Eugene O'Neill Theater Center
Waterford, CT
US

DESCRIPTION

The Eugene O'Neill Theater Center

The O’Neill is currently seeking enthusiastic emerging professionals across multiple departments for the 2026 Summer Season. Summer staff make a season of developing new plays, musicals, cabaret acts, and puppet theater possible—with intensive experience, full integration with O'Neill professional staff, and participation in all the activities of an O’Neill Summer.

From its campus in Waterford, Connecticut, the O’Neill has been home to more than 1,000 new works for the stage and thousands more emerging artists. O’Neill programs include the National Playwrights Conference, National Music Theater Conference, National Critics Institute, National Puppetry Conference, Cabaret & Performance Conference, and the National Theater Institute, which offers six credit-earning undergraduate training programs.

The Eugene O’Neill Theater Center is committed to diversifying the future of the American theater through the stories we tell, the artists telling those stories, the staff supporting our work, and the audiences in our theaters. Learn more about the O'Neill's Mission & Values.

Literary Positions Available

Script Coordinator
Reports to: Literary Manager
Department: Literary
Compensation: $6,325 stipend, housing, meals
Dates: Mid-May to early August

Duties will include:

-The Script Coordinator will lead Script Office setup at the start of the O’Neill’s summer season, and oversee its reset when the summer comes to a close. This includes setting up multiple desktop computers, printers, and workspaces.

-Work closely with the Literary Manager and Artistic Associate to onboard and train Literary Office junior staff members, including 3-5 Writers Assistants and Literary Fellows. This training includes a rigorous overview of office operations and technology (printers, laptops, etc), training in word processing softwares (Microsoft Word, Final Draft, etc) to facilitate script revision distribution, rehearsal room etiquette, and best practices for research requests and dramaturgical support.

-Oversee script printing and distribution for the O’Neill during NPC, NMTC, and CAB. Work with literary staff to create a script printing matrix for the summer; confirm that writers submit their scripts by deadline; ensure that printed scripts are distributed to stage management teams prior to the start of each workshop.

-Manage the literary department’s weekly schedule in close collaboration with the Literary Manager and Artistic Associate. This includes setting literary staff hours, coordinating rehearsal schedules for multiple Conferences, and communicating changes as needed.

-Manage the Script Office summer calendar. This includes showtimes for PUP, NPC, NMTC, and CAB; O’Neill staff and summer events; rehearsal blocks for NPC, NMTC, and CAB; and literary department events, including weekly meetings, training sessions and practicums, and professional development for Writers Assistants and Literary Fellows.

-Work with the Literary Manager and Artistic Associate to maintain a weekly Script Office task list and oversee its execution. Delegate to Writers Assistants and Literary Fellows when appropriate.

-Maintain all virtual and physical Script Office spaces and ensure they remain tidy and well-organized. This includes overseeing office supply and paper orders for the Script Office as needed.

-Oversee script archiving for the National Puppetry Conference, National Playwrights Conference, National Music Theater Conference, and Cabaret and Performance Conference.

Writers Assistant
Reports to: Literary Manager
Department: Literary
Compensation: $4500 stipend, housing, meals
Dates: Mid-May to early August

Duties will include:

Literary Administration
-Attending two or three weeks of rehearsal during the National Playwrights Conference (NPC) and/or National Music Theater Conference (NMTC); serving as the literary office liaison and point-person for the playwright, creative team, and dramaturg on those projects.

-Tracking the playwright or book writer’s revisions and communicating these changes to the literary office.

-Facilitating the printing, tracking, compiling, and distributing of script revisions and new pages across the O’Neill campus and rehearsal room.

-Updating the master copies of each script and maintaining a master script distribution database.

-Occasionally transcribing NMTC and NPC readings, talkbacks, and dream design sessions.

Dramaturgical Support
-Assisting NMTC and NPC creative teams and dramaturgs. This typically includes supporting playwright and dramaturg research, creating workshop glossaries, and finding reference images as requested.

-Filling research requests for playwrights and other guest artists.

-Opportunity to observe rehearsals and attend all public and private readings of the work presented at all O’Neill conferences.

-Writers Assistants may also attend rehearsals and assist in the script creation process for new works in development at the National Puppetry Conference and the Cabaret & Performance Conference.

Office Operations
-Support literary office operations with a once-a-week “office lead” shift, including responsibilities like maintaining a comprehensive daily log of department activity; delegating tasks and activities throughout the day; managing correspondences via phone and email.

-Opening and closing the script office and libraries; welcoming writers and guest artists to the literary wing of the O’Neill campus.

-Corresponding with artists and staff members via phone, email, or in-person; fielding questions and requests, or passing them along to others in the literary office or O’Neill staff as appropriate.

Ideal Candidates

The ideal candidate is an early career dramaturg or arts administrator interested in new play development, dramaturgy, playwriting, or producing. The position requires excellent written and verbal communication skills and meticulous attention to detail. Proficiency in one or more word-processing programs such as Microsoft Word, Final Draft, or Pages is essential.

Due to the rigorous summer schedule, most staff members will work six days a week with a guaranteed day off and the possibility of half days throughout the week

As part of The O'Neill's ongoing commitment to developing the future leaders of the American Theater, summer staff will be offered professional development and networking opportunities.

How to Apply

To apply for one or multiple positions, please visit our hiring page on our website at www.theoneill.org/work-with-us and select the position you are interested in for more information!

The Eugene O’Neill Theater Center is committed to be an equal-opportunity employer. The O’Neill aims to foster a diverse culture that is inclusive of race, ethnicity, culture, age, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, ability, national origin, veteran status, socioeconomic class, religion, professional status, and the intersections thereof. If you believe that you could excel in any of our open roles, we encourage you to apply.

DURATION

May 25, 2026 - Aug 9, 2026

SALARY

$4,500.00 – $6,325.00 per gig

APPLY ONLINE

https://www.theoneill.org/work-with-us