Immersive Theatre Creation Experience Announced at the 13th Annual NEXT ACT! New Play Summit at theREP

Capital Repertory Theatre is known for its commitment to developing new plays and playwrights and helping to enrich the American Theatre Cannon. Each spring, theREP hosts the NEXT ACT! New Play Summit with multiple events to discover and explore the magic of new play creation.

The 13th annual NEXT ACT! New Play Summit will begin 7:30 p.m. Monday, April 15 with the play “All the Emilies in All the Universes” by award-winning playwright Ian August and will continue through 7:30 p.m. Saturday, April 20, with a poetry slam emceed by local artist and poet D. Colin.

This year, NEXT ACT! will conclude with the world premiere of 2022 participant “Three Mothers” by Ajene D. Washington. This is the first time audience members will see where a script starts and how it comes to life when given its first production.

“In the last couple of years, Maggie and I have been talking about how cool it would be to tie the summit with our world premiere production so folks could witness all the facets of new play development that we do here,” Associate Artistic Director Margaret E. Hall said. “We have a really amazing track record of new work–starting at theREP and moving on, which is what all playwrights hope for their plays and we hope for them too!”

Also during the upcoming summit, theREP will feature the short film “Consider the Sparrow” by Suzanne Bradbeer 6 p.m. Wednesday, April 17, an adaptation of her play, inaugural NEXT ACT! winner, “The God Game” followed by a panel discussion. “The God Game” received a world premiere production in 2013 and has been produced in at least 12 other theatres across the country.

Attendees will also have the opportunity to see the final workshop performance of “Unreconciled” 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 17 before it receives its world premiere production in the Berkshires later this season. The play will feature Jay Sefton, who recently portrayed the Legionnaire in “What the Constitution Means to Me” on the Mainstage at theREP, and Mark Basquill. The play is directed by James Berry who directed 23/24 season show “Million Dollar Quartet Christmas.

During NEXT ACT! events, audience members provide feedback on the shows and subsequently the playwrights. Submissions from different events have gone on to full productions both at theREP and elsewhere, making the community a real part of the development process from start to finish. “One of the really cool things that I wish more of our subscriber base and patrons understood is that your feedback actually helps theREP, and the playwrights of the summit, develop their plays” Hall said.

Next season, theREP announced that yet another NEXT ACT! participant will join a future season. John Spellos' “Rosie is Red And Everyone is Blue” will be a part of the 24/25 season, sponsored by Overit, and is in part due to the suggestions of past summit audience members.

“You never know, the 2024 summit finalist script, ‘All the Emilies in All the Universes,' by Ian August might just go on to have its world premiere in the 2026 season…and the audience can help us decide.” Hall added, “You can't find the next great Tony Kushner or Lynn Nottage if you're not willing to take chances on new scripts. And looking for them, well that's part of theREP's history.”

Tickets

Tickets for the 13th NEXT ACT! New Play Summit are available through the Box Office at Proctors in-person, via phone at (518) 346-6204 Monday-Saturday 10 a.m.-6 p.m. or visiting attherep.org.

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