We Want to Read Your New Play!

Members of Theatre Battery at the 2018 NYNP Salon reading of Jessica Andrewartha's "Choices People Make." (L-R: Joshua Hamilton, Jessica Andrewartha, Annelih Hamilton, and Gianna Gargiulo)

Members of Theatre Battery turned out for the 2018 NYNP Salon reading of Jessica Andrewartha’s “Choices People Make.” (L-R: Joshua Hamilton, Jessica Andrewartha, Annelih Hamilton, and Gianna Gargiulo)

APL invites submissions of new plays for a developmental reading at our 5th-Annual New Year New Play (NYNP) Salon January 27.

This call is for new plays that have not yet had a developmental reading. While we are most interested in a full-length piece, we are open to other synergies and ask current or former PNW playwrights (emerging or established) to submit their long- or short-form plays for consideration.

The play will be read by local actors at our Sunday Salon on January 27, 2019. The reading will be followed by lively, lightly moderated discussion. APL’s artistic directors provide guidance to the actors so they can bring their best creativity and engagement to the reading. We also confer with the playwright before and after the Salon, provide limited dramaturgical assistance, and offer the playwright the opportunity to frame questions for the discussion.

The Salon is an invited event focused on bringing an optimal mix of artists, intellectuals, and community members into the space to focus on your play. We also open it up to the public to attend.

We promise a rich and productive experience for the playwright. As with all APL Salons, the gathering includes great community, food, and drinks. There are no stipend or travel funds.

DEADLINE TO SUBMIT: Sunday, November 11, 2018

NOTIFICATIONS: December 17, 2018
Our selection committee provides feedback to all playwrights about their submissions. We view this as a service to fellow artists in the future evolution of their work, regardless of whether it has been selected for our Salon. If you prefer not to receive feedback from our selection committee, please indicate this on your cover sheet.

(L-R) Playwright Stacy Flood takes notes on the discussion about his new play, The Pleasure & Sorrow of Your Company, as fellow playwrights Olivia Pi-Sunyer and Ina Chang listen. | Photo: Zhenya Lavy

(L-R) Stacy Flood and fellow playwrights Olivia Pi-Sunyer and Ina Chang absorbing the group discussion of Flood’s “The Pleasure & Sorrow of Your Company.” | January 2015 Sunday Salon | Photo: Zhenya Lavy

TO APPLY

  • Email PDF or DOC files to ensemble@akropolisperformancelab.com, with “Submission: [Title]” in the subject line.
  • Along with the complete script, submit a cover sheet with your full contact information, short bio, brief synopsis of script, development history (as applicable), character breakdown, a brief statement of your hopes for how this reading might help further the play’s development, and indication of your feedback preference.
  • NO FEE.

PREVIOUS NEW PLAY DEVELOPMENT SALONS

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Tommer Peterson’s play selected for Jan Salon

Playwright Tommer Peterson

Playwright Tommer Peterson

The New Year New Play Salon, held annually since 2014, features the work of a Pacific Northwest playwright and/or Pacific Northwest themes. A team of four evaluated all the submissions for 2016, and we are delighted to announce that out of a very competitive pool of applicants, the play selected to be read at our January 17 New Year New Play Salon is Tommer Peterson’s No One on Board Took Notice.

Perhaps best known for his work as a designer, Peterson also has authored or co-authored several plays, including Va-Va-Va-Voom and (with KJ Sanchez) two documentary plays: Night at the Opera (2012) and Duck Soup (2011).

No One on Board Took Notice starts from a simple yet infinitely complex premise: What we see is largely determined by where we stand…. or perhaps even more by where we choose to gaze and what we choose to remember.

Learn more about Peterson and this exciting new play.

Playwrights, send your new scripts!

(L-R) Playwright Stacy Flood takes notes on the discussion about his new play, The Pleasure & Sorrow of Your Company, as fellow playwrights Olivia Pi-Sunyer and Ina Chang listen. | Photo: Zhenya Lavy

(L-R) Playwright Stacy Flood takes notes on the discussion about his new play, The Pleasure & Sorrow of Your Company, as fellow playwrights Olivia Pi-Sunyer and Ina Chang listen. | January 2015 New Year New Play Salon | Photo: Zhenya Lavy

We are now accepting submissions for our annual New Year New Play Salon. Entering its third year, this popular New Year New Play Salon features the work of a Pacific Northwest playwright and/or Pacific Northwest themes.  Check out our guidelines, and help us spread the word to area playwrights!

