Theatre Uncut Announces New Playwriting Award

The Theatre Uncut Political Playwriting Award aims to find the next generation of political playwrights that want to explore the big issues that affect our lives today.

Through the award Theatre Uncut are looking for brand new voices from all backgrounds that examine - in a full length play - the political in its widest sense, from the domestic to the global.

In an effort to reach talented writers from across the UK, Theatre Uncut has collaborated with the Young Vic, Traverse Theatre and Sherman Theatre, utilising the diversity within each partner venues networks.

The writer of the winning play will receive an award of £9,500 including an agreement to option the production of the play to Theatre Uncut and the award partners. Submissions will open on 1st September 2018 and close 1st November 2018. The award will be eligible for: writers based in the UK only; plays that have not yet received any kind of production; plays over 60 minutes long; writers who have had no more than two full professional productions of their work .

A longlist of 30 will be read by Theatre Uncut Artistic Directors Hannah Price and Emma Callander. A shortlist of 10 plays will then be read by the Artistic Directors of the partner venues Kwame Kwei Armah (Young Vic), Rachel O'Riordan (Sherman Theatre) and Orla O'Loughlin (Traverse Theatre) and the winner judged by the panel of the above with invited guests (to be announced soon).

Theatre Uncut are dedicated to encouraging submissions from the widest demographic of playwrights as possible and welcome writers of any age, race, class, sexual orientation and gender identification to send their plays in. In an effort to provide equality of response and transparency of process we will be reading all plays anonymously and a list of all readers will be made public on the Theatre Uncut website.

"Theatre Uncut has explored an extraordinary range of political issues through short play form, since we began in 2011. Now we are throwing the net wide to find the next generation of political playwrights, writing full length plays that tackle the burning issues of today." Emma Callander - Co-Artistic Director, Theatre Uncut

"Politics is at the heart of everything we do. We want to find the best undiscovered political playwrights and make their voices heard. We are delighted to be partnering with the Young Vic, the Traverse Theatre and the Sherman Theatre on this award, to encourage writers from as wide a demographic as possible to submit their work." Hannah Price - Co-Artistic Director, Theatre Uncut

"Theatre, and the plays staged within them, has always provided a platform to say something about the world that we live in. The announcement of this new political playwright award by Theatre Uncut is a way for the next generation of playwrights to continue that tradition and I can't wait to hear their voices" Kwame Kwei-Armah, Artistic Director, Young Vic

"As our world becomes increasingly divisive, it seems as though everything we think, feel and do can be understood as a political act. So, it's galvanising to see long-time Traverse collaborators, Theatre Uncut launch a playwriting prize that speaks so directly to these times. Here's to throwing the doors wide open to new voices, representative experiences and bold political perspectives." Orla O'Loughlin, Artistc Director, Traverse Theatre

"In the letter I received from Emma and Hannah asking Sherman Theatre to take part in this exciting endeavour, they said this about Theatre Uncut: 'We challenge, we discuss, we explore, we provoke.' I can't think of a better way to describe what an award like this should be about. Theatre now, more than ever, has a role to play in the world. We need, as a society, to interrogate how we see ourselves, how we define who we are and why we behave as we do. There is no more powerful medium through which to do this than live performance; immediate, visceral connection with words, with bodies and with each other can impact on us all. I am delighted to partner with Theatre Uncut, and with the Traverse and Young Vic Theatres on this bold new journey which puts writers at the heart of it. This chimes with Sherman's ethos, and I'm very happy to be part of this." Rachel O'Riordan, Artistic Director, Sherman Theatre

Theatre Uncut also presented THE POWER PLAYS on 1 May, a new series of brand-new of short plays written by some of the UK's most dynamic female playwrights exploring the theme of power from the female perspective. The Power Plays are available to download from theatreuncut.com and can be performed by anyone anywhere free of charge for a limited period. Over 6,000 people have performed Theatre Uncut plays across 26 countries so far. Visit the Theatre Uncut Mass Participation Map to see how far these plays have reached so far and to upload information on your own Theatre Uncut event.

Theatre Uncut aims to provoke debate and galvanise action by making new political theatre available for everyone, everywhere.

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