For nearly a decade, HVS has been a welcoming home for new playwrights, with a commitment to supporting fresh voices in theater. Our 10th annual Community Bake-Off will hold performances on November 15 and 16.

For the 10th Anniversary Hudson Valley Shakespeare Community Bake-Off theme is Wired for Connection. The ingredients will be selected by award-winning playwright Dave Malloy (Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812) and inspired by his show Octet that explores digital life, spiritual yearning, and communal ritual—an ideal thematic framework for this milestone year.  

WHAT IS THE BAKE-OFF, ANYWAY?
Created by the Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Paula Vogel, the Bake-Off is a communal writing event in which writers are given a random list of “ingredients” to incorporate into a play (for example: a kitchen sink, a front porch, and a withheld secret) to help inspire creativity and give writers permission to play.

HOW DO I GET INVOLVED
In preparation, Hudson Valley Shakespeare offers a series of free play-writing workshops led by Acting Director of the MFA playwriting program at Hunter College, Christine Scarfuto. All workshop participants can submit short plays to be considered. Between 5 and 7 of these plays will then be performed by professional actors as part of the Community Bake-Off hosted by HVS live and in-person on November 15 & 16.

This project is made possible, in part, through the Putnam Arts Council’s Arts Link Grant Program with public funds provided from Putnam County and is presented in partnership with Mid-Hudson Library System.

Questions? See our Bake-Off FAQs or email bakeoff@hvshakespeare.org.

Register for Workshops