Short Plays

Deadline: June 15, 2020

Native Voices’ 10^th Annual Short Play Festival

MORE THAN MOCCASINS 

It’s time for the 10^th Annual Short Play Festival, and Native Voices wants to hear your story! 

From Edward Curtis to Dances with Wolves to the Atlanta Braves, there have been many romanticized and colonized notions of how Indigenous People should look and dress. These images are sources of pride, heritage, and acculturation. What’s your story? 

We want to hear from you! Share with us an event from your life, stories from your family, or the wildest figment of your imagination! We want to know how dress codes have impacted your world, your communities, and how you feel they may impact your future. Make the audience laugh or cry––but make them feel something! The only limitation is that your play must be no longer than 10-minutes! During that time, the stage is yours! We can’t wait to see what you bring to life.

For our 10^th Annual Short Play Festival, More Than Moccasins, Native Voices invites playwrights to answer the question: “How have ‘dress codes’ affected you?” Plays can be fun-spirited or political, funny or dramatic. Plays chosen to participate in the festival will also be entered to win the Von Marie Atchley Excellence in Playwriting award, a $1,000 cash prize!! 

Scripts that are longer than 15 pages or read aloud at longer than 10 minutes will not be accepted. Fresh, surprising perspectives are welcome, and unique theatricality is a must. 

Some ideas to spark the imagination are: 

• Native pride and family heirlooms 
• Boarding schools and assimilation 
• Festivals and ‘headdresses’ (Hello, Coachella!) 
• Culture, not a costume 
• Eagle feathers (Graduations, Public Ceremonies, Rearview Mirrors, etc) 
• Hairstyles and Public Institutions 
• Traditional / Pow Wow Regalia
• ‘Rock Your Mocs’ 
• ‘Why We Wear Red’ (MMIP / MMIW) 
• Traditional tattoos 
• Redface or ‘Playing Indian’ 
• Mascots 
• Historical Events (i.e. Boston Tea Party) 

Full-Length Plays

Deadline: August 10, 2020

Native Voices is currently accepting submissions of full-length plays (60+ pages) by Native American, Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian, and First Nations playwrights addressing all themes and topics.

2021 Playwrights Retreat and 27th Festival of New Plays

The Retreat and Festival bring 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 staged readings of the plays at the Autry Museum of the American West in Los Angeles. Selected playwrights receive artistic 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 August 10, 2020 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 2021.

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 their own developmental path. Selected playwrights should be prepared to dedicate adequate time to this process prior to arriving on-site.

2021 OPEN Submission for Production Consideration

We accept scripts all year long. Do you have a full-length script that has been developed and produced that you’d like us to consider for a future Native Voices production in Los Angeles? Please follow the Checklist for All Submissions below and in the Native Voices

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. Previously produced plays should be submitted under the 2021 General Submission for Production Consideration. 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 (preferably PDF format).

To submit, fill out our online form and upload your materials here: Native Voices Script Submission Form

For More Information:

NVLiterary@theautry.org

Facebook.com/NativeVoices

Twitter.com/NativeVoices

Please share our call for scripts using this link: https://bit.ly/20-21call