DDP's 2026 Playwright Fellows lingyue 凌玥, & Straton Rushing are joined with past PSE playwrights AJ Layague and Lee Cataluna to share how playwriting is integrated and sustained within their professional careers. Attendees will be able to choose which two skill-based sessions they are interested in joining.

This workshop will start with a facilitated conversation on working sustainably as a professional playwright. Attendees will then join a breakout room with a current DDP playwright fellow and a past DDP playwright for a one-hour skills-based session. The workshop will then conclude with a Q&A period with all four playwrights. The total workshop will last up to two hours, with a break.

Breakout room A with Lee Cataluna and Straton Rushing.

Lee Cataluna “The Time in Between.” 

How to navigate the downtime after a project, dealing with difficult people, and navigating imposter syndrome.  

Straton Rushing “The Submission Process.” 

Learn about writing applications as a playwright, artist statements, and what script readers are looking for. 

Breakout room B with AJ Layague and lingyue 凌玥. 

AJ Layague “Writing with Rhythm and Rhyme.” 

Explore the fundamentals of lyric and verse writing, musical collaboration, and the delicate balance between precision and spontaneity in prosody.

lingyue 凌玥  “(Re)Affirm Your Whys.” 

Join a reflective writing session to strengthen the why behind your writing. 

More about each session can be found below:

“Writing with Rhythm and Rhyme” with AJ Layague

AJ Layague is an award-winning composer (2024 MAP Fund grantee; PhD in Music Composition) and musical theater writer (four-time O’Neill Music Theater Conference semifinalist), as well as a playwright known for her intricate rhyming verse. This talk explores the fundamentals of lyric and verse writing, musical collaboration, and the delicate balance between precision and spontaneity in prosody. How meticulous should rhyme and meter be for maximum flow? How can writers avoid the stiffness of overly “perfect” rhyme? Through examples from musical theater and verse drama, we’ll examine rhythm, enjambment, surprise, and the ways heightened language can keep an audience alert, emotionally engaged, and listening closely.

“(Re)Affirm Your Whys” with lingyue 凌玥 

lingyue 凌玥 is a playwright and filmmaker. Her research-informed works explore social structures and how individuals navigate them. This is a reflective writing session. Attendees should come prepared to get honest about what motivates their creative energy, and walk away with tools to make friends with it. This session will strengthen your conviction on the reasons you write, and it is for writers at any level of experience and practice. 

“The Time in Between" with Lee Cataluna 

Lee Cataluna is a playwright based in Honolulu. Her plays have been produced at La Jolla Playhouse, Atlantic Theatre, Filament Stage and Honolulu Theatre for Youth. Join this session to chat with Lee about how to take care of yourself as a creative person, dealing with rejection, waiting for a call-back or grant confirmation, and imposter syndrome. 

“The Submission Process” with Straton Rushing 

Straton Rushing is a Dallas-based playwright and theatremaker originally from Sonora, Texas. His works have been developed and produced at various professional theatres, colleges and schools around the USA, Canada and India. In this session, come to learn what points to hit when writing artist statements, and what submission strategies will get your work the development and opportunities you need.