Creating a new work for the stage is an act of courage. It begins in uncertainty, filled with questions no single artist can answer alone. To build, to break, to bend, to soften, to harden, and ultimately to dream a piece into existence requires a community of support.

That’s why we’re inviting you to include PlayPenn among the arts organizations you support at year-end.

In 2025, PlayPenn empowered more than 200 theatre writers to move the American theatre forward. Through The Foundry, which provides three years of free mentorship to Philadelphia writers; The Playwright Entrepreneur Program supporting artists as they strengthen their professional and business skills; our Continuing Education Classes, offering affordable, high-quality online training to artists around the world; and our annual New Play Development Conference, which gathers our community around the bold visions of our Resident Playwrights, your generosity made it possible for artists to take meaningful creative risks.

Over the past twenty years, PlayPenn has expanded both its reach and its impact. This year alone, three PlayPenn playwrights are heading to Broadway and two to Off-Broadway, alongside numerous world premieres and productions in Philadelphia and across the country.

These milestones don’t happen in isolation. They happen because supporters like you believe in the long arc of artistic development.

If this work resonates with you, please make a year-end gift today. A contribution of $20 or more welcomes you as a Friend of PlayPenn and helps grow our community of supporters.

Those who are able to give at higher levels — as an Advocate, Visionary, or Luminary — can make an especially powerful impact at this moment of year-end momentum.

Have a Donor-Advised Fund (DAF)? A grant from your DAF can help fuel the future of American theatre.

By recommending a gift or donating to PlayPenn, you directly support the development of new plays and the artists who bring them to life.

Recent PlayPenn News

Tuition-Free Playwrights Cohort Renamed The Playwright Entrepreneur Program, PlayPenn Announces 2026 Cohort
December 17, 2025

The Foundry at PlayPenn Announces Class of 2028, Continuing a Legacy of Philadelphia Playwrights Impacting Stages Nationwide
December 11, 2025

Three PlayPenn Playwrights Selected as Finalists for the 48th Annual Susan Smith Blackburn Prize
November 28, 2025

Writers and Art Workers Need Health Insurance: Here’s a Lifeline That Can Help
November 25, 2025

Broadway Welcomes Back 2012 PlayPenn Playwright Bess Wohl
November 23, 2025

PlayPenn Brings Its New Play Development Intensive to New York City for the First Time
November 23, 2025

Apply Now for PlayPenn’s 2025 Fall/Winter Access Scholarship — Classes Begin October 13
October 9, 2025

PlayPenn: Help Support the Long Arc of Artistic Development for Playwrights

PlayPenn is a national center for new plays and playwrights devoted to nurturing bold new voices in contemporary theatre located in Philadelphia.