Road Theatre Company Calls For Submissions For Its 12th Annual Summer Playwrights Festival

THE ROAD THEATRE COMPANY and Taylor Gilbert, Founder/Artistic Director together with Sam Anderson, Artistic Director have announced that the play submission process is now open for new material to be considered for their upcoming playwrights festival.

The Road Theatre Company is committed to showcasing the work of BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Color) playwrights. The mission of The Road Theatre Company has always been to elevate new voices for the American Theatre and with that effort to be more inclusive, we welcome submissions from playwrights of all backgrounds and ethnicities.

Here are a few comments from last year's BIPOC artists:

"The Road Theatre Company's Summer Playwrights Festival was an exciting event where great minds at the top of their games came together to bring alive plays by playwrights from across the country. Being able to work with the Road was a richly rewarding experience that I will remember fondly for years to come." - Franky D. Gonzalez

"What a gift--not only to hear my play aloud for the first time--but to hear it read with such intelligence and warmth by such an incredible group of people. I'm deeply grateful for the collaboration!" - Harrison David Rivers

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"One of my major highlights of 2020 was having a virtual reading of my new comedy DINNER as part of the Road Theatre Company's Summer Playwright's Festival. I learned so much about my script and loved working with a talented cast and an exceptional director." Lisa B. Thompson

"My play Marianas Trench (Summer Playwrights Festival 11 - 2020) requires three East Asian actors and deals with anti-gay and anti-Muslim persecution. I could not have been in better hands than the ROAD Theatre's who gave me a brilliant director in Gregg T. Daniel, a diverse and insightful cast, and the resources to create a great reading!" - Scott C. Sickles

SUMMER PLAYWRIGHTS FESTIVAL (SPF 12):

The 12th annual Summer Playwrights Festival will take place from Thursday through Sunday, starting from July 15th to August 1, 2021 and is now open for submissions. Annually, the festival mounts 20-40 staged readings of new plays in 12 exciting days. The festival is now the largest staged reading festival in the nation, with playwrights from across the country and around the world participating. Each reading is followed by a talkback with the playwright, director, and although we receive hundreds of submissions for our festival, new and established playwrights are encouraged to submit. Next summer's festival will again be produced virtually due to COVID-19 restrictions.

From Executive Director Tracey Silver: "As we embark on our 12th annual Summer Playwrights festival, we remain committed to bringing exciting new works and unique voices to share with our audiences. With the Black Lives Matter Movement in the forefront, we aim to include more compelling new works from BIPOC Playwrights. Last year we produced our first virtual Summer Playwrights Festival (SPF 11) to great success. While we look forward to the day we can get back into our theatre, we remain truly grateful to everyone who has embraced this new virtual medium. As the pandemic continues to affect many at home and around the world, The Road Theatre Company remains committed to celebrate the work of the playwright and performance. We look forward to sharing SPF 12 with you!"

Festival Director, Christian Telesmar, adds, "The Summer Playwrights Festival is an exciting culmination of artistic vision and expression in the city of Los Angeles. In 2020, for SPF11, we took our festival virtual for the first time in its 10-year history. We had over 200 artists, from directors to actors to technical assistants, volunteer their time and artistry towards 25 playwrights' short & full-length plays. And with nearly 50% BIPOC representation in our festival, the impact last year was one of our best yet. The Road Theatre Company is committed to telling stories from all backgrounds & experiences and we look forward to expanding even more in 2021. With COVID-19 still rampant throughout the world, The Road Theatre Company is rising to the challenge once again to keep theatre alive by holding yet another fully virtual playwright's festival in 2021. Come join us and be a part of the magic that is SPF 12!"

Artistic Director, Sam Anderson, reflects on the recent changes to the festival: "Last year at this time, the Road was on course to begin setting up for SPF 11, the annual Summer Playwright's Festival. Then in March of 2020, COVID-19 hit and we were on lockdown. If we were to even have a festival, we had to be creative and bold. Under Executive Producer Tracey Silver and the Road board, the decision was made to do SPF as a Virtual Festival, 25 plays presented online on Zoom over a three-week period in the fall. Under learning curves that were sudden and enormous, the company overcame odds to produce the festival, our biggest annual fundraiser, without a clue of what the outcome would be. The results surprised all of us. SPF 11 was viewed online by over 18,000 viewers across the US and reaching 6 continents, an audience beyond a small theatre's dreams. So, this year, we are starting early, as in NOW, armed with the ever-growing knowledge of the importance of BLM and determined to expand our voices of BIPOC writers, directors, performers and designers, under our new Change Initiative, and are going to do it again in late summer 2021. Get ready for the biggest festival in the country!"

"SPF 12 is open and eagerly awaiting submissions for our very next Summer Playwrights Festival," says Founding Artistic Director, Taylor Gilbert. "SPF 11 was such a successful event that we have realized no matter what the Coronavirus has in store for us, a virtual festival is where we will be. This new format allowed us the opportunity to view how and where we needed to improve our programming. Although we included the highest percentage of BIPOC plays and actors in our 11-year history, we are committed to making this festival even more accessible and increase our diversity, parity and inclusion efforts. Our extensive reach last summer was unprecedented and we can't wait to open The Road to new theatrical internet travelers. Making 2021, The Road Most Traveled!"

Past playwrights have included William Mastrosimone, Harrison David Rivers, Jami Brandli, Steve Yockey, Lisa B. Thompson, Franky D. Gonzalez, D.L. Coburn, Lisa Loomer, Sharr White, Marisa Wegrzyn, Craig Wright, Wendy MacLeod, Lucy Thurber, Mo Gaffney, Keith Huff, Brett Neveu, Scooter Pietsch, Craig Pospisil, Julie Marie Myatt, and Martyna Majok. Guest artists have included Bryan Cranston, Laurie Metcalf, Jason Alexander, Zachary Quinto, Ann Cusack, Kathy Baker, Jennifer Tilly, Perry King, Rondi Reed, tom irwin, Nancy Travis, Gregory Harrison, Gale Harold, Robert Pine, Michael O'Neill, Harold Gould, Jon Polito, James Eckhouse, Lila Crawford, Zoe Perry, and many, many others.

SUBMISSION GUIDELINES (SPF 12):

-Each submission is read and evaluated by our artistic staff with recommendations made to the festival producers, who evaluate the plays and narrow the field to the final 20-40 scripts.

-Each play receives a minimum of two reading evaluations. The SPF 12 staff regrets that we do not provide feedback on any submitted materials.

-Plays of any length or genre are eligible; however, to be included in SPF 12, the work must remain unproduced on the west coast and unpublished through August 2, 2021.

-Early submissions are strongly encouraged.

-No agent is required.

-ONLY electronic copy applications are accepted. No hard copies, please.

PLAY FORMAT GUIDELINES (SPF 12):

-All scripts must be in a PDF file format. Name your file with the title of the play first. No hard copy submissions will be accepted.

-Please put your direct contact information on your play (your name and email address).

-Plays must be paginated and include a list of characters.

-Please include a synopsis of your play on the submission form.

SUBMISSION WINDOW (SPF 12):

-We will accept submissions for SPF 12 between 12:01 am on November 15th, 2020, through 11:59 pm on March 15, 2021. We cannot accept any plays past this deadline, so please plan accordingly.

-Plays of all lengths (ten-minute, one-act, full-length, and solo performance) are eligible for submission during this time.

-Official SPF 12 selections will be announced on May 1, 2021.

SUBMISSION FEE (SPF 12):

-$20 for scripts over 30 pages (full length) and $15 for scripts under 30 pages (short form).

-The fee can be submitted via this link: https://ci.ovationtix.com/35065/store/donations/35364. Upon payment, you will receive two emails in your inbox. The first will be a receipt of payment and the second will include details with script submission instructions.

For inquiries and further information, contact roadtheatrecompanyspf12@gmail.com.