Playwright Spotlight
Stephanie Everett '19

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Playwriting

Students interested in playwriting have the opportunity to develop their voice through workshops and staged readings via the department's YourSpace and Studio Lab production programs, as well as through the annual Frost & Dodd Student Play Festival each summer.

  • A workshop performance of "The Houses with Ramps", written by Lela Gannon '18. Spring 2018.

  • A staged reading performance of 2017 Frost Playwriting Competition winner "Craters", written by Elise Wien '17. Summer 2017; Photo Rob Strong.

  • A staged reading performance of 2017 Frost Playwriting Competition winner "Everything Falls Apart", written by Jordyn Fitch '20. Summer 2017; Photo Rob Strong.

  • A performance of 2017 Dodd Playwriting Contest winner "If It Isn't You", written by Tess McGuinness '18. Summer 2017; Photo Rob Strong.

  • A staged reading performance of "Third Night", written by Elise Wien '17. Spring 2017.

About the Playwriting Program at Dartmouth

Student playwrights are strongly encouraged to submit their one-act plays to the Frost and Dodd Student Playwriting Competition, which culminates each summer with the Frost & Dodd Student Play Festival. The festival showcases the work of three student playwrights: two Frost contest play submissions are selected to be produced as staged readings, while the winning Dodd contest play is mounted as a fully-produced production. Performances take place in July, in the Bentley Theater; winners also receive a cash prize. The deadline for submissions is typically sometime in late March of each year; click here for term-specific deadlines.

Beyond the Frost & Dodd Student Play Festival, students looking for a performance platform to develop original written work via a staged reading or performance workshop may submit an application to any of our student production tracks: YourSpace, PlaySpace, or fully-produced Student Production Slot. Visit the Student Productions page of this website for details.

Academically, the Department offers a number of courses in playwriting, including Playwriting I & II which focuses on both play and screenwriting. Serious playwrights may also choose to continue their academic studies with our Professor of Playwriting through THEA 80: Independent Study.