Submission Deadline: Nov 1
Notifications Made: Dec 11

Mephisto Cast Announced

L-R: Gustaf Gründgens, Erika Mann, Pamela Wedekind, Klaus Mann | At the time this photo was taken, Erika was engaged to Gustaf but was having an affair with Pamela, who was engaged to marry Klaus, who was romantically involved with Gustaf.  They also were appearing in Klaus's play, Anja und Esther, based on the affair between Erika and Pamela.

L-R: Gustaf Gründgens, Erika Mann, Pamela Wedekind, Klaus Mann | At the time this photo was taken, Erika was engaged to Gustaf but was having an affair with Pamela, who was engaged to marry Klaus, who was romantically involved with Gustaf. They also were appearing in Klaus’s play, Anja und Esther, based on the affair between Erika and Pamela.

Our October 11 Sunday Salon reading of Klaus Mann’s Mephisto, as adapted for stage by Ariane Mnouchkine, is not to be missed! We have assembled a thrilling cast of local talent to illuminate Mann’s unforgettable and largely autobiographical collection of socialists and incipient fascists as they react to Hitler’s ascension and make fatal choices about art and life.

THE CAST

Klaus Mann/Sebastian Bruckner – Craig Bradshaw
Hendrik Hofgen – Brandon J. Simmons
Carola Martin – Tracy Michelle Hughes
Hans Miklas  – Tyler Polumsky
Theresa von Herzfeld / Emelyne – Valerie Curtis-Newton
Otto Ulrich – Joseph Lavy
Myriam Horowitz / Actor – Emily Jo Testa
Alex / Tyler Trerise
Magnus Gottchalk / Thomas Bruckner – Carter Rodriquez
Mrs. Efeu – Eva Doak
Knurr / Publisher – Dean Wilson
Juliette / Lorenz / Ludwig – Ayo Tushinde
Erika Bruckner  / General Fonnesique – Alex Highsmith
Nicoletta von Niebuhr – Sara Kaus
Theophile Sarder / Hans Josthinkel – Ben Gonio

Join us October 11 for what promises to be an exciting reading and lively discussion!
More information and RSVP.

July 26 Salon Cast Announced!

Goody GoodyWe have some exciting announcements about our July 26 Sunday Salon reading of John Longenbaugh’s Noir thriller, The Sound in the Next Room!

The cast assembled for this reading is absolutely stellar:

EUCA/CLARICE – Alex Highsmith
MELANIE/LESLIE – Annie Paladino
CLEO – Emily Jo Testa
DANIELLE – Kate Kraay

Playwright John Longenbaugh will join us for the reading and discussion, as well.

If you haven’t already made plans for what promises to be a hot, midsummer Sunday, we hope you will join us for this great night of theatre and conversation. Registration information.

Dozens Turn Out for Reading of New Play by Stacy Flood

(L-R) Playwright Stacy Flood takes notes on the discussion about his new play, The Pleasure & Sorrow of Your Company, as fellow playwrights Olivia Pi-Sunyer and Ina Chang listen. | Photo: Zhenya Lavy

(L-R) Stacy Flood and fellow playwrights Olivia Pi-Sunyer and Ina Chang. | Photo: Zhenya Lavy

What an outstanding Salon last night!

Special thanks not only to playwright Stacy Flood for providing a work so ripe for discussion but also to Erin Pike for pinch-hitting as a reader.

Twenty five people joined us to participate in our second-annual New Year New Play developmental reading and discussion of The Pleasure & Sorrow of Your Company, including university theatre faculty, local critics, artists, and other playwrights. By night’s end, Stacy had not only heard his words spoken by working actors but also written many pages of notes for use in further development.

In his message to Akropolis this morning, Stacy wrote:

“The actors read beautifully, and the occasion was impeccably organized and hosted! I cannot thank Akropolis, as well as those in attendance, enough for the obvious care and attention paid to the script, the discussion, and the event on the whole. Every note collected will be cherished, and the entire experience was an absolute honor, one for which I will be eternally grateful.”

We will post a call for submissions for our third-annual New Year New Play reading in September.

Cast Set for Pleasure & Sorrow of Your Company

Omer Fast, 5000 Feet Is the Best, 2011, digital film stills © Omer Fast

Omer Fast, 5000 Feet Is the Best, 2011, digital film stills © Omer Fast

The cast for January 25th’s New Year New Play reading of Stacy D. Flood’s The Pleasure & Sorrow of Your Company has been finalized.

