601
New York, NY 10036
Attn: Lisa Leon, Literary Manager
Particularly interested in women writers. Women's Work Project accepts two women as writers-in-residence who work with directors in a set of staged readings. Efforts culminate in workshop production; script may be referred for full mainstage production. Note: Writers-in-residence have been selected for 1996, but group is still seeking one more script to round out mainstage season.
Playwrights Harbor
160 W. 71st St., Apt. 20A
New York, NY 10023
Attn: Stuart Warmflash, Artistic Director
(212) 787-1945
Workshops with resident troupe of actors and working critique from other writers. (See story.) Call for information. Dues for the year are $350.
Playwrights' Preview Productions
17 E. 47th St.
New York, NY 10017-1920
Attn: David Sheppard, Literary Manager
(212) 421-1380
Seeking to discover, develop, and produce plays that "speak to the whole of society," plays that "are inclusive in theme or message to all of the ethnicities that comprise our modern society." The dramaturgical process usually starts with the Mercantile Library Reading Series. Selected plays will be workshopped and may culminate in a mainstage production of 16-20 performances as allowed under the Equity Showcase Code. Submit full script.
Playwrights Week
The Lark Theatre Company
390 Riverside Dr., Suite 12B
New York, NY 10025
Attn: Marjorie Wampole, Literary Manager
(212) 727-3626
Readings and workshops with discussion groups. From readings, at least one script will receive full production. Accepts full script with letter of interest between Sept. 1 and Dec. 1. $10 processing fee. Goal is to establish core of writers and developing on-going relationship with them.
Polaris North
1265 Broadway, Room 283
New York, NY 10001
Attn: Diane Martello
(212) 684-1985
Cooperative group composed of actors, directors, and playwrights. Best chance for non-member to be produced is to submit unproduced one-act play. Script is presented as a three-night workshop. The goal of these productions is development, so audience feedback is solicited. Play should not run over 30 minutes and should feature a small cast and a simple set. No one-person shows. Submit full script and SASE if you wish the script returned.
Powerhouse Theater at Vassar College and New York Stage and Film
515 Madison Ave., 28th fl.
New York, NY 10022
Attn: Peter Manning, Producer
A two-month flurry of activity at the Powerhouse Theater on Vassar College campus. Sixteen plays receive attention, from workshops which culminate in both readings and rewrite periods. Also mounts full productions of new plays. No stated aesthetic limitations. "The plays we choose and the work they need shape the season." Send letter of interest with background information. You will be invited to submit the script if the group is interested. Reviews potential scripts year-round.
Primary Stages Company
584 9th Ave.
New York, NY 10036
Attn: Andrew Leynse, Literary Manager
(212) 333-7471
Playwrights. New plays developed through readings and full productions. Submit full script or synopsis with a 10-page of sample and SASE.
Puerto Rican Traveling Theatre
Playwrights' Workshop
141 W. 94th St.
New York, NY 10025
Attn: Allen Davis, III, Director
(212) 354-1293
Playwrights. Weekly meetings for professional playwrights and amateurs. Staged readings, showcase productions for professional unit. For residents of the New York City area, Latino, or other minority playwrights or writers interested in multicultural theatre. Call Allen Davis for submission guidelines.
Pulse Ensemble Theatre
432 W. 42nd St.
New York, NY 10036
Attn: Alexa Kelly, Artistic Director
(212) 695-1596
Sponsors new play series in which chosen scripts are performed during summer and then offered the opportunity to fine-tune before presentation during the fall session. Submit synopsis and 10-page dialogue sample along with cast breakdown. "Our first concern is a strong story with social significance."
Richard Rodgers Awards
American Academy of Arts and Letters
633 W. 155th St.
New York, NY 10032
Attn: Virginia Dajani, Executive Director
(212) 368-5900
Playwrights, composers, librettists, lyricists. Studio/lab production or staged reading. Some full production. Send SASE for application. Deadline: Nov. 1.
The Frank Silvera Writers' Workshop
P.O. Box 1791
Manhattanville Station
New York, NY 10027
Attn: Garland Lee Thompson, Founding Exec. Dir.
(212) 662-8463 or PLAY-RITE artswire.org
Readings of new plays followed by critique; also master seminars. Staged readings and showcase productions. Submit complete manuscript of any length with cover letter. Year-round submissions okay.
No charge for Monday-night readings; Playwrights: $35 registration fee, $10 a class; Actors: $25 registration fee, $10 a class.
Stageplays Theatre Company
P.O. Box 15
Cooper Station, NY 10276
Attn: Tom Ferriter
(212) 259-9393
Develops and produces new plays. Advice: Go to Stageplays and familiarize yourself with their work. Call or write for stylesheet.
The Theatre-Studio, Inc.
750 8th Ave.
New York, NY 10036
Attn: A.M. Raychel
(212) 719-0500
Theatre offers playwrights the use of theatre in exchange for the box-office receipts. Pool of acting and directing talent is kept on file at theatre. Excellent opportunity to mount script more than once without incurring great financial risk. Submit full script.
Wings Theatre
666 Greenwich St.
New York, NY 10014
Attn: Laura Kleeman, Literary Manager
Dedicated exclusively to new American plays. Mounts mainstage production, along with a series of gay plays, the fringe series, and a children's series. Prefer plays with a sense of theatricality, rather than "kitchen-sink drama." Starts reading plays for next season in September. Send full script with SASE. Playwright's Group also being formed; phone for more information.