NAPLES, Fla. – This September, the annual New Works Festival will return to Gulfshore

Playhouse for the first time since 2019. Gulfshore Playhouse is thrilled to announce the ten finalists from which three winners will ultimately be chosen to participate in the week-long Festival.

Each New Works Festival submission is reviewed during a months-long anonymous process by a committee of theater professionals. The ten finalists are then chosen by the theater’s artistic team, and ultimately three winners will take part in the Festival.

The Annual New Works Festival will take place at Gulfshore Playhouse from September 7 through September 18, 2022. The Festival will include developmental workshops for the winning plays and will culminate with staged readings.

The ten finalists are:

• “Acts of Creation” by Brianna Barrett
• “Compromised” by Mike Bencivenga
• “Ellie” by Bruce Bonafede
• “Beheading Columbus” by Diana Burbano
• “James of Nazareth” by Lisa Dellagiarino Feriend
• “Welcome to Vital Vista Village” by Katie Forgette
• “Jagged Journey” by Elana Gartner
• “Un Hombre” by Stephen Kaplan
• “A Danger to Yourself and Others” by Colette Mazunik
• “Footprint” by Jennie Webb

“As a member organization of the League of Resident Theatres, we believe it is our duty to contribute to the creation of new work. Each of the winners chosen during our months-long selection process will receive much needed actor input, revision time, and a staged reading that will help in its development. These are plays we may or may not produce at the Playhouse, but believe they will be served by this detailed work and specific feedback that a professional director, talented cast, and invested audience can provide,” said Kristen Coury, Founder and Producing Artistic Director.

In addition to the three winners, who will each receive 16 hours of rehearsal which will culminate in a staged reading, Gulfshore Playhouse will also workshop two new plays that it has interest in

specifically developing for future production. These two plays have been selected for development by the artistic team at Gulfshore Playhouse and will receive a full two-week workshop. These plays will also be performed as staged readings with light blocking and some props alongside the three winners. A

post-performance Q&A with the playwright of each show will follow each performance. This gives the playwright a vital opportunity to receive feedback from an audience, a vital part of a play’s development process. Tickets to the staged readings are available to be purchased at www.gulfshoreplayhouse.org.

Gulfshore Playhouse is passionately committed to enriching the cultural landscape of our region by producing professional theatre to the highest artistic standards and providing unique educational opportunities to diverse groups of people in a spirit of service, adventure, and excitement. The work of Gulfshore Playhouse is inspired by a belief in the magic of theatre to expand the imagination, challenge the senses, provoke discussion, and revitalize in its audiences an understanding of our common humanity. This belief drives the care with which Gulfshore Playhouse treats its artists, audiences, students, staff, and members of the greater community.

Gulfshore Playhouse recently began construction on the state-of-the-art Baker Theatre and Education Center. Located at the corner of Goodlette-Frank Road and 1st Avenue South, the gateway to downtown Naples, the facility will house a 350-seat mainstage theatre and a 125-seat studio space, in addition to numerous event, rehearsal, and educational spaces. Naming opportunities are still available.

For more information about Gulfshore Playhouse or its new facility, or to make a contribution, visit www.gulfshoreplayhouse.org or call 239-261-PLAY.