Gasworks Arts Park and the Midsumma Festival have announced an exciting new partnership which cements many years of Midsumma arts events every summer at Gasworks.
Playtime is a professional development program for playwrights whose work deals with queer themes. The team from Gasworks Arts Park frequently attend national performing arts markets and showcases, and noticed that the plays presented for touring to mainstream audiences seldom deal with queer themes.
Playtime aims to change that by identifying, supporting and developing new talent and get queer issues out there for mainstream audiences to consider and enjoy. The LGBTIQ community is diverse, exciting and full of stories and ideas that deserve to be heard on the stages of performing arts venues throughout the country.
Creators of new or developing works of theatre are invited to submit their proposals for consideration by a panel of supportive industry professionals.
Midsumma Board Member Adam Gardnir says, “Playtime is a great chance for storytellers to pitch a new, bold, funny, important or exciting story to Australian theatre audiences. It’s a chance to get our themes, ideas and stories out to stages throughout Victoria and beyond.”
Playtime is now calling for submissions. If you have an idea for a show, a completed script, or anything in between, we want to hear from you. Four works will be selected by the industry panel, and invited to present a 15 minute staged reading as part of Midsumma 2015.
One work will be selected to receive ongoing support and development to become a full scale work and be presented at Midsumma 2016. The ultimate aim of Playtime is to tour the work nationally to expose it to a wide range of metropolitan, regional and rural audiences.
Applications close Sunday 2 November 2014, with successful applicants notified by 30 November 2014. The Playtime Staged Readings will take place at Gasworks Arts Park on Thursday 29 January 2015.
The Midsumma Festival runs from 18 January to 8 February 2015. For more information, visit: www.gasworks.org.au or www.midsumma.org.au for details.
Image: courtesy of Gasworks Arts Park