Deadline: April 15, 2010

WASHINGTON, D.C. – VSA arts seeks submissions for the Playwright Discovery Program, which invites middle and high school students to write a one-act play about disability. The program encourages students to take a closer look at the world around them, examine how disability affects their lives and the lives of others, and express their views through the art of playwriting. The selected play will be professionally produced at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, and the selected playwright will receive $2,000 and a trip to Washington, D.C., to see his or her play performed. 

For the VSA arts Playwright Discovery Program, playwrights may draw from their own experiences or they may choose to write about an experience of someone they know or a fictional character. Young playwrights of all abilities are encouraged to participate. Students may submit their individual work or they may collaborate with a group or class of students. 

Entries must be one-act plays of 40 pages or fewer. They should be original, unproduced, and unpublished at the time of submission. VSA arts will accept plays that have had previous readings or workshops as long as they were not produced for a paying audience and have not been publicly reviewed. Budding playwrights can find guidelines and applications at www.vsarts.org/playwrightdiscovery.

About VSA arts

VSA arts is an international nonprofit organization founded 35 years ago by Ambassador Jean Kennedy Smith to create a society where people with disabilities learn through, participate in, and enjoy the arts. VSA arts provides educators, parents, and artists with the resources and tools to support arts programming in schools and communities.  VSA arts showcases the accomplishments of artists with disabilities and promotes increased access to the arts for all people.  Each year, 7 million people participate in VSA arts’ programs through a nationwide network of affiliates and in 54 countries around the world. VSA arts is an affiliate of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. For more information about VSA arts, visit www.vsarts.org. 

From June 6–12, 2010, VSA arts—the premier arts and disability organization—will bring together artists, educators, researchers, and policymakers with disabilities from around the world for a multicultural celebration of the arts and arts education. The Festival will feature a dazzling array of visual, performing, literary, and media artists. The guest list includes more than 2,000 people, including VSA arts’ 54 international affiliates, its U.S. network, and audience members from all corners of the globe.