Amplifying the voices of the next generation of writers, artists, activists and global citizens.
The 28th Annual Ojai Playwrights Conference & New Works Festival will take place July 20-August 3, 2025. Check this page for Youth Workshop applications.
Part 1: Summer Workshop & Performance (July 21 - July 30)
OPC’s Youth Workshop leads high school students (from incoming freshman to recently graduated seniors) through a process of writing, developing, and presenting their own dramatic works under the tutelage of veteran writing and acting coach Kim Maxwell and writer, director, performer Lily Brown. Participants are also mentored by OPC playwrights, actors, directors, and dramaturges who guide the students through writing and acting exercises, lead inspiring Q&As, and offer dramaturgical/editorial support on their work. This process culminates when the young writer-performers take the stage with their raw and uncensored material during a special performance event.
Part 2: OPC New Works Festival (July 31- August 3)
Each Youth Workshop participant receives a highly coveted OPC Company Pass, allowing them to attend all OPC New Works Festival readings and special events!
The 2023 OPC Youth workshop in partnership with the Townies, Inc. brought together students from the four corners of Ventura County in an in-person collaboration aimed at broadening horizons and building artistry, confidence, and community.
2024 Youth Workshop applications are now closed. Check back here for next year’s application. For additional information please contact the Youth Workshop staff at [email protected].
Tuition: $1,000 | Scholarships are available
KIM MAXWELL, PROGRAM DIRECTOR
Kim Maxwell is the Founder/Artistic Director of The Townies, Inc. She is a producer, director, writer, mother, teacher, wife, Founder/Principal at Kim Maxwell Studio, and Creator/Producer of The Townies Podcast. She is Co-Founder of the Ojai Playwrights Conference, serving as Board Member and Director of its Youth Program for over 20 years. Kim is also Co-Founder and served as Co-Artistic Director of Theater 150 for 11 years. Kim’s transformative style of teaching has inspired absolute beginners and professional actors alike. With her compassionate guidance, students undertake the fulfilling and transformative process of discovering, developing, and performing their own stories. From preteens to senior citizens, Kim’s students, over a thousand in number, have gathered in living rooms, theaters, and detention centers throughout Los Angeles and Ventura Counties to share their stories and have their voices heard. Kim received a Lifetime Achievement in the Arts Award from the City of Ojai in 2013 and was named the 2018 Visionary of the Year by the National Association of Women Business Owners.
LILY BROWN, PROGRAM CO-DIRECTOR
Lily Brown is a director, writer, and actor with a degree in Spanish, Drama, and Political Science from Bennington College. In addition to being a Co-Founder of The Townies, Inc., Lily served as its Producing Director for many years. She is a Producer of The Townies Podcast and the Co-Director of the Ojai Playwrights Conference Youth Workshop. Lily is a Company Member at Pacific Resident Theater, most recently appearing on the PRT stage in All My Sons. She has appeared in a number of festival-bound short films, world-premiere readings at the Ojai Playwrights Conference, and in 2017 was selected to attend THREAD at Yale, a highly selective multimedia storytelling program. As a writer, Lily’s work varies in theme and subject matter but leans comedic, political, and personal. Recent accolades include Semifinalist in Screencraft’s Virtual Pitch Contest and Quarterfinalist in Filmmatic’s Short Screenplay Awards. Her directing background is based in theater, primarily new works; she will make her film directorial debut with the upcoming dark-comedy short, Dead Serious. Lily loves language and speaks both Spanish and French in addition to her native English.
OPC TACO TUESDAY WRITE NIGHTS 2024
Sponsored by Trudy A. Frohlich
In the spring of 2024, we invited high school students to come eat tacos and write with us! Taco Tuesday Write Nights are OPC's new monthly hangout for high school students in Ojai that included workshops and Q+A’s with OPC professional artists.
Express yourself. Learn from professional artists. Write what you want!
Keep an eye out here for next year’s Taco Tuesday Write Nights! For more information email Kim Maxwell at [email protected].
