Program Information
Dates
Application Deadline: October 23, 2024
Program Dates: April 21 – May 03, 2025
Overview
The newly reimagined Playwrights Lab 2025 program offers an inspiring, interdisciplinary, and inclusive environment for both emerging and established playwrights, dramaturgs and creators of new theatrical work. We invite playwrights to develop compelling new work, with urgent narratives across all genres. Join us during this pivotal time when the theatre community is facing both crisis and renewal and where playwrights are the foundation for leading the way forward.
Description
Twenty Canadian writers will participate in a two-week residency gaining invaluable experience under the guidance of expert faculty. This residency provides a unique opportunity to refine your craft and connect with fellow playwrights. Emerging playwrights will receive hands-on instruction and practical feedback. Established playwrights will have more self-directed time to work on their projects. Participants will benefit from:
- Thematic Teaching: Explore key themes and techniques.
- Q&A Sessions: Engage in discussions with faculty.
- Seminars: Attend insightful seminars on various aspects of playwriting.
- One-on-One Workshopping: Receive personalized feedback and support.
- Studio Space: Playwrights will be offered a workspace suited to the nature of their creative projects.
- Dramaturgical Sessions: Develop your work with expert dramaturgical guidance.
- Apprentice Dramaturgs will receive mentorship from the faculty, and the ability to audit sessions where appropriate.
Faculty will offer constructive feedback, share ideas, and address the challenges of writing for contemporary theatre.
Requirements
- Playwrights at all stages of their careers who are looking to dedicate time to developing their scripts.
- Plays and ideas with a clear goal for production and a well-defined plan for the residency.
This year’s Lab features three application streams:
- Emerging Playwrights: For writers with less than 5 years of practice and fewer than 2 professionally produced plays. Emerging playwrights will receive hands-on instruction and practical feedback.
- Established Playwrights: For those with significant experience who are looking for dedicated time to work on their projects.
- Apprentice Dramaturg: For those interested in receiving mentorship from faculty and the opportunity to audit sessions where appropriate.
Please identify your preferred stream in your application.
Collaborative groups of no more than two co-writers are welcome to apply but both parties must attend the full program to be considered.
Eligibility
Applicants must be 18+ at the time of the program start date.
Applications are open to Canadians and Permanent Residents only. Under the Jay Treaty in North America, Indigenous candidates are encouraged to apply.
- Only plays written in English are eligible for the Lab at this time.
- Plays that are commissioned by other theatres or producers are able to be accepted into the program but please include written permission from the commissioner stating that they support your application.
- If you are working on an adaptation to stage, please upload your signed permission or contract from the rights holder to work on the piece.
- For plays that are scheduled for premiere: provide information about the production, including dates and creative team.
- Playwrights who have attended the Lab or Retreat in the past 2 years or any other Banff Centre residencies in 12 months preceding the Lab are not eligible to apply.
Inclusivity Statement
We welcome applicants of all ages (18+), backgrounds, gender identities and expressions to apply. Artists from historically underrepresented and equity deserving groups are especially welcome.
Faculty
Keith Barker
Keith Barker is a Métis artist from Northwestern Ontario. Keith is the director of the Foerster Bernstein New Play Development Program at the Stratford Festival, and the former Artistic Director at Native Earth Performing Arts in Toronto.
In 2023, Keith was a recipient of the Johanna Metcalf Prize, in 2020 he received a Dora Mavor Award for Outstanding New Play and the Playwrights Guild of Canada’s Carol Bolt Award. Keith was a finalist for the Governor General's Literary Award for Drama in 2018 for his play, This Is How We Got Here. He received a Saskatchewan and Area Theatre Award for Achievement in Playwriting for his play, The Hours That Remain, as well as a Yukon Arts Award for Best Art for Social Change. Keith returned to the stage in 2023, playing Louis Riel in France Koncan's Women of the Furtrade for the Stratford Festival. Other acting credits include Richard Hannay in Bruce County Playhouse's The 39 Steps, Cornwall in the National Arts Centre's Production of King Lear, Roger Hughes in Seeds, and Bernard Smoke in Fury at the Blyth Festival.
Inua Ellams
Born in Nigeria, Inua Ellams is a poet, playwright & performer, graphic artist & designer and founder of: The Midnight Run (an arts-filled, night-time, urban walking experience.), The Rhythm and Poetry Party (The R.A.P Party) which celebrates poetry & hip hop, and Poetry + Film / Hack (P+F/H) which celebrates Poetry and Film. Identity, Displacement & Destiny are reoccurring themes in his work, where he tries to mix the old with the new: traditional African oral storytelling with contemporary poetics, paint with pixel, texture with vector. His books are published by Flipped Eye, Akashic, Nine Arches, Penned In The Margins, Oberon & Methuen.
International Playwright in Residence
Colleen Murphy
Born in Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec, and raised in Northern Ontario, Colleen Murphy won the 2016 and 2007 Governor General's Literary Award for English Language Drama for her plays Pig Girl and The December Man / L'homme de décembre respectively. Both plays were also awarded a Carol Bolt Award. Other plays include The Breathing Hole (shortlisted for the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize and the Carol Bolt Award), The Society For The Destitute Presents Titus Bouffonius, I Hope My Heart Burns First, Armstrong's War, The Goodnight Bird, The Piper, and Beating Heart Cadaver, which was shortlisted for a Governor General's Literary Award. She is also a librettist - Fantasma for composer lan Cusson, My Mouth On Your Heart for composer August Murphy-King, and Oksana G. for composer Aaron Gervais - and is an award-winning filmmaker. She has been Writer-in-Residence at seven universities and Playwright-in-Residence at two Canadian theatres as well as at Finborough Theatre in the UK. She is a member of the Order of Canada.
Yvette Nolan
Yvette Nolan (Algonquin) is a playwright, director and dramaturg who works across Turtle Island. Her works include the plays The Unplugging and Annie Mae’s Movement, the dance-opera Bearing, the libretto Shanawdithit, the short play-for-film Katharsis, the VR piece Reconciling. She recently co-created Wreckonciliation with Marion Newman and Melody Courage at Opera Kelowna, and is working on a musical adaptation of The Englishman’s Boy with Ian Cusson, Allan Gilliland, Josh Languedoc, Vern Thiessen and Royce Vavrek. Other directing projects include Frances Koncan’s Women of the Fur Trade at Stratford Festival, Julie Tamiko Manning’s Mizushōbai at Tableau d’Hôte, Leah-Simone Bowen’s The Flood at Imago, both in Montreal, and Donna-Michelle St. Bernard’s play The First Stone at New Harlem and GCTC in Toronto and Ottawa. From 2003-2011, she served as Artistic Director of Native Earth Performing Arts. Her book, Medicine Shows, about Indigenous performance in Canada was published by Playwrights Canada Press in 2015.
Emma Tibaldo
Emma is Artist in Residence at Concordia University, and a Director and Dramaturg. She is the former Artistic and Executive Director of Playwrights’ Workshop Montreal, where for fourteen years, she dramaturgically collaborated on many plays, including Mizushōbai by Julie Tamiko Manning, Thy Woman’s Weeds by Erin Shields, Jabber by Marcus Youssef, Squawk by Megan Gail Coles, Instant by Erin Shields, I am Genius, Does Anyone Here Know Me? by Lois Brown, and Behaviour by Darrah Teitel.
Emma has directed new Canadian plays across the country, including Grace and Falling Trees by Megan Gail Coles, Okinum by Emilie Monnet (co-director), Refuge by Mary Vingoe, I Don’t Even Miss You by Elena Belyea, The Baklawa Recipe by Pascale Rafie. She co-founded Talisman Theatre for whom she directed, among others, the award-winning productions That Woman by Daniel Danis, Down Dangerous Passes Road by Michel Marc Bouchard, and The Medea Effect by Suzie Bastien. She co-created Skin, a performance piece with the interdisciplinary company The Bakery.
Emma is a recipient of LMDA’s Elliott Hayes Award for Outstanding Achievement in Dramaturgy, and the Conseil Québécois du théâtre Prix Sentinelle. She is a graduate of Concordia University’s Theatre Department, and NTS’ Directing Program. She feeds her inner punk rocker by playing in basement bands The Tibaldos and The Dépanneurds
PHOTO: Bernardo Fernandez
Nina Lee Aquino
Nina Lee Aquino, a Filipino Canadian, is a renowned director, dramaturge, and artistic leader. Her journey began as the inaugural Artistic Director of fu-GEN Asian Canadian theatre company, where she organized the first Asian Canadian theatre conference and edited a seminal anthology of Asian Canadian plays, alongside co-editing an award-winning book on the subject. She became Artistic Director at Cahoots Theatre Company and Factory Theatre, leading to her current role as Artistic Director of English Theatre at the National Arts Centre.
Aquino's directorial work has garnered prestigious awards, including the Ken McDougall Award, John Hirsch Prize, Toronto Theatre Critics Award for Best Director, and three Dora Awards for Outstanding Direction. She co-authored the play Miss Orient(ed) and serves as an Adjunct Professor at York University. Additionally, Aquino was the President of the Professional Association of Canadian Theatre from 2018-2024. In 2019, she was honored with the Toronto Arts Foundation’s Margo Bindhart and Rita Davies Cultural Leadership Award.
Phot by Cesar Ghisilieri
What's Included
Accommodation
Read more
Close
Your program fee includes a single bedroom on the Banff Centre campus for the duration of your program.
Get connected with other artists on campus and focus on your projects in a creative environment while we take care of the day-to-day essentials.
Meal Plan
Read more
Close
Using a credit-based system to dine on campus, our flexible meal plans allow you to select meals according to your own needs during your stay. Banff Centre can respond to most dietary requests.
The Regular meal plan is equivalent to $53 credit per day, equivalent to two meals at our Buffet service.
Studio Space
Read more
Close
Playwrights will be offered a work space suited to the nature of their creative projects.
Group Seminars/Workshop
Read more
Close
Play readings and other activities may be available during the program.
Campus Facilities
Read more
Close
- Participant Resources: Enrich your experience and get to know other artists on campus by taking advantage of the activities and support provided.
- Sally Borden Fitness and Recreation Centre: Your program fee includes free access to the swimming pool, climbing gym and fitness suite as well as discounted rates for classes.
- Box Office Discounts: Enjoy special artist rates or complimentary access for ticketed performances.
Paul D. Fleck Library and Archives
Read more
Close
Fees & Financial Assistance
Total fee per person (Tuition, Accommodation and Meal Plan)
$3 616.20
You pay (fee after scholarship applied)
$0.00
Application Fee
$65 for individuals or groups, $35 for applicants who identify as Indigenous.
The application fee is non-refundable. 100% of this fee goes towards the cost of administering the application in SlideRoom.
Scholarships
We are pleased to offer scholarships to support participants in our program. Below are details regarding the scholarship amount and how they are applied.
- 100% scholarship covers the full cost of the program.
If you would like to be considered, please complete the Financial Aid section when uploading your supporting materials.
Help fund your experience at Banff Centre by view a compiled list of national and international opportunities here.
Cancellations
Information on our cancelation policy can be found here.
Tax Information
Banff Centre will issue official tax receipts for eligible tuition fees and financial assistance and awards as required by the Income Tax Act. You will receive a T2202 (Tuition and Enrolment Certificate) for eligible tuition fees paid and a T4A (Statement of Pension, Retirement, Annuity, and Other Income) for applicable financial assistance and awards.
How to Apply
Learn more about the steps to Complete Your Application.
Step 1:
Complete the Online FormStep 2:
Pay your application fee
Please login with the username and password emailed to you on completion of step 1.
Step 3:
Upload Your Materials
Resume
Please include a biography and/or CV.
Group applications should submit all resumes in one document.
Artistic Statement
Emerging and established playwrights:
No more than two pages outlining:
- Your project status, what you would like to work on, what you would aim to accomplish during the Lab, and development plans or goals beyond.
- Why this play now
If applicable:
• Include a list of readings, workshops and presentations, plus relationship with play development centres and/or producing companies or collaborators.
Apprentice dramaturgs:
No more than two pages outlining your relevant experience and interest in attending the Playwrights Lab 2025 as a career learning and development opportunity.
Draft Script/Text
Emerging and established playwrights:
Include up to 20 pages from your script/text/score for the project you intend to work on during the Lab. Please begin with a brief explanation of the context of the excerpt.
Resource Request
For projects incorporating digital elements, please include a brief description of any specific resource requirements.
Financial Assistance
Be sure to complete the Financial Aid question in SlideRoom to be eligible for the financial assistance.
Group Applications
Collaborative groups of no more than two are welcome to apply.
The lead applicant should complete:
- Step 1: One application form
- Step 2: Pay the $65 processing fee on behalf of the group
- Step 3: One SlideRoom application
Note: An additional $35 registration fee will be added for each member upon acceptance to the program.
Acknowledging the Playwrights Lab
In recognition of the Lab’s contribution to the development of each writer's work, writers are required to include Banff Centre’s logo and credit on the title page of all future readings, workshops, productions, recordings, and publications of their projects.
Adjudication
Participants are chosen by an adjudication panel comprising of internal and external assessors. The selection criteria include:
- Quality, originality and artistic merit.
- Required skills and experience.
- The potential for the applicant's work to benefit from the program.
- Banff Centre’s ability to support the project.
Our programs are highly competitive with a limited number of places available. Applicants will be notified of their selection status as soon as the adjudication process is complete. Due to the high volume of applications individual feedback will not be provided.
Disclaimer
All programs, faculty, dates, fees, and offers of financial assistance are subject to change. Program fee is subject to applicable taxes. Non-refundable fees and deposits will be retained upon cancellation. Any other fees are refunded at the discretion of the Banff Centre. The application deadline is 11:59 p.m. Mountain Standard Time.