I want you to imagine the theater you most want to work with.
Now picture their submissions inbox: dozens or even hundreds of scripts, all lined up and waiting for an overworked literary manager to read through.
That's the front door. And yes, you should keep knocking on it--keep sending your plays, again and again and again.
But most playwrights never realize that most theaters have side doors:
The education department that needs short plays for their student showcase. The staged reading series that's easier to program than a full production. The annual gala that wants a ten-minute piece performed between courses. The community partnership looking for a writer to lead a workshop.
These opportunities are often barely advertised, and are frequently overlooked by playwrights. But they share one crucial feature:
They turn you from a stranger into a known quantity.
And that's important! Because when a literary manager reads a script and says "This one's interesting," the first question in the room is often: "Who's the playwright?"
If the answer is "No idea," your play has to do all the work alone.
But if the answer is "Oh, she led that workshop last spring" or "He wrote that piece for our reading series—the staff loved him," your play is no longer a cold submission. It's a script from someone the theater already trusts.
Here's a sample strategy to take advantage of these side doors:
* Pick some theaters you genuinely want a relationship with (say half a dozen).
* Study their whole organization: education, readings, festivals, events.
* Look for the small ways to get involved--and treat them seriously.
* Show up, be great to work with, and let the relationship grow organically.
Don't push your script. Remember, the goal here is a relationship.
This strategy works because the side door is usually a lot less crowded than the front door. And once you're inside the building, everything gets easier.
Of course, side doors are hard to find precisely because they're not well advertised. That's part of what we do at Play Submissions Helper: our curated monthly list includes not just the big open calls, but the readings, festivals, and smaller opportunities that can get you into the building.
When you're ready to get started submitting, go here to browse our list of opportunities: https://playsubmissionshelper.com/blog/