Playwriting incubator, auditions coming to the Marion Art Center

MARION — The Marion Art Center has a playwriting incubator and auditions for the play Our Town coming this spring.

The Playwrights Incubator.The Playwrights Incubator opens for the 2026-27 season. The Marion Art Center is now accepting applications. 

Applications are due by March 31 at 11:59 p.m. The Marion Art Center Theater Playwrights Incubator is a program for first-time playwrights to see their work realized on the stage.

Finding theaters to produce new or unpublished plays can be an obstacle for any new playwright. The Marion Art Center Theater Playwrights Incubator is a structured program that aims to discover and support, through workshop and production, new stage plays by first time, unpublished regional playwrights.

Any new writer who has not yet been published or had a play produced is invited to submit her or his script or outline for consideration. There is no cost to participate in this program.

The mentors for this season are veteran mentor and The Marion Art Center Theater Playwrights Incubator founder Kate Fishman and director Brie Riccio. More information and the application can be found at marionartcenter.org/mtpi

Upcoming Auditions. The Marion Art Center will be auditioning for roles in the theater standard Our Town by Thornton Wilder. Pippa Asker is directing the production. 

Auditions will be held on Saturday, March 21 from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. and on Sunday, March 22, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Marion Art Center located at 80 Pleasant St.

There will be nine performances of the show on June 12, 13, 14, 19, 20, 21, 26, 27 and 28. Friday and Saturday evenings are at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday matinees are at 2 p.m.

Our Town is an exploration of everyday life, love and loss in the fictional New England town of Grover’s Corners. 

Told through the eyes of the omniscient Stage Manager, the play follows the daily routines of two neighboring families— the Gibbses and the Webbs— as their children, George and Emily, grow up, fall in love and confront the passage of time. 

With minimal scenery and a focus on language and imagination, Our Town invites audiences to notice the beauty in ordinary moments—shared meals, childhood friendships, and small-town rituals—and to reflect on what it truly means to be alive. 

Simple in form but profound in impact, the play remains one of the most beloved works in American theater. More information on the audition process and the roles/sides can be found at marionartcenter.org/auditions.