Last week’s post was the audition notice – auditions for New Ideas Festival 2016 take place January 6-10. Where do the plays come from? 250 scripts were submitted to the Festival this year, and from this, the 15 below were selected. These are the short plays that actors will be auditioning for. [Names in bold are members of Alumnae Theatre Company] 
Week 1 (March 9-13, 2016)
Stuck by Stacey Iseman, directed by Kelsey Laine Jacobson
Prayers to St. George by Andrew Lee, directed by Meg Moran
The Council by Deanna Kruger, directed by Claren Grosz
This Will Be My Last Transmission by Natalie Frijia, directed by Zita Nyarady
Reading (Sat March 12 at noon)
A Better Place by Ramona Baillie, directed by Chelsea Dab Hilke
Week 2 (March 15-20, 2016)
Housekeeping by Jean Koppen, directed by Ingryd Pleitez
Pose Ball by Caitie Graham, directed by Emily Nixon
War and Peace: A Family Story by Krystyna Hunt, directed by Rebecca Grace
Yeats in Love by Anne Tait, directed by Jane Carnwath
Reading (Sat March 19 at noon)
Curved by Kristen Shepherd, directed by Rebecca Ballarin
Week 3 (March 23-27, 2016)
Provenance by Linda McCready, directed by Pam Redfern
Trying by Norma Crawford, directed by Juliet Paperny
Sick Kids Wanna Talk to You by Carolyn Bennett, directed by Jennifer McKinley
Four Hours by Joan Burrows, directed by Helen Munroe
Reading (Sat March 26 at noon)
Omission by Alice Abracen, directed by Michela Sisti
The 250 scripts received were almost an even split between writers from Canada and international writers (mostly from USA; a few from UK and Ireland).
The chosen playwrights hail from Ontario – Toronto, Hamilton (Andrew Lee), London (Deanna Kruger), North Bay (Kristen Shepherd) and Quebec – Montreal (Alice Abracen); and the USA is represented by Jean Koppen from Alexandria, Virginia.
Once the reading committee had chosen the scripts, New Ideas Festival held its Creative Exchange on November 14, to match up writers and directors. The Creative Exchange is a bit like speed dating: each applicant to direct meets for 10 minutes with each of the writers, after which both writers and directors submit their top three choices to the NIF producers. After some juggling, the producers match up the NIF creative teams, and schedule the weekly program of plays for the Festival.
So polish up that monologue, and book your audition!
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