Alanna Escoto – Contributor

The marquee lights up outside Turner Studio, flashing and flickering on a cold autumn night as the crowd rushes in. The room is full of chatter. Soft, Bridgerton-esque music and anticipation surging through the air. The lights illuminate the stage, and everything quiets down. The show’s about to begin. 

Photo courtesy of Tallula Russel

The New Plays Festival returned this fall for its 2025 run. From Sept. 25 through Sept. 28, the weekend was full of laughter, tears, gasps and roaring applause for the original works on stage. As always, New Plays is a festival completely run by students. All the plays are written, directed, stage-managed and acted by not only drama students but also people from various departments of study. Auditions took place in the first week of September, but the process began over the summer with playwrights submitting their work. When asked about the creative process, Sage Offer, writer of the play “Paladins,” stated, “I did it for my playwriting class. Not this past semester, but a year ago.” They held on to the play, revising it over the summer before submitting it for this year’s lineup, when it got accepted.

Coordinated by Tallula Russell and Barbara Camelo Gobbo, the festival started taking shape as plays got chosen and directors got selected. In an interview, first-year drama student, Émilie Beaudin, shared, “I remember looking up how to direct. Google, help me.” As director of “The Millionaire,” Émilie had an overwhelming amount of work to get done, but she was up for the challenge. She said, “I was new to the school, I was new to the program, I was new to directing. That was the most challenging bit.” However, things started falling into place as the rehearsals progressed. 

New Plays is known for being open to all kinds of new talent, including actors. Even though he’s studying sociology, Daniel Khazendar has always been interested in acting. However, the stage was not his comfort zone. He stated, “I never auditioned in front of people before; it’s always been on camera. I was very scared, but it’s my last year, so I thought, ‘let’s do it!’” Daniel brought the character Rob to life in the play “Between Floors,” one of the more emotional plays of the festival. Damien Walker, who got to enjoy opening night, expressed how the play resonated with him, “I almost shed a tear, actually. It was really well done.”

The plays this year stood out for their innovation, creativity and their ability to capture complex dynamics and feelings. Plays like “Stills,” “Dreamwalker,” and “Gals with Gall” stood out for their novelty, bringing new ways to tell stories on stage. “I wasn’t expecting the projections,” Romina Recalde, an audience member with stage managing experience, said after watching “Stills.” “That’s a very interesting lighting design. It actually caught the audience’s attention. It’s something different.” Other shows like “Paladins,” “The Millionaire” and “Happy Birthday, Mrs. Jones” were celebrated for their writing and their comedic strength. Reflecting on the audience reaction, Sage Offer commented, “It was so gratifying to see other people thought it was funny too.” And so the nights went by, bringing the arts into the spotlight during Homecoming weekend. 

Year after year, New Plays brings the community together through art and spectacle. Truly, it’s become an essential part of the fall semester, showcasing the welcoming spirit of Bishop’s community as a whole. As Romina Recalde puts it, “We always use this festival as a call to the Bishops’ community . . . For us, theatre is our life and we just want to share our life with the audience.” Though this year’s run has come to a close, New Plays 2025 has set the bar high for the following productions, and we personally can’t wait to see what they will bring.