Folks, this March has an insane number of playwriting submission opportunities.  It’s like an embarrassment of riches, with 26 playwright submission contests, many with cash prizes, listed below:

Theater Name / Festival Name

URL

Length Accepted

Genre(s) Accepted

Deadline

Location

Bloomington Playwrights:  Woodward/Newman Drama Award

URL

Full Length (75-135 min)

Full-length drama, Fee: $10, Prize: $3000

1-Mar-13

Bloomington, Indiana, USA

Barter Theatre: Appalachian Plays and Playwrights Festival

URL

Full Length “Preferred”

Play must be written by an Appalachian playwright or set in the Appalachian region. Prize: $250-$500 + transportation.

1-Mar-13

Abingdon, Virginia, USA

Endstation Theatre Company

URL

Full Length

All Genres.  “We bring three playwrights to Sweet Briar College during Endstation’s Blue Ridge Summer Theatre Festival to write, workshop, and develop new plays.

1-Mar-13

Sweet Briar, Virginia, USA

Horizon Theatre Company

URL

Not Specified

Plays about the South, by writers who live or have roots in the South.  Women and African Americans particularly encouraged to submit.

1-Mar-13

Atlanta, Georgia, USA

HRC Showcase Theater

URL

Full Length

Accepts any form, style or genre. Fee: $10, Prize: $100-$500

1-Mar-13

Hudson, New York, USA

Minnesota Shorts Play Festival

URL

10 Minute Playwriting Festival

Prefers plays for the general audience (no profanity, etc).

1-Mar-13

Mankato, Minnesota, USA

The Brick Theater: Game Play Festival

URL

Full Length

Accepts cutting-edge works that lie at the intersection of video gaming, technology and performance art.  You must produce/stage your own play.

1-Mar-13

New York City, New York, USA

Trustus Theatre: Annual Playwrights’ Festival

URL

Full Length

 Looking for innovative comedies and dramas on any topic, raw or polished, profane or polite. Prize: $750

1-Mar-13

Columbia, South Carolina, USA

Swivel Theatre Company

URL

One Act

Accepts submissions with a theme  “Arab Women in the Arab Spring.”  These stories can be told through comedy or drama, satire or gritty realism.

4-Mar-13

London, United Kingdon

Subversive Theatre Collective: 2013 playwriting competition

URL

30-Minute max

Plays of a political nature that raise consciousness on socially relevant issues

5-Mar-13

Buffalo, New York, USA

Red Bull Theater:  10 Minute Play Festival

URL

10 – Minute Play

Accepts short plays that contains heightened language, verse, classical themes, or is an adaptation of a classical story.  Theme: Greed.

8-Mar-13

New York City, New York, USA

Theatre Southwest: Annual Readers Theatre

URL

5-15 minutes

Accepts any form, style or genre except monologues.  $100 Prize.

8-Mar-13

Houston, Texas, USA

Mckinney Repertory Theatre: Annual MRT Playwriting Competition

URL

Full Length

Does not accept Adaptations, translations, musicals and children’s plays.

10-Mar-13

McKinney, Texas, USA

East Valley Children’s Theatre Aspiring Playwrights Contest

URL

60 – 90 Min

Plays must be suitable for children to perform for children.  Unspecified cash prize.

15-Mar-13

Mesa, Arizona, USA

Orlando Shakespeare Theater – Playwriting Festival

URL

Full Length

Plays exploring important, challenging, and crucial social. Topics can range from current events to interpersonal issues in the bedroom. Both comedies and dramas welcome.

15-Mar-13

Orlando, Florida, USA

Silver Spring Stage: One Act Playwriting Festival

URL

One Act

Accepts any style or genre.  $100 prize.

15-Mar-13

Silver Spring, Maryland, USA

The Driftwood Players: Annual Festival of Short Plays

URL

15 minutes max

Centered on the  theme “Aftermath,” no X rated scripts

15-Mar-13

Edmonds, Washington, USA

The Neil Simon Festival

URL

80 – 150 Minutes

Prefers character-driven American comedy; plays should not be overtly political. Musicals are accepted. Fee: $25 ($55 if you’d like a critique).

15-Mar-13

Cedar City, Utah, USA

Young Playwrights Festival

URL

Full Length

Original plays and musicals on ANY subject. Playwrights must be 19 years old or younger

15-Mar-13

Hollywood, California, USA

Newborn Theatre: Odds and Ends Playwright Festival

URL

30 minutes max

Playwrights must be younger than 30

1-Mar-13

Toronto, Canada

Piper Theatre: Annual Festival

URL

One Act (10-40 minutes)

Looking for one-act plays that investigate the complicated lives of young people. Prize: $500

29-Mar-13

New York City, New York, USA

Ohio State University: Newark New Play Contest

URL

Full Length

Accepts any form, style or genre. Prize: $100-$500

30-Mar-13

Newark, Ohio, USA

Sky Blue Theatre Company Playwriting Competition

URL

10-30 minutes

Accepts any form, style or genre.  Winners will be produced.  Also, up to 10 scripts will be given written assessments, and considered for publication. Fee: 15 British pounds.

30-Mar-13

Cambridge, United Kingdom

Theatre Conspiracy Playwriting Contest

URL

Not Specified.

Any Genre except musicals. Fee: $5 (free for Dramatist Guild members). Prize: $700

30-Mar-13

Fort Myers, Florida, USA

Tipping Point Theatre: Sandbox Playwriting Festival

URL

14 minutes max

Playwrights or plays must have specific ties to Michigan.

31-Mar-13

Northville, Michigan, USA

Women Theatre Project: GIRL PLAY

URL

5-12 minutes

Accepts plays written by women with a lesbian theme.

31-Mar-13

Boca Raton, Florida, USA

If you found this post useful, you’ll love the 2013 Play Submissions Helper, which lists & organizes 400+ play submissions opportunities in one easy-to-use excel file, including more information on the opportunities listed above!

Author: Dave Berns