Getting Produced

Honestly, I can't help you out with this one too much. My experience has been to produce the show myself and submit the play to a festival of some sort. Occasionally smaller theatres put out the call for new works, so you may want to look into that. But theatre is really tricky, people need to see the shows before they want to put money into it. See if you can get a workshop together or something. Or a staged reading. And invite people along to see it.

Sorry I couldn't help more!

Start up your own theatre group like we did. It works!

Also, I enter as many competitions as I can. You never know where it may lead.

I would advise contacting established local theatre companies and see what programs they have in place for supporting new writers ie free script readings/writers groups/festivals/rehearsed readings etc.

I had my first play produced after it won a competition, from that I got a commission to write a short play for a local, professional theatre for a festival. Though I sent out a copy of my next play to much bigger theatres in London my next few commissions came through local, professional theatres and a real mixture of stuff, from twenty minute monologues to full length plays. In this time I was given a lot of time and support to develop work and improve and feel I jumped the gun in submitting to the big boys. I also joined writing groups, schemes and training events that the theatres were running which were valuable and led to other commissions and contacts.

After a break where I worked on other types of scripts my next play is being co-produced with a local outfit and a much bigger company, so for the first time my work will be toured by a big name out of the region - after that I am going to submit my next play to London, seven years after I first did! Hoping that the credits and recognition I have built up will help. So in my experience it worked out best to go small at first and build a name and credits up with companies who had a good record and name and who are open to supporting new writers. Professional theatre companies who specialise in new writing will always look first to their own region for writing talent and will be signed up to the Guild's theatre contract so you get the same pay and conditions as elsewhere. No harm in thinking super big at first but I don't know how realistic an option it is, though I got some good feedback and contacts, I think I would have been waiting a much longer time to see my work produced than I have.

As with local theatre keep an eye out for national theatres who run writing competitions and free script reading services as they are always worth a shot.

To add to Toothpaste's post I have sold ideas mainly based on a page outline/pitch, sometimes with an example scene/first act or to a lesser extent on an actual script but have never sold one by having to workshop/stage a reading first or considered it, but then my role is only as a writer I have no interest in producing or directing my shows and raising money for staging a show is different than paying a writer to develop a script. Most theatres want to develop the script with you and put their stamp on it, but whatever works for you is the way to go. Theatres like publishers have submission guidelines on their websites which they expect you to follow.

If you are sending 'blind' with no previous contact/discussion I think it is Ok to submit to more than one place at a time.


Good luck.

bison said:

For those of you who are either more serious or further down the road than most, I have a question.

Specifically, what method(s) have you used to attempt to get your
work in production?

Do you send inquiries from Dramatists Sourcebook or something like it?

How many do you querry at a time?

What are the general responses and how long do they take?

Please advise and thanks.

Click to expand...

Dramatists Sourcebook is definitely the go-to place for venues. I've just started circulating my first handful of plays, so I can't speak to what kind of turnaround to expect from various theatres, orgs, contests, etc. I also made a point to contact all the local small theatre groups in my area (Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill) to see if they are willing to consider unsolicited plays. If they say yes, I send them a copy of whatever I think might suit their particular style.

We're like Mandy-Jane - we started our own theater. We actually started it for actors that couldn't break into the local big theater. We have grown and grown until we do far more theater than they do and have larger audiences. We have never lost site of our roots and still cast a lot of newbies.

Two years ago we started doing more short form stuff to involve more actors. It turned out that the actors like the short form stuff (eight rehearsals over three or four weeks rather than thirty five rehearsals over two months). The audiences loved them too - likely due the the effect of TV on attention spans.)

Last year we expanded our efforts to involve local playwrights in the process and have had very good luck. We look for plays less than 30 minutes with a target of fifteen minutes that have simple set requirements and small casts (so all the actors get "good" roles).

We don't formally seek short plays from outsiders but we do get them and read them. Who knows, maybe we'll find something we can use.

When I started writing plays it was easy for me to get our theater to agree to present an evening of eight short plays I wrote.

Sooooo - I would build a relationship with your local theater(s). Most theaters have training programs for actors and directors and look for material to use in these training programs - the up side is that there is usually a public presentation of the work so your material gets seen.

Doug

All of my productions have been a result of contacts I've made working in other facets of the theatrical industry. One thing generally leads to another. I began writing a play for a workshop I was in, and was asked by a producer also involved in the workshop if they could produce the world premier. From there other saw it and were open to producing it themselves, which led to excerpts in scenebooks and eventual publication. Other plays I entered in contests which led to productions which led to other productions from interested audience-members and theatre industry individuals. Sadly, like most things, it's mostly who you know, but it also helps to have solid material, because if the work were shoddy, of course, the interest would not have continued.

You might try your local community college.

My first play, Valentino, was staged at the College of the Canyons New Works Festival in March.

I was not a student when I submitted my script, but signed up for the rehearsal class, and even got cast in two of the other plays.

Great fun.

If you join the drama guild, which you can even if you haven't been produced (it's not pricey and includes a subscription to the dramatist) you also receive the dramatist guild resource directory. If you're gonna spend your money, do this rather than buy the source book. The guild is making changes for the better with new executive Gary Garrison in place. The resource book covers theatre companies, fellowships, residencies, festivals, competitions- and it goes into specifics.