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Thursday, February 23, 2017

Urban Stages Emerging Playwright Award Submission Guidelines

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No deadline. Year-round submissions accepted.

It begins with submitting your play and being selected for step 1 of our process - a staged reading. Out of hundreds of submissions a year, we select 15-20 plays for readings. From these, we select 1-3 plays annually to go on to our workshopping phase. Our workshops are meant to prepare a play for our Off-Broadway stage. From our workshops, we select 1-2 plays for full productions, complete with a playwright’s contract and compensation (separate from the award).

Our $500 Emerging Playwright Award (coupled with press coverage) is given to playwrights who show excellence and dedication throughout this process – from development to the stage.

Submit plays to:
Urban Stages
555 Eighth Avenue, RM 1800
New York, NY 10018

Email submissions will not be accepted.

Full-length plays only:
- scripts must be firmly bound
- No changes or revisions accepted after submission
- No double-sided pages.
- 7 actors or less (unless otherwise noted)…doubling is fine

With your submission, please include:
- Biography and/or author’s history of the play
- Character breakdown
- Brief synopsis of the play.
- A small SASE envelope for a response letter.
*Whole plays will no longer be returned. All plays will be recycled.

Plays MAY HAVE BEEN developed or produced elsewhere, BUT NEVER PRODUCED in New York City.

There is no limit to submissions.
Subject matter and character variations are open.
There is no submission fee.

It usually takes up to six months for us to read and process your script.
We ask that you do not call or email our offices to inquire on the status of your play.

Plays from overseas and throughout the United States are accepted and considered.
BUT special attention will be given to playwrights who live in or near New York.

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