The 2024 Diverse Voices Playwriting Initiative welcomes submissions for full-length, unproduced plays by Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) playwrights in accordance with the mission statement of the Crossroads Project. A diverse panel of judges including Illinois State University faculty, staff, students, and alumni, as well as members of the local community, will select one playwright as the winner.
To be eligible to win, the playwright must be available for a one-week residency in mid-to-late April 2024 (exact dates TBD). If the play has multiple writers/creators, they can only provide funding for one person during the residency. Other writers/creators are welcome to participate in the workshop by self-funding the trip or joining virtually for rehearsals and events.
The winning playwright will receive:An invitation to Illinois State University in Bloomington-Normal, IL, as a guest-artist-in-residence for a one-week new play development workshop, culminating in a public staged reading. This residency may also include class visits and other University events.
Travel (within the U.S.), housing, and meals during the residency. There will also be n honorarium of $500 as a part of the residency.
Please include in your submission:
- A representative sample from your play up to 15 pages. These do not have to be the first 15 pages of the play.
- A synopsis of the play (max. 250 words).
- A character list with short descriptions for each character (age, ethnicity, gender, occupation, family relationships, etc.)
- A playwright’s statement (max. 400 words). In the statement, describe your inspiration for writing the play, address where you are in the development process, and discuss how a workshop in a university setting can facilitate that process. Please include information about access and accommodation needs in this statement.
They will contact semi-finalists by the end of November 2023 and ask them to submit the full play. The winning playwright will be notified by the end of January 2024.
Deadline: August 1, 2023 at 11:59PM, though they can only consider the first 100 submissions.
Find more info and the submission form here.
Source: NYCPlaywrights.org