As part of our commitment to new play development, Palm Beach Dramaworks created The Dramaworkshop in 2014 and became an associate member theatre of the National New Play Network (NNPN) in 2019. Since its inception, The Dramaworkshop process has generated two developmental productions in our Perlberg Studio Theatre, and seven world premieres during the past five seasons.
Each year, The Dramaworkshop accepts submissions of new play scripts that are considered for further development. A select number are chosen for deeper assessment and exploration by our new play committee, and the top five receive staged readings at our annual Perlberg Festival of New Plays in January. Throughout the festival process, the playwrights collaborate with directors and actors, and get invaluable feedback from audiences, all with the aim of cultivating significant new work for PBD and theatres across the country.
SUBMISSION INFORMATION
Submissions are accepted through established literary agents only, though we also find scripts on NPX or through other NNPN member theatres, as well as through our ongoing conversations with other theatres throughout the United States. Playwrights who maintain full time residency in South Florida may submit without representation. Unsolicited materials will not be considered.
FOUNDING PRODUCERS
- The Alper Family Foundation
- Penny Bank
- Susan Bloom
- The Roe Green Foundation
- Calla & Ralph Guild
- Marilyn Meyerhoff & Sam Feldman
- Nancy & Jay Parker
- Lee Wolf & Jordan Cohen
The Dramaworkshop Literary Manager
Jenny Connell Davis Resident Playwright/Literary Manager
Jenny Connell Davis, who was named both resident playwright and literary manager in 2024, was introduced to PBD audiences in 2020, when her play As I See It was included in the second annual New Year/New Plays Festival (now the Perlberg Festival of New Plays). She returned to the festival in 2023 with The Messenger, which subsequently had its world premiere at PBD during the 2023-24 season. Jenny is an affiliated artist with the Playwrights’ Center in Minneapolis and a member of The Gift Theatre in Chicago. Her plays have been developed or produced nationwide, including at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center’s National Playwrights Conference, Chance Theatre, ACT (Seattle), Rivendell Theatre Ensemble, Shrewd Productions, and Asolo Rep. As a screenwriter, Jenny has sold projects to Sony, Disney/Fox, Amazon, and Iconoclast/Anonymous Content. She has also served as in-house writer for the award-winning Baobab Studios, where she helped develop television, film, and book projects. In addition, she has been a finalist and semi-finalist for the Nicholl Fellowship, and her short films have screened worldwide, including at Toronto and SXSW. Jenny trained as an actor at Steppenwolf, and in playwriting at UT Austin.
For information about The Dramaworkshop programming, contact Jenny at
For more information, please contact Managing Director Sue Ellen Beryl at