Young Playwrights Inc.
Mission:
Founded by Stephen Sondheim in 1981 as the only professional theater devoted solely to the work of writers aged 18 or younger, Young Playwrights
Inc. introduces young people to the theater and encourages their self-expression through the art of playwriting. Responsible for numerous celebrated programs for young people and their teachers, Young Playwrights Inc. is a model for young playwright development programs across the United States and Canada.
Our mission is:
to develop playwrights aged 18 or younger through professional production of their work
to develop new work for the theater
to promote the arts in basic education by facilitating the integration of playwriting into the curriculum
to serve as an advocate for young people regardless of ethnicity, gender,physical ability, sexual orientation, or economic status
Contact Information
Address: Post Office Box 5134 New York, NY 10185
Telephone: (212) 594 - 5440
Website: http://www.youngplaywrights.org
Primary Contact Name: Frances McGarry
General Information
Type: After School, Arts, In School, Reading/Literacy, Special Education, Summer Program, Teacher/Administrator Training/Placement/Professional development, Other
Target audience: Students, Parents, Families, Teachers, Organizations, Administrators, Schools, Libraries
Year founded: 1981
Tag words: Playwriting, Writing, Drama, Applied Theater, Theater, Literacy
Programs/Services
National Playwriting Competition
Description: As many as 1,600 scripts are submitted annually by American playwrights aged 18 or younger. These plays are read and evaluated by theater professionals. Each playwright receives a detailed written analysis offering constructive criticism and encouragement. The winners are named by the YPI Selection Committee and invited to New York for the annual Young Playwrights Conference.
Fees for services: None
Ages of students: ages 7 - 18 years
Schools/sites: National
Contact person: Frances McGarry
Young Playwrights Conference
Description: This intensive week of playwright development for the winners of the National Playwriting Competition offers young playwrights the opportunity to develop their work in a professional setting, to meet and collaborate with noted theater artists, and establish relationships with their peers. Participants attend workshops, learn the practical aspects of writing and production; experience the best of New York theater and have in-depth discussions and workshops with the creative teams. The playwrights collaborate with professional directors, dramaturgs, and actors as their plays are readied for presentation in the Young Playwrights Conference Reading Series. While some of these plays will ultimately be selected for the Young Playwrights Festival, the emphasis of the Conference is not on competition but on the participants' growth as writers.
Fees for services: none
Ages of students: 7- 21
Schools/sites: National
Contact person: Frances McGarry
Urban Retreat
Description: A week-long playwriting program for writers aged 14 -21. Students participate in daily workshop, luncheon roundtable discussions, Broadway & Off-Broadway shows, one-0n-one feedback on their writing, and rehearsals with professional directors and actors in preparation for an Off-Broadway staged reading of their plays. Urban Retreat is held each July and is a tuition-based program. Admission is by application only.
Fees for services: $1,800
Ages of students: 14 - 21
Schools/sites: National
Contact person: Frances McGarry
Young Playwrights Festival
Description: After the Conference, Young Playwrights Inc. selects several of the winning plays to be produced in the Young Playwrights Festival, a unique Off Broadway production which comprises 3 to 4 plays. The Festival rehearses for 3 weeks prior to a 6 week run with the playwrights in residence for casting, rehearsal, previews, and opening night; the goal is to enmesh the playwrights in the fabric of the creative process by treating them as the professionals they have become. Playwrights receive a Dramatists Guild-approved contract, appropriate option fees and royalties, and retain all rights in their work. The plays are selected because they express their ideas in powerful or subtle ways; they engage the audience with compelling language; they are theatrical and offer dynamic insight into the craft of playwriting. Above all, they are a celebration of an under appreciated cultural minority: America’s youth.
Fees for services: None
Ages of students: 8 - 18 years
Schools/sites: National
Contact person: Frances McGarry
Write A Play! NYC
Description: Young Playwrights Inc. demonstrates its commitment to New York City’s young writers through the annual Write A Play! NYC contest. All participating playwrights receive detailed written evaluations and their submissions are considered for the National Playwriting Competition. Several have been gone on to production in the Young Playwrights Festival. Postmark Deadline is March 1, 2011.
Fees for services: None
Ages of students: 7 - 18 years
Schools/sites: National
Contact person: Frances McGarry
Advanced Playwriting Workshop (APW)
Description: Offered free of charge, the year-long Advanced Playwriting Workshop is open to talented and motivated NYC area students. Participants create and revise new works as they learn the craft of playwriting, preparing for a staged reading at the end of the course.
Fees for services: None
Ages of students: 14 - 18 years
Schools/sites: Tri-state area (NY, NJ, Conn, LI)
Contact person: Frances McGarry
Write A Play! Workshops for Students
Description: Five thousand students in grades 3-12 nationwide participate in Write A Play! Workshops each year. The workshops, led by professional playwrights trained in Young Playwrights Inc.’s methods, utilize improvisation and writing exercises as catalysts for play development and literacy improvement. Success rates are high in this program because Write A Play! begins with one profoundly simple truth: that every young person has something valuable to say and an inherent right to be heard.
Fees for services: $150/hour
Ages of students: grades 3 - 12
Schools/sites: National
Contact person: Frances McGarry
Write A Play! Teacher Training Institute
Description: The Teacher Training Institute provides teachers with effective tools for integrating playwriting into the curriculum. Participants write their own plays and come to know the excitement that students experience when they explore their creative potential. Building on a foundation of improvisation and collaborative writing, the Teacher Training Institute offers methods to enhance students’ cognitive abilities, including analytical/critical thinking, conflict resolution/problem solving, and literacy.
Fees for services: $150/day (6-hour session)
Ages of students: Teachers, Administrators, Teaching Artists
Schools/sites: National &, International
Contact person: Frances McGarry
Young Plawyrights Latino Challenge
Description: A partnership with TeatroStageFest, this program of free playwriting workshops culminates in a competition for NYC high school students which seeks new plays with Latino characters and offers cash prizes and public presentation.
Fees for services: None
Ages of students: 14 - 18 years
Schools/sites: NYC High Schools
Contact person: Frances McGarry
