2024 Pacific Playwrights Festival

Launched in 1998, South Coast Repertory’s annual Pacific Playwrights Festival (PPF), part of The Lab@SCR, is a major national showcase for new plays.

The 26th festival—May 3-5, 2024—features two world premiere productions and five staged readings during an action-packed three days. PPF weekend attracts theatre professionals from across the nation, as well as SCR’s devoted new play audiences, who are drawn by the chance to be the first to see some of the best new theatrical works in the country.

The New York Times calls SCR “an incubator of major talent … South Coast has mounted an impressive list of acclaimed plays, long before the East Coast establishment got wind of them.” SCR’s 25 previous festivals have introduced such award-winning plays as Lucas Hnath's A Doll's House, Part 2, Lauren Yee's Cambodian Rock Band, Qui Nguyen's Vietgone, Lynn Nottage’s Intimate Apparel, Nilo Cruz’s Anna in the Tropics, Julia Cho’s The Language Archive and David Lindsay-Abaire’s Pulitzer Prize-winning Rabbit Hole.

MEETING FOR WORSHIP
by Ana Nogueira
directed by Mike Donahue
dramaturg: Andy Knight
an SCR commission
Friday, May 3, at 1 p.m., on the Segerstrom Stage

At a Quaker high school, students and teachers gather weekly. Here, they sit in silence—sometimes bored, sometimes passing notes and sometimes waiting for the spirit to speak through them. But what happens to this ritual when a scandal threatens to unravel the fabric of their Quaker values? And what does it cost to stand up and speak? 

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THE BROTHERS PLAY
by Arya Shahi
directed by Knud Adams
dramaturg: Sonia Desai
Friday, May 3, at 4 p.m., on the Julianne Argyros Stage

Little brother makes a bundle in LA and just bought a ranch back home in Tucson. Big brother is a poet in New York…with his own reasons for coming back. As they struggle to reconnect, the brothers discover the ranch house isn’t the only thing in need of renovation.

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FREMONT AVE.
by Reggie D. White
directed by Taylor Reynolds
dramaturg: Lindsay A. Jenkins
Saturday, May 4, at 10:30 a.m., on the Segerstrom Stage

In the 1960s, George buys a house in Southern California. Years later, Robert is still living there but itching to start his own life. Today, Joseph is back in the home he thought he left for good. A vibrant story about three generations of men—and the rock that holds them all together.

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AN OXFORD MAN
by Else Went
directed by Emma Rosa Went
dramaturg: Eric Shethar
Sunday, May 5, at 10:30 a.m., on the Julianne Argyros Stage

He was of the world undefined, by the world undefined—and ushered in a new age of understanding. Join us, dear audience, for this deliciously embellished (mostly) true story of the life and times of Laurence Michael Dillon, the first “modern” transgender man.

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YOU ARE CORDIALLY INVITED TO THE END OF THE WORLD!
by Keiko Green
directed by Zi Alikhan
dramaturg: Gavin Reub
Friday, May 3, at 8 p.m.; Saturday, May 4, at 8 p.m.; and Sunday, May 5, at 2:30 p.m., in the Nicholas Studio

Greg’s received a terminal diagnosis. At least he’s in good company—the planet’s on its last legs, too. Coincidence? Not for Greg. After all, the world’s too big not to be kind of magical.

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PRELUDE TO A KISS, THE MUSICAL
music by Daniel Messé
lyrics by Sean Hartley and Daniel Messé
book by Craig Lucas
directed by David Ivers
April 5 - May 4 on the Segerstrom Stage

“For better or worse” takes on new meaning when a mysterious guest requests a kiss at Peter and Rita’s wedding—and their lives are forever changed. Originally a South Coast Repertory world premiere, the Tony Award-nominated play returns as a musical. Refreshed, reimagined and elevated by a breathtaking score, this modern fable soars through the peaks and valleys of love—the perfect salve for our disconnected times.

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GALILEE, 34
by Eleanor Burgess
directed by Davis McCallum
dramaturg: Charles Haugland
April 21 - May 12 on the Julianne Argyros Stage

The healer from Nazareth is dead—and his followers are determined to keep sharing his message. The problem is the Roman Empire wants them out of the picture. And they don’t have a leader. And they can’t quite agree on exactly what that message is. With wit and intelligence, one of the country’s most exciting writers takes us back to the start of a world-changing movement for a deeply personal look at those who made it happen.

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Sunday, May 5, at 9 a.m. on the Segerstrom Stage
Join us for a conversation with the PPF playwrights, moderated by SCR's Artistic and Audience Engagement Associate, H. Adam Harris.

No ticket or reservation required.

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Read more about the Pacific Playwrights Festival.

See the list of play titles presented during previous Pacific Playwrights Festivals.