Submissions Are Open! The 7th Annual OTF Welcomes New Plays, Musicals, & Choreography

DETROIT, MI - This past weekend The Obsidian Theatre Festival announced the opening of submissions for its 7th Annual Festival, taking place June 24–27, 2027, in Detroit.

The call comes on the heels of a standout 6th season, which saw the festival's Main Stage drama Soul of the Senator, written by Michael Hagins, take the stage at the Hilberry Gateway's Studio Theatre. Season 6 also delivered the 2nd Annual GhostLight Gala: Art is Revolution at the Garden Theatre and closed out with Back to Black: An Obsidian Cabaret, featuring Detroit singer-songwriter Jynn Cole at Aretha's Jazz Café.

Bassist Matt Ryan (L) and Singer Jynn Cole (R)

Building on six years of amplifying emerging Black voices in Detroit and beyond, OTF is returning for an exciting 7th Season next June. Submissions are open through Sunday, September 13 (11:59 pm).

The Obsidian Theatre Festival was founded in the fall of 2020 by John Sloan III and David Carroll and launched its inaugural season in March of 2021 with an entirely virtual streaming model. Since that first year, OTF has produced 20 New Plays, 7 Cabarets, 4 New Musicals, along several talkbacks and Q&A sessions. With a goal of uplifting emerging Black artistic voices, OTF has grown reach and influence in Michigan and beyond, offering over 30 writers a World Premiere opportunity for their work.

For its 7th season, OTF continues to expand its multi-stage model, giving writers, composers, and choreographers several distinct paths into the festival:

• The Obsidian Main Stage presents fully produced works, with each selected play or musical receiving a minimum of two performances during the festival week. New this year: musicals are now eligible for consideration on the Main Stage, alongside plays, opening the door for fully produced new musical theatre work.

• The Obsidian Showcase is home to readings, staged readings, and workshops of new and developing work, reflecting OTF's increased commitment to new work development — each piece receives 1–2 performances during the week.

• The Obsidian Dance Theatre — brand new for Season 7 — welcomes Dance to the festival for the first time ever, presenting original choreography alongside the festival's signature theatrical programming.

Writers may indicate a stage preference at the time of submission, and all submitted plays and musicals will be eligible and considered for either the Main Stage or the Showcase.

"Writing is hard, and an often solitary experience." says Obsidian Producing AD John Sloan III. "But what can be even harder, is getting your work produced once it's written. That's where we come in. OTF exists to create equity for underrepresented writers and stories."

Selected pieces will be staged, rehearsed, produced, performed live for Detroit audiences, and professionally filmed for global streaming on GhostLight's platform later in the year.

Submission criteria include:

• Plays and musicals must run no shorter than 30 minutes and no longer than 120 minutes.

• Dance/choreography submissions must run 5–20 minutes, with a maximum of 8 dancers per piece.

• Works that have already received a First or Off-Broadway production are not eligible.

• Applicants are encouraged to submit work that engages with current sociopolitical issues or topics.

• No more than 150 total submissions will be accepted for the season; submissions received after the cap is reached will roll over to the following season.

KEY DATES

• Rolling submissions for the 2027 season close September 13, 2026, at 11:59 PM EST

• Submissions received after that will roll into the 2028 season, with rolling submissions opening September 14, 2026

• Semi-finalist notifications by November 30, 2026

• Finalist notifications in December 2026

OTF is also introducing a new rolling submissions policy: submissions for Season 8 will open immediately on September 14, and going forward, the window will never close again — giving creatives the chance to submit their work to the Obsidian Theatre Festival all year long.

Writers, composers, and choreographers can find full submission guidelines, criteria, and the submission form at www.obsidianfest.org/submit.

The Obsidian Theatre Festival is program of the GhostLight Arts Initiative (GLAI) in Detroit, Michigan, and centers the work of emerging Black creatives, illuminating the rich diversity of experience within the African diaspora in America. GLAI is also the parent organization for Encore Michigan. OTF is co-produced by GhostLight Creative Productions and Nicely Theatre Groups.

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