PLAY ON

It sure ain’t easy to be an emerging playwright in the world’s theater capital. So thank goodness for the fifth annual Summer Play Festival, which charges no application fee, accepts unsolicited material, provides full financial and production support to the artist, and keeps the tickets cheap, drawing in sold-out crowds every year. For the first time, the Public Theater hosts the fun, featuring the work of eight talented up-and-comers chosen from more than 1,000 competitors from across the country. The works include a musical about a teen rock band with a lust for fame, a mystical drama about two sets of twins living 100 years apart, and a sci-fi thriller about a homicidal video game.

Mondays-Sundays, 8 p.m. Starts: July 1. Continues through July 27, 2008