New Dramatists, the nation's foremost playwriting development center, will collaborate with Yale School of Drama for a series of readings and mentorship for Yale's young playwrights.

Led by New Dramatists artistic director, Todd London and Mark Bly, chair of the Yale playwriting program, the collaboration features an internship program, workshops, and classes culminating in a series of readings at New Dramatists.

The series will kick-off Jan. 15, 1999 featuring readings by student playwrights: Cahir O'Doherty (mentored by Chay Yew), Sunil Kuruvilla (mentored by Eddie Sanchez) and Barbara Labinger (mentored by Kate Moira Ryan).

New Dramatists, founded in 1949, offers a haven for playwrights to develop their craft via workshops, staged readings, awards and prizes. New Dramatist membership lasts for a seven-year span. Alumni include: Robert Anderson, August Wilson, Lanford Wilson, Richard Foreman, William Inge, Donald Margulies, Terrence McNally, Paula Vogel, John Patrick Shanley, Mac Wellman and many more.

For reservations or more information on the reading series, call New Dramatists at (212) 757-6960. -- By Sean McGrath