Entries Open Tomorrow to Playwrights for the 2025 Ashland New Plays Festival
UPDATE: 4 Plays To See At Ashland New Plays Festival Starting Wednesday
ASHLAND, Ore — Submissions open tomorrow (Wednesday) for the 2025 Ashland New Plays Festival (ANPF). Every year, the competition has attracted hundreds of entries from playwrights of all levels since its launch in 1992. Meanwhile, preparations are underway for staging the 2024 festival from October 16 – 20.
Hundreds of Entries are Received Every Year
ANPF board president Chris Mock says that hundreds of plays are received and undergo a rigorous process of elimination before being sifted down to 35 after a series of group discussions and a numerical scoring system.
After further group discussions, the original crop of 35 plays is whittled down to 10 and 15 semifinalists before the artistic director collaborates to select the final four winners.
Mock says the plays are distributed among volunteer readers. The names of the playwrights are not revealed during the initial reading process, ensuring that each play is judged on merit.
The final four winning playwrights are each awarded $1,500, with hotel accommodation and airfare paid separately, so that they can attend the festival. Each play has two staged readings, as well as audience talkbacks. The playwrights expand their experience further with a workshop and community receptions.
The ANPF is an International Award
The ANPF playwright competition is an international award, and the winning works are portrayed on stage by actors from the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, the Southern Oregon University Theatre Department, regional theatres, and members of the local community.
An annual local highlight, the talkbacks, and reading performances are a unique theatre experience for the audience.
Mock explains that the ANPF’s Reading Committee starts training and organizational meetings in the fall. The scripts are read during winter and spring, followed by several group discussions. A numerical scoring system is used to whittle down the entries. Winning playwrights are announced in July, and travel to Ashland in October to attend the fall festival.
The ANPF website contains details of submission guidelines, volunteering as a play-reader, and ticket sales to the 2024 event.