In Spring 2014, The Royal Court Theatre will be running two Introduction to Playwriting groups, both of them intended to help playwrights at an early stage of their career to develop their skills.
The groups are small in number and are a friendly and supportive environment in which playwrights can engage with their peers, develop their craft, and benefit from the tutelage of Leo Butler, the playwright tutor. At the end of the group, writers will submit a full length play and receive detailed feedback on it.
One group is for writers aged 18 to 25 and the other is for writers aged 26 and over. The groups will be run on Mondays (18-25) and Tuesdays (26+) for twelve weeks from 17th/18th February.
How to apply: Applications for this group are now open. To apply for the Introduction to Playwriting course, you will need to complete the application form available on their website and also send ten pages of writing for the stage: this can either be ten pages of an existing play of any length, or ten pages of work you have written specially. Submissions should be sent to groups@royalcourttheatre.com.
Please attach to one email both your writing sample and the completed application form, (taking care to include your own name in each file name): they will discard any incomplete submissions without reading them. If there is anything else you think we should know about you and your writing, you can include it in the body of your email.
Course dates: The closing date for submissions is Friday 9th January 2014 at 6pm. The courses will begin on the 17th and 18th February and run until May 2014 one evening a week. If you are accepted onto the group, we will aim to let you know by Friday 7th February at the latest. If you have not heard from us by the 12th of February, unfortunately you have not been successful on this occasion.
Some important points to note:
• Your extract can be of any genre and feature any number of characters, but must be intended for the stage and not for film, television or radio. It should not be an adaptation of a story from another medium
• Do not include any other materials (photographs, CVs etc)
• You can send us an application if you’ve applied before, but please do not apply for this group if you have taken part in an introductory group at the Royal Court since 2005 – the course will repeat material from the Young Writers’ Programme
• They will not be able to send you feedback on your submission
• You will receive an acknowledgement whether you send your script by email or post
• If you are sending your application electronically, please include your name somewhere in the document’s title
• Please send your documents in .doc, .docx, .rtf or .pdf format
• Due to the volume of submissions we receive, unfortunately they will only be able to contact you if you are successful in gaining a place.
Deadline: Friday 9 January 2014 at 6pm
Source: @Playwriting_UK