About

The New American Play Festival is a workshop and showcase featuring the work of student and professional playwrights.

 

Our Mission

The mission of Texas State University's New American Play Festival is to Study the Craft, Nurture the Artist, and Celebrate the Work.

Texas State’s School of Theatre, Dance and Film (SoTDF) invites all playwrights from across the country to submit for the 23rd celebration of new American theatre via the rebranded New American Play Festival.

After 22 years of celebrating Black and Latino voices in American theatre through the Black and Latino Playwrights Celebration, TXST SoTDF welcomes scripts from American playwrights as we introduce the New American Play Festival. 

The workshop for each play includes a professional guest director, actors, auditions, 3-5 days of open rehearsals and in-class presentations by guest artists culminating in script in hand readings open to the entire campus and local community. This event annually lends an ear to new voices and helps writers, in collaboration with directors, actors and dramaturgs, to shape their stories and hone their craft in a workshop environment.

Professionals and students alike will share the play with the entire campus and local community in a staged reading for audiences, followed by a discussion and/or question-and-answer session.

STUDY THE CRAFT

  • Texas State University theatre students work with professionals in a rehearsal process.
  • Writers, in collaboration with actors and dramaturges, shape their stories and hone their craft.

NURTURE THE ARTIST

  • The lab is rooted in the collaborative workshop process of "finding a play" through rehearsals.
  • This process fosters an environment that allows playwrights to explore, grow, and learn fearlessly.
  • The staged reading is followed by a question and answer session with the audience.

CELEBRATE THE WORK

  • The workshop culminates in a script in hand reading presentation for the campus and community.
  • The script in hand reading presentation lends an ear to new voices, showcasing the work of playwrights from across the country while giving the writers some sense of the export of the work or what resonated with the audience. 

Objectives

  • Provide Texas State University students majoring in theatre with the opportunity to work with professionals for a hands-on, rehearsal process that includes the collaborative process of "finding a play" in rehearsals, culminating with a public staged reading.
  • Showcase the work of playwrights from across the country.
  • Annually lend an ear to new voices and help writers, in collaboration with directors, actors and dramaturgs, to shape their stories and hone their craft in an environment that allows the writer to explore and grow and learn fearlessly.
  • Share the play with the campus and community in a staged reading for audiences followed by a discussion and/or question and answer session.

The Process

From playwright submissions, finalists are invited to workshop their plays. Professional directors and actors work with faculty and students through a process of auditions, 3-5 days of open rehearsals, in-class presentations by the guest artists culminating in staged reading performances.

Impacts

  • Developed plays went on to be produced in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Washington D.C., Milwaukee, Dallas, Houston, Austin, Ithaca, Tempe, and Sacramento 
  • Since inception, there has been a 625% increase in Black theatre majors and 350% increase in Hispanic theatre majors 
  • Featured playwrights have gone on to be recognized by American Theatre magazine and have become writers on shows produced by Starz, Fox, Netflix, and the Oprah Winfrey Network 
  • In 2018, Texas State ranked fourth in the country for Visual and Performing Arts degrees earned by Hispanics 
  • Texas State now the 2nd largest theatre program in the country