Bay Area Playwrights Festival 47

Application Guidelines

Updated September 23, 2024

The Bay Area Playwrights Festival (BAPF) is one of the oldest new play festivals in the country, having served hundreds of playwrights over its 47 years. We seek to uplift playwrights who are pushing the boundaries of what has traditionally been represented on American Theatre stages. We value artistic experimentation and innovation in either form, content, and/or style, as well as expanding representation of communities that have been historically excluded.

Eligibility

How to Apply 

Frequently Asked Questions

• What kind of scripts is BAPF looking for?
• How does Playwrights Foundation define plays with music?
• How will my application be evaluated?
• How will readers evaluate my script?
• How do you define “Early-Career” or “Mid-Career?” 
• What makes a strong synopsis for this application?
• What do you mean by “areas of growth?”
• Will my name be visible to reviewers?
• What is the BAPF’s relationship with the Bay Area?
• How do I request a fee waiver?
• How can I get help during the application period?

ELIGIBILITY

We welcome applications from writers of all ages, backgrounds, identities, national writers, and local Bay Area writers. Special attention is given to Bay Area writers, early career writers of any age, BIPOC and other historically marginalized writers.

Applicant Criteria:

• Must reside in the U.S. and have valid work authorization (Social Security Card, Green Card, or Employment Authorization Document)
• Must be either an early or mid-career playwright (of any age).
• Must be available to attend the BAPF47 Retreat in Fall 2025 and the March 2026 festival.
• If previously selected for the previous Bay Area Playwrights Festival, observe a one-year hiatus before reapplying. Semifinalists, Finalists, and Honorable Mentions from past BAPF cycles are eligible and encouraged to apply again.
• Cannot be a current Resident Playwright Program participant.
• Only one application per playwright per cycle.

Play Criteria:

• Full-length, unproduced, original plays in PDF format.
• Primarily in English (multilingual accepted).
• Playwrights can apply with a new draft of a play they previously applied with for one additional application cycle. Please do not apply a third time with the same play.
• We do accept adaptations, but not translations.
• Plays are primarily in English (multilingual plays are accepted)
• We do not accept plays with 9+ cast size and are limited to 1-8 person cast sizes.
• We do not accept musicals or plays with music at this time.

HOW TO APPLY

Sign-in and Profile

• To begin your application, click HERE. You will be asked to create an account with a password.
• Note about Sign-In page: If you are experiencing any technical issues at the sign in page, consider clearing out your cache or trying to sign on with a different browser. If that doesn’t work, email literary@playwrightsfoundation.org and we’ll respond during office hours. Please note that all Playwrights Foundation staff work part-time, so responses may take a day or two.

• Complete your Profile Page prior to the application including contact information, personal websites, and optional demographic information.
• Notes for applicants who applied in 2022 to BAPF46 or the most recent RPP cycle:

• Your login username and password will be the same
• Please review your profile page and check your address and add new optional information to your website, NPX page, and/or other professional website

Application Checklist

Before applying, please check that you have:

• Read our website and guidelines
• A full-length Script in PDF form, titled LastNameFirstName_PlayTitle_DraftDate
• Resume or bio in PDF form, titled LastNameFirstName_Resume (Please keep resume to 1-2 pages, not an extensive CV please)
• A 1-2 sentence synopsis of your play (100 words max)
• A brief list of three to four areas of growth that you would like to pursue through the BAPF development period (at least 2 areas need to be about your script) (250 words max)
• Application fees will be prompted at the end, and are Sliding Scale. If you would like to request a Fee Waiver, see below in the FAQ section. Everyone who applies must fill out the payment form, even if the fee is waived.

Payment

• Our sliding scale application fee of $5–$45 helps Playwrights Foundation cover the administrative costs associated with fully reviewing every application. Some of those costs include: paying each reader a nominal fee for each play read, improved application software, and our literary team. For PF alumni, students, previous readers, and those for whom this fee creates financial strain, a waiver code can be requested below.
• For those requesting a fee waiver, this puts your application in a pending status. The response time for a Fee Waiver will depend on staff availability. Please give the staff 48 hours on a weekday. You will then receive an Invoice in your email that your Fee Waiver request has been accepted by the staff and your application is complete.
• If selecting a fee waiver, you will need to select a payment amount. However, once the fee is waived, you will not be required to pay that amount.
• Reviewers will NOT see what you contributed as an application fee. It has no impact on your application review process.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

• What kind of scripts is BAPF looking for?

• We are looking for plays which push the boundaries of American theater. This could be in terms of form–the language of the play, the play’s structure, or its relationship to the audience–and the play’s content–the identities and subject matter which it addresses. We believe in a future theater which is formally daring and radically inclusive of voices which have been excluded from American stages for too long.
• The Bay Area has a rich tradition of innovative, community-based, and politically engaged artmaking, predominantly led by Black, Asian, queer, and disabled artist/activists among many others. We see that tradition as a potent challenge to how theater operates today, and we seek to select five plays from Bay Area and national playwrights which engage with that current.
• Unproduced scripts: We follow the Dramatists Guild’s definition as “a script that has not been “professionally” produced. Readings, staged readings, AEA workshops, development productions, amateur productions, concert versions, etc. are not professional productions. Plays that have previously received a workshop or university production are considered unproduced.
• Full-length: We ask that your scripts are a minimum of 60 pages in length, but if it is shorter and you know that it does take more than an hour of stage time, simply email our literary team to ask if it is eligible. We are not a 10-Minute play nor One-Act play contest, but looking for more substantial scripts of interest for theaters to produce in their seasons.

• How does Playwrights Foundation define plays with music?

Playwrights Foundation defines “play with music” as any play that contains original compositions specifically written for the play and are meant to be performed in the play. Music sound cues, or references to specific songs (ex. “Lovely Day by Bill Withers plays faintly on the radio” or “They dance alone to Take On Me by A-ha” ) are accepted.

A play where extant music appears in a diegetic manner ("Sally and Suzy dance as 'Red Wine Supernova' plays on the radio") is clearly within our capacity. A play where music appears as a minor feature of the stage action ("Sally sings a lullaby to Suzy, soft and low") and does not call for specific music rehearsals is also acceptable. But a play where live musical performance is a vital artistic concern, deserving thorough workshop attention (think, Play with Music as a genre descriptor, including plays like Stereophonic or Peter and the Starcatcher) is unfortunately beyond our scope at this time.

Playwrights Foundation does not currently have the capacity to develop music for plays as part of our process; we are unable to run singing/music auditions, hold music rehearsals, hire music directors, or provide respondents who can specifically speak to issues of musical composition and songwriting.

• How will my application be evaluated?

• Our review process consists of three rounds; a National Committee screening, as well as a semi-finalist and finalist review by our Bay Area literary council.
• If your script features extensive use of a language other than English, we do our best to ensure that your script is read by readers fluent in that language at each stage.
• In the first round, your script will be read by two National Committee reviewers. They are asked to evaluate your script along three main areas; the clarity and uniqueness of your voice as a writer, the technical skill you demonstrate in your draft, and the promise they feel this project has. Reviewers are given space to write any additional comments they may have about your work, and then rank how strongly they would recommend your script to the semifinal round.  
• PF staff take these reader reports and decide which scripts to advance to the semifinalist round. We are interested in high scores, of course, but also scores where reviewers diverge, or where reviewers rank scripts low in one area but very high in another. Low scores in any one area are not necessarily disqualifying.
• Semifinalist scripts are assigned to readers in our Literary Council. This council consists of Bay Area theater artists. They will read your script and meet in small groups to discuss the quality of your work, as well as how well it fits into the goals and capacity of this festival opportunity. Their recommendations are then provided to the PF literary staff, who will advance a small number to the finalist stage. This process then repeats, with Literary Council readers intensively discussing finalists and advancing recommendations to the literary staff. In early May, the literary staff will select five plays for the festival, and will notify selected playwrights directly.
• At each stage, applicants will receive notice about their status (advance/did not advance) as soon as possible. (Please note that our messages are sometimes caught in spam filters.)

• How do you define “Early-Career” or “Mid-Career?”  

• We follow Dramatists Guild guidelines for career status:
• ‘Early-career’ refers to playwrights who are relatively early in their careers – students, recent playwriting program graduates (up to 3 years), ‘and older dramatists who have had 0-3 professional (paid) productions of their work. You can be early-career at any age and we celebrate that.
• ‘Mid-career’ as playwrights who have received more than 3 professional productions, and who are generally working professional playwrights, but not yet fully established with multiple regional LORT productions. We are looking for a mix of career experiences to create a cohort, so all writers are welcome.

• How will readers evaluate my script?

• The national committee reader review form looks like this:
• “How distinct, clear, and unique is the playwright’s voice in this script (writing style, genre, POV, intention, and any unique qualities)?

• 4 - The playwright’s voice is exceptionally distinct, clear, and unique. They show a remarkably clear intention and an innovative point of view throughout the script.  
• 3 - The playwright’s voice is consistently distinct, clear, and unique. I can easily identify their style as present throughout this script.
• 2 - The playwright’s voice is occasionally distinct, clear, and unique. Their perspective often shines through in this script.
• 1 - The playwright’s voice is infrequently distinct, clear, and unique. Their perspective feels unclear or is inconsistently present in this script.”

• “Please rate the strength of the playwright's technical skills (structure, form, pacing, character development, dialogue, etc.)?

• 4 - The playwright displays exceptionally strong technical skills; sound structural choices, clear form, effective pacing, etc. I am thoroughly impressed and delighted by the effective choices this playwright makes.
• 3 - The playwright consistently displays strong technical skills. They make effective choices throughout this script.
• 2 - The playwright often displays strong technical skills. There are some moments of craft–scenes, moments of dialog– which impressed me.
• 1 - The playwright displays a few flashes of technical skill. Their choices are often unclear to me and could use substantial strengthening.”

• “How strong is the potential or promise for this play?

• 4 - This script shows exciting promise or exceptionally strong potential. I would be eager to follow the development of this project and the future career of this artist.
• 3 - This script shows strong promise and potential. I would be interested in following the future development of this project.
• 2 - This script shows promise and potential. While reading, I consistently felt curious about this project and its future trajectory.
• 1 - This script shows some promise and potential. While reading, I felt a few moments of curiosity about this project and its future trajectory.”

• “Please share more about your response to the play. This could include: What makes you lean in or out from this script? Is there a particular line or moment that grabbed your attention? What is at the heart or heat of the play for you? What questions do you have?”
• “Would you recommend that this application advance to the semifinalist round?

• 5 - Strongly Recommend
• 4 - Likely recommend
• 3 - Recommend
• 2 - Maybe Recommend
• 1 - Probably Not Recommend”

• The Literary Council review form for Semi-Finalists and Finalists is currently under development, but will incorporate the above information as well as an assessment of how well your project and your stated areas of growth fit into the capacities of this development process and festival.

• What makes a strong synopsis for this application?

• In your application, we ask for a brief synopsis of your play. Think of this as an invitation into the world of the play–it need not be fully comprehensive (your reviewers will read your script in its entirety) but this is an opportunity to draw us into the world of your play. Past successful applicants have submitted a wide breadth of responses in this area, ranging from orthodox “dust jacket blurb” summaries to wildly creative texts which communicate the flavor of your play. The synopsis should give us information about the central questions your script raises and demonstrate your unique voice and style.
• Here are two contrasting examples of synopses based on past successful applications:

• “In 1809, Joost van Voelen flees Amsterdam for Batavia, the capital of the Dutch East Indies colony, where he becomes a wildly successful merchant–selling laborers to the lowest bidder. Two hundred years later, his descendants return to his former mansion, now a decaying museum of colonial atrocities, to confront his legacy–and his wandering ghost.”
• “Running away. Running away in 1930s. Running away from the Depression. Running away into the dust bowl. Running away into the Great Basin. Running toward the farms and orchards. Running until you can’t stop anymore.”

• What do you mean by “areas of growth?”

• The BAPF offers selected plays a 10-month development process. This is substantially longer than the development processes of many peer festivals. If selected, how would you spend this time? We are curious about your future vision for play–help us see where you’re headed with this script. We are also curious about what this opportunity could mean for you, personally.
• This response will not be visible to readers during our initial, National Committee review round. It will be used by staff as we select scripts to advance to the semifinalist stage, and by our literary council reviewers in the semifinalist and finalist rounds.
• Past successful applications have responded to this prompt with specific, insightful goals.

• “Identifying the places where scenes are rehashing the same material. I want to be authentic about the circular way that people in this community communicate, but maintain the forward momentum of the piece.”
• “Iʻm curious to discover where the play may become confusing for the audience, particularly in moments they might not be culturally familiar with. What are the impacts of these moments?”

• Avoid generic statements regarding aspects we already know we can help you with, such as:

• “I’ll know what to change when I hear it before an audience.”
• “My goal is to work with a director and dramaturg.”---Great! How would you like to work with them? What would you say to them about what you want to work on first in rehearsals?
• “To find a community to watch my play.”
• “To connect my play with theatre professionals so I can get a production.”

• Will my name be visible to reviewers?

• We currently do read with author’s names attributed, although our policies are reviewed and discussed year-to-year for best practices. Nationally, there has been recent advocacy for maintaining identifying markers on scripts, as the identity of who is telling the story does matter.
• Some checks in this system to ensure fairness:

• Readers are asked to return their assignment if they are randomly assigned a writer who they know and feel compromised giving a fair evaluation.
• National Committee Readers agree not to do any research on the writer until after their evaluation form has been returned.
• We invest time in community meetings for our readers as a form of anti-bias training, so that there is a space where our readers can acknowledge within the group that everyone has biases towards certain works, and we can discuss how to remove those biases while reading. We find community meetings an effective space for addressing the subjective nature of reading new plays.
  

• What is the BAPF’s relationship with the Bay Area?

• One of the Playwrights Foundation’s core values is a commitment to local Bay Area playwrights, artists, organizations and communities. We are a local festival with national reach; we see the BAPF as a juncture point where local and national artistic currents can mingle and influence each other.  
• Our local commitment manifests in our process in several ways. At least two of the five plays we select must be from Bay Area playwrights. The selection and production process is designed and led by Bay Area-based artists. The literary council, which reviews semifinalist and finalist scripts, is entirely composed of Bay Area theater professionals, and we hire a Bay Area-based playwright to audit and advise our selection process.

• How do I request a fee waiver?

• If you are experiencing economic hardship, are a PF alum, current student, or participated on the National Committee, you are eligible to request a fee waiver.

Directions on how to apply for a waiver:

• Within the application payment section, you can click for a Request for a Fee Waiver. That will notify the Literary Staff you’d like a Fee Waiver and we will review for approval.
• You’ll still be asked to choose an amount/value that you would have paid for the application (any amount.) That gives us internal information to report the value of the subsidized application. You will not be charged that amount if fee waiver is approved. Please proceed and finish the application.
• This puts your application into a PENDING status. The Literary team will have to review your application during normal business hours. Please give the staff 48 hours on a weekday.
• You will then receive an Invoice in your email that your Fee Waiver request has been accepted by the staff and your application is complete.
• We recommend not waiting until the deadline to ask for a Fee Waiver—the earlier the better.

• How can I get help during the application period?

• Email literary@playwrightsfoundation.org only. Playwrights Foundation staff works part-time and will respond in a timely manner during regular business hours to answer any questions that arise.
• There will be a live Q&A session that is announced on the application page. If you can’t make the session, it will be recorded and posted on the same application page.
• Technical advice: The login page and portal will sometimes reach a capacity at peak periods when many writers are applying at the same time, such as the days leading up to the application closing date. While we have technical support on call Monday-Friday at limited times during the 9am-5pm ET hours, if there are technical issues arising near the deadline, please communicate with literary@playwrightsfoundation.org so we can acknowledge your request before the deadline and make accommodations. In general, clearing your browser history helps and start early!

The staff at Playwrights Foundation looks forward to getting to know you and your work!