We are thrilled to announce the 47th Bay Area Playwrights Festival Cohort and Plays!
Mark your calendars for September 18–27, 2026 at The Rueff at A.C.T.’s Strand Theater, and stay tuned for tickets on sale in June!
The hybrid 47th Bay Area Playwrights Festival (BAPF47) welcomes these four transformative playwrights who take us on a journey through inner and outer worlds, traversing time and space to REVIVE long-silenced voices, RESIST the forces that seek to oppress, and RENEW strength, healing, connection, and the power to create change:
HOWLING: A FAIRY TALE by Jordan Bird
THE NEGROES HAVE RISEN by Maxine Dillon
SUICIDE COWBOYS by Greg T. Nanni
BY THE BANKS by christina michelle watkins
We are also excited to highlight 10 honorable mention writers whose plays captivated our readers during the selection process:
Esperanza Rosales Balcárcel, Rebs Chan, Sarah Galante, Katherine Gwynn, DJ Hills, Sepehr Jafari Jozani, Daria Miyeko Marinelli, Sam Mueller, Audley Puglisi, and A Yourd. Swipe to see their plays.
To learn more about the festival, visit our website (link in bio).
There’s still time to join us for a Playwrights Foundation night tomorrow, Thursday, April 30 at 7pm to see FLEX by Candrice Jones at the San Francisco Playhouse ✨🏀✨
FLEX was developed in the 2019 Bay Area Playwrights Festival and went on to its co-produced world premiere at TheatreSquared and Theatrical Outfit, before making its off-Broadway debut at Lincoln Center Theater. We are excited to welcome this play back to the Bay with SF Playhouse's production!
We will gather informally in the lobby at 6:15 pm before the 7:00pm performance to connect with fellow Playwrights Foundation community members.
As a member of the Playwrights Foundation community, you can receive a 40% discount on tickets for this performance. Just email us at the address at the linktree in our bio to get your discount code. You can find the link to puchase tickets in our linktree as well.
We look forward to seeing you there!
Are you passionate about working directly with artists?
Do you love reading new plays?
The Literary Manager is a year round, part time position that will collaborate closely with the Executive Artistic Director and Artistic Producer to manage the application processes and support programming for the Bay Area Playwrights Festival (BAPF) and Resident Playwright Program (RPP), provide dramaturgical and producing support as needed as well as advocate for Playwrights Foundation and alumni within the local and national community.
If this sounds like you, we encourage you to apply! And if you know someone who would excel in this role, please help us spread the word by sharing the job description.
Please submit application by Monday, March 16 for consideration. Interviews will be held on a rolling basis through April 2026 or until the position is filled.
Visit our website or the linktree in our bio for more information and to apply!
We remain steadfastly in support of Lauren Gunderson, a valued member of our community, in the wake of the recent attacks against her character.
Playwrights Foundation has worked closely with Lauren for over 16 years – as a playwright in the Bay Area Playwrights Festival and Resident Playwright program, followed by 8 years of service on our Board of Directors. Her unwavering commitment to writing feminist narratives has existed for decades. Her generosity has extended in countless ways to many women, nonbinary, and trans writers as she strives to dismantle the patriarchal theater industry.
Lauren was also the recipient of our inaugural Impact Award in 2023, recognizing her deep contribution to the field for both uplifting the next generation and writing strong female-centered plays fulfilling a void in the traditional theatrical canon.
We believe her. Anything otherwise would go against her core values and what she stands for. We invite others to show their support for Lauren and encourage the conversation to move on to finding justice for the victims and accountability for those who committed the heinous crimes.
-Executive Artistic Director Jessica Bird Beza and Board of Directors
Celebrating the Life of Nilan
We’re devastated to learn of the recent passing of Playwrights Foundation Alumn Nilan on January 4, 2026, due to a sudden illness involving complications from the flu.
Nilan was an award-winning writer, director, educator, producer, actor, and arts leader whose play ENDANGERED SPECIES appeared in the Bay Area Playwrights Festival in 2017.
Nilan most recently served as Associate Artistic Director of the Drama League in New York and was co-founder of the producing company A Certain Something. His other work includes the plays HEAVEN, HELL, OR CAROLINA, A ROCK AND A HARD PLACE, FOLKtales: STORIES OF THE BLACK DIASPORA, SHADOW IN THE CORNER, OUR PRECEDENT, WILLIE RICHARD JOHNSON, WE LIKE TO PARTY, and THE ALPHABETS, along with adaptations of August Strindberg’s MISS JULIE and Henrik Ibsen’s AN ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE.
In the words of former Playwrights Foundation Artistic Director Amy Mueller, “Nilan was a bright star among a stunning firmament of writers for Playwrights Foundation's 40th Anniversary Bay Area Playwrights Festival – he was funny, deeply intelligent, and had a big, audacious laugh. I am grateful that his play and person were an indelible part of that particular milestone for us. His wonderfully playful use of language, wild dystopian imagination, and generous spirit were evident to the entire creative company – I will never forget his grace. May his prolific words continue to enlighten us and lead us to understanding how our past and present become our future. May he rest in power.”
For more information about Nilan’s life and legacy, visit the linktree in our bio.
A big thank you to our community!
Through your generosity, we were able to raise $26,000 of our $30,000 goal during our end-of-year fundraising campaign to support ongoing programming.
We are so grateful for every gift, large and small, and for your belief in the importance of the work we do and in the power of playwrights and new plays.
If you missed the December 31 deadline, it’s never too late! You can still support our work in the Resident Playwrights Program and the 2026 Bay Area Playwrights Festival this year with a donation at any time. Every gift makes a substantial difference in our ability to deeply and holistically invest in the artists we support.
Visit the linktree in our bio to donate.
There are only a few more hours left to make our goal, and we're halfway there!
Nothing we do would be possible without you, our community.
Your support allows us to invest in the playwrights who have the ability to shape our world, to inspire transformation and hope.
At Playwrights Foundation, we believe storytelling is a communal act. To create inspirational work, playwrights need nurturing – the time and space to reimagine, rethink, and explore possibilities - within a community that supports them to innovate and take risks.
We do more than just develop stories, we cultivate spaces that foster connection, spark conversation, and create opportunities for empathy where all participants feel they have a place in the narrative, offering a powerful antidote to the growing polarization within our country.
This work is only possible thanks to your generosity.
And with the decrease in funding from the federal and state government, we have lost over $50,000 in funding.
We need to raise $15,000 by midnight tonight to keep these creative spaces alive, to continue our programming, to uplift playwrights and the stories they tell.
With your support, we can continue to be a lifeline for those powerful voices who shape not only the future of theater, but transform the world in which we live.
Will you be a spark for artists by giving a gift today?
Click on the linktree in our bio to get us across the finish line! 🎉✨
As we reflect on this past year, we recognize the many ways that being grounded in our values has been our guiding light and helped center us during these challenging times, particularly as multiple core values are being ripped from underneath us and our freedom of speech is under attack.
With our community’s support, this year we were able to continue and deepen our commitment to increasing tangible support for playwrights, artists, and staff alike.
We were able to focus on engagement with our local community with a year of numerous public events and readings, bringing playwrights, theatre makers, and audiences together in conversation and collaboration.
We invite you to join us in celebrating what we accomplished together in 2025!
This work is only possible through the generosity of our community. And with the decrease in funding from the federal and state government, we have lost over $50,000 in funding, and need to raise at least $15,000 by midnight tonight to sustain programming.
Can you help us end the year strong by investing in artists so we can reach our $30,000 goal to continue this essential work?
Thank you for being a part of the Playwrights Foundation community and believing new stories and the playwrights who create them matter!
Click on the linktree in our bio to help us reach our goal!
Join us in welcoming new Playwrights Foundation Board Member Tiiu Eva Rebane!
Tiiu (she/her) has worked professionally in the theater since 1998 and holds a deep love for new work. She holds a BS in Musical Theater from Ball State University, and has performed internationally and in nearly all 50 states. She’s worked in administration with many orgs, including 11 years at San Francisco Playhouse.
She also sits on the board of Ring of Keys, an artist service organization centered around queer women and other LGBTQ+ musical theatre artists. She's excited about the opportunity to serve with Playwrights Foundation, an org she has held in high regard for a very long time.
Welcome, Tiiu!
Join us in welcoming new Playwrights Foundation Board Member Julie McCormick!
Julie McCormick (she/her) is the Leader of Finance & Fundraising on Crowded Fire’s Shared Leadership Team. An arts leader, dramaturg, and fundraiser, she advances the creation of new theatrical works and the sustainability of the artists behind them. Julie has developed new work at Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Crowded Fire Theater, Bay Area Playwrights Festival, TheatreWorks, and beyond, and has raised more than $5 million to bring transformative arts experiences to Bay Area audiences and students. In 2021, she was selected for Intersection for the Arts’ inaugural Nonprofit Arts Finance Program.
Julie believes budgets are moral documents and champions transparent, collective stewardship of resources. She is a graduate of Carleton College.
Welcome, Julie!
Stories, and the power they have to move us and connect us to each other, are central not only to Playwrights Foundation’s purpose, but to our own lives.
This holiday week we are sharing a few favorite holiday stories from our board and staff that are a part of their traditions. We hope it inspires you to think about yours, or discover a new favorite.
What are some holiday stories that are meaningful to you or your loved ones?
Share with us by replying in the comments!
Right now, we need your support to raise $30,000 by December 31 to sustain and grow both the Resident Playwrights Program and Bay Area Playwrights Festival.
Your donation helps ensure that we can continue to nurture and support playwrights as they give voice to new ideas and make profound contributions to the diverse and abundant cultural landscape of the Bay Area and beyond.
Will you consider being a spark for artists and giving a gift so we can continue this essential work? Any amount makes a difference.
Click on the linktree in our bio to invest in artists!
Join us in welcoming new Playwrights Foundation Board Member Zain Kane.
Zain Kane (she/her) is a communications professional and storyteller focused on environmental education and media. She manages communications at Hidden Villa, a 1,600-acre nature preserve. She is a passionate environmentalist and storytelling enthusiast. She created Content Corps, a youth green media program teaching high school students environmental storytelling through digital media.
Her work explores urban ecology, environmental justice, and how different communities relate to nature. She's currently developing The Oakland Wilds, an animated series celebrating Bay Area biodiversity and overlooked urban ecosystems.
Welcome, Zain!
