Submissions Now Open for Cycle 3 of the Terrence McNally New Works Incubator

Submissions are now open for Cycle 3 of the Terrence McNally New Works Incubator. As a continuation of Terrence McNally’s singular legacy of mentorship, and his commitment to fostering bold new voices in the American theater, the New Works Incubator is a multi-pronged program designed to support ambitious early-career playwrights by giving them time and space to develop their work, professional mentorship with veteran playwrights, and access to the community of artists and work being developed at Rattlestick and Tom Kirdahy Productions. Since 2023, fellowships have been awarded to Molly Herron Bicks, HyoJeong Choi, Jesse Jae Hoon, Sam Mueller, Eliana Theologides Rodriguez, and Haygen-Brice Walker.
 
As part of their growing commitment to connect our fellows with world-class artistic collaborators, each McNally Fellow will also receive a developmental workshop that culminates in a public reading featuring industry-leading professionals. Recent directors have included Tea Alagić, Arin Arbus, and Dustin Wills.
 
“We could not be prouder of how the Terrence McNally New Works Incubator has grown to become an integral part of New York City’s playwriting ecosystem,” says Santino DeAngelo, Executive Director of the Terrence McNally Foundation. “Under the brilliant guidance of Rattlestick Artistic Director Will Davis, we nurture bold voices and groundbreaking stories with the same passion and integrity that defined Terrence’s legacy. It is a space where creativity thrives, craft is honed, and the future of the American theater is shaped.”
 
“The Rattlestick's Terrence McNally Incubator is a peerless program, fostering unique voices by pairing them with like-minded mentors and benefiting them both in the process. The opportunity to then further develop the work in a 29-hour workshop with top-tier creatives is a dream-come-true for any writer. The Rattlestick has always been a haven for daring new voices and this initiative only furthers that singular aim by cementing the future of ambitious playwriting in a strong and salient way,” notes playwright Halley Feiffer, who serves on the Playwrights Advisory Council for the Incubator.
 
“Every step of the process —  finding a director and a mentor, how to use my three-week incubation time, what we prioritized in the 29-hour workshop — was driven by what the play (and I!) needed at that moment in time. My time was spent feeling centered in myself and supported by every single person around me,” says Terrence McNally Incubator Cycle 2 playwright, Sam Mueller. 
 
Applications for Cycle 3 are open now at https://www.rattlestick.org/terrence-mcnally-new-works-incubator and will close January 9, 2025 at 11:59pm (ET), or when 500 applications have been received. Each application is thoughtfully reviewed by a broad reader pool of industry professionals. Semi-finalists and finalists are selected through two rounds of consideration. Finalists are granted an interview with a selection panel, including representatives from Rattlestick and Tom Kirdahy Productions. In consultation with the Playwrights Advisory Council, three playwrights will be awarded the Fellowship in the spring 2025. Playwrights Advisory Council members include Sheila Callaghan, Christopher Chen, Halley Feiffer, David Henry Hwang, Lynn Nottage, and Paula Vogel.

STRUCTURE OF THE INCUBATOR PROGRAM

STIPEND
Each McNally Fellow will receive a one-time stipend of $7,500 to be used as the playwright sees fit to best further their goals.
 
MENTORSHIP
In consultation with Rattlestick Theater and Tom Kirdahy Productions, each McNally Fellow will be paired with a veteran playwright mentor who will read a minimum of two drafts and offer one-on-one feedback, in addition to attending a workshop rehearsal and/or final presentation subject to their availability.
 
THREE-WEEK INCUBATION
After the initial mentor meeting, the playwright will revise and develop their play for three weeks. This is time for rigorous thinking, dreaming, and writing outside the constraints of a product-oriented rehearsal space.
 
In addition to mentor feedback, the playwright will meet with the literary teams at both TKP and Rattlestick to discuss their work and process.
 
McNally fellows will be invited to participate in a series of Rattlestick events where they will have the opportunity to get to know the teams at TKP and Rattlestick as well as the other McNally Fellows and other industry professionals.
 
WORKSHOP
The second part of the incubator will take the form of a developmental workshop culminating in a public presentation.
 
Core collaborators (director, dramaturg, actors) will be chosen in consultation with the selected playwright, TKP, and Rattlestick and will be compensated for their time. 
 

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