Exit 7 Players is seeking submissions for The Exit 7 New Short Play Contest, performing in February 2015. The contest producers are Janine and Jeffrey Flood (co-producers, the LabWorks 15-Minute New Play Contest 2010-2013, Valley Repertory Company) and Rebecca Johnson (co-producer, Les Miserables, Exit 7 Players).
The Exit 7 New Short Play Contest will produce short plays by twelve playwrights in an exciting audience-participation format, awarding two winning writers a prize of $150 each.
Submission Process
You may submit either one or two plays. Please use the following process to enter the contest. Read all requirements carefully so as to be considered.
1. Format your script using no smaller than 12-point type. Use 1” margins on top, bottom, and sides. Please number your pages. (Click Sample Script Format to see a properly formatted page.)
2. Page one should start with the title of the play at the top of the page (as seen on the Sample Script Format). If you consider your play to be a comedy, please follow the title with “A Comedy”. If you do NOT consider your play to be a comedy, follow the title with “A Drama”. And yes, you must label your play as either one or the other.
3. Your play must be limited to 15 pages total. Any script 16 pages or longer will be rejected.
4. The plays we produce are chosen blind, so do not include ANY author information on the script itself. The contest Play Selection Committee does not see any playwrights’ names until the final selections for production have been made. Therefore, if you put your name on the script so that a member of the Committee sees it, it will be rejected. A company member who is not on the Play Selection Committee keeps the playwright contact info until the final 12 plays are selected for production.
5. Save your script(s) in .pdf format. You can submit your script(s) until Saturday, September 13th, 2014 via the form found in the link. Do not attempt to submit the script in any