How might a writer begin to approach the process of constructing a play? What sets apart playwriting as a form from other creative writing genres? Put another way, what makes a play a play? Through a range of exploratory exercises as well as dissection and discussion of texts, participants will begin shaping and assembling the building blocks of a play, and along the way discover and/or refine their personal process as writers - from drafting to crafting to lifting text off the page so it may find its place
The New Scripts Garage is an offer of dramaturgical support for new scripts, with low barriers to entry. On a regular basis, we open our inboxes for script submissions from playwrights seeking dramaturgical support for their work.The first eight eligible scripts will receive considered dramaturgical support in the form of a One-on-One Consultation Session with a text dramaturg or Written Feedback from the reading team.Please note that this is not a presentational platform. This short-form programme is ideal
Engage-a-Dramaturg is an initiative matching playwrights and dramaturgs for a 4-month collaboration. This programme aims to:Bring together and build relationships between playwrights and dramaturgs who may not have had opportunities to work together before Encourage extended script development conversations between playwrights and dramaturgs Provide space for developing the playwright’s vision outside of the imperatives of a production or a commissionInstigate conversation around the value of the
The Playwright–Dramaturg Sharing & Social returns in 2026 as a year-long series of gatherings dedicated to script sharing, collective reflection, and connection between playwrights and dramaturgs.Across three evenings, each session invites you into a Community Script Circle, an open and supportive space where works-in-progress are read aloud and explored through dialogue. The focus is on process, creating room for questions, instincts, and unexpected discoveries to emerge through conversation.At ea
Engage-a-Dramaturg is an initiative matching playwrights and dramaturgs for a 4-month collaboration. This programme aims to:Bring together and build relationships between playwrights and dramaturgs who may not have had opportunities to work together before Encourage extended script development conversations between playwrights and dramaturgs Provide space for developing the playwright’s vision outside of the imperatives of a production or a commissionInstigate conversation around the value of the
How might a writer begin to approach the process of constructing a play? What sets apart playwriting as a form from other creative writing genres? Put another way, what makes a play a play? Through a range of exploratory exercises as well as dissection and discussion of texts, participants will begin shaping and assembling the building blocks of a play, and along the way discover and/or refine their personal process as writers - from drafting to crafting to lifting text off the page so it may find its place
TOOLS returns for a second edition following its successful 2025 run! Led by New York-based playwright Sean Dunnington, this workshop series is designed for playwrights curious about theatricality, the unique magic of theatre that invites audiences to “believe” what they see on stage is true to life even while knowing it is not real.Across five sessions, participants explore theatrical principles such as substitution, stage illusion, the fourth wall, and how space and time shape a play’s structure. Each wor
Engage-a-Dramaturg is a new initiative matching playwrights and dramaturgs for a 4-month collaboration. This programme aims to:Bring together and build relationships between playwrights and dramaturgs who may not have had opportunities to work together before Encourage extended script development conversations between playwrights and dramaturgs Provide space for developing the playwright’s vision outside of the imperatives of a production or a commissionInstigate conversation around the value of t
Tools is a workshop series by our visiting resident playwright Sean Dunnington for playwrights curious about theatricality - the unique magic of theatre that invites audiences to “believe” what they see on stage is true-to-life, even while knowing it's not real (to an extent). Each session dives into a specific element of this conceptual spell, blending discussion, hands-on activities, performance, and experimentation.These workshops are suitable for playwrights/writers who are engaged with/thinking about c
Inspired by the legendary playwriting exercise created by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Paula Vogel, we invite you to join us for a creative, fast-paced, and immersive Bake-Off facilitated by our visiting resident playwright Sean Dunnington.
The Playwright–Dramaturg Sharing & Social returns in 2026 as a year-long series of gatherings dedicated to script sharing, collective reflection, and connection between playwrights and dramaturgs.Across three evenings, each session invites you into a Community Script Circle, an open and supportive space where works-in-progress are read aloud and explored through dialogue. The focus is on process, creating room for questions, instincts, and unexpected discoveries to emerge through conversation.At ea
What unfolds when playwrights bring their scripts into a room full of curious and creative theatre-makers? How can fresh perspectives from fellow writers and dramaturgs help a script grow? We’re excited to bring you the second edition of our Playwright–Dramaturg Sharing & Social, a cosy, no-pressure evening focused on sharing work, exchanging thoughts, and seeing where the conversation takes us.This time, we’re centring the session around a Community Script Circle, where two works-in-progress by pl
How exactly do dramaturgs work with playwrights? What goes into making this dynamic work, and how does this often unseen creative exchange help to shape a play? As part of Centre 42's ongoing explorations of these questions, we are hosting a series of chill and intimate socials, each anchored by a casual chat between a dramaturg-playwright pair who'll give some insight into their collaboration. In this edition, playwright Jean Tay and dramaturg Hemang Yadav discuss their work together on The Shape of a
DRAMATURGS & is a capsule series of roundtable conversations centering the work of and relationship between dramaturgs and their artistic collaborators. Dramaturgical thinking and application is integral in the work of all artists, yet a dramaturg’s role affords a dedicated lens that can expand and challenge artistic decisions. In cosy and candid sessions, we aim to unpack the relational, intricate and often invisible work of dramaturgs in creative processes and within artistic teams. The fourth in
Jo ends her term as Writer-in-Residence with an Adam-Khoo style presentation advocating the importance of rewriting and restaging Singapore scripts in search of the next classic. Expect to see a new-and-improved rework-in-progress of her previously-staged script, Happy Place, followed by a diatribe about seizing the means of production (as in producing a play) in a system where existing resources for restagings may seem scarce.
Writer-in-Residence Jo Tan shares the challenges and freedoms she's experienced while trying to be an actor-playwright versus an unhyphenated playwright. Which direction might be right for you, and at which points in your career?Come join us as Jo discusses how (and if) writing under these different disciplines have helped her zoom in on her desired direction of theatremaking.
The New Scripts Garage is an offer of dramaturgical support for new scripts, with low barriers to entry. On a regular basis, we open our inboxes for script submissions from playwrights seeking dramaturgical support for their work.For the November 2026 cycle, we are collaborating with Teater Ekamatra to run a Malay-language edition that will accept up to eight scripts through an Open Call. The first eight eligible scripts will receive considered dramaturgical support in the form of either a facilitated Scrip
This residency benefits writers who’ve been putting in sustained work on a single play idea, and who’ve previously received dramaturgical support through the New Scripts Garage. It’s our way of keeping momentum going with the plays we receive through the Garage, with a particular interest in writers who demonstrate commitment to the process of revision.We will pair a writer with one of the Centre’s resident dramaturgs to work out a plan for feedback and rewriting. After several months of rigorous work, incl
The New Scripts Garage is an offer of dramaturgical support for new scripts, with low barriers to entry. On a regular basis, we open our inboxes for script submissions from playwrights seeking dramaturgical support for their work.The first eight eligible scripts will receive considered dramaturgical support in the form of a One-on-One Consultation Session with a text dramaturg or Written Feedback from the reading team.Please note that this is not a presentational platform. This short-form programme is ideal
The New Scripts Garage is an offer of dramaturgical support for new scripts, with low barriers to entry. On a regular basis, we open our inboxes for script submissions from playwrights seeking dramaturgical support for their work.The first eight eligible scripts will receive considered dramaturgical support in the form of a One-on-One Consultation Session with a text dramaturg or Written Feedback from the reading team.Please note that this is not a presentational platform. This short-form programme is ideal
From April 2026 to March 2027, playwright Thomas Lim is joining us as our Writer in Residence. This 12-month residency spotlights and platforms the Writer in Residence through presentations of his works, and engagements with younger writers and the public.As part of the residency, Thomas will also participate in the New Scripts Garage, offering dramaturgical support and feedback to scripts from the open call.
The New Scripts Garage is an offer of dramaturgical support for new scripts, with low barriers to entry. On a regular basis, we open our inboxes for script submissions from playwrights seeking dramaturgical support for their work.For the November 2025 cycle, we are collaborating with Teater Ekamatra to concurrently run a Malay-language edition, that will accept up to eight scripts through an Open Call. The first eight eligible scripts will receive considered dramaturgical support in the form of either
DRAMATURGS & is a capsule series of roundtable conversations centering the work of and relationship between dramaturgs and their artistic collaborators. Dramaturgical thinking and application is integral in the work of all artists, yet a dramaturg’s role affords a dedicated lens that can expand and challenge artistic decisions. In cosy and candid sessions, we aim to unpack the relational, intricate and often invisible work of dramaturgs in creative processes and within artistic teams. On 21 April 2
Imagine this – you’ve written a script. You’ve even tested it out on an audience. And then, your director says you’re scrapping it all and starting again. (Did you wince?) Well, it’s not that your script is terrible. It’s just part of the process.
That’s exactly what happened in a GroundZ-0 project that’s been in development in our Basement Workshop residency since 2018. The project involves seasoned theatre practitioners Zelda Tatiana Ng, Aidli ‘Alin’ Mosbit, and Alvin Tan. In Octobe
Centre 42 is a blue-hued greenhouse for plays. Some theatre-makers arrive with a sapling of a play, and we simply provide time and space for growth. And sometimes, we give a bit more of a nudge. For the first time at Late-Night Texting, our annual showcase of fresh new writing and emerging artists, we’re showcasing some of the plays that we’ve helped nurture from seeds of ideas, like the Boiler Room plays which require more care and guidance to germinate, and the Vault presentations which wer
Playwriting can be a lonely career. For the independent playwright, creating work and searching for opportunities by oneself is often a daunting, difficult task. But two heads (or more) are better than one, as I found out from two playwriting collectives who have made Centre 42 their home base.
“I feel like when you’re younger, the terrain seems very wild and impenetrable,” Nabilah Said tells me. Nabilah is a freelance playwright with four performed works under her belt in the past six months. She’s also
Collaborative writing can be hugely challenging. Without a strategy, writing a play in a group would just be a matter of whoever has the strongest pair of lungs, as was the case with the seven men who collectively wrote the 1971 play Lay By at the Royal Court Theatre in London:
In 2011, The Finger Players (TFP) launched a development programme for playwrights and directors called Watch This Space. It is spearheaded by playwright-director Chong Tze Chien, who felt that there were not enough platforms supporting new voices in the Singapore theatre scene at the time.
“I think as a theatre company, it is our responsibility to inject some form of training programme to enrich the ecosystem, because the reason that we are here today is also because of the generosity of our predecessor
Looking through his body of works, you would think Chong Tze Chien has a morbid fascination with death. Indeed, he once admitted that death was a “pet theme” (Business Times [BT], 24 April 2009) that would re-emerge time and time again in his writing.
Here are a few examples: Chong’s hugely-successful debut play, Pan-Island Expressway [PIE], staged by TheatreWorks in 1999, is a multi-layered narrative revolving around a fatal traffic accident and a suicide. Spoilt (2001), written
Even before joining The Necessary Stage (TNS) in 1987, Haresh Sharma knew he wanted to be a writer. The problem was that he wasn’t sure what sort of writer he wanted to be. In a 2002 interview published in Quarterly Literary Review Singapore (QLRS), Sharma admitted that his early attempts at poetry and prose did not feel “magical”. But in playwriting, he discovered the freedom to say whatever he wanted, however he wanted:
Decentered Playwriting investigates new and alternative strategies for dramatic writing that incorporate non-Western, Indigenous, and underrepresented storytelling techniques and traditions while deepening a creative practice that decenters hegemonic methods.A collection of short essays and exercises by leading teaching artists, playwrights, and academics in the fields of playwriting and dramaturgy, this book focuses on reimagining pedagogical techniques by introducing playwrights to new storytell
Over the past three decades, award-winning playwright Haresh Sharma has written more than 120 plays, many of them created with The Necessary Stage’s (TNS) unique devising methodology. Reading the Room: A Playwright’s Devising Journey offers unprecedented access into the devising process, with keen insights and intimate reflections gleaned from Haresh’s artistic journey.
This book describes Haresh’s devising process in meticulous detail, illustrated by production case studies and incorporating n
Christopher Vogler explores the powerful relationship between mythology and storytelling in his clear, concise style that's made this book required reading for movie executives, screenwriters, playwrights, fiction and non-fiction writers, scholars, and fans of pop culture all over the world.
Discover a set of useful myth-inspired storytelling paradigms like "The Hero's Journey", and step-by-step guidelines to plot and character development. Based on the work of Joseph Campbell, The Writer's Jo
During the ten years that Stuart Spencer has taught playwriting, he has struggled to find an effective playwriting handbook for his courses. Although most of the currently popular handbooks have good ideas in them, they all suffer from the same problems: they're poorly organized; are composed mostly of quirky, idiosyncratic advice on how specific playwrights have gone about writing their own work; and are full of abstract theorizing on the nature of art. As a result, they fail to offer any concrete informat