The Playwrights Realm

In the latest content drop for our Aspiring Playwrights program, we asked three Realm Playwrights, from different career stages and cities, to chronicle a week in their lives! https://lnkd.in/e3KFjy5A

This fall, we're bringing back our Beyond The Realm festival, with plays by L M Feldman, Aurora Real De Asua, and Jordan Ramirez Puckett. In the second edition of this festival, we’re once again creating a radical space of experimentation to serve the needs of playwrights whose bold new works don’t fit in the traditional play development model. Showcasing three very different pieces guided by unique perspectives of what can be done on a stage, Beyond The Realm is back at a time when it’s needed more than ever. Here is a note from Artistic Director Katherine Kovner on the impact of Beyond the Realm in 2019 and the importance of this kind of new play development: “Last season, we returned to the stage with the world premiere of Emma Howitz’s MARY GETS HERS. It was thrilling to once again shepherd a script from open submissions to an Off-Broadway production; that it was such a hit with our audiences that we sold out and extended the run made it even better! So why not do it again this season? Because our mission is to support early-career playwrights — and as our field becomes increasingly risk-averse, our playwrights told us they needed something different. They shared pieces with me that were excitingly daring in their approach to what is possible on stage and needed more than a reading with music stands, or to jump straight into a production — the kinds of plays that we supported in the first-ever Beyond The Realm in 2019. It quickly became obvious that a second edition would be the best way to serve our playwrights. I am thrilled to present our 2024 lineup, and l am thankful that you’ve chosen to once again join us in creating the future of the American theater!” You can learn more about the Beyond the Realm Festival and get tickets for the readings here: https://lnkd.in/eFiCH2bD

We've reached the end of our 2023-24 Season and want to take a moment to celebrate some of our highlights: We hired our brand new Executive Director Chris Berry who joined our team in June! We added 4 new members to our Board of Directors, including: Chris Berry, Michael Margitich, Donja R. Love, and John Dias. We received a record number of 1,319 submissions for our development programs (Writing Fellowship, Scratchpad Series, and Native American Artist Lab) during our annual open submission process. As part of our Aspiring Playwrights Program, we produced 15 new articles and 3 new videos to add to our database of content about playwriting, which has amassed more than 7,000 views. We continued to serve our family of 96 (and growing) Realm Playwrights with long-term support, distributing more than $31,000 in "Rejuvenation" funding, professional development support that pays playwrights for the time they take to invest in themselves as artists, humans, and industry leaders. We raised more than $125,000 in support of our programs at our annual gala, Writers Block Party, in May. We developed the work of 7 early-career playwrights through our Writing Fellowship and Scratchpad Series, and welcomed audiences of 445 new play lovers to the public presentations of their work (including our annual Ink'd Reading Festival). We produced an extended, completely sold-out Off-Broadway run of MARY GETS HERS by Emma Horwitz, a New York Times Critic's Pick! It's been an amazing year, and we're so grateful for the support of our community as we continue to serve our playwrights. Our programs are only possible because of our donors. Click here to make a 100% tax-deductible donation to The Playwrights Realm - every dollar counts toward supporting our early-career writers!: https://lnkd.in/eeJk5Cwe #EarlyCareerPlaywrights #Fundraising #Development #OffBroadway

Sharing this article by Al Heartley of Evolution Management Consultants in HowlRound Theatre Commons about the executive search process for arts organizations. It was a pleasure to work with Al during the search for our own Executive Director this Spring https://lnkd.in/eamBh8Wy #ArtsOrganizations #ExecutiveDirector

The Realm is #hiring a Development & Special Events Assistant. Do you know someone with a passion for fundraising and working in an organization that supports early-career playwrights? Please spread the word! https://bit.ly/Realmjobs #Development #Fundraising #ArtsAdmin #SpecialEvents

After conducting a nationwide search that involved all our company’s stakeholders—playwrights, staff, and board—we’re thrilled to welcome Chris Berry as The Realm’s new co-leader! Chris is joining us after his tenure as Arts Director at Penumbra Center for Racial Healing, and we’re incredibly excited about the skills he brings to the job as both a seasoned arts administrator and a professional artist, as well as a track record of working to make our industry more inclusive and equitable — and, of course, a deep passion for new plays. Read more about him in American Theatre Magazine: https://lnkd.in/eJYW7QDn

The Realm's Online Auction is live! This is a great opportunity to support The Realm's annual gala, Writers Block Party, while also getting some great deals on some exciting items. A full list of our auction items are available here: https://lnkd.in/gBcg-CFW For more information on Writers Block Party, including how to make a fully tax-deductible donation, click here: https://bit.ly/WBP2024 #Gala #Fundraising #Development

The time has come for our 2024 INK’D Festival of New Plays, where our 2023-24 Writing Fellows will present the plays they've been hard at work on all season. An audience is an essential part of a play's development process and we're so thrilled to see the Realm community come together to support the work of these talented playwrights. As part of our Radical Care Inclusion project, attendees of our 2024 INK'D reading series will have the opportunity to request a reimbursement of up to $75 for caregiving costs. You can learn more about our INK'D Festival of New Plays here: https://lnkd.in/dXEdH4vi

Save the date for our annual gala, Writers Block Party, on Monday, May 13! At this year's WBP, we'll be testing your theatre knowledge with some trivia games - if you can fill in the blank on the limerick below, you'll be ready to take on a few more rhyming couplets while enjoying some yummy drinks and snacks. We'd love to see you there! Learn more and buy tickets here: bit.ly/WBP2024 Finish the Limerick! The Realm helps our playwrights get arty with our programs holistic and hardy But we need your support So come nosh and cavort At our gala, the Writers Block ______

Applications are now open for our Native American Artist Lab ?? NAAL is an opportunity for artists from Domestic Nations to spend a week in New York City working on a particular piece, as well as receiving institutional support to advance their careers through mentorship and communal activities. Learn more about the program here: https://bit.ly/applyNAAL #ProfessionalDevelopment #Playwriting