The Soho Rep Writer/Director Lab was founded in 1998 to explore and develop the work of an emerging generation of theater artists, and to foster new collaborations between writers and directors in the beginning stages of the creative process. They are currently accepting submission for the 2007/2008 Writer/Director Lab.

DEADLINE is 5 P.M. Friday May 25th, 2007. NOT A POSTMARK DEADLINE. Any scripts received after this date will not opened. Download an application at sohorep.org.

More info after the jump.

Writers and directors must apply separately. At the start of the cycle, each writer invited to join the Lab is matched with a director. Writers interested in participating in the Lab’s 2007/2008 cycle are asked to apply with a project proposal. Ideally, this is a project you feel will benefit from both group input and close work with a director. The proposed project must be a play in the earliest stages of development, one you have recently begun or would like to begin work on in the coming months. Please go into detail. Note that complete or near-complete drafts of plays will not be considered for this program.

Interested directors are asked to provide a one-page statement of purpose outlining their theatrical sensibilities and concerns. We consider these statements carefully when pairing writers with directors, so please be specific.

From October 2007 – April 2008, the Lab meets on alternate weeks. Writers agree in advance to bring in work three times during the six-month cycle. At each meeting, Lab members read the plays aloud, writers and director serving as actors, then together discuss the work. There is an expectation that the writer and director will collaborate outside the confines of the meetings, so that significant progress will be evident each time the writer brings a new draft to the group.

At the end of the cycle, each of the plays born from the Lab is presented in a reading series at Soho Rep.  In selecting members for the 2007/2008 Lab, Soho Rep has a policy of favoring new applicants and forging new artistic collaborations. While we value some degree of continuity, we wish to place emphasis on providing this opportunity for new members, and expanding the circle of artists who might profit from this program.