Serious Development for New Plays & Musicals
CreateTheater helps playwrights and musical theatre writers move from idea to industry through professional training, script development, collaborative workshops, and industry presentation opportunities.
The CreateTheater Development Pathway
1. Learn the Industry
Learn how theatre actually works.
2. Structure the Script
Build a script that can sustain production and development.
3. Develop the Work
Workshop, test, and refine the piece collaboratively.
4. Present to the Industry
Create visibility and momentum for the work.
For Writers Ready to Move Beyond “Just Writing”
You may have:
a promising draft
a musical in progress,
years of rewrites,
great feedback but no traction,
or uncertainty about where your work fits professionally.
CreateTheater helps writers bridge the gap between creative work and professional development.
Programs
Learn the Industry
- Webinars
- Producer Office Hours
- Educational Content
- Newsletter
Structure the Script
- Script Diagnostics
- Development Consultations
- Writing Labs
Develop the Work
- Workshops
- Table Reads
- Experts Theater Company Development Programs
Produce the Work
- Readings
- Showcases
- Networking Opportunities
- Industry Presentation Events
Current Opportunities
Production-Ready Writers Groups
Looking for a professional community? Ongoing weekly and bi-weekly groups for writers developing new work.
CreateTheater New Works Festival Reading Series
Opportunities to hear new plays and musicals performed by professional actors. Is yours ready? Apply for 2027’s Festival
The CreateTheater Musical Writing Lab
How finished is your musical? Join our new 12-month Musical Theater Writing Intensive Cohort starting June 1st
The Experts Theater Company (ETC)
Membership · Mentorship · Access
The Experts Theater Company is the connective tissue of the CreateTheater pipeline.
It provides:
- Ongoing education and mentorship
- Community and accountability
- Access to higher-level development opportunities
Many writers begin here — and are invited forward into Labs, workshops, and the CreateTheater New Works Development Studio as their work becomes ready.
Upcoming Events
CreateTheater’s Musical Writing Lab
The Lab starts June 1st
CreateTheater’s NYC Producer Lab
Starts June 4th at 7pm ET
Recent Blog Posts
Be Specific
Do you know your character’s favorite color? Favorite dish? The street they lived on as a child? What was the game their mother played with them when they were five? Why do they keep an item in their pocket and when do they take it out and stroke it? What memories does it provoke? What emotion does it conjure in your character?
Details. From the larger, to the smaller, and from the smaller to the larger, details make the character specific and unique.
Making Money as a Playwright Part 1
The playwright Robert Anderson famously said in the late 50’s early 60’s that “one can make a killing in the theatre, but not a living.” The late Tim Kelly, a very prolific playwright for the school and community theater markets who passed away in 1997, published over 350 plays in his life, and would have about 6,000 performances of his plays every year, all over the world. His pieces were translated into dozens of languages. He adopted Anderson’s quote and paraphrased it for the amateur theater market: “You can make a living, but you can’t make a killing”….
What Are Your Writing Goals?
Goals are a means to an end, plain and simple. They are simply a tool to concentrate our focus and move us in a direction. The only reason we really pursue goals is to cause ourselves to expand and grow. Achieving goals by themselves will never make us happy in the long term; it’s who you become, as you overcome the obstacles necessary to achieve your goals, that can give you the deepest and most long-lasting sense of fulfillment….
October Spotlight: ETC Member Kim Ruyle
I think that many artists feel the winds of change happening regarding the arts in America. We look around at states defunding the arts. We see major non-profit and “successful” theater companies laying off staff and divesting themselves of their theaters.