So you’ve written your first play (or two, or three), and you feel confident that your work is ready for production – where can you go to get your play put on the stage? There are a few outlets for playwrights who are new to the theatre community that are great stepping-stones to getting your name known. What follows is a brief survey of your options as an emerging artist.
Emerging Arts Festivals
An amazing opportunity for anyone trying to get their foot in the door – whether you’re a writer, actor, designer, or director – emerging arts festivals usually promote young artists by producing their work and staffing all shows with other emerging artists. Two excellent examples in Alberta are Nextfest (Edmonton) and the IGNITE Festival (Calgary).
Typically, these festivals put out a call for submissions with a deadline approximately 6 months before they are slated to happen. All you need to get started is a script (sometimes even just an outline will suffice) and a resume. And don’t fret if you haven’t got much of a resume yet, because that’s what festivals like Nextfest are for!
Playwriting Competitions and Contests
Another way to get your work out there that is a little less involved than others is through writing competitions and contests. These may include actual participation, like a 24-hour playwriting competition, but they may also be simple mail-in contests. Tarragon Theatre in Toronto has an annual playwriting competition open to anyone under 30, and there are many others like it.
A lot of these contests will be geared towards short pieces and one-act plays, which is great for beginners, since most first-time writers don’t attempt a 70-90-page script. Some contests will accept any length or subject, while others will present a challenge to playwrights. The Inspirato Festival, also based in Toronto, sets a sense as the subject for entries every year – this year’s sense is taste.
Your best bet for keeping updated on competitions and contests is to become a member of a playwriting or theatre-based organization. In Alberta, the Alberta Playwright’s Network and Theatre Alberta are incredible resources – all members receive frequent emails outlining opportunities for production, among other news.
Fringe Festivals
You have probably all heard of fringe festivals. The first one began in Edinburgh, Scotland, and since then, they have been popping up in cities all across North America and the rest of the world. Putting your play into a fringe festival is another sure-fire way to get noticed, since most will have media to review the majority of the shows being produced.
If you are very fresh to theatre, you will want to be sure that you are working with a group of people you really trust to put on your show, since this outlet for playwrights can be a very involved one. If it’s your first time and you’re not comfortable with the idea of putting on your own show, look into finding a producer to help you with the work and funding required to do so.
The nice thing about fringe festivals is that when you're a participant, there’s a larger parent organization to take care of you. For the most part (depending on where you are located), you will probably be given a venue and technicians to work your show, so a lot of the stress of self-production is diminished. You will also have someone else to sell your tickets and track your incoming funds for you.
Once you have lived through a couple of fringe festivals, you may feel ready to move into self-production, but in the meantime, try the above options and start your career as a playwright this year!
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