STANDING GUIDELINES OF THE OLD
September 2008
I. SUBMISSION GUIDELINES
The OPP member schedules a Monday night reading of his/her play with the secretary. The playwright also selects a facilitator from the membership to lead a critique session following the reading. It is advisable to engage a facilitator before the reading so he/she can review the work and prepare for the discussion.
Generally, OPP reads only one full-length play during a regularly scheduled meeting (50 pages or more) or several shorter plays by one or multiple authors.
II.
PLAY
OPTIONS
Playwrights have several options regarding the reading of their plays.
-The Cold or Table Reading: The play is cast from the people in attendance at the regularly scheduled OPP meeting. The readers have not read the script and no director is required.
-Actors as Readers: The play is cast using actors the playwright has engaged previous to the reading. Generally no rehearsal is involved and no director.
-Actors as Readers with Rehearsals: The play is cast using actors the playwright has engaged, the reading is rehearsed and a director might be involved.
-Staged Reading at the Festival: After at least two readings at regularly scheduled OPP meetings, plays can be voted on to determine if they are ready to be included in OPP’s annual Festival of New Plays. These staged readings are performed before an audience from the community at large with scripts in hand, incorporate a director, actors, up to five rehearsals, some blocking and some props. (See below for details.)
III. PLAY CRITIQUES
A facilitator chosen by the playwright previous to the reading leads the follow-up critique session. His/her job is mainly to field questions, clarify points and keep the discussion on track. All those who choose to participate in the discussion must direct their comments to the facilitator. The facilitator may, at any time, interrupt and cease discussion that in his/her opinion constitutes badgering or a personal attack on anyone present.
Prior to the reading, the playwright may give questions to the facilitator that he/she wishes to have raised during the critique session. Playwrights are not allowed to participate in the critique nor at any time justify, explain or talk about aspects of the play. When discussion is complete as determined by the facilitator, the playwright may ask questions for clarification of points made.
Participants should confine their reactions to the material at hand. We believe it is neither appropriate nor the business of OPP members to offer ideas, changes or suggestions to the playwright regarding how to improve the play. Playwrights are free, of course, to seek out this sort of input apart from the session.
Upon occasion, a past member and/or members of the community may present a project providing no current member has a play reading scheduled. These people from the community at large may submit only one project a year unless they decide to become an OPP member.
Playwrights must be present at any regularly scheduled OPP meeting where their play is being read for the purposes of a critique.
IV.
THE STAGED
The ultimate purpose of writing plays is to achieve performance. Therefore, OPP will plan at least one public presentation each year – Old Pueblo Playwrights New Play Festival. It consists of staged readings.
PLAY SELECTION
An OPP member’s work is eligible for Festival selection voting immediately after its second reading and subsequent readings and discussions at an OPP meeting. The author may decline to put the work to a vote in which case the work will be deemed not ready for public performance. Because our play-polishing process is crucial to our improvement as playwrights, and to maintain the integrity of the Festival, later substantially rewritten drafts of plays deemed ready for public performance should be presented as readings at regular meetings. These later drafts will be submitted to a new vote unless the playwright declines. In that case, see above.
VOTING
Voting will take place by secret ballot immediately after the critque has concluded or when there are multiple works read and discussed at a single meeting, at the conclusions of the final discussion.
Only current members and associate members in attendance may vote. The author of the work being considered may not vote.
The question will be: IS THIS PLAY READY FOR A PUBLIC PERFORMANCE? Voting membership indicate either yes or no.
The president will appoint two people, neither of whom is the author, to collect and tally the ballots in secret. The results of the voting will not be announced to those in attendance or the general membership, but will be shared confidentially with the author, president and secretary. Only the final result may be divulged, not the margin of yes versus no votes. (Unless excluded as the author, either the president or secretary or both may tally the results.)
A work may be deemed ready for public performance if it receives four yes votes or yes votes from a majority of those voting. Whichever is the great number.
The president and secretary will keep a record of all works deemed ready for public performance and, at the appropriate time, will schedule those works for staged readings at the public performance.
If in the event that there are more works deemed ready for public performance than available presentation opportunities, the membership will vote using a numerical rating or some other appropriate method. Those plays with the highest number of votes will be included in the public performance. Plays voted ready yet excluded from the up-coming public performance due to this final selection process will still be deemed ready for any subsequent public performance.
Playwrights must be available to attend rehearsals and the actual staged reading of their play during the Festival.
AUDITIONS
Open auditions for actors will be held by OPP as required to prepare for a public performance. At that time, playwrights and directors will constitute the selection committee. Pre-casting is discouraged as it can trouble actors who presume all roles are available. Exceptions can be made if an actor has played a specific role at OPP readings during the year and wishes to perform the role again.