Type of work supported

On a regular basis, we open our inboxes for script submissions from playwrights seeking dramaturgical support for their work. From a shortlist, one script will receive a facilitated, closed-door script circle with professionals present, and three will receive one-on-one consults. This is not a presentation opportunity, but an offer of considered dramaturgical support for scripts in the drafting process. For each Open Call:
We currently accept plays in English or Malay, depending on specific programme cycles.
We prioritise completed drafts of full length plays (~at least 60 minutes).
   
2024 Season
There will be two cycles of New Scripts Garage scheduled for 2024. If you have a script you would like to receive feedback on, look out for the detailed open call dates of each cycle. The upcoming New Scripts Garage Open Call for submissions is from 8 - 14 June 2024.
New Scripts Garage, November 2024 (Malay-language Edition)
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 2024 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 eit
Start: November 2024
New Scripts Garage, November 2024
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 either a facilitated Script Circle, One-on-One Consults or Written Feedback. Please note that this is not a presentational platform. This short-form programme is ideal for play
Start: November 2024
New Scripts Garage, July 2024
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 either a facilitated Script Circle, One-on-One Consults or Written Feedback.Please note that this is not a presentational platform. This short-form programme is ideal for playwrights
Start: July 2024
New Scripts Garage, November 2023
The New Scripts Garage is a regular offer of dramaturgical support for new scripts, convened every other month, 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 2023 cycle, we are collaborating with Teater Ekamatra to offer a Malay-language edition, that will accept up to eight scripts through an Open Call. Please note that this is not a presentational platform. This short-for
Start: November 2023
New Scripts Garage, August 2023
The New Scripts Garage provides three scripts with considered dramaturgical support in the form of either a facilitated Script Circle or One-on-One Dramaturgy Sessions with our Writer in Residence. Please note that this is not a presentational platform. This short-form residency is ideal for playwrights who have a script that they want to take forward to the next draft in the development process.
Start: August 2023
New Scripts Garage, June 2023
Every other month, the New Scripts Garage provides three scripts with considered dramaturgical support in the form of either a facilitated Script Circle or One-on-One Dramaturgy Sessions with our Writer in Residence. This short-form residency is ideal for playwrights who have a script that they want to take forward to the next draft in the development process. Playwrights who submitted their script(s) for this cycle are listed below. 
Start: May 2023
New Scripts Residency November 2022
Every other month, the New Scripts Residency provides three scripts with considered dramaturgical support in the form of either a facilitated table read or one-on-one dramaturgy sessions with our Writer in Residence. This residency is ideal for those who have a script that they want to take forward to the next draft. Playwrights who submitted their script(s) for this cycle are listed below. 
Start: November 2022
New Scripts Residency September 2022
Every other month, the New Scripts Residency provides three scripts with considered dramaturgical support in the form of either a facilitated table read or one-on-one dramaturgy sessions with our Writer in Residence. This residency is ideal for those who have a script that they want to take forward to the next draft. Playwrights who submitted their script(s) for this cycle are listed below. 
Start: September 2022
Latch by Samantha Chia
Young police investigator Kim has been assigned to her first station. She thought that criminals and suspects were her biggest concerns but soon realizes there are other things she has to protect herself against.
Start: September 2021
coming back by Chuah Weiqi
A young woman revisits her childhood home and realises she has lost all emotional connection with her hometown. As she struggles to rebuild connections with an old friend, a surreal encounter with a ghostly young girl takes her on a trip down memory lane, where she finds herself faced with confronting her past and redefining what “home” means to her.
Start: September 2021
Lovers Text Lovers by Ang Kia Yee
Lovers Text Lovers is an experimental play about the movement of love and desire within the entanglements of identity, pop culture and language. Taking the relationship of two lovers—a Singaporean Chinese postdoctoral researcher and a white British Tsinghua University professor of Comparative Literature—as a point of departure, Lovers Text Lovers asks: How much of our desires and relationships are predetermined? How can we transcend or re-interpret these narratives? Who else can we be(come) t
Start: September 2021

FAQ

Who is this platform for?

This platform is for playwrights of any experience level who would like to receive considered, professional feedback on their scripts.

What kind of scripts can I submit?

We accept completed drafts of full length plays (at least ~ 60 minutes) in English, or in other languages with translations provided in English.

Specific editions of the New Scripts Garage currently call for scripts in Malay as well. At this time, we are not accepting books for musicals, screenplays, or libretti.

We are not accepting straight adaptations of other work (e.g. novels, films), but will accept adaptations with a clear creative, re-inventive, and/or radical approach.

How do you decide the suitability of the application?

A team of readers, made up of directors, playwrights, and dramaturgs, will consider the submissions. Based on the quality of the script and the writer’s needs as expressed in the application form, they will then recommend either of the following:

  1. A facilitated script circle where the playwright meets with readers and a team of directors, dramaturgs, writers and actors to receive feedback in a discussion setting.
  2. A one-on-one consult with our dramaturgs.
  3. A consolidation of written feedback from the reading panel.

This programme prioritises writer development over polish, and aims to get the writer excited to work on the next draft of their script, with a clearer sense of where to go

What happens after my submission?

Because of our current reading capacity, we will only consider the first eight eligible scripts that come into our inbox at closing time. These eight scripts will be handed over to the team of readers, who will then read and deliberate on which three scripts will go on to the next stage.

The Script Circle will be organised by Centre 42, who will invite actors, writers, directors, and dramaturgs from a pool of artists we have been working closely with on this programme.

The scripts receiving one-on-one consults will be scheduled directly with our dramaturgs, who will read the scripts and provide detailed feedback in discussion with the writer.

Scripts that were not shortlisted will receive written feedback from the reading team and writers are welcome to submit subsequent drafts for future iterations of the New Scripts Garage.

Is this a presentation opportunity? Will shortlisted scripts be staged for an audience or receive a public reading?

No. This is a revised version of the previous New Scripts Residency, which was a short-term incubation and presentation platform.

In this iteration, the focus is on detailed, discussion-based dramaturgical support. The Script Circle is a closed-door event, the purpose of which is for the play to be heard and appraised in a discussion facilitated by a writer, director, or dramaturg.

How often does this residency take place?

This programme takes place on a regular basis, depending on demand. The schedule depends on the Centre's resources. The Open Call for script submissions is announced at least a month before the scheduled dramaturgy sessions. The submissions box will be open for 1 week, and closes once it receives the first eight scripts. 

How many plays can I submit? How often can I re-apply?

We only accept one play per writer each cycle. 

If you had submitted multiple plays in one cycle, only the 1st submission will be considered as eligible.

If you did not make the cut-off time, you are welcome to apply again for the next cycle.

If your submission was eligible but not shortlisted for either the Script Circle or 1-on-1 consultations, you are welcome to apply again with a subsequent draft.

If your play has received a Script Circle or one-on-one consult in one cycle, we cannot support it again in subsequent cycles of the New Scripts Garage.