The Overtime Theater in San Antonio, Texas is seeking new works from LGBTQ+ playwrights for its 2022 New Play Development Series in June.The chosen play will be given a staged reading at the Overtime Theater in celebration of National LGBTQ+ Pride Month.The purpose of this program is to give new and seasoned playwrights an opportunity to further develop new works.Devoted to producing new and original work, the Overtime is particularly interested in bold, innovative plays from across the LGBTQ+ spectrum that are both provocative and entertaining.***The Department of Theatre and Music Studies at State University of New York Brockport 13th Biennial Festival of Ten-Minute PlaysAll plays will be submitted online. Submitted plays should have the name of the playwright removed.Each script must have a running time of seven to fourteen minutes.Only original scripts allowed.Maximum of two scripts per playwright.Scripts that have been read or performed in any manner for a paying audience are not accepted.***The EVOLUTION FESTIVAL will present six original works of theater, dance, music, and interdisciplinary performance by NYC-based artists from September 8 to October 15, 2022 at The Center at West Park in New York City.We are seeking existing works in progress that are ready to share with audiences but have not yet had a world premiere. Works should be evening-length: at least 45 minutes and not more than two hours. Above all, we are looking for fresh, urgent, personal work that won’t leave you alone.*** FOR MORE INFORMATION about these and other opportunities see the web site at https://www.nycplaywrights.org ****** PLAY READINGS ***When England began its first lockdown about a year ago, a production of “Coriolanus” at the Crucible in Sheffield locked down, too. Suddenly at liberty, the actress Alex Young hung up her Junius Brutus costume and returned to London. She panicked, she grieved and then on March 18, she opened Twitter. “Who’d be up for a Zoom/Skype play reading group?” she wrote. “Like a book group but we chose a script each time.”More than 400 people liked the tweet; nearly 100 responded to her directly. A week later, the Corona Days Plays debuted, with a reading of the stage adaptation of “Shakespeare in Love.” This March, the group did the play again, “as a sort of anniversary read just to see how far we’ve come in terms of our Zoom prowess,” Young said, speaking on a video call.Over the past year, as many theaters worldwide have remained closed, online play reading groups have arisen to fill that dramatic gap, with more or less prowess — on Zoom, on Skype, on the audio-only app Clubhouse. Some participants merely read their lines, scripts in hand, others act them out. Many clubs stick to Shakespeare and affiliated classics, but plenty range more widely, integrating contemporary plays, “Star Trek” episodes and film scripts.More...https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/14/theater/play-reading-groups-quarantine.html***In the dead of winter, long after the curtain has closed on a season of live performances, Door County’s theaters are still hard at work. Door Shakespeare, Peninsula Players, Third Avenue PlayWorks and Rogue Theater will all present play readings as part of Door County Reads.But what is a play reading, and why is it one of the most important parts of the theatrical process?A play reading is the most basic version of a play. Actors deliver their lines directly from the script with minimal direction and movement, but in character and with gusto. There are no technical elements such as props, costumes or lighting, but someone reads the stage directions aloud to give the audience the context for each scene.As with any writing, revision is a key part of the process for play scripts. But unlike other types of writing, play scripts are mostly dialogue, so hearing the words read aloud is vital to revising the script. Before the props, costumes or even the blocking, the flow of the words and the delivery of the story must be worked and reworked numerous times; therefore, a play reading is the first step a script takes before becoming a performance.More...https://doorcountypulse.com/whats-a-play-reading-and-why-is-it-cool/***Sweaty palms. Pounding heart. Darting eyes. Sounds like a victim-to-be in a slasher flick-or a playwright at a reading of his play.Play readings are an important step in developing your new play, and they come in all shapes and sizes. It might just be you and some friends reading your play at the kitchen table so that you can hear how it sounds out loud. But at some point, it's likely that you'll have a public reading of your play-probably with some rehearsal-after which there will be a discussion, sometimes known as a talkback. The very idea of throwing your baby to the wolves can be traumatic for many playwrights: sweaty palms, pounding hearts, darting eyes, the whole nine yards. But it doesn't have to be that way.More...https://scriptmag.com/features/how-to-have-a-useful-play-reading***Wouldn’t it have been nice if the all-mighty Lord, right after handing down the five Books of Moses, issued a short addendum listing all the protocols for staged reading do’s and don’ts?Like you, I’ve been to a ton of script readings. Many have been superb. Some have made me question humanity. Of those in the latter category I’ve come to notice how the dreadful readings rarely deal with quality of script. Instead, reading disasters all share one thing in common – they abandon the standard conventions.After attending the most recent disaster, I figured I would I ask around and see if anyone knew of a one-stop resource detailing how best to run script readings. No answer. I took to online and searched around but still failed to find a go-to list of do’s and don’ts. There’s probably a thousand blog postings on the subject and I couldn’t find one. Given the absence of an easily accessible list, I decided to create my own.More...https://samgraber.com/2013/04/30/staged-reading-dos-and-donts/***
If you are unfamiliar with the concept of a play reading, it is when a play is read out loud by actors with scripts in hand. The goal is for the playwright to hear the written words spoken by actors. Do the words sound the same as they did in the playwright’s head? Readings can also be done for producers to get them to put up money to financially back a production. Whether you are a new or veteran playwright, readings are a helpful tool.
The first reading is often done in the playwright’s living room or in a quiet public place—like a study/conference room at a public library. The goal of the first reading is for the playwright to hear how actors read and interpret the script. This allows the playwright to go back and make edits to the script afterwards.
After two or more of the first kind of readings, the playwright will benefit from doing a reading with both actors and an audience. This type of reading can take place again in the playwright’s home, in a free public location like a library, or in a space that the playwright rents. Coffee shops also often hold open mic nights or welcome readings to be held at their business, especially if they think it will help draw in customers on an evening that is usually slow. The added layer of having an audience helps the playwright understand how the play would be received—which parts are funny or moving as they are supposed to be and which are without the playwright’s intention. After this type of reading, a playwright can then do more edits, if needed.
More...
https://smpbooks.com/importance-play-readings/***
Last week, I got an opportunity for anonymous feedback on one of my plays, submitted blind. Excited to get new eyes on my script and new minds responding, I took it. This was a play that I believed was one minor rewrite away from submitting. Surely feedback from someone outside of my immediate circle would help. What could go wrong?
Shortly after, I received the feedback. It was a page-by-page breakdown of everything wrong with my script, from small grammatical errors to lapses in logic. The feedback culminated in several sentences expressing that my play had no core conflict, none of the characters had a clear motivation, the core conceit was comparable to a board game, and the technical elements were impossible to produce.
This stopped me in my tracks. All of my confidence in this piece, all of my passion for shaping it, dissipated almost instantly. Even as I began to question aspects of the feedback - several clues led me to the conclusion these notes were written during a shallow first reading, with many criticisms addressed literally a page later - it still hit me hard.
More...
https://www.thetheatricalboard.com/editorials/constructivecritique
***
Tips for Surviving Audience Discussions
Think of this experience as a kind of ritual, a reward for the audience that took a risk to see the first presentation of your new play.
Take notes. This gives you someplace to look – and someplace to take out your aggressions – if you have the bad luck to get one of those types who’s determined to turn your play into his play before he’ll let you go home. You’ll hear some helpful ideas from the director and performers. Write them down so you don’t forget. This is one of the most stressful times for playwrights so having a few notes to jog your memory the next morning is a good idea.
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