PlayGround Reveals Lineup For 30th Annual Festival Of New Works

PlayGround has announced the full lineup for the 30th annual Festival of New Works, a preeminent showcase for the next generation of great playwrights! This year's festival, all performed live at Potrero Stage May 15-31 and simulcast, is highlighted by the premiere presentation of Mycelium by Juliet Kang Huneke (May 16-17 & May 23-24), a PlayGround commission originally developed at the 2025 Festival of New Works and based on the Best of PlayGround(Chicago) '24 People's Choice short play of the same name. The festival also features staged readings of three brand-new plays in development - all under commission and developed as part of PlayGround's year-long Playwright Residency Program: Good Romans by Baylee Shlichtman (May 17), The Case of the Missing Messenger by Madeleine Butler (May 24), and Disloyal by Anne Brady (May 31). Four playwrights are also being recognized this year as Festival Finalists for their outstanding plays, each of which received an in-house reading earlier this season: Courting by Dana Leslie Goldstein, Merchant of Stratford by Maury Zeff, The Suit by Alex Kingsley, and The House of Flightless Birds by Baylee Shlichtman.

"It's humbling," said founding PlayGround Artistic Director Jim Kleinmann, "with everything our field and the arts in general have gone through particularly in the last six years, to see the impact PlayGround and the Festival of New Works have had in launching hundreds of new plays and playwrights over the past thirty years. I'm so proud of the numerous professional playwrights PlayGround has been able to support, nurture and champion."

Since 1997, the Festival of New Works has provided theatre-makers and theatregoers with one of the most varied and robust opportunities to discover leading new voices of the American Theatre while providing up-and-coming writers with the exposure, production experience, and networks they need to succeed on the national stage. Both Funny Like an Abortion by Rachel Bublitz (2022) and Sapience by Diana Burbano (2021) premiered in the PlayGround Festival of New Works before moving on to National New Play Network Rolling World Premieres. Other distinguished festival alumni include: Lauren Yee, Geetha Reddy, Jonathan Spector, and Cleavon Smith, among others.

The 2026 festival concludes with PlayGround's annual Young Playwrights Project (May 29) and Best of PlayGround(SF) 2026 (May 30-31), the 30th annual iteration of PlayGround's short play showcase featuring fully-produced versions of the top plays from this season's Monday Night PlayGround series. The festival begins with a special Kick-Off and Playwrights Panel (May 15), featuring many of this year's award-winning playwrights including: Baylee Shlichtman, Madeleine Butler, Juliet Kang Huneke and more. Admission for the entire festival is free (suggested donation: $10-$50) with extended on-demand viewing for Festival Sponsors. 

Festival Schedule: