MISSION STATEMENT: Powerstories is a nonprofit professional theatre whose mission is to stage true stories of women and girls to open minds and hearts
and inspire action worldwide.
Showcasing the Works of Women Playwrights March 2026
Powerstories’ Voices of Women Festival encourages submissions from women-identifying playwrights, playwrights of color, and other underrepresented groups. We are committed to promoting intersectional equity and enabling various submissions related to the theater of historically marginalized populations, including Black, Indigenous, and People of Color communities.
For the 2026 Voices of Women Theatre Festival, we are accepting the following:
- We will select one play from – General Submission open to any women playwrights – (60-120 minutes) – Powerstories-produced rehearsed staged reading
- We will select one play from – Women Playwrights over 40 – ( 60-120 minutes) – Powerstories-produced rehearsed staged reading
- We will be seeking 10-minute plays from playwrights local to the Tampa Bay area later this fall. Follow us on Social Media or subscribe to our newsletter to be the first to know when submissions are open for 10-minute plays.
FULL-LENGTH SUBMISSION GUIDELINES
- There is a $10 fee to submit your play.
- Dramatist Guild members are exempt but will need to supply verification.
- Playwrights may only submit one play.
- Playwrights must not submit previously submitted works to any Powerstories opportunity.
- Play must be unproduced, new works, OR works not recently produced.
- We will not accept musicals.
- Submit only the first ten pages.
- We will ask for the whole play if selected for the final round for consideration.
- Your submission can have any theme.
- The setting of your play should be simple or suggested.
- The maximum cast size is 5.
- Your submission reflects overall quality and is a substantially developed and well-written play.
- Your submission is no longer than 120 minutes.
- All plays should be submitted as PDFs with the title in caps, followed by the playwright’s name. Example: VOW 2026 Playwright Name
- Play’s cover sheet must include the author’s information (name, address, telephone, email). A short synopsis is encouraged.
- Any stage play format is acceptable.
- If selected for Powerstories to produce:
- You will be available for a playwright promotional interview before the festival.
- You will actively promote your productions to boost ticket sales and share pertinent marketing information about the festival.
- Powerstories will produce a rehearsed reading of two full-length plays.
- Our selected playwrights will work side-by-side with their directors and cast to workshop the work in real-time before it is performed as a staged reading to a live audience.
- Powerstories will hire a director to audition for the roles, manage the project, and incur all costs of the reading.
- We will provide a professionally moderated talkback and written feedback.
- Powerstories will offer selected playwrights a small stipend to help offset the costs of participating in the development process.
- We would be delighted to have selected playwrights attend the development process in person. However, the playwright is not required to be in residence as Powerstories is unable to cover travel and housing costs.
- The playwright must be available for rehearsals via Zoom.
- Powerstories will consider your new work for a main stage production in our Season of Shows.
- In 2023, Carolyn Gage’s submission from Voices of Women 2021, “In McClintock’s Corn” opened our 23rd season on the main stage.
- You will receive an All-Access Festival Pass to support your fellow playwrights’ works.
- All plays will be videotaped and included as part of the digital encore in the second week.
- After the festival’s close, all plays will have a complimentary digital recording available to the playwright.
- We trust that your play will be exclusively presented with Powerstories Theatre’s Voices of Women Theatre Festival in the Tampa Bay Area and will not be produced directly before or after the festival (January 2026 – April 2026).
- Scripts must be received by September 15, 2025.
