Meridith Grundei, shown performing in ‘Sweet & Lucky’ in 2016, will head Off-Center’s new ‘micro-theatre’ project. Photo by Adams VisCom.

DCPA’s Off-Center is accepting submissions of original short plays and performance pieces from Colorado artists.

Off-Center, the Denver Center’s most unconventional line of programming, is seeking submissions of original short plays and performance pieces by Colorado artists for production. The deadline to submit is March 5.

Each of the five chosen works will be awarded $1,000 and produced as part of an evening of “micro theatre” that will run for 24 performances at BookBar in October and November 2018.

“Micro-theatre is essentially short pieces with incredibly intimate audiences of just 10 to 15 people,” said Off-Center Curator Charlie Miller. “It’s a unique approach to performance that is popular internationally, and we are excited to bring the format to Denver,”

This event is conceived and will be led by newly named 2017 True West Award winner Meridith Grundei, who also was featured as one of Westword’s 2017 Colorado Creatives. Grundei recently directed Beowulf: A Thousand Years of Baggage for The Catamounts in Boulder. That was a blood-pumping, leather-clad, sexy-weird gypsy-punk musical take on the ninth-century epic poem. She also has recently appeared in Off-Center’s immersive Sweet & Lucky and the DCPA Theatre Company’s Frankenstein. Last summer, she played Curtis in Colorado Shakespeare Festival’s The Taming of the Shrew.

“Meridith was inspired by the micro theatre she experienced in Mexico,” Miller said. “Her passion was infectious, and it was clear that this format would be a perfect fit for Off-Center as a different kind of site-specific theatrical experience.”

Read about Meredith Grundei’s 2017 True West Award

Miller is also looking forward to the ways this project will engage the larger Denver artistic community.

“In addition to Colorado-based playwrights and creators, Off-Center also plans to hire all performers and other collaborators locally,” Miller said.

This evening of micro theatre will feature five short original works by local artists. It will be performed environmentally at BookBar, with each piece performing in a different indoor or outdoor space simultaneously. The evening will accommodate around 70 audience members; groups of ten at a time will see each piece in different orders. During scheduled breaks between performances, audiences will drink wine, eat tapas and socialize.

More Colorado theatre coverage on the DCPA NewsCenter

Presenting these new works in a non-traditional setting also created the opportunity for a new partnership between Off-Center and BookBar, a community bookstore and wine bar that features a highly curated selection of titles for all ages.

“BookBar is a local business we admire,” Miller said. “They regularly host literary events that bring the community together over food and wine and we can’t wait to activate their spaces with new stories by Colorado creatives,” Miller said.

Submission Guidelines

Submissions must:

• Be original, unpublished works that have not been previously produced. Writers/creators must have sole rights to all matters contained within the piece.
• Be written/created by a Colorado resident
• Have a run time of between 10 and 15 minutes, and be no more than 30 pages
• Feature no more than three performers
• Reference or relate to a work of literature
• Take place in a location where there are books (a library, book store, living room, etc.)
• Have simple technical and production needs
• Be submitted online by 11:59 p.m. on March 5 at dcpa.today/micro

Performance pieces that incorporate different art forms (dance/movement, music, visual art, etc.) are also encouraged to apply. To propose a non-scripted interdisciplinary work, please submit a written description of the work and include imagery or links to video to help convey your ideas.

The Denver Center for the Performing Arts provides equal opportunities to all applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, gender, national origin, age, or disability. Applicants must be age 16 or older.

Formatting Guidelines

• Scripts must be typed in a generally accepted play-style format, with 12-point font and must be page-numbered. We will only accept PDF documents.
• The first page/title page must contain ONLY the title of the piece. Do not put the author’s name anywhere on the manuscript.

Other Rules

• We will only accept one submission per person
• Scripts/proposals not in compliance will not be considered
• By submitting, you give DCPA Off-Center the rights to produce and perform the work in 2018. You agree (if selected) to collaborate with our team through the rehearsal and production process.
• Winners are encouraged to make changes to their scripts through the development and rehearsal process, in collaboration with the production team.
• The selection committee has the sole discretion over the manner in which the works are judged, and its determination of the winners will be final

Selection Process

Submissions will be reviewed blindly by a selection committee comprised of members of the DCPA staff and associated artists. All applicants will be notified via email in April 2018 and winners will be announced publicly at a later date.

Questions? Email offcenter@dcpa.org