Alyssa Bresnahan as Thetis in the 2000 Denver Center Theatre Company production of Tantalus. Photo by p. switzer

New Play Development at the DCPA: A flourishing endeavor since 1979

The Denver Center for the Performing Arts has a long history of cultivating new works. Since its inception in 1979, the DCPA has produced 147 world premieres, presented readings of 210 new works, and commissioned 47 playwrights. Even before the Colorado New Play Summit’s creation in 2006, the DCPA has been involved in the enrichment […]

Jamie Ann Romero smiles onstage during Cebollas rehearsal

Playwrights Announced for the 17th Annual Colorado New Play Summit

The DCPA Theatre Company is proud to announce playwrights, dates, and details for the 2023 Colorado New Play Summit. The 17th annual festival will take place over one weekend on February 25-26, and feature readings of new plays by Jake Brasch, Vincent Terrell Durham, Christina Pumariega, and Sandy Rustin. The festival will also feature Laughs in Spanish by Alexis Scheer […]

Actors read from music stands onstage for Shooting Star

What Is a New Play Commission?

What is a new play commission? Much like a realtor, salesclerk or stockbroker, a playwright can earn a commission for their work…specifically for their new work. Typically speaking, a new play commission is when a theatre company pays a playwright to write a script, generally with the understanding that the company has the first right […]

Patrick Elkins-Zeglarski works with young actors onstage

Mentoring Student Playwrights: Patrick Elkins-Zeglarski

The Denver Center for the Performing Arts’ (DCPA) Student Playwriting Competition held its staged readings during the 2022 Colorado New Play Summit. But these plays have a slightly different journey to the stage than those of the professional playwrights. The main difference? The young playwrights receive guidance from the DCPA Education team to hone their […]

Students stand in a circle onstage in the Weeks Conservatory Theatre

High School Playwriting: The promising future ahead

The future of creative writing in Colorado would appear to be bright: The winners of the DCPA’s high school playwriting competition have diverse styles and interests, resulting in three very different one-act plays: from madcap comedy to politically tinged fantastical drama to a somber meditation on the teen mental health crisis. Now in its ninth […]

Colorado New Play Summit

Colorado New Play Summit: The Gift of Collaboration

By: Joanne Ostrow Someday there will be costumes, props, scenery and lighting. For now, the messy process of shaping and fine tuning a play, hearing what works and what doesn’t, takes place in bare-bones, all-day marathons over two weekends of readings. With actors stationed at music stands, scripts before them, the words (with luck and […]

Colorado New Play Summit image of two women laughing and acting out lines while reading

Progression of a Script

Since our inception in 1979, the DCPA Theatre Company has been committed to new works. In fact, our very first season included the world premiere of Passing Game by Steve Tesich. By our 1982/83 season we had held our first public reading of a work in development — A Beautiful World by David Jones. Our […]

Colorado New Play Summit image of two women laughing and acting out lines while reading

New Play Festivals Across the U.S.

Every year, the Denver Center for the Performing Arts hosts the Colorado New Play Summit, featuring new play readings and attracting theatre industry leaders and artists. Launch Weekend showcases stripped-down readings of plays in development, so the playwright, director, and audience can focus entirely on the story. After receiving audience feedback, the productions spend the […]