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In the 1980s and 90s, Stages Repertory Theatre here in Houston produced the Texas Playwrights Festival (TPF), a play solicitation contest open to any playwright born or living in Texas. It was one of the most popular playwriting opportunities in the state, consistently attracted large audiences and created, as one local playwright who attended told me, “a highly charged social atmosphere.” In other words, things got lively. One of the more surprising playwrights to be selected was Jim Lehrer, the former PBS anchor, who is a novelist as a well as a playwright and whose play Chili Queen was one of two plays produced in 1995. Logistical and financing issues led to the TPF’s demise in the late nineties.

Last year, Teresa Coleman-Wash, the Dallas Regional Representative to the Dramatists Guild of America, Sheila Rinear, the Austin-San Antonio Regional Representative and I decided to revive the TPF. As we fundraised, we realized that, at least for the near future, we could only afford to mount readings rather than full productions. You readers know most of our playwriting opportunities these days are readings and workshops, and we’re all tired of being bridesmaids. Okay, we decided, if this is the case then the least we can do is to make the TPF the chili queen of staged readings. The new TPF gives three playwrights the chance to see/hear their plays twice in front of an audience. The playwrights can choose to revise their plays before the second reading – or not, if they prefer. The festival also pays them a royalty of 7% or $500, whichever amount is greater. We all know a royalty for a reading is pretty much unheard of, but now you’ve heard, so spread the word there’s a play reading fest in Texas that pays a royalty, and start asking why more organizations that arrange play readings can’t do the same.

Well, why can’t they? We’re no experts at fundraising but we did raise the necessary funds in six months. Still, not every organization has the funding opportunities we had. The TPF would not have been possible without a generous grant from the Dramatists Guild Fund, from individual donations given via our Power2Give funding site, some of which were matched by the Houston Arts Alliance, and from sizeable donations from several Houston philanthropists dedicated to the creation of new American plays. We also received vital funding, guidance and support from the leaders of two Houston theatres. Elizabeth Earle, Artistic Director of Wordsmyth Theater Company, agreed to have Wordsmyth produce the TPF this year and guided us through fundraising, the play solicitation and selection process, and the care and sensitive treatment of the playwrights who responded to our solicitation. Kenn McLaughlin, Producing Artistic Director; Josh Morrison, Associate Artistic Director; and Mitchell Greco, Artistic Associate, all of Stages Repertory Theatre, agreed to host the festival at Stages and generously allowed us to engage their talent, staff, space, and resources to make this festival as fierce and colorful as The Lone Star State.

Our solicitation process required that entrants remove all personal identification from their scripts. We received 71 entries and had readers each read ten to twelve of the plays (and we paid them $10/play). These readers narrowed the selection down to twelve finalists, and a different group of three readers read all finalist plays and selected the three plays for the festival.

This year, the TPF is July 30 to August 2. Check out Stages’ website (http://stagestheatre.com) to learn more, and please consider this your personal invitation to attend. Some celebrities (in addition to you) will be attending, and we want it to be hot. Yes, you’re thinking, it is hot in Houston in the summer, but with you we’ll make the TPF as hot as a chili pepper.

wduell@dramatistsguild.com