ACANSA and Argenta Contemporary Theatre Invite Arkansas Artists to Create New Work for 2026 10-Minute Play Showcase
- ACT News
- 13 hours ago
- 3 min read
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 7, 2026
Media Contact:
Coburn Goss, Artistic Director
Argenta Contemporary Theatre
501-353-1443
New Arkansas plays take the stage September 13–15 at ACT II Sharon Heflin Performing Arts Center as part of the 2026 ACANSA Arts Festival of the South.
NORTH LITTLE ROCK, AR — Big stories. Bold ideas. Ten minutes at a time.
ACANSA and Argenta Contemporary Theatre has announced the 2026 ACANSA/ACT 10-Minute Play Showcase, a celebration of new Arkansas-made theatre and the playwrights, directors, and actors who bring it to life.
The Showcase will be presented September 13–15, 2026, at ACT II Sharon Heflin Performing Arts Center as part of the 11th ACANSA Arts Festival of the South. The call for playwrights, directors, and actors opened July 6, 2026.
This year’s Showcase marks a new creative partnership between ACANSA and Argenta Contemporary Theatre, produced by Coburn Goss, ACT Artistic Director, and Jeremy Williams, ACT Executive Director. Goss and Williams are nationally recognized writers and makers whose work has appeared Off-Broadway, at regional theatres, international festivals, and across feature film and web-based series.
The Showcase originated in 2018 as a joint production of ACANSA and The Yarn, founded and produced by Hilary Trudell. The Yarn continues to use the power of storytelling to amplify underrepresented voices, build empathy, and create space for human connection.
“ACT’s mission to nurture and advance the performing arts, ACANSA’s efforts to bolster the cultural vitality of our state, and our organizations’ shared dedication to arts education are at the heart of this partnership to re-launch The 10-Minute Play Showcase,” said Leslie Golden, ACANSA’s Executive Director. “We look forward to providing a forum for Arkansans’ new theatrical stories - from the timeless to the topical - to be shared with a broader audience.”
“New work needs a room,” said Coburn Goss, Artistic Director of Argenta Contemporary Theatre. “It needs playwrights, directors, actors, and audiences willing to listen closely and take the leap together. That is what makes a 10-minute play showcase so exciting.”
The 2026 Showcase invites Arkansas artists and audiences into the thrill of new work: fresh characters, unexpected turns, big laughs, sharp questions, and stories finding their shape in the room. Selected plays will be rehearsed and performed in ACT II’s intimate black box setting, with the focus on the essentials: the writing, the actors, the room, and the spark between artists and audience.
Playwrights, directors, and actors interested in participating are invited to visit https://www.argentacontemporarytheatre.org/acansa to learn more about the project and the submission process.
Key Dates
Call for Playwrights, Directors, and Actors Opens: July 6, 2026
Submission Deadline: August 2, 2026
Play Selection and Casting: August 3–8, 2026
Performances:
Sunday, September 13 at 2:00 PM
Monday, September 14 at 7:30 PM
Tuesday, September 15 at 7:30 PM
About ACANSA
Through arts programming, ACANSA strengthens the cultural vitality of the entire community. Founded in 2014, ACANSA Arts Festival of the South showcases artists from around the globe and right here at home in dozens of multidisciplinary arts experiences on both sides of the Arkansas River every September. Acansa Gallery hosts emerging to renowned local and regional artists in month-long exhibitions. In-school artist workshops, complimentary tickets for all students 18 and younger, and Free Spring Break Arts Camps complement ACANSA’s efforts to build a more dynamic and engaging community through the arts.
About Argenta Contemporary Theatre
Argenta Contemporary Theatre creates bold, contemporary live performances in the heart of North Little Rock’s Argenta Arts District. Through professional productions, new creative partnerships, and education programs for students and adults, ACT brings artists and audiences together around stories that entertain, challenge, and connect our community.
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