The Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford-upon-Avon has revealed the shortlist for its 37 Plays project.
Celebrating the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s First Folio, 37 Plays is a nationwide search for the most exciting new playwriting voices of today.
The RSC has partnered with a network of 12 regional Theatre Partners across the UK for the initiative, which is open to all writers – whether first-time, emerging or professional playwrights.
The judges were announced last month and include Associate Director of the Unicorn Theatre Rachael Bagshaw, award-winning author Sharna Jackson, Associate Editor and Theatre Critic Lyn Gardner, Ian Charleson Award-winning actor Bally Gill, award-winning playwrights Juliet Gilkes-Romero and Mark Ravenhill, RSC Associate Artist Ray Fearon and Actor/Producer David Threlfall. They are joined by Harry and Ella from the RSC’s Youth Advisory Board.
The judging panel is chaired by outgoing Acting Artistic Director of the RSC, Erica Whyman (Hamnet).
The search closed on 31 January 2023, and the 37 plays will be announced on 18 May 2023, and all performed, script-in-hand, across the UK and online in Autumn 2023.
More than 2,000+ plays were submitted and read by a panel of 24 readers, recruited from across the UK. Over a six-week period the readers read 31 plays per week to create an initial longlist of 350 plays.
From the longlist, a total of 71 plays have been shortlisted for commendation, which the judges are now assessing. 90% of entries were submitted by writers aged 18+, 7% by writers aged 11-17 and 3% by writers aged under 11, with the largest number of entries coming from Greater London at 558.
Playwright Mark Ravenhill said on Twitter that: “It was humbling to have so many writers entrust their plays to the RSC and to be invited to read some of them. I’m looking forward to seeing which makes the final 37. The standard was so high.”
37 Plays 2023 Shortlist
- Abigail White – Stars
- Alex Oates – The Filleting App
- Amanda Wilkin – And I Dreamt I was Drowning
- Amber Takhar, Zoe Strods – The Bad Tooth Fairy
- Amy Bethan Evans – LilyPower
- Angela O’Callaghan – keening
- Benjamin Hopwood – Loki-9-Lives
- Billie Collins – Beltane
- Caleb J Mccutcheon – Writer’s block
- Catherine Dyson – The Last Picture
- Catherine Harvey – The Rialto Burns
- Charlotte Bevin – The Story in a Story
- Chloe Banks – Human Resources
- Christopher Loft – The Interview Stage
- Daneka Etchells – rogue comet(s) remnants of a decommissioned star
- Daniel Foxsmith – Riptide
- Dylan Punch – Bruno
- Edward Keppel – Frenemies
- Emmanuel Awkwafo – Dipped in the fountain of manhood
- Eoin McAndrew – Russell
- Errol McGlashan – Something To Take Off The Edge
- Felicity Williamson – Abandoned
- Gareth Jandrell – Sick Children Karaoke
- Grace Hemmings-Buckler – Stargazer
- Halilath Elegbede, Esther Asifiwe, Mapenzi Ukweli, Iqra Haider – Isolation
- Hannah Eggleton – Growing Pains
- Hannah Kennedy – Godmodders & Metagamers
- Hannah Shury-Smith – Go Back Home!
- Harry McCrum – Into the Forest
- Hayley-Rose Jarman-Norris – Effort//less
- Isabella James – Life goes on
- Jack Bradfield – The Habits
- Jacob Thomas – Momentary Masters
- Jennifer Lunn – Core
- Joan Jackson-Callen – Evie of Windrush
- Joanne Thomson – Jack in a Box
- John Booker – Bwoy Dem
- Jordon Grant – The Ever-Changing Sea
- Joy Ngwenya – Rewrite the story
- Kayla Feldman – Watchdog
- Kolbrún Björt Sigfúsdóttir –This Is a Gift
- Kwame Owusu – Dreaming and Drowning
- Lisa Parry – NOT
- Lucy McIntyre – Niamh and the famous frogs
- ‘Created by the Kyra Women’s Project Members in Partnership with Kyra Women’s Project, York Theatre Royal and Thunk-It Theatre.’ – The Stories You Want To Tell
- lydia luke – upright enuf
- maatin – Friday at the masjid
- Martha Wainwright, Jayda Williams, Andre Jeffries, Grace Abra, Rebecca Webb, Alex Logan – ‘Miss’ Treatment
- Maximilian Kufuor – Fish
- Mia Lloyd – Land Wreck
- Molly Sue Cartwright – Alfie and War
- Nancy Netherwood – Radiant Boy
- Naomi Hall – Corridors
- Nell Turner – The SHED
- Oliver Cooney – Belonging
- Patty Kim Hamilton – Re: Jane Doe
- Paulette Jacqueline Holmes – Fix Up Look Sharp
- Rob Thorpe – Woods Butterflies
- Rohan Gotobed – Getting Closer
- Rosanna Jahangard – Pram Talk
- Roua Horanieh – Pizza Visa & Pledging Allegiance to Her Majesty The Queen
- Ruby Kitching – Still Life (with Mangos)
- Ruth D’Silva – Bungalow
- Samantha Robinson – From Lewisham to Llandudno
- Sophie MacDonald – Snow Shoes
- Thiago Varela – Future
- Thomas Bursnoll – The Social Mask
- Tim Wallers – The Doris Effect
- Tom Murray – North Star
- Tom Van Hentenryck – You’re going to hate me
- Tracy Harris – Mum Fighter
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