(Pittsfield, MA) Barrington Stage Company (BSC), under the leadership of Artistic Director Alan Paul, announces the 10-minute plays and playwrights for the 14th Annual 10X10 New Play Festival, part of the 2025 10X10 Upstreet Winter Arts Festival.
“This is my third 10×0 New Play Festival as Artistic Director, and I look forward to it every year,” said Alan Paul. “The 10×10 Festival is always invigorating to direct, and it’s exciting to dive into 10 very different plays that range from comic to dramatic.”
The 2025 10X10 New Play Festival will be presented at the St. Germain Stage at the Sydelle and Lee Blatt Performing Arts Center (36 Linden Street) with performances February 13 through March 9, 2025. The Press Opening is Sunday, February 16 at 3:00pm. Performances are Thursday through Saturday evening at 7:00pm and Sunday at 2:00pm. Beginning February 21, there will be matinees Friday and Saturday at 2:00pm. Low-priced preview tickets are $40 and performance tickets are $50. With every 10×10 ticket purchased, patrons will receive an additional 10% off of BSC’s season subscription order before March 15.
The 10X10 New Play Festival has become a cornerstone of Pittsfield’s Winter cultural scene, attracting both seasoned theatre lovers and first-time attendees. Tickets are expected to sell quickly, so early booking is encouraged.
Directors for the 10X10 New Play Festival are BSC Artistic Director Alan Paul and returning for his ninth year, Matthew Penn (BSC’s Judgment Day, Typhoid Mary). An Emmy-nominated director (Law & Order), Penn was recently nominated for a Berkshire Theatre Award for his direction of Survival of the Unfit at Great Barrington Public Theater.
The creative team includes Peggy Walsh (costume design), Erika Johnson (lighting design) and Amy Altadonna (sound design). Moira O’Sullivan is Line Producer. Renee Lutz is Production Stage Manager, Nathaniel Bokaer-Smith is Assistant Stage Manager. BSC casting is by McCorkle Casting (Pat McCorkle, CSA; Rebecca Weiss, CSA).
Casting will be announced later this month.
BSC’s 2025 10X10 New Play Festival:
Altared by Brent Askari
With her sister’s wedding on the line, Gwen scrambles to rein in her unpredictable mother.
Choosing You by Rachel Lynett
As Aurora moves through her day, she finds herself torn between the two very different lives she might have lived and if she ultimately made the right choice.
Forever is a Long Time by Jessica Provenz
What if when you get married, it’s truly “til death do us part” and annulment and divorce are not an option? Ready to commit to one another… forever?
The Friendship Dynamic by Alex Dremann
Four friends decide to go on an off-roading adventure to get out of their rut, if they can just get out of their driveway.
A Happy Child by Melinda Gross
Your child returns home and every word you utter can be the wrong word… and you SO do not want to get it wrong… but you also need to keep your grandchild safe…
Ordained by Mark Harvey Levine
Two strangers in an airport suddenly find themselves with a proposal they can’t pass up.
Poetry, Prose and… Pirates! by Ken Preuss
An author attends her monthly critique circle but discovers some unexpected and unethical similarities between her writing and that of her peers.
Safe Haven by James McLindon
A fraught holiday, a desperate family, a public servant: Can this Thanksgiving be saved?
Senior Prom by Robert Weibezahl
When high school friends Deborah and Mike unexpectedly reunite at Shady Acres Independent Living, some truths about past memories are clarified.
Wheel of Fortune Reversed by Scott C. Sickles
Death has come for Michael. Which is not necessarily a bad thing because Michael has a bucket list only the Grim Reaper can fulfill.
The 10X10 Upstreet Winter Arts Festival is located in Pittsfield’s Upstreet Cultural District in the Berkshires of Western Massachusetts, organized by The City of Pittsfield and Downtown Pittsfield, Inc. For more information, please visit www.lovepittsfield.com.
ABOUT BARRINGTON STAGE COMPANY
Barrington Stage Company (BSC), under the leadership of Artistic Director Alan Paul, is an award-winning theatre located in Pittsfield, MA, in the heart of the Berkshires. Co-founded in 1995 by Julianne Boyd, BSC’s mission is to produce top-notch, compelling work; to develop new plays and musicals; and to engage our community with vibrant, inclusive educational outreach programs. Alan Paul succeeded Ms. Boyd as the company’s Artistic Director in 2022.
BSC attracts over 60,000 patrons annually and has gained national recognition for its superior-quality productions and comprehensive educational programming, including the award-winning Playwright Mentoring Project, the Musical Theatre Conservatory, Youth Theatre, KidsAct! and other initiatives. The company has become integral to the economic revitalization of downtown Pittsfield.
BSC’s reputation for excellence began with a smash revival of Cabaret that moved to Boston in 1997 for an extended run. The theatre’s prominence grew with the world premiere of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee by William Finn and Rachel Sheinkin (BSC 2004; Broadway 2005-2008, winner of two Tony Awards). Other notable productions include the world premiere of Christopher Demos-Brown’s American Son (BSC 2016; Broadway 2018); Mark St. Germain’s Freud’s Last Session (BSC 2009; Off-Broadway 2010-2012); Leonard Bernstein, Betty Comden & Adolph Green’s On the Town (BSC 2013; Broadway 2014, four Tony Award nominations); Stephen Sondheim and George Furth’s Company, starring Aaron Tveit (2017); and West Side Story in honor of Leonard Bernstein and Jerome Robbins’ centenaries (2018).
BSC develops and commissions new work with two programs: PlayWorks, which supports the creation of new plays, and the Musical Theatre Lab, which develops new musicals. Since 1995, BSC has produced 46 new works, 22 of which have moved to New York and major US regional theatres.
BSC is the recipient of 14 Berkshire Theatre Awards for the 2024 season, including Outstanding Production of a Musical, Outstanding Direction of a Musical (Alan Paul) and Outstanding Lead Actress in a Musical (Natalie Joy Johnson) for its production of Next to Normal; Outstanding Production of a Play and Outstanding Ensemble Performance for its production of Boeing-Boeing; Outstanding Lead Actor in a Play (Justin Weaks) and Outstanding Direction of a Play (Jennifer Chang) for Primary Trust; and Outstanding Lead Actor in a Musical (Alex Michaels) and Outstanding Choreography (Paul McGill) for La Cage aux Folles.