We will begin accepting submissions for the 2011-2012 Woodward / Newman Drama Award in June.

10/11 Woodward/Newman Award Winner

“It’s great for playwrights to have a venue like the BPP to hear and show their work,” says Woodward.

The BPP asked Whitley about her reaction to winning the first ever Woodward/Newman Drama Award. “I’m flabbergasted.  It’s amazing.  I’m over the moon about it,” exclaimed Whitley.

In a completely unintended and charming coincidence, Miles Away just so happens to have been inspired by one of Paul Newman’s most memorable roles.

“Miles Away is a bit of a riff on The Hustler, and how the dynamic changes when it's a young woman instead of a young man,” says Whitley. “When I was watching it, I thought what if the ace pool player was a girl?”

Christine Whitley’s first play, The Goatwoman of Corvis County, received its world premiere in August 2008 at Shakespeare & Company in Lenox, Mass., and is slated for production in 2010 at Pacific Resident Theatre in Los Angeles.  In 2008, her ten-minute play Peep Show was seen Off-Off Broadway in Blue Coyote Theater Group’s evening of short plays, collectively titled Happy Endings.  In the spring of 2010, her one-act play Parents & Children was produced Off-Off Broadway as a part of the Drilling Company Theatre’s short plays project Faith.  Her second full-length play, Miles Away, is the first winner of the Woodward/Newman Drama Award and was a semifinalist for the 2010 O’Neill Playwrights Conference.  A graduate of The University of Cincinnati – College Conservatory of Music, Christine is also a Designated Linklater Voice Teacher.  Member Dramatists Guild.

Rorschach by Kelly Younger

The Rose Gardener by Sara-Ashley Bischoff
Two Point Oh by Jeffrey Jackson
Darlin' by Charlotte Samples
Treefall by Henry Murray
A Gulag Mouse by Arthur M. Jolly
Dizzy by Becky Ellis
Miles Away by Christine Whitley
Kingsville by Andrew Hinderaker
Homegrown Beginnings by Matthew D.J. Kelly

Woodward/Newman Drama Award

We will begin accepting submissions for the 2011-12 Woodward/Newman Drama Award in June 2010. Submissions are due by March 1, 2011. The top 10 finalists will be announced at the end of May with the winner announced in June 2011.

The Woodward/Newman Drama Award is an exclusive honor offered by Bloomington Playwrights Project, sponsored by the Newman's Own Foundation, remembering the many great dramas Joanne Woodward and Paul Newman performed in together. It presents the best unpublished full-length drama of the year with a prize of $3,000, a full production as part of the BPP's 2011-12 Mainstage season and travel expenses up to $300.

The Bloomington Playwrights Project is a not-for-profit theatre with non-Equity performers. The theatre is a black box with 90 seats. Because the BPP is a script-developing organization, winning playwrights are expected to become part of the development process, working with the director in person or via long-distance. Each winning play receives a staged reading early in the development process. This staged reading is open to the public and the playwright is encouraged to attend.

Rules and Submission Guidelines

GUIDELINES FOR SUBMISSION

(subject to change):

1.  "Full-length" plays will have a complete running time of between 1 hour 15 minutes (75 minutes) to 2 hours 15 minutes (135 minutes).

2.  Plays submitted must be unpublished at the time of submission. Plays that have received developmental readings, workshop productions, or productions at small theatre companies are acceptable. No scripts with previous productions at major regional theaters will be accepted. Once entered, subsequent activity does not change the acceptability of the script.

3.  Each submission must include a synopsis (1 page or less) including the cast size. A separate page should include a brief bio of the playwright, and production/development history if applicable.

4.  Each submission must include a cover letter with contact information and a $10.00 reader fee. Make check payable to "BPP". Agent submissions require no fee. The fee will be waived for Dramatist Guild members with an enclosed photocopy of a membership card. For international checks, the fee is $20 to cover the check processing fee (It costs us $10).  Or, avoid paying the check processing fee by paying online with your credit card here:

Make sure to note with your submission that you have paid the reader fee online.

5.  It is preferable for musicals to include a demo CD. The complete score is not necessary but may be included. All plays are read by BPP's literary personnel led by and including the Literary Manager and Artistic Director.

6.  We do not accept e-mail submissions. Scripts will not be returned.

7.  The BPP reserves the right not to name a winner and/or name a winner but not commit to a reading or production. These instances are rare but can and do occur.

8.  Send to:
Woodward/Newman Drama Award
Bloomington Playwrights Project
107 W. 9th Street
Bloomington, IN 47404

9.  Scripts must be postmarked by March 1, 2011, and received no later than March 10, 2011. We are not responsible for postal delays, and recommend you not choose to send Media Mail unless you are submitting several weeks in advance.

10.  For further information, write BPP, Attn: Literary Manager, 107 W. 9th Street, Bloomington, IN 47404. For faster replies, please e-mail us at literarymanager@newplays.org.