The 26th Annual Festival of New American Theatre

The 26th Annual Festival of New American Theatre

 

The southwest’s premiere new theatre works festival.

Trust us, it’s a process.

Hosted annually by The Phoenix Theatre Company, the Festival of New American Theatre amplifies new voices and expands the canon of American theatre. The 2024 Festival will continue honoring our longstanding commitment to the development of new works, playwrights, and performers and include a variety of events that allow artists of all kinds to see their work come alive onstage. This year’s festival will feature: a play reading, a musical reading, a musical workshop, two Composer Lyricist Cabarets, Choreography Lab, First Draft Series, an event showcasing the role of designers in new work development, and a return of the 24-hour Theatre Project. The 2024 Festival will also feature a continuation of our collaboration with Spotlight Youth Theatre. This is an opportunity to witness how a production goes from the page to the stage!

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Composer Lyricist Cabaret

The Composer Lyricist Cabaret is returning to this year’s Festival, and we will be featuring two different cabarets. This year we will highlight the work of Composer and Lyricist team Derek Gregor and Sam Carner and Co-composer and Co-Lyricist duo Alara Margritte and Daniel Rosen. Each performance will feature a 45-minute set of music and will be followed by a talkback.

Choreography Lab

Modeled after and inspired by the New York Theatre Barn event of the same name, this offering will showcase how movement and dance can elevate and expand storytelling in new musicals. This event will feature two different choreographers setting movement on four dancers to the same song from a new musical. The two interpretations will be presented in tandem to show the iconic mark a choreographer can leave on a musical. This event will be followed by a talkback.

First Draft Series: Young Playwrights (in collaboration with Spotlight Youth Theatre)

Through a collaboration with Spotlight Youth Theatre, we are presenting a special iteration of our First Draft Series featuring young playwrights. This free event will feature sit down readings of four different one-act plays which competed and won Spotlight Youth Theatre’s 2023-2024 Playfest, their annual playwriting competition for young adult playwrights.

The 24-Hour Theatre Project

A Festival favorite is back by popular demand. Four playwrights are randomly paired with a director and group of actors to write, rehearse, and memorize a short play to be performed 24-hours later. Join us for the drawing to see what artists will be paired together as well as the performance for an evening of brand-new short plays!

New Works Design Panel - Let the Good Times Roll: A New Orleans Gumbo

This new Festival event puts a spotlight on the work of designers and their role in establishing the world and aesthetic of a new work. This will be an informative panel with lighting, costume, and scenic designers who are new work veterans. This panel is also in conjunction with the reading of Let the Good Times Roll: A New Orleans Gumbo. The artists will talk about their creative process and design ideas for a fully produced version of this musical. 

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