FAQ

What kinds of submissions are you accepting?

We’re accepting submissions for shows as well as submissions from anyone wishing to produce, write, act, perform comedy, sing, direct, or stage manage! Submissions for volunteer positions will open at a later date.

Looking to enroll in a workshop? You can do that here!

How do I submit?

Submit by filling out the 2026 Submissions Form here!

When do submissions open/close?

Submissions are open now! We will be reviewing submissions in a rolling basis, so we'd love to hear from you early.

Final Deadline: January 8

When will I hear back from you?

If you submitted a show to the festival, we will be holding interviews with Producers throughout January. Producers will be informed on a rolling basis, January 9th - January 25th.

We will be casting actors, as well as other talent and crew, on a rolling basis January 10th - February 1st.

When is the festival? What about rehearsals?

The festival is March 31st - April 12th.

For folks that are confirmed to be performing in the festival, we will send out info about tech and venues during the first two weeks of February.

Rehearsals and Producer meetups and office hours will be during February and March.

Tech rehearsals will be held March 16th - March 26th.

What do I need to provide when submitting?

If you are submitting as an individual artist, we’ll ask you for a few basic details about yourself and may ask you to share a link that showcases your work.

If you’re submitting a show, we’ll also ask for:

• Your past producing experience (or if you need help producing!)

• Name of your show

• Preferred dates for your show (During the festival: March 31st - April 12th 2026)

• Length of the show

• What we’ll experience during your show

• A program blurb

• The size of audience you can bring in addition to The Joy Who Lived audience

• Who all is involved

• Who you need help getting involved

• Your basic tech needs for the show

• Ideal theater size

• The show's relationship to the trans community
  and …

• What you need to make this worthwhile (Theater is expensive! We typically provide a venue and tech—can you make it work with that? You'll also get the bulk of money from ticket sales, but obviously, people need to buy tickets for that to work.)

What if I don’t know all of this yet? Can I submit still?

Yes! Submit what you have and fill out the submission form as much as you’re able. You’ll be able to add to, or edit, your submission after you submit.

I already submitted. Can I edit my submission?

Yes! After you submit you’ll receive a confirmation email. That email has a link that let’s you edit, or add, to your submission! If you run into trouble, just shoot an email with any edits to producer@joywholived.com

What accessibility options are available?

We offer wheelchair access, ASL interpretation at select events, mask requirements for all volunteers and attendees, sliding-scale ticket pricing, and livestreaming of most festival shows. 

What expenses are covered by the festival?

How do you split money with artists?

Joy Who Lived in a non-profit that uses a hybrid model for paying for shows.

How does the festival make money?

Joy Who Lived is run by Trans Stories, a 501c3 nonprofit, and makes no profit on the festival. Our paid positions are limited to people who work full-time during the festival, including:

• tech / lighting designer and operator

• house manager for festival

• filming crew + photographers

• security

• teachers for our low-cost workshops

• ASL interpreters

Other places money goes:

• printing playbills + marketing materials

• insurance

• masks/accessibility items

• water + snacks for shows/rehearsal period

• venue rental for shows, classes, tech rehearsal, and kickoff/closing event

• venue/stage design

Much of the work for the festival is done by our volunteer steering committee, made up of experienced theater producers and project managers who donate their time to create this community.