by Diane Grant

I’ve been a member of The Alliance of Los Angeles Playwrights and a vice-chair for a couple of decades now and have benefited from its support, excellent symposiums, and submission opportunities.  I’ve met some wonderful playwrights who have often provided insights into the process of writing and marketing, and who have been, more importantly, lots of fun.

Dan Berkowitz, our co-chair, wrote the following about our new venture.  It’s late notice  – the deadline is February the 28th – but I’m hoping that some of our LAFPIers and bloggers can take advantage of ALAP’s entry into the 2014 Hollywood Fringe. 

For 15 years, The Alliance of Los Angeles Playwrights (ALAP) has presented a Fall Reading Festival of members’ plays. This year, instead of a Reading Festival in the fall, we’re going to present a Festival of Member Plays at the 2014 Hollywood Fringe!

Plays must be under 10 minutes in running time.
Plays must be inspired in some way by the theme “Sex, Lies, and Social Media.”
Plays may have been previously produced or published, or they can be brand-new works you write just for the Festival.
Plays will be read blindly by a panel of judges who have no affiliation with ALAP.

If your play is chosen, it will become part of the Hollywood Fringe Festival, with five performances between June 9 and 29, at Theatre Asylum’s Elephant Studio.

If your play is chosen, you will be responsible for its production as a component of the overall evening, either by casting and directing it yourself or choosing a director and working with him/her. ALAP will support you and offer guidance if needed; if you’re one of our out-of-the-area members, we will put you in touch with the directors in our Database, and you will have access to the ALAP Actor Database as well.

There is no submission fee, and no fee to participate in the Festival. However, playwrights must be current ALAP members to submit. ALAP membership is open to all. To join, visit the website http://laplaywrights.org/ and click “Join ALAP” in the left-hand navigation column. 

ALAP membership is $45 a year. 

Though ALAP is not a producing organization, it feels that participating in the Hollywood Fringe will give its members another platform from which to launch their work into the big bad world of LA theatre audiences. To this end, ALAP will act as presenters and promoters of the 5 chosen plays – the chosen playwrights will not have to put up any money to participate – which together will (hopefully) create a stunning evening of theatre.

By offering members a chance to self-produce a short play – without having to worry about finding or paying for a venue, or being solely responsible for publicity – we also hope to foster a sense of adventure and self-reliance, and provide an opportunity for members to expand their scope of experience.

Submissions close February 28. The rules and entry form can be found at http://laplaywrights.org/14FestivalEntryForm.pdf or by visiting the ALAP website http://laplaywrights.org/ and scrolling to the bottom of the right-hand column.

Of Sex, Lies, and Social Media, I’m familiar with only two, not saying which ones, so probably won’t be submitting but I hope many of you will be.