We never post opportunities that require a submission fee. LEARN MORE.

Wednesday, October 7, 2015

Jewish Playwriting Contest

web site

Artists can submit projects to be for considered for the Jewish Playwriting Contest, our competition for full-length plays dealing with contemporary Jewish themes; for OPEN: Festival of New Jewish Theater at the 14th Street Y; and other developmental and advocacy opportunities as they arise.

To date, the JPP has advanced 23 new plays, 11 of which have gone on to production in New York, Boston, Detroit, Tel Aviv and around the US (see www.jewishplaysproject.org/success for more). Together with the OPEN Festival, the JPP has featured some of the country’s most exciting next-generation artists (Daniella Topol, Robert Askins, Brooke Berman, Jonathan Caren, Marc Bruni, Resident Director Benjamin Kamine, and tons of others).

IMPORTANT NOTE: SUBMISSIONS ARE OPEN TO ARTISTS OF ALL BACKGROUNDS, DENOMINATIONS, FAITHS, CREEDS, RELIGIONS and other IDEALS. We believe that Jewish identity and culture are specific manifestations of universal human cravings for spiritual, ethical, moral and worldly joy. “Matrilineal descent” is neither important nor necessary.

CONTENT PREFERENCES: The JPP seeks plays that find the intersection between Jewish identity and global self. We want to look at the places where Jewish ideas, traditions, stories, myths, culture (and yes, religion) impact, inform, and hopefully improve our lives.

While we value history, we will always lean toward plays that tackle vibrant strands of today’s world: social justice, economic justice, diversity, strong women in Jewish life, LGBTQ inclusion, new perspectives on Israel, environmentalism, and interfaith relations.

Be bold. Think differently about what Jewish theater can be. Strive for epic size and impact. Embrace the emotional, mystical, the theatrical. Tackle the challenging, the controversial, the provocative. We are unafraid to walk these roads with you.

SUBMISSION: Entries are due by October 18, 2015 at 11:59 pm. Each submitting playwright must fill out the Project Application form (www.jewishplaysproject.org/submit). Playwrights will upload their play to the form as a PDF with their name removed (all plays are reviewed blind). There is no fee to submit, but there is a one (1) submission per person rule.

ELIGIBILITY: Full-length plays that deal with contemporary Jewish themes that have never been produced in New York City. The following must be true of a submitted play:

1. It contains significant Jewish themes, characters, content, or points of view.
2. It is not a Holocaust play (stories that deal directly with the history of the Shoah, its survivors and their children, or the World War II period more generally).
3. It does NOT fall into the beloved category of "ethnically stereotypical comedy" (No 'Yiddishemammeh" plays, no "My Afternoon With Bubbe", no "Jewtopia")
4. It is in English. (We welcome translations).
5. It runs at least 75 minutes.
6. It has not had a full production in the NY Metro region, or a major regional theater (LORT C or above).

Blog Archive