A Community for the Development of Young Playwrights and Dramaturgs

Thank you so much for your interest in the program! Applications for the 2026-2027 Cohort will go live in late July. You may preview the application questions here. Any questions can be directed to storytellerstudio@njplaylab.org

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Launching in 2026: Our University and Organizational Partnerships

Since its creation in 2021, The Studio has been open to individuals who consider New Jersey a personal or artistic home. We’ve seen incredible success within our community of alumni artists and, alongside that, have seen increased interest in expanding this opportunity to those outside of our state. In an effort to be responsive to the needs of the field, we have embraced a new model of the Studio, offering expanded access to this program through modest annual scholarships from organizations, individuals, and universities. 

In 2025, the Storyteller Studio launched a first trial partnership with the Kennedy Center and the American College Theatre Festival; we have since cultivated partnerships with several other institutions including  the Playwrights Center (MN), Carnegie Mellon University (PA), The New School (NY), Villanova University (PA), and Molloy University (NY). We are honored to welcome their selected artists into our 2026-2027 Cohort.

We believe that it is more important than ever to create accessible spaces for artistic, professional, and personal development, and to build intentional community with shared values. These know no borders. As opportunities in our industry shift and evolve, it is the goal of the Storyteller Studio to remind emerging artists that creation is necessary, and that their own terms and timelines for that creation are valid. The Studio offers them the resources to pave their own way forward, while assuring them that they are not alone in what we do, and together, bringing all of our lived experiences into conversation, we can thrive. 

If you are interested in working with the Studio to develop a partnership with your institution, please email Emily Dzioba-Wasserman (emily@njplaylab.org)

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Meet the Studio Team

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About the Studio

What is the Storyteller Studio?

The Storyteller Studio is a collaborative space for playwrights and dramaturgs under 30 to hone their craft through peer and professional support, and to develop their skills, work ethic, and artistic process as they transition into professional artistic careers.

This program is intended for those who have graduated from university programs or those who have begun their artistic practice through alternative avenues. It is open to artists who consider New Jersey a personal or artistic home free of charge, and to artists outside of New Jersey through sponsorships with partner institutions across the country.

The Storyteller Studio places the focus on process, not product. Although each Cohort member is given the opportunity to move forward on their own artistic project, the primary focus of the program is to foster a communal and individual awareness of  artistic approach, and to discover and explore various career paths within the fields of playwriting and dramaturgy.

Why the Studio?

Playwriting and Dramaturgy could be considered the backbone of theatre, but there are often gaps in practical experience in these disciplines for those seeking a professional path. Artists who trained in degree programs do not always receive the opportunity to hear or develop work–as well, the expectations and timelines placed upon students do not always align with those in a professional setting. Emerging artists, including those who have foregone higher education, face numerous barriers to artistic development including high costs, scheduling challenges, and geographical constraints. There are few spaces for young playwrights and dramaturgs to practice and develop their skills that aren’t classes, internships, apprenticeships, or fellowships– many of which are inaccessible. Artists at this crucial entry point in their careers do not always have a consistent support network of peers, let alone a consistent mentor or artistic home.  This reality can leave artists isolated and with a fractured, inconsistent environment in which to continue to grow and learn. 

The Storyteller Studio was conceived with all of these challenges in mind as a uniquely and radically accessible, virtual, no-cost opportunity, structured to champion self-determination by each artist while offering community support, targeted mentorship, and professional development.

What does the Studio offer?

Artistic development

• Each Cohort member develops and shares a personal artistic project throughout the course of the program cycle.
• Cohort members work in pairs to collaboratively create a new piece for their portfolio. These works are produced at a professional theater in the Scripted Showcase, a public evening of staged readings with companion engagement dramaturgy pieces.
• Cohort members receive an introduction, or deeper dive, into foundational concepts of dramatic craft, including the Liz Lerman Critical Response Process as a framework to guide revisions and critique.

Community support 

• In addition to receiving professional feedback on their work, Cohort members also receive feedback from their peers who come from varying backgrounds and hold varying perspectives. This builds up trust and establishes a safe space in which to take artistic risk.
• Cohort members gain a sense of support and camaraderie as they navigate the challenges and obstacles of pursuing their art at their specific point of life.
• Cohort members  have the opportunity to engage in Studio-sponsored virtual community building events such as co-working nights, book clubs, and holiday parties, to offer the chance for cohort members to get to know each other outside of their work.

Targeted mentorship

• Each Cohort member engages directly in an ongoing, one-on-one process with the Program Director across their entire time in the program. This mentorship focuses on the artist’s chosen project, as well as the overall development and advancement of their artistry and professional goals. ionalism. 

Professional development

• The Studio offers an introduction to the unique approach to playmaking of The New Jersey Play Lab (NJPL).
• The NJPL is ready to offer assistance and guidance to Cohort members’ post-Studio experience, welcoming them into an ongoing artistic home.
• Guest Artists from the greater NJ theatre community, carefully selected based upon the interests of the Cohort, are invited to panels on a monthly basis. The goal is to showcase the wide range of career paths available, to introduce key players in the NJ theatre scene, and to establish some initial professional connections.

How does it work?

The Storyteller Studio operates on a yearly basis with an open application and selection process occurring in the summer, and the work of the Cohort taking place over the course of mid-fall to late spring. The cycle concludes with a public showcase celebration in June. Each Cohort is led by the Program Director, with support from Studio Facilitators.

Artists selected to participate in a Cohort begin their Storyteller Studio experience by identifying specific goals for an artistic project to work on throughout the course of the program.

• Playwrights’ projects may take the form of a reading of a play excerpt, the discussion of a treatment, or the exploration of another writing medium.
• Dramaturgs’ projects may be a collaboration with a playwright on a work-in-process, the design and presentation of a research packet, or exploring an audience engagement concept.

The project identification process, like every aspect of The Storyteller Studio, is artist-driven. The Program Director is there to ask questions, but ultimately to support the artist in articulating their goals and planning “next steps”.

The Cohort meets virtually several times per month over the course of the program. The majority of these meetings are dedicated to artists’ sharings of their work, where the Liz Lerman Critical Response Process is utilized to gain feedback from the group as a whole. Cohort members have pre- and post presentation check-ins with the Lead Mentor to talk more in-depth about the work, digest feedback, and discuss their desired steps forward.  

One meeting per month is reserved for visiting professional Guest Artists.  These individuals are brought in to offer their perspective and experience around topics which are relevant and resonant to the needs of the specific Cohort, as well as to serve as prospective professional connections. Other meetings include community-building activities like co-working nights or professional-led workshops.

The final component of the program is professional support. At the close of the program, the Lead Mentor meets individually with each artist to discuss what the artist has gained over the course of the Cohort experience, and what opportunities would most benefit the artist moving forward.  Whether through referrals or in-house opportunities, the staff of The New Jersey Play Lab invests in the next generation of young literary artists and assists them in taking these necessary next steps.

Who is this for?

The Storyteller Studio is a no-cost opportunity for young writers and dramaturgs early on in their artistic careers who want to dive headfirst into their craft, creating alongside a community of their peers, while being guided by experienced mentors. This program was conceived as a transitional program for young artists who want to position themselves to be successful in a professional and collaborative setting. 

The criteria for selection of a Cohort is based primarily on a commitment to one’s art form, regardless of the formality of experience or scope of a resume. That said, playwrights should have some writing experience and be able to share some examples of their work. Cohort playwrights will engage with dramaturgical concepts to deepen their craft and receive actionable feedback on their writing, but the Studio is not a place to come to learn how to write, or a writer’s group. However, the Studio may be the first place Cohort dramaturgs explore the art of dramaturgy in a formal way. 

All applicants should articulate a willingness and desire for participation in a dramaturgically-focused creative process, and demonstrate the ability to create the time and space to meet the demands of the program. The Studio experience is about process, not product. Although Cohort artists will move ahead in their chosen projects, the primary goal of the program is discovering and sharing a process of learning and developing work through collaboration with other artists.

The Storyteller Studio is for you if:

• You consider yourself a playwright or dramaturg, even if you have yet to have the opportunity to fully explore these art forms.
• You want to build your craft and your artistic process, and connect with peers.
• You are open to giving and receiving feedback about your work, and to discovering the value of this process.
• You are organized and can keep self-imposed deadlines.
• You are able to commit to a 10-month process. Showing up is important to success.
• You thrive in a supportive group of artists your own age, and also welcome the support of more experienced professionals.
• You’re under 30 years old and not currently enrolled in a degree program.
• You consider NJ a personal or artistic home.
  • Alternatively, you have been sponsored by one of our institutional partners.