Little Festival of the Unexpected is an annual event that furnishes a supportive environment for playwrights to develop their work in rehearsal with professional collaborators, as well as a unique opportunity for audiences to catch a firsthand look at the creative process that brings scripts to the stage through public readings.
Past LFU scripts have successfully moved on to full productions at Portland Stage and at other professional theaters around the country. Both Almost, Maine by John Cariani (LFU 2003) and Papermaker by Monica Wood (LFU 2014) went on to become the most commercially successful Mainstage productions in Portland Stage’s history. Meanwhile, many other LFU works have gone on to productions across the country, including successful Off-Broadway productions and TV and Film adaptations.
Each year, a cohort of two to four playwrights are in residence at Portland Stage for the festival as they continue to develop their scripts with input from professional actors, directors, and dramaturges in rehearsal and audience members during open discussions held after the public readings of each play.
Each playwright in residence receives a stipend as well as housing during the festival. Limited support for travel is also available.
The next time playwrights may submit to Little Festival of the Unexpected will be in 2025.
Submissions for LFU are accepted every other year (2025, 2027, etc) July 1st through September 30th for consideration the following May. Only scripts and samples of full-length plays are considered for the Festival.
Only one submission is accepted per playwright in a given year.
Submissions of 10-page samples (from playwrights) may be emailed as a .pdf, .docx, or .doc file to literary(at)portlandstage(dot)org.
Full scripts (from agents) will be accepted in the same manner.
Plays must require no more than 8 actors to perform. Playwrights must provide a precise casting plot for larger casts that require doubling.
For questions about script submissions or eligibility, please email the Literary Manager.