New Play Workshop

Signature Staged Readings

Due to our limited resources, we are unable to accept unsolicited scripts at this time. Agent submissions may be sent to Artistic Associate Sarah Wansley at wansley@ctcompany.org. 

Over the last eleven years, CTC has been committed to using our resources to launch new work onto the stage and into the industry. Our signature staged reading format offers a unique bridge between written play and production. Though performed script-in-hand, plays are staged, receive design and technical support, and run for three ticketed performances in our 270-seat Bratton Theater. As one of our playwrights described it, “CHQ’s NPW series is not just another music stand stop for plays in development – it's an exceptional opportunity to see the play come to life on its feet in front of a wonderfully supportive audience.”

Past seasons have hosted new work by Anna Ziegler, Zayd Dohrn, Molly Smith Metzler, Nick Gandiello, Chelsea Marcantel, Heidi Armbruster, Kate Fodor, Rinne Groff, Quincy Long, and Michael Mitnick, among others. Our past NPWs have gone on to receive productions both off-Broadway at Manhattan Theater Club, Primary Stages, Playwrights Horizons and at regional theaters across the country.

New Play Development at CTC is made possible in part by a generous grant from The Roe Green Foundation.

2019

How the Light Gets In

By E. M. Lewis
Directed by Emilie Beck
July 18–20

While grappling with her recent cancer diagnosis, a travel writer meets a frustrated Japanese architect, a homeless girl who lives under a weeping willow tree, and a tattoo artist who doesn’t want to use his gift. How the Light Gets Inis a poetic and quirky romantic comedy about four lonely people who find each other when one of them falls apart.

On the Exhale

By Martín Zimmerman
Directed by Patrick Walsh (CTC Directing Fellow alum)
An Actor/Director Workshop
August 14–18

When the tragedy of mass shootings hits home, one mother finds herself inexplicably drawn to the weapon that changed her life forever. On the Exhale is a powerful solo performance featuring CTC alumna Claire Karpen, directed by CTC alumnus Patrick Walsh.

Agent 355

Music, Lyrics and Book by Preston Max Allen
Book and Dramaturgy by Jessica Kahkoska
Directed by Estefanía Fadul
August 15–18

True story: during the Revolutionary War, an unidentified female spy helped George Washington and his army to victory. Today, a contemporary all-female band is determined to figure out who she was. In the New Play Workshop's first musical, Agent 355 explores the loyalty, heritage, and courage of six real Revolutionary women whose stories, sacrifices, and secrets shaped the nation.