UTNT (UT New Theatre) 2020

SHARE

utnt 2020 hero image

New plays by M.F.A. Playwriting candidates

Producing Artistic Director, KJ Sanchez
Associate Producing Artistic Director, Alexandra Bassiakou Shaw

The University of Texas at Austin has suspended operations and all remaining performances of UTNT (UT New Theatre) have been canceled as of Friday, March 13.

For ticket refunds, please contact the box office at tickets@texasperformingarts.org.

UTNT (UT New Theatre) presents newly developed works from playwrights of Texas Theatre and Dance and Michener Center for Writers. Now in its 13th season, this showcase exists as an incubator for new work, with many continuing on to be professionally produced across the country.

Productions in UTNT (UT New Theatre) 2020 will be performed in multiple venues in the F. Loren Winship Drama Building. 


The 2020 UTNT (UT New Theatre) plays under consideration include:

Sow and Suckling

By Dan Caffrey
Directed by Liz Fisher

March 6 and 12 at 7:30 p.m.
March 7 at 2:00 p.m.

Lab Theatre

30 years after the events of Lord of the Flies, the book’s characters have grown comfortably into their 40s – or so they think. After a Christmas Eve dinner goes horribly wrong, the violence from their youth threatens to overrun their families and carefully constructed lives. At turns a riff on a classic piece of literature, an extremely dark comedy and a middle-aged horror story, Sow and Suckling posits that repression only leads to further savagery.


Tjipetir: A Search History

By I.B. Hopkins
Directed by Jess Shoemaker

March 5-6, 8, 13 at 7:30 p.m.

Acting Studio (WIN 2.180)

An uptight Etymologist finds herself on a warped detective case when pieces of rubber begin washing up on beaches all over the world. The single word inscribed on each of them, “TJIPETIR,” leads her on a dizzying expedition into submarine warfare, a Javanese rubber plantation, the history of the internet, an octopus with a vendetta and a dark family secret.


A Fistful of Trespassing

By Minghao Tu
Directed by Anna Skidis Vargas

March 5, 7, 11 at 7:30 p.m.

Lab Theatre

"I’m gonna take all the naked cowboys in Texas till I find myyy naked cowboy.” - Clint-John

Two guys in a totalitarian country fancy the American Old West. When a shipwreck leaves them stranded on an isolationist island, these wannabe cowboys do what the old Hollywood cowboys did: chase after love, freedom and myths—only this time, with zany shenanigans. Minghao Tu’s A Fistful of Trespassing is a farcical fever dream—bubbles burst like dynamite.


Bog Butter

By Cecelia Raker
Directed by Khristián Méndez Aguirre

March 4 and 12 at 7:30 p.m., March 7 at 5:00 p.m. and March 8 at 2:00 p.m.

Acting Studio (WIN 2.180)

When A tries to bond with her sister B over their shared obsession with the fermented ancient butter that’s found buried in peat bogs, she digs up more than she bargained for: not only the end of the whole polluted, broken world, but also the dairymaids of the deep past and the far future — and some vulnerability she might not be ready to handle. 


Not Omaha

By Paul William Kruse
Directed by Lane Michael Stanley

March 4 and 13 at 7:30 p.m. and March 8 at 2:00 p.m.

Lab Theatre

Not Omaha is a surreal, darkly odd story about the end of the world in a small town. What if the apocalypse was like the death of a parent – natural, strange and sometimes beautiful?


Toros

By Danny Tejera
Directed by Mike Steele

March 5 and 11 at 7:30 p.m. and March 8 at 5:00 p.m.

WIN 1.134

A garage. It is the grimy underbelly of an otherwise luxurious mansion in Madrid. Three friends—no longer children but not quite adults—and one dying golden retriever waste away, one Friday night at a time. They bob along to techno, get high, get drunk, make plans, get angry, lose interest, spill things, shit-talk their friends and ollie over skateboards. They try to wield what little power they have—or maybe it's a lot—over life and over each other.

>>> Toros will be presented as a staged reading. There are no paid tickets for this event. Guests are invited to arrive beginning 20 minutes prior to curtain in order to claim available seats on a first-come, first-served basis. 


rain falls special on me

By Lane Michael Stanley
Directed by Andrea Hart

March 8 at 11:00 a.m.

WIN 1.134

When it rains in Austin, Texas, the best place to stay dry through the night is behind the theater. Weather and circumstance bring together Mikey, Snake, Miss Candace, Motor, Mac and Julie - all of whom are on the street for different reasons, here now to navigate their relationships, dreams and often, survival. 

>>> rain falls special on me will be presented as a reading. There are no paid tickets for this event. Guests are invited to arrive beginning 20 minutes prior to curtain in order to claim available seats on a first-come, first-served basis. 


The Book of Orpah

By Jess Shoemaker
Directed by Andrea Hart

March 7 at 11:00 a.m.

WIN 1.134

In the days when the judges ruled, there was a famine in the land. (Ruth 1:1) 

The Book of Orpah is a rich poem-play that traces the love of three women across their collective history, grappling with the impact of generational trauma, the nature of God and whether it is possible to reach one another across boundaries. 

>>> The Book of Orpah will be presented as a reading. There are no paid tickets for this event. Guests are invited to arrive beginning 20 minutes prior to curtain in order to claim available seats on a first-come, first-served basis. 


All titles, dates and venues are subject to change. 

 

See All Upcoming Events

Attend an Event

Helpful links to help you plan your visit:

Tickets & Subscriptions

Purchase tickets and learn more about subscription packages and discounted student tickets.

Location, Directions, Parking

Get directions and up-to-date information about campus parking and construction impacts.

COVID-19 Protocol

Learn more about how we're keeping our community safe.

Accessibility

Accessible viewing options are available by request for all our venues.