BERKSHIRE PLAYWRIGHTS LAB INC Information

BPL is the only theater company in Berkshire County that focuses exclusively on new play development. It provides emerging and established playwrights with a supportive environment to develop their work while offering local audiences high-quality theater experiences at little or no cost. BPL’s programs include: • The Summer Reading Series, BPL’s signature program, offers 3-5 staged readings of new plays each summer that are developed in an intense rehearsal process that provides playwrights an opportunity to work closely with a director and professional actors to refine their script. The resulting fully-staged, script-in-hand performance is offered at a low cost, making theater available to those with limited financial means and ensuring a more diverse audience for the playwright. • Fully Staged Productions of new plays give playwrights the opportunity to take their work to the next level in their development by seeing it come to life in front of an enthusiastic, sophisticated and responsive audience. In 2017, BPL produced the world premiere of Some Old Black Man by James A. Tyler, which moved to Off'Broadway in 2018. • The Radius Playwrights Festival, launched in January 2017, features fully staged readings of new, short plays by playwrights who have a residence within a 50-mile radius of Great Barrington. The goal of Radius is to build a local community of theater artists in the Berkshires, allowing playwrights to connect and share ideas that will promote the latest and best in regional playwriting. • Writer’s Group/Berkshire Voices was created by and for local residents to provide key support and resources for writers at every stage of their careers, fostering supportive artistic relationships across generations and experience levels. For more information go to www.berkshireplaywrightslab.org