The Terrence McNally New Works Incubator has opened submissions for its third cycle. The program, supported by Off-Broadway’s Rattlestick Theater, the Terrence McNally Foundation and Tom Kirdahy Productions (TKP), provides time, space, access and financial resources to early-career playwrights. Three McNally Fellows will be chosen in spring 2025.
Once accepted to the incubator, each McNally Fellow will be paired with a veteran playwright for mentorship. The established artist will read a minimum of two drafts of the fellow’s new works and provide feedback. The program then allows the fellow to revise their work over a three-week period alongside their mentor and other artists from Rattlestick and TKP. The development process for the new work will culminate in a 29-hour public reading featuring industry professionals.
Each fellow will receive a $7,500 stipend. Applicants go through two rounds of consideration, and finalists meet with a panel of representatives from Rattlestick, TKP and the Playwrights Advisory Council, a committee of writers including Tony Award winner and Pulitzer Prize finalist David Henry Hwang, Tony nominees and Pulitzer winners Lynn Nottage and Paula Vogel, as well as Sheila Callaghan, Christopher Chen and Halley Feiffer.
“The Rattlestick’s Terrence McNally Incubator is a peerless program, fostering unique voices by pairing them with like-minded mentors and benefiting them both in the process,” said Feiffer in a statement. “The opportunity to then further develop the work in a 29-hour workshop with top-tier creatives is a dream-come-true for any writer. The Rattlestick has always been a haven for daring new voices and this initiative only furthers that singular aim by cementing the future of ambitious playwriting in a strong and salient way.”
“We could not be prouder of how the Terrence McNally New Works Incubator has grown to become an integral part of New York City’s playwriting ecosystem,” added Santino DeAngelo, the Foundation’s executive director. “Under the brilliant guidance of Rattlestick artistic director Will Davis, we nurture bold voices and groundbreaking stories with the same passion and integrity that defined Terrence’s legacy.”
The incubator is named for the late Terrence McNally, whose career as a playwright and librettist garnered two Best Play Tony Awards (for “Love! Valour! Compassion!” and “Master Class”), two Best Book of a Musical Tonys (for “Kiss of the Spider Woman” and “Ragtime”) and a special Tony for lifetime achievement. McNally’s spouse, Tony-winning producer Tom Kirdahy, launched the playwright’s namesake foundation in 2022.
Applications for the Incubator are currently being accepted through Jan. 9, 2025, or whenever 500 applications have been received. Additional information about the program can be found here.
