Congrats to the
2024 Blanche and Irving Laurie Foundation Award Recipient!
WENDY HERLICH
Catch Centenary Stage Company's world premiere of WASABIA, running April 3 - 13, 2025 in the Kutz Theatre!
When fiercely independent Vivian gets a knock on her door from Carla, a young hospice volunteer desperate to shine, the two strike up an unlikely and unforgettable friendship. Enter Val (Valium) and Di (Digoxin), who lend a hand in exploring life's choices. Through a series of red carpet rants, Lifetime interviews, and a truly unique game show, Vivian and Carla help each other in making some life-altering decisions.
"What a beautifully written play! It sparked great conversations about end of life decisions, and quality of life. It's often an uncomfortable topic. But Wendy Herlich handles it with thoughtfulness, humor & sensitivity through relatable characters."
~Audience Member, Deirdre Bryant
Women Playwrights Series (WPS)
Mikaela Kafka, Program Director
wps@centenarystageco.org
Welcome! Thank you for your interest in Centenary Stage Company’s Women’s Playwright Series and Susan Glaspell Award Contest! I am thrilled to be stepping into the role of Program
director for this Season’s Series. Under the passionate guidance of Catherine Rust, I have been involved on many levels throughout the years. I look forward to the new submissions for this year! On behalf of Centenary Stage company, I, again, thank you for your interest and I look forward to hearing from you. Theatre is a truly collaborative Art! So, Let’s Do This! Here’s to a great Series!
Mikaela Kafka | wps@centenarystageco.org
Mikaela Kafka
Since 1992,
CSC’s developmental program (WPS)….
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has featured and helped to develop the new work of over 80 female playwrights from around the country!
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has provided a working platform for the under-served voices of women writing the theatre.
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has produced 20 World Premieres in as many years.
WHAT IS THE WOMEN PLAYWRIGHTS SERIES?
PLAYWRIGHTS
Interested in submitting your full length play for consideration? Click here for guidelines and additional information
CALL FOR PLAYS
The WPS is a developmental program dedicated to providing a working forum for the unique and under-served voice of women writing for the theatre today. Each season 3 new plays are selected for a collaborative workshop process, with a professional director and actors, which takes place in a brief rehearsal period of approximately 1 week, allowing time for the playwright to hear and adapt their work with other professionals. The process culminates in a presentation of the work for the general public as part of the series, giving CSC audiences larger exposure to new work.
“CSC audiences have embraced this series. Theatre is all about collaboration. As part of this series, the playwright has the opportunity to get feedback from the audience during their development process.”
HOW TO GET INVOLVED
Come join us as a volunteer! We are always grateful to our volunteers. From adjudication, to stage direction readers, ushers, they are such an important element. If interested, please reach out telling a little bit about yourself and how you would like to be involved. We will keep you in mind throughout the year.
Recipients of the Blanche and Irving Laurie Foundation Awards
The many plays which have successfully transitioned from development to production now include:
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Backwards Forwards Back by Jacqueline Goldfinger
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Off the Map by Christine Foster
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Whippoorwill by Ruth Kirschner
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Turning by Darrah Cloud
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Apples in Winter by Jennifer Fawcett
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Hitler's Tasters by Michelle Kholos Brooks
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The Surrogate by Patricia Cotter
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Start Down by Eleanor Burgess
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In the Car with Blossom and Len by Joni Fritz
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The English Bride by Lucile Lichtblau
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How to Pray (winner of the 2012 PEN USA Award for Drama) by Michelle Carter
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The Unfortunates by Aoise Stratford
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You May Go Now by Bekah Brunstetter
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The Poetry of Pizza by Deborah Brevoort
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Daphne Does Dim Sum by Eugenie Chan
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Alice in Ireland by Judy Sheehan
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Dreamhouse by Darrah Cloud
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and many more!
Women Playwrights Series Archive
Recent WPS Readings
Abigail
by Sarah Tuft
What happens when an out-of-town tryout of “The Crucible” - helmed by a once-legendary director making his comeback and funded by his renowned actress wife - casts an arrogant veteran theatre actor opposite a beauty influencer with absolutely no experience? A Lot! In 2024, the search for truth in the role of Abigail Williams puts Arthur Miller's classic on trial…
Wasabia
by Wendy Herlich
When fiercely independent Vivian gets a knock on her door from Carla, a young hospice volunteer desperate to shine, the two strike up an unlikely and unforgettable friendship. Enter Val (Valium) and Di (Digoxin), who lend a hand in exploring life's choices.
Through a series of red carpet rants, Lifetime interviews, and a truly unique game show, Vivian and Carla help each other in making some life-altering decisions.
For A Brighter Tomorrow
by Sophia Naylor
It’s 1974. Cosmonauts Dmitri and Yuri are aboard a secret Soviet space station,
a tiny capsule miles above Earth. As the cosmonauts argue the mundane intricacies
of life--particularly the best way to woo Pat Nixon--they're interrupted by an urgent radio message.
Suddenly the fate of the world rests in the hands of these two unlikely heroes, who must do everything in their power to discover the truth and ultimately determine the right thing to do.