Meganne George Women's Work Short Play Festival

Join us for the 16th Annual Women’s Work
Short Play Festival.

Tickets are now on sale!

Tickets are now on sale! /

Named after MEGANNE GEORGE, who served as Resident Production Designer at NPTC for 19 years and was instrumental in creating its structure and design elements, the festival presents original short plays developed in NPTC’s Women Work LAB which takes writers from the first impulse for their plays to a rehearsed and staged performance for live audiences, all within six months. There is no other program of its kind in New York City.

Each year we pick a theme for Women's Work which stems from the social and political discourse percolating in the U.S. at the start of a new LAB. Hotspot, the 2024 theme, was inspired by the increasingly dire climate crisis, a growing celebrity culture and online influencers, as well as the most dangerous political environment in decades. As always, each writer found her own take on this theme, enabling the creation of plays that are as unique and diverse as the talented writers themselves.

This year marks the development and production of 80 new short plays in the LAB, since 2008.

TICKETS: $22 /$18 students and seniors (65+) w/ID; TDF accepted for select performances; FESTIVAL PASS $35 (both programs)

program A includes:

HEATHEN by Chelyn Cousar, Directed by Jennie Reich Litzky

After fleeing from a rigid religious background, Jeanine is finally finding her purpose as a performance artist. Will a reunion with a devout childhood friend bring redemption or a final break with the past?

A Female Variety of Suffering By Christine Benvenuto, Directed by Melody Brooks

The new baby is finally asleep! But this longed-for state is the calm before the storm, as cracks in the foundation of this seemingly perfect relationship appear when the parents finally have a moment alone.

They Only Love You When You’re Dying By Stephanie Kline, Directed by Jenny Greeman

Sam has coped with her terminal diagnosis by becoming an internet celebrity, unbeknownst to her faithful friends. With only six months to go, a new diagnosis shatters Sam’s carefully constructed performance and forces a reckoning with the people who matter most.

PROGRAM A ACTORS: Katie Braden, Alexandra Cohler, Emma Sarah Davis, Luis Feliciano, Marie Elena O'Brien, Taylor Petracek, DiANA pOU, Celeste Sena, Mary Sheridan, Robin Michelle Taylor.

buy tickets for program A here

Program B includes:

Between Iron Doors By Anel Carmona, Directed by Dani Ortiz

An existential adventure in magical realism, Between Iron Doors illuminates the fate of three coworkers struggling to remember why they’re stuck in a department store bathroom.

Bumble By Taylor Steele. Directed by Malini Singh McDonald

Bumble navigates the dark side of digital intimacy with a blend of text-speak and poetry that reveals a woman’s own power to break bad habits.

Best Seats in the House By Morgan Barnes-Whitehead, Directed by Bianca Lopez

On a remote island, a privileged group of friends has booked ringside seats to a historic rocket launch that might determine the fate of the world. While the drinks and the gossip flow, what could possibly go wrong?