Heretic Productions today announces Heretic Voices, a new nationwide competition to find the best new writing in monologue form, with the four winners receiving a full production in the main space at the Arcola Theatre in January 2018. In addition the winning monologues will be published as a collection.
Applicants can enter any monologue, written in English, with a running time of between 15 and 45 minutes maximum length, that has never received a professional production. A shortlist of plays will be judged by a panel including Guardian theatre critic Michael Billington, award-winning playwright Lolita Chakrabarti, BAFTA Award-winning actor Monica Dolan and literary agent Mel Kenyon.
Artistic Director of Heretic Productions Max Gill said today, “There is a glittering wealth of writing talent in the UK but a poverty of opportunity for the great majority to have their work fully staged by professional creative teams. We cannot wait to present a diverse collection of revelatory and distinctive voices united by a desire to delight and excite an audience. Whether it is an opportunity to explore vibrant character, give voice to the unheard, or craft a unique and challenging relationship between speaker and listener, the range and possibility of the monologue form is thrilling. The door to Heretic Voices is wide open; no matter who you are, we are ravenous to read your work.”
Michael Billington said, “New writing prizes proliferate but this one is special in that it promotes solo voices and in that the prize is a guarantee of a production and publication. I am
delighted to be part of a distinguished judging panel and would urge everyone to get writing.”
Mehmet Ergen and Leyla Nazli, Arcola’s Artistic Director and Executive Producer, commented, “One voice can tear up years of received wisdom, offer a profound insight, or reveal an entirely new way of looking at the world. Arcola is proud to have nurtured voices that have gone on to resonate far and wide: Rebecca Lenkiewicz, Alecky Blythe, Barney Norris, and many others. With Heretic Voices, we hope to see many more original perspectives represented, and enlivened, on the Arcola stage.”
Guidance for writers:
- Submitted works must not have received a professional production.
- They must have a running time of between 15 and 45 minutes, and can be of any genre.
- The monologue must be able to be performed by one actor.
- The monologues must be in English.
How to Enter:
- Monologues must be submitted to hello@hereticproductions.co.uk along with maximum 150 words about yourself.
- The entry deadline is 5pm on 30 September.
For further information, please go to: www.hereticproductions.co.uk.
Heretic Productions is run by Artistic Director Max Gill and Producer Ellie Keel. Its previous production was an adaptation of Schnitzler’s La Ronde, directed by Gill, which ran at the Bunker Theatre in early 2017. The company works across stage and screen with a number of short film productions also in development.