Competition Criteria & Info

1. Competition for a Full Production Run

Competition Submission Criteria

  1. The playwright must be a resident of New Jersey (we’re sorry but we cannot accommodate all the script submissions from other areas of the NorthEast).
  2. Submissions can be from January 1 2025 through  January 14 2025 ONLY.
  3. Only 1 play may be submitted per playwright, per season, so select your best!
  4. Please, no musicals.
  5. The first 20 plays submitted for the Full Production Run track, will be read and scored per season. Additional submissions may be considered for the Workshop Track.
  6. The plays will be reviewed in the sequential order received, so submit early. We will not be able to review every play.
  7. Scripts should be original, completed (or close to it), unpublished works of professional quality, that have not yet had a full production at a community or professional theatre.
  8. There is no restriction on the subjects and topics that can be submitted for consideration.
  9. The series is open to artists of all ages, religions, races and creed.
  10. Script word count should be 20,000 words or less.
  11. The script should ideally take 60 minutes to 2 hours to perform.
  12. Plays with smaller casts (under 7 characters) are PREFERRED, but larger cast size will be considered. We also prefer shows designed to be performed on one set, with an eye toward future community theatre productions.
  13. No hardcopy paper manuscripts will be accepted. All submissions must be digital and sent via e-mail to NewPlaywrights@villagerstheatre.org.
Important – Playwright Info !!!!!
The body of the email that contains the attached script MUST BE FORMATTED EXACTLY AS FOLLOWS:
  1. Submitting for which Track:
    a. Competition for a Full Production Run
    b. Plays in Development Workshop
  2. Authors name, address, phone number and email
  3. Title of play
  4. Genre of play (comedy, drama etc
  5. Word count
  6. Number of Pages
  7. Number of Characters
  8. Brief description of story’s premise
  9. Character breakdown
  10. Detailed Synopsis of play
  11. Brief Bio of Author
  12. Where and when have you held reading workshops for your submission(s)?
  13. Are you seeking a seated Play Reading, or a Staged Reading?

Due to time and budgetary restraints, a maximum of 3 plays will be selected for a Competition Reading. Plays are selected based on a review system conducted by volunteers who read and rank the plays.

Prior to submitting your play to the Competition track, you should have already gone through several basic “readings” and “workshops” with your material. Your script should be final or close to it.

Darren Nye will Produce the selected Full Production show, which would be performed in the Black Box likely at the beginning or end of our theatre season (dates TBD). He can also Direct the production, or the Playwright may suggest a Director and Crew. We urge the Playwright NOT to request directing their own play. Darren will define the budget with the Villagers Board, and make arrangements for media promotion and ticket sales.