Call for Scripts - Take back the Land
Native Voices at the Autry
Call for Scripts 2016-2017
*Please note that we only accept submissions written for the stage or theatre by Native American, Alaska Native, Hawaiian, and First Nations artists.
Deadline: August 19, 2016
Short plays submitted by August 19, 2016 will be considered for Native Voices’ 6th Annual Short Play Festival, to take place in November 2016 at the American Indian Arts Marketplace at the Autry in Los Angeles, and at La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego. Read more about the theme for the Short Play Festival below.
The 6th Annual Short Play Festival
This year’s short play festival theme is Take Back the Land. Native Voices invites playwrights to address topics surrounding their environment from an indigenous perspective. Climate change, resources, sustainability, GMO’s, border and land disputes, spiritual ties to land– these are among the many themes that may be explored in short play submissions. Plays may focus on historical or present-day issues, or on the problems future generations will face. Water shortages, overpopulation, extreme weather, firestorms, greenhouse emissions, scarcity of fish and game, poisoned water supplies… are we doing enough to preserve the traditional homelands of the first peoples? Of the planet? How are indigenous lives affected by the rapidly changing, industrial and globalized world in which we live? What are unique environmental issues faced by Native communities– and what, if anything, can we do to change them?
Selection Process: Short plays (15 page maximum) that are related to the theme and are received by August 19, 2016 will be read and evaluated by a national reading panel comprised of Native American theatre artists and community members along with nationally-recognized theatre artists. The panel will select 5 to 8 plays for the festival based on the creative use of the theme, originality, theatricality, and execution.
Selected plays will be given a staged reading on November 13, 2016 as part of the Autry National Center’s American Indian Arts Marketplace and again in San Diego at La Jolla Playhouse on November 14, 2016. A panel of judges will select the 2016 Von Marie Atchley Award for Excellence in Playwriting, a $1,000 cash prize!
Plays that are longer than 15 pages will not be considered for the Short Play Festival. Please note that the Short Play Festival is only open to Native American, Alaska Native, and First Nations Playwrights.
Plays must be submitted using our online submission form and in the correct format. Please see our “Checklist for All Submissions” below for further details.
For Full-Length Plays
Deadline: October 21, 2016
Native Voices is currently accepting submissions of full-length plays (60+ pages) by Native American writers addressing all themes and topics.
2017 Playwrights Retreat and Festival of New Plays
The retreat and festival brings artists to Los Angeles to work on 3–5 plays through a rigorous directorial and dramaturgical commitment for 8–10 days in May/June. The retreat culminates in public presentations of the plays at the Autry Museum of the American West in Los Angeles and La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego. Selected playwrights receive directorial and dramaturgical support as well as an honorarium; out-of-town artists receive roundtrip airfare plus lodging in Southern California.
Selection Process: Full-length plays (60+ pages) received by October 21, 2016 will be read and evaluated. A select number of playwrights will be invited to submit formal proposals detailing their developmental goals should their play be chosen for the short list. Scripts will then be sent to a committee of nationally recognized theatre artists for further evaluation. With their help, Native Voices selects up to five plays for the Playwrights Retreat and Festival of New Plays. Playwrights will be notified in January 2017.
A Note About the Native Voices Distance Dramaturgy Process
Months prior to residencies at the Playwrights Retreat and Festival of New Plays, selected playwrights participate in dramaturgical conversations with an assigned director and dramaturg. Workshops with these creative teams and a cast of professional actors commence once the playwright arrives on-site. It is important to note that these conversations and workshops are playwright driven, allowing the writer to shape his/her own developmental path. Selected playwrights should be prepared to dedicate adequate time to this process prior to arriving on-site.
Checklist for All Submissions
- Please label script attachment as follows: PlayTitle_Author’s Last Name, First Initial (Example: MyNewPlay_Doe, J.doc).
- All submissions must conform to a standard play-script format (one-inch margins, #12 Times or Courier font, all pages numbered).
- Include a title page with full contact information (mailing address, phone numbers, e-mail address) and a draft or revision date.
- Include a character breakdown at the beginning of your script.
- Provide a biography of 75–100 words. Please label attachment as follows: Bio_Author’s Last Name, First Initial (Example: Bio_Doe, J.doc).
- Provide a press ready photo of at least 300dpi. Please label attachment as follows: Photo_Author’s Last Name, First Initial (Example: Photo_Doe, J.doc).
- Provide development history for the play. Label attachment as follows: DevHistory_PlayTitle_Author’s Last Name, First Initial (Example: DevHistory_MyNewPlay_Doe, J.doc).
- To submit, fill out our online form and upload your submission materials here: Native Voices Script Submission Form
Please do not send treatments or outlines. Previously submitted plays should only be resubmitted if the play has undergone significant dramatic changes. Plays that are not selected are kept on file for consideration for future opportunities. Playwrights are encouraged to make multiple submissions (up to three per event), but selection will be limited to only one play per playwright, per event.
Where to Send Submissions
We now only accept electronic submission (in Word or PDF format).
To submit, fill out our online form and upload your materials here: Native Voices Script Submission Form
For More Information:
NVLiteraryAssociate@gmail.com
NativeVoices.blogspot.com