Our Monthly Workshops
2025 WORKSHOPS
In 2025, our Workshops will run on Zoom from 7pm – 8pm on the first MONDAY of the month.
These free monthly online sessions offer an excellent opportunity for MWT playwrights living in all parts of Victoria to refresh existing writing skills and develop new skills. At the end of each 60-minute Workshop, attendees can choose to stay online for a chat with others.
Registration is required for all Workshops, with session summaries and RSVP dates announced on this page and in the MWT Playbill.
W O R K S H O P S C H E D U L E
February 3
Workshop #1
The Feedback Process
Featured writer: Hayden Dun
*Zoom
This first workshop for 2025 will be preceded at 6pm by the AGM.
March 3
Workshop #2
Monologues that Sing
Q&A with Jennifer Munday
* Zoom
April 7
Workshop #3
To Plan or not to Plan?
Facilitator: TBA
* Zoom
May 5
EVENT
The 2025 Theatre Quiz
Host: Ian Robinson
* Zoom
June 2
Workshop #5
What Makes this Theatre?
Facilitator: Emily Duncan
* Zoom
July 7
Workshop #6
The Winter Read
Facilitator: Jeannie Haughton
* Zoom
August 4
Workshop #7
Dialogue – Dos and Donts
Facilitator: Cathy Hunt
* Zoom
September 1
Workshop #8
Antagonist vs Protagonist
Facilitator: TBA
* Zoom
October 6
Workshop #9
Self-promotion for Playwrights
Facilitator: TBA
* Zoom
November 10, 17, 24
UNESCO Workshop Series
Facilitator: TBA
* Zoom
N E X T W O R K S H O P
Monday 7th July @ 7pm
The Winter Read
Group Discussion
ZOOM
As playwrights we are familiar with traditional script formats. But but what happens when the play you want to write consists of parallel monologues with overlapping speech, and characters who can’t communicate with each other? At this workshop we will be exploring Tom Holloway’s 2007 play Red Sky Morning, which aimed to meet these challenges by using a non-conventional format. The facilitator for this workshop is Gippsland-based playwright Jeannie Haughton, who will lead a group discussion of Red Sky Morning. Participants will receive a pdf copy of the script and some focus questions to think about prior to the workshop. *To register, please email us by midday on Friday 13th June at melbournewriterstheatre@gmail.com
R E C E N T W O R K S H O P S
Monday 2nd June @ 7pm
What makes this Theatre?
WORKSHOP
ZOOM
Not every story is right for the stage, but some stories belong on stage – while others still can be lifted off the poetry/fiction page you have created for them and presented for theatre. At this workshop, to be facilitated by award-winning NZ playwright Emily Duncan (pictured below), we’ll look at the key elements that set theatrical storytelling apart from other genres and open the exciting box of treats that is there for you to explore, and exploit, as a playwright. Bring along your own early idea for a theatrical project, and let’s test the possibilities! *To register, please email us by midday on Friday 30th May at melbournewriterstheatre@gmail.com
Monday 7th April @ 7pm
To Plan or Not to Plan?
WORKSHOP
ZOOM
Join Megan J Riedl for an exploration of how we can unlock creativity and find surprises in our writing from within the constraints of a well-planned narrative world. Participants will be invited to undertake a collaborative world-building exercise to plan a new narrative world and its protagonist from the ground up, considering time, place, lore/history and the fundamental truths that drive character behaviour. From there, find ways to let go with improvised dialogue creation through a series of prompts. This will be a highly interactive workshop, so please bring something to write with and your courage to interact on zoom! *To register, please email us by midday on Friday 4th April at melbournewriterstheatre@gmail.com
Monday 3rd March @ 7pm
Monologues that Sing
PANEL SESSION
ZOOM
A script written for one character, one voice. Bringing it to life on stage should be an easy task for an experienced actor, right? In this Q&A session, director Jennifer Munday (pictured) and Katrina Mathers, who will perform in Metropolis Monologues (12th – 18th March), will talk about how they bring the best out of a monologue script. Whether you are an experienced writer of monologues or are considering delving into this theatrical form, an enlightening conversation awaits! To register for this session, please email us by 5pm on Friday 28th Feb at: melbournewriterstheatre@gmail.com
Monday 3rd Feb @ 7pm
The Feedback Process
SCRIPT READING
ZOOM
At this first workshop for 2025, MWT actors will read the short play ‘Second Chance’ by Hayden Dun and then participate in an actor-writer-dramaturg feedback session. This lively, engaging script was developed, workshopped and then showcased during Gasworks Script Lab 2024. It has received further redrafting since then, and provides an excellent example of how constructive feedback from artists and peers can be drawn on to further improve a script. To register for this session, please email us by midday on Friday 31st Jan at melbournewriterstheatre@gmail.com