PlayPenn Solo Fest!

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Experience the next generation of solo performance at PlayPenn Solo Fest, the culminating public presentation of PlayPenn’s Solo Show Writing & Performance Intensive.

After 12 weeks of writing, development, feedback, and rehearsal, a national cohort of artists will take the stage to share excerpts from original solo works created through this unique program. Audiences will have the opportunity to experience new theatrical voices and compelling personal stories brought to life in a live performance setting.

Unlike traditional writing workshops, this intensive is designed to move work from the page to the stage. Throughout the program, participants develop and refine original solo shows with an emphasis on performance, structure, and production readiness.

Led by PlayPenn Artistic Director Che'Rae Adams, the intensive draws on decades of experience in new play and solo show development. The resulting performances showcase works that have been rigorously developed through writing, revision, staging, and rehearsal.

What You're Seeing

Before taking the stage, each solo artist has completed:

• 12 weeks of guided script development and creative exploration
• Two phases of writing, revision, and group feedback
• Ongoing artistic support and critical response
• In-person rehearsal and staging sessions in Philadelphia on July 18 and 19
• Technical rehearsal in preparation for public performance

By the time audiences arrive, each solo piece has undergone a rigorous development process designed to support both the writing and performance of the work. The result is an evening of original solo theater that has been thoughtfully crafted, rehearsed, and prepared for presentation.

Featured Playwrights

Ray Brahmi, Allison Orr Block, Faith Campbell, Sarah Cosgrove Gaumond, Walter Dodd, Mathilde Dratwa, Elise Forier Edie, Oz Johnson-Congleton, Madeline McCrae, Maggie O'Connell, Juan Ramirez, Jr., Mariah Reed, and Marguerite Louise Scott.

About the 2026 New Play Development Conference

PlayPenn’s nationally recognized New Play Development Conference brings together readings of new plays alongside a citywide series of civic gatherings, workshops, artist exchanges, and public conversations focusing on art, democracy, historical memory, belonging, and collective imagination. This community-focused approach to new play development reflects a broader vision of theatre in a shared civic life that illuminates what theatre can do, who participates in it, how it unfolds, and why it matters. 

The 19-event Conference brings together 22 playwrights participating across workshops, conversations, and five new work presentations while expanding its scope to include an interview with Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Eboni Booth (Primary Trust), free playwriting workshops for adults, teens, and women over 50, and a public conversation examining constitutional history and civic identity.

Additional programming includes a community workshop for queer theatre makers; a convening on innovation in theatre-making with leaders from Philadelphia Fringe Festival, Cannonball Festival, Pig Iron Theatre Company, Lemonade Stand, and Tiny Dynamite; and an acting lab focused on approaches to new play development and cross-community exchanges among theatre artists.