Gulfshore Playhouse Announces Call For Submissions For 2018 New Works Festival

Gulfshore Playhouse has announced the Sixth Annual New Works Festival call for submissions begins Wednesday, Nov. 1 at 9 a.m.

The New Works Festival brings together playwrights, a team of professional actors and directors from across the county for a week-long event culminating in a series of staged readings for an audience.

Gulfshore Playhouse will consider the first 150 submissions from playwrights and agents. Submissions sent prior to Nov. 1 at 9 a.m. will not be accepted. Only full length plays that have not had a full production are eligible. At this time, Gulfshore Playhouse is not accepting musical submissions.

Applicants should submit two .pdf files: a cover page with name and contact information, and the script with no playwright information. Files should be emailed submissions@gulfshoreplayhouse.org. Scripts not received in the requested format will not be considered.

The New Works Festival finalists are chosen through a blind submission process. In the summer of 2018, semifinalists will be contacted regarding their availability and willingness to participate in the festival, which will factor into the selection of the finalists. Each finalist will receive a $500 honorarium, as well as airfare and accommodations for the duration of the festival.

"The Gulfshore Playhouse New Works Festival has restored my faith that even in a time of reduced budget for the arts in this country, there is still a place nurturing new voices," said playwright Laura Maria Censabella, whose work "Paradise" was featured in the Fourth Annual New Works Festival.

The festival allows playwrights to transition from writing, to adding actors and an audience, to understanding how the play works in a performance setting.

"The New Works Festival is one of the best ways we can contribute to the national landscape by fostering the growth of up-and-coming playwrights," said Gulfshore Playhouse Producing Artistic Director and Founder, Kristen Coury.

"It is especially exciting when a play emerges from the festival that we feel is a great fit for our audience and our theatre, like "Miss Keller Has No Second Book," a finalist from last year's festival that we will produce as part of our 2017-18 season."

Gulfshore Playhouse is committed to enriching the cultural landscape of the region by producing professional theatre to the highest artistic standards, and providing unique educational opportunities to diverse groups of people in a spirit of service, adventure, and excitement. Gulfshore Playhouse's work is inspired by a belief in the magic of theater to expand the imagination, challenge the senses, provoke discussion, and revitalize in the audience an understanding of common humanity. This belief drives the respect with which Gulfshore Playhouse treats its artists, audiences, students, staff, and members of the greater community. This focus is also at the core of its newest endeavor - the creation of a landmark facility in downtown Naples. Plans are currently underway for Gulfshore Playhouse's new 56,000-square-foot complex at Goodlette-Frank Road and First Avenue South on the northern end of The Shoppes at Naples Square that will include two theaters and an education wing to support programming for children, adults and families.

For more information about Gulfshore Playhouse or its new facility, visit www.gulfshoreplayhouse.org or call 239-261-PLAY (7529).

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