Hudson Valley Shakespeare to Celebrate 10th Anniversary Community Bake-Off with Six New Plays

Hudson Valley Shakespeare has revealed the six plays selected for their 10th annual Community Bake-Off, following the theme of “Wired for Connection.” Directed by Jess Chayes (Off Peak), readings of the plays by professional actors will be held on Saturday, November 15 and Sunday, November 16 at Hudson Valley Shakespeare (2015 US-9).

Created by the Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Paula Vogel, a Bake-Off is a communal writing event in which writers are given a random list of “ingredients” to incorporate into a play (for example: a kitchen sink, a front porch, and a withheld secret) to help inspire creativity and give writers permission to play.

“Ten years ago, I told Davis McCallum about a playwriting exercise called the Bake-Off: 48 hour responses to plays, themes, and events written by a group,” said Paula Vogel.  “Bake-Offs build community and give audience participants a sense of ownership in a theatre company.  I am so proud of Hudson Valley Shakespeare for taking my dare to include the community in the making of a play.”

Under the direction of Associate Artistic Director and Director of Education Sean McNall and Associate Producer Christine Scarfuto, the last ten years of HVS Bake-Offs have resulted in over 1,000 community members participating in free playwriting workshops, nearly 500 submitted plays, and 65 plays selected and read by professional actors for 1,300 patrons. Directors Emma Went, Ryan Quinn, Duane Boutté, Susannah Milonzi, Noa Egozi. Kholoud Sawaf. Raz Golden, and Jess Chayes have all directed a number of these readings. HVS has also had many celebrated recipe curators, including Vogel, Sarah Ruhl, Heidi Armbruster, and this year’s Dave Malloy. The recipes are usually in conversation with a play or plays that HVS produced that year on the mainstage.

HVS has also partnered with many community organizations including Cold Spring’s Julia L. Butterfield Library, Garrison’s Desmond-Fish Public Library, Peekskill’s Field Library and New Era Creative Space, Tarrytown’s Warner Library, Newburgh Free Library, Mid-Hudson Library System, Paramount Hudson Valley Theater, Jacob Burns Film Center, Blodgett Memorial Library, Mahopac Public Library, Beekman Library, and Beacon Public Library.

Obie Award winner and Tony Award nominee Dave Malloy (Octet; Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812) selected the ingredients for this year, which were inspired by his show Octet that explores digital life, spiritual yearning, and communal ritual—an ideal thematic framework for this milestone year. The ingredients, of which participants needed to use at least three, are Mirages, Mind Meld, Incompatible Operating Systems, Gods, Beauty of Maps!, A crystal ball, A cracked screen, Hiding, Umbrellas, and Mischief.

The 2025 10th annual Community Bake-Off plays will include:

Google Takes a Holiday

by David Lawter

It's tough being the internet's most popular search engine! Google decides to take a break from its post on the internet and become human for the day, leaving all the humans without Google. This play is a clever, funny take on Plato's Allegory of the Cave emphasizing just how much we've come to rely on the internet. 

My Chart

by James O'Neill

A husband sits with his wife in a hospital waiting room, waiting for her test results. A poignant reminder of the short, beautiful dance that is life, this heartbreaking, beautiful play is elegantly written and deeply moving.

Incompatible Systems

by Loretta Oleck

A couple navigates the tensions and problems with their therapist, until we realize nothing. This dystopian story plays on our fears of what might happen if AI takes over. 

Analog Heart

by Maya Jordan

Set in a dystopian future where humans can routinely upgrade and exchange their organs, two people awaiting an exchange forge an unlikely friendship. This is a beautifully wrought story about the power of human connection.

Too Cold Out

by Rose Hollander

A mom tries to convince her teenage son, who is addicted to video games, to leave the house and enjoy the real world. This true-to-life story feels so relevant in today's world, and celebrates the importance of engaging with the real world.

Eye of the Beholder

by Lila Louise Nawrocki

Set in a future where individuals can pay for "upgrades" to enhance the way they view the world, a couple tries to reckon with their vastly different perspectives. This is a sweet, funny play about how love helps us to see the world through each other's eyes.

To register to attend one of the performance evenings, please fill out this form.