A theatre for writers...

"This was my first time taking part in the Writers Week and I was bowled over by the support and encouragement from all at the Cork Arts Theatre. Getting my work staged was a dream come true and I'd like to thank everyone involved for all their hard work. Going on to win the new writing section of the one-act festival was the icing on the cake. Writers Week is a tremendously enjoyable and extremely important festival and I look forward to being a part of it again and for many years to come" – Alan O’ Regan, Winner of Category A (Best New Script) for ‘Those Sick & Indigent’ in the Cork Arts Theatre One Act Playwriting Awards 2010

 

THE VISION

The Cork Arts Theatre believes very strongly in supporting both new and advanced playwrights and reserves a large portion of its season each year for the presentation of original works. We aim to assist writers in getting their scripts brought to life with themselves, the playwright, in the driving seat.

We have a free booklet available online which gives some general advice for anyone thinking of writing a play. You can download it HERE.

THE MISSION

Over its 30-year history, the Cork Arts Theatre has maintained two unique visions that have remained central to its mission. The first is that of an ensemble system, which takes as its basis the belief that, the most thought-provoking theatre is created by a group of artists working intimately over a long period of time towards the development of a specific and cohesive style. The second is the belief that theatre can be of enormous use to those members of the community for whom it would not ordinarily be a resource.

 

ONE ACT PLAYWRIGHT AWARDS 2013

Cork Arts Theatre runs an annual playwright’s award hosted, organised and sponsored by the Theatre. To date over 800 new plays have been submitted and judged, over 150 have been performed and 6 have been published. Submissions are now being accepted for our 2013 One Act Playwright Awards.

• Application form & a copy of the rules can be downloaded HERE (alternatively application forms & rules can also be obtained by calling us on 021 4505624).
  
  
• Deadline for entry is 31st May, 2013 and the cost is €25 per script.
  
  
• All writers will be invited to Writers Day, when they will receive a full adjudication of their work, and, short-listed plays will be announced. This will take place in early Autumn.
  
  
• Full technical support will be provided by our staff and we will engage production companies and directors to work on scripts for staging. Directors have the choice of consulting with the author or not during the rehearsal period.
  
  
• We have two different categories of Award: Established Writers (category A) and New Writers (category B). Both recicients of category A and category B Awards will receive a trophy and have their play produced.
  
  
• Six plays will be shortlisted for production at the Cork Arts Theatre during Writer's Week 2013 with each play getting a minimum of two airings.

 

SHORT-LISTED PLAYS IN THE 2012 COMPETITION

• September’ by Henry Hudson – Directed by Paddy Gilley This was the winning play in Category A.
  Two elderly women have been friends for years. Neither of them is married. One is very ill and housebound so the other visits her every evening. On this particular occasion both women reveal secrets from their past and beliefs in what will happen to them after they die. These revelations set them at odds and leave them facing very hard and unforgiving choices.
  
  
• ‘Dear Sister Ann’ by Breda Nathan – Directed by Dawn Manning
  Paula cannot read or write. The play tries to show how it affects a multitude of people and their families in various ways.
  
  
• ‘73 Seconds’ by Mark Evans – Directed by Jim Horgan
  A quarter of a century after their childhood friend died, three people meet up again after the boy’s time capsule is unearthed. From beyond the grave he challenges them to relive the famous disaster that tore their innocence apart.
  
  
• ‘Holding it together’ by Dorothy Ahern – Directed by Carolyn Duggan This was the winning play in Category B.
  Three couples, long-time friends, attend a dinner party. Each have a secret they want to keep from the others. As each tries to divert and manoeuvre the conversation, each believes or suspects that the other knows their secret. While each of them is speaking of their own situation it appears they are revealing the secrets of the others.
  
  
• ‘Wallpaper’ by Joanne Geary – Directed by Ann Marie Lewis
  A couple go to marriage counselling as Bernie thinks it will solve all their problems, however it helps their marriage, but not in the conventional way.
  
  
• ‘Cutting The Strings’ by Michael O’Dowd – Directed by Ciaran Irwin
  Middle aged gay couple George and Pat decide to throw a family dinner so George, a widowed father can tell his three adult children of their plans to sell the family home, so they can move to Canada and elope. After witnessing three very different reactions, George takes it upon himself to talk to all of his children individually. He soon discovers however, that their own lives have taken dramatic turns and that letting go isn’t going to be as easy as he thought.