Kernodle New Play Award
In partnership with the University of Arkansas Department of Drama, TheatreSquared is helping to administer the Kernodle New Play Award, a recently reorganized playwriting competition named for the beloved Arkansan, theatre pedagogue, and author of Invitation to the Theatre. The award recognizes full-length plays that give voice to the rich diversity of the Mid-America region.
Eligibility: playwrights must currently reside in – or have resided in – the Mid-America region, defined as AR, KS, LA, MO, OK & TX. Plays must be full-length (70+ mins.), unpublished and unproduced. No adaptations or plays for young audiences, please. All subject matter is okay, but we are especially looking for plays that reflect the rich diversity of the region.
Award: There is a single prize of $500. One or two “special commendations” may also be awarded. Winning plays will be given public readings as part of the University of Arkansas Department of Drama’s Off the Page series and will be considered for inclusion in the Arkansas New Play Festival, produced in Fayetteville by TheatreSquared and also featured at the Arkansas Rep in Little Rock.
Submission Materials: Full script and a cover letter that briefly describing the playwright’s connection to the Mid-America region. Electronic submissions are encouraged (in either pdf or Word format); email kernodle@theatre2.org. Or mail bound scripts to Kernodle New Play Award, c/o Department of Drama, Kimpel 619, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR 72701.
Submission Fee: None.
Deadline: Emailed submissions must arrive by Nov. 1, 2012; mailed submissions must be postmarked no later than Nov. 1, 2012.
Contact: kernodle@theatre2.org, or 479-575-2953.
Arkansas Playwrights Workshop
Since 2003, TheatreSquared's Arkansas Playwrights Workshop has been dedicated to nurturing new plays and playwrights, helping to foster new works for the American stage while providing a safe place for writers to work on their craft through regular workshop sessions and public readings. Sessions are free and open to beginning and advanced playwrights and screenwriters. Writers are encouraged to bring 10-15 pages of dialogue, which are read cold by actors, then commented upon by the group under the leadership of an experienced playwright.
Over the years, participants have ranged from absolute beginners to professionally produced dramatists; APW playwrights have won numerous awards and had their work produced at theatres around the country.
When and Where
The group currently meets at 6:30 p.m. twice each month on Mondays (per email notification) in the Reading Room at the TheatreSquared administrative offices (112 W. Center St., Suite 440). Actors and directors are always welcome, and walk-ins are encouraged. Writers should expect to attend one or two sessions before bringing work to be read. APW is co-directed by Robert Ford, Artistic Director of TheatreSquared, and Arkansas playwright Mark Landon Smith. For more information and to place your name on the APW email list, contact Mark Landon Smith.