We are excited to announce that APL Company Members and apprentices will be joined by local talents Natural Israel, Samara Lerman, and Paul Budraitis in giving voice to Flood’s examination of warfare in the drone age.

The event is wrapped in lively conversation; generous and careful discussion of the play; great food; and  ample opportunities to network with artists, intellectuals, and enthusiasts.

Learn more about the play, view the complete casting, and RSVP on the Salon page.

Announcing the 2015 Sunday Salon Playwrights

2015 Salon Playwrights: Stacy D. Flood, Pattie Miles Van Beuzekom, and John Longenbaugh

2015 Salon Playwrights: Stacy D. Flood, Pattie Miles Van Beuzekom, and John Longenbaugh

In 2015, Akropolis Performance Lab’s Sunday Salons will be a celebration of the work of local playwrights!

  • January | Stacy D. Flood
    The Pleasure and Sorrow of Your Company
    This piece was selected through a competitive submission process for this year’s New Year New Play Development Program.
  • April | Pattie Miles Van Beuzekom
    Blood Orange Bakersfield
    This Salon is guest curated by Jose Amador.
  • July | John Longenbaugh
    The Sound in the Next Room
    Hell with Drinks Afterwards
    Thank You
    That’s right: 3 by John in an evening promising intrigue and surprise!

Learn more about about each of these wonderful plays and playwrights via the links above.

Each Salon is a unique, dynamic assembly of artists, intellectuals, provocateurs, friends, and family. We read, drink, eat, and — with minimal moderation — let discussion go where it will. As always, there is no charge to attend. But the event is potluck, so bring food or drink to share as you are able. RSVP requested.

We hope you will join us and contribute to the discussion at a Salon this year!

Approaching The Fence from All Angles

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L-R: Zhenya Lavy, Aimée Bruneau, and Lola Peters | Photo: Margaretta Campagna

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Andrew Ross Litzky and Annie Paladino | Photo: Margaretta Campagna

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Clockwise from back: Jose Amador, Aimée Bruneau, and Zachary Hewell | Photo: Margaretta Campagna

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Valerie Curtis-Newton and Andrew Ross Litzky | Photo: Margaretta Campagna

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Joseph Lavy and Annie Paladino | Photo: Margaretta Campagna

 
For our October 12 Sunday Salon reading of Howard Barker’s The Fence in it’s Thousandth Year, we filled the house with a fantastic group of artists and intellectuals who really dug in to investigate the play’s meaning, reverberations, and implications for performance today. We were fortunate to snag time with Valerie Curtis-Newton in what turned out to be a monumental week for her: winning The Stranger’s 2014 Genius Award for Theater and Crosscut’s 2014 Courage Award in Culture. And we owe special thanks to Andrew Ross Litzsky for saving the day when one of our originally scheduled reader fell ill.

The entire cast knocked this reading out of the park:

PHOTO, a Blind Adolescent – Zachary Hewell
ALGERIA, A Duchess – Aimée Bruneau
ISTORIA, Friend to Algeria – Valerie Curtis-Newton
DOORWAY, A Suitor – Joseph Lavy
LOU, A Young Woman – Annie Paladino
KIDNEY, A Servant – Andrew Ross Litzky
YOUTERUS, A Blind Thief – Jose Amador
CAMERA, A Blind Child – Margaretta Campagna
NARRATOR – Zhenya Lavy

Stellar Cast Set to Read The Fence!

We are beyond excited about our autumn Sunday Salon!

Every Salon presents a careful selection of artists and intellectuals to read a great play and dive into deep discussion, and our October 12 reading of The Fence in its Thousandth Year is no exception. You will want to be in the room with this incredibly talented and erudite group when we take on Howard Barker’s epic story of a blind boy on a quest to understand his true identity in a world of forced segregation, illegal immigration, and shifting sands of Truth:

The US-Mexico Border at Tijuana

The US-Mexico Border at Tijuana

PHOTO, a Blind Adolescent – Zachary Hewell
ALGERIA, A Duchess – Aimée Bruneau
ISTORIA, Friend to Algeria – Valerie Curtis-Newton
DOORWAY, A Suitor – Joseph Lavy
LOU, A Young Woman – Annie Paladino
KIDNEY, A Servant – Paul Budraitis
YOUTERUS, A Blind Thief – Jose Amador
CAMERA, A Blind Child – Margaretta Campagna
NARRATOR – Zhenya Lavy

Click here for more information.
Note: RSVP required — claim your spot now!