*Please note, we only accept submissions written for the stage by Native American, Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian, and First Nations artists.

Short Plays

DEADLINE: October 1, 2024 15th 

Annual Short Play Festival: To Indigeneity and Beyond 

For the 15th Annual Short Play Festival, Native Voices invites playwrights to venture into Indigenous Futurisms. What does our collective future look like? Is it a utopia, a dystopia, or something we have yet to imagine? Did we prevent the apocalypse or cause it? Will there be zombies? World peace? A Native World Leader? Will A.I. be in charge of the world or just day-to-day chores? Do we find a way to coexist with Mother Earth, or do we have the moral dilemma of becoming colonizers of another planet to survive? 

Native Voices asks Native playwrights to boldly go where few have imagined our people before: the future. Will you create stories of hope, the absurd, or the downright terrifying? Will you make us laugh at our future selves or recognize our humanity? 

The Short Play Festival’s only requirements are that the plays run 10 minutes or less, fit the theme as the playwright sees fit, and that the playwrights are Native American, Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian, or First Nations artists. 

This future is what you choose to make it. Will you dare to dream with us? 

Plays selected to participate in the 15th Annual Short Play Festival will also be entered to win the Thomas Studie Gadugi Audience Prize of $500 and the Von Marie Atchley Excellence in Playwriting Award of $1,000. 

Playwrights will be notified in February 2025 of the final status of their script. 

*Scripts longer than 15 pages or read aloud at longer than 10 minutes, or with the playwright’s name appearing anywhere on the script, will not be accepted. Fresh, surprising perspectives are welcome! 

*A maximum of 6 characters is recommended. Doubling is encouraged, should it be necessary to complete your vision.

Full-Length Plays

DEADLINE: Now closed!

2025 Playwrights Retreat and 31st Festival of New Play

The Playwrights Retreat brings artists to Los Angeles to work on a select number of plays through a rigorous directorial and dramaturgical commitment for 10 days in August. The Retreat culminates with the Festival of New Plays - public staged readings at the Autry Museum of the American West in Los Angeles and La Jolla Playhouse near San Diego. 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 July 15, 2024 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 three plays for the Playwrights Retreat and Festival of New Plays.

Playwrights will be notified in February 2025.

*Due to budget constraints post-COVID, we are unable to select plays that require more than eight actors to produce. Doubling is encouraged, should it be necessary to complete your vision.

2025 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 would 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 Script Submission form, check the box for 2025 General Production Consideration.

How to Submit

Checklist for All Submission Types

❏ 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 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(s) linked below

Where to Send Submissions

We only accept electronic submissions (preferably PDF format).

To submit, make sure you have everything on the checklist above, click on the link below to fill out the form and upload your materials:

- Short Plays: https://bit.ly/2024NVShortPlaySubmissions
- Full Length Plays: https://bit.ly/2024NVScriptCall 
- General Production Consideration: https://bit.ly/2024NVScriptCallGP

A Note About the Native Voices Distance Dramaturgy Process

Months prior to residencies, 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.

For More Information or Questions:

nvliteraryassociate@gmail.com

Facebook.com/NativeVoices