The MAC Theater Playwrights Incubator is a program for first-time playwrights to see their work realized on the stage. Finding theaters to produce new or unpublished plays can be an obstacle for any new playwright. The MTPI is a structured program that aims to discover and support, through workshop and production, new stage plays by first time, unpublished regional playwrights. These plays are small cast shows with one to six characters. Selected playwrights will work with two mentors who are experienced theater artists to fine-tune their plays over the course of several months and prepare the script for production. After regular writing evaluations, when the script is ready, the mentors will work with the MAC to find a director and assist her or him in casting the show with appropriate actors. One or more readings with a select focus group audience will include a feedback/response process, and the end result is a completed script, ready for debut performance for a live audience on stage at the Marion Art Center.
Any new writer who has not yet been published or had a play produced is invited to submit her or his script or outline for consideration. There is no cost to participate in this program. Selected applicants are required to sign an agreement with the MAC Theater, outlining expectations and a commitment to the program. Playwrights must be available to meet on site with mentors, for readings and all aspects of the production process including auditions, rehearsals, tech work and performances. Apply online at marionartcenter.org/mtpi. Applications are due by March 31, 2024. The selected playwright for the 2024-2025 program will be announced in early May. Please send any questions to mtpi@marionartcenter.org.
The MAC’s 2023-2024 playwright, Stella Ferra, will be premiering her original work, All the Frozen Ones, during ArtWeek SouthCoast, a regional cultural festival, on May 9, 10, 11, 2024 at the Marion Art Center. Ferra is an actor, playwright, director, and dramaturg. She is a recent graduate of NYU Tisch School of the Arts where she trained at Playwrights Horizons, Stella Adler Studio of Acting, and Stonestreet Studios. Stella was selected for New York Theatre Workshop’s Mind the Gap Playwriting Program, acted as a dramaturg for The Tank’s Mr. Electric, and her play, Brushing Her Hair, was featured in Naked Angels’ Young Writers Festival.