Play Submissions for Uncharted Series

The East Carolina University School of Theatre & Dance is seeking submissions for its Uncharted Series of new plays with dynamic roles for college-aged actors.

Seeking full-length plays that have at least five characters, with no more than one of those characters outside the age range of 15-25.

We are seeking plays that center the experience of late adolescence/early adulthood – where it is important that the characters are in that specific age range, rather than plays with characters that could be played by actors of any age.

Plays must be unpublished and unproduced (i.e., not performed in front of a paying audience). Readings and workshop productions are fine.

Selected plays will receive a staged reading as part of the ECU/Loessin Playhouse’s 2026-2027 season, with possible full production in future seasons. Playwrights will receive a $100 royalty for the reading along with travel support if they wish to participate in the rehearsals and/or reading in person.

Plays can be submitted via online form:

UNCHARTED SERIES SUBMISSION FORM

There is no fee to submit. Submissions are due by 11:59pm on August 10, 2026.

If you have any questions, please contact ECU/Loessin Playhouse Artistic Director Kitt Lavoie at lavoiec25@ecu.edu.

Uncharted Series FAQs

Do you accept musicals?

While we hope to include musicals in the future, at this time we are accepting only plays.

My play was previously produced at a high school, college, fringe festival, etc. Is it eligible?

We are seeking unproduced plays for the Uncharted Series. We understand that whether a play has been “produced” can sometimes be a gray area. For this year’s submission cycle, we have defined a production as a performance for a paying audience. If the play’s previous presentation was free to the public or to an invited audience, it remains eligible. If tickets were sold, it is not eligible.

My play has more than one character outside the 15–25-year-old age range, but the main characters are within that age range. Is it eligible?

The mission of the Uncharted Series is to support new plays that provide a cast of college-aged actors with the opportunity to play characters they would most likely be cast as in a professional setting. To be eligible, no more than one character may fall outside the 15–25-year-old age range.

Some characters are not explicitly between the ages of 15 and 25, but their ages are undefined and they could be played by college-aged actors. Is the play eligible?

No. We are seeking plays in which it is important that the characters are between the ages of 15 and 25, rather than plays in which they simply could be portrayed by actors in that age range.

The characters in my play are ageless spirits, animals, or Greek gods who could be played by college-aged actors. Is the play eligible?

That depends. We are seeking plays about characters in late adolescence and early adulthood. So, for example, if the play is about Apollo and Athena coming to terms with the new responsibilities placed upon them as they become adult gods, it could be an excellent fit for the series. If, however, it is a more general story about those characters – roles that could just as easily be played by a 30-year-old as by a 20-year-old – it is not aligned with the mission of the series and would not be eligible.