Open Submissions

+ ABOUT THE COMMISSION

The Collective is seeking a passionate and self-motivated queer playwright for our inaugural commission. As we seek to expand the theatrical canon of great, modern queer stories from queer playwrights, we are launching this commission to support the entire development process of a play, from idea inception to completed draft of a full-length script.

One selected playwright will work closely with the Collective over the course of a year to develop their original idea for a queer play. The process will begin in April 2025 and culminate in Spring 2026. Please see below for full qualifications, submission criteria and instructions, and commission benefits.

+ SUBMISSION CRITERIA

The SCC is looking to support original ideas for a full-length play that are aligned with our mission statement and artistic guidelines:

Mission: The Strides Collective produces and develops theatrical work by emerging playwrights that embraces the queer experience through authentic, modern, and innovative storytelling.

+ COMMISSION BENEFITS

One selected playwright will receive the following benefits:

• A stipend of $500
• Year-round artistic, dramaturgical, and administrative support from The Strides Collective
• A produced staged reading of the completed play in Spring 2026
• Meetings with local industry experts for professional development purposes

+ QUALIFICATIONS

In order to qualify for the SCC, the following criteria must be met:

• Playwright self-identifies as a member of the LGBTQIA+ community
• Playwright resides in the Mid-Atlantic Region (Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Delaware, Washington D.C., Maryland, Virginia, or West Virginia)
• Playwright has never had a play professionally produced (i.e. with AEA contracts). Readings, workshops, community, collegiate, and semi-professional productions are OK.
• Playwright is not currently a student in an undergraduate program. Note: current undergraduate students who are seniors and plan to graduate in Spring 2025 may still apply.

+ Artistic Guidelines

For this opportunity, we are looking for wholly original ideas that have not yet been worked on or written, as the intent is to nurture the development of the script from the very beginning.

In preparing your submission, please keep in mind the following guidelines that Strides uses in determining which type of plays to develop and produce. We are currently looking for ideas for plays that:

• Speak on the current queer experience
• Contain dynamic, well-rounded queer characters
• Are set in the present, the near past, or the near future
• Are modern in language, perspective, and theme
• Are grounded in realism or magical realism

In addition, we are NOT looking for ideas for plays that:

• Are historical, period pieces, and/or biographical in nature
• Primarily feature high-school aged characters
• Solely focus on explicit queer trauma or stereotypes
• Are adaptations of Shakespeare, myths, classic stories, or any other pre-existing material of any kind

Finally, this opportunity is supporting the development of a full length play by one playwright. Therefore, we are not currently accepting ideas for musicals, one-act plays, solo shows, or pieces written by multiple collaborators.

+ INSTRUCTIONS / TIMELINE

Interested playwrights should submit their information via the Google Form linked below.

The application consists of three sections:

• Section 1: Biographical Information (including 10-15 page sample of previous writing)
• Section 2: Information about you as a playwright
• Section 3: Creative Prompts

Applications open on Tuesday, January 21st. All applications must be received by Sunday, February 23rd at 11:59PM to be considered.

Following initial review of applications, a selected number of applicants will be invited to a virtual interview with members of the Collective in mid-March. **Final decisions will be made by April 15, 2025. **

Please send any questions to Scripts@StridesCollective.com

+ Directors - General Interest

The Strides Collective, a Philadelphia nonprofit theatre that produces and develops work by emerging queer playwrights, is collecting Director submissions to keep on file for future projects and collaborations in our 2025 Season (and beyond)! 

PLEASE NOTE: This is a general interest form, not for a specific project. We will accept any and all submissions from Directors who live in or around the Philadelphia area who would like their information to be kept on file. We are unable to provide housing or transportation, so we are only seeking local applicants at this time. Our productions are non-union; we provide a small stipend for artists at the completion of each project. Stipend size varies depending on scope of project (i.e. reading v. full production, etc.). 

Please out the below form with your information. If you would like to learn more about us and our past work, please visit the Past Productions page on our website.

Questions? Email Info@StridesCollective.com

SUBMIT YOUR MATERIALS HERE

+ Script Submissions

We are not currently accepting script submissions.

Our most recent call for script submissions closed on September 1, 2024. If you sent us your script, we look forward to reviewing it in the coming months.

Questions? Email Scripts@StridesCollective.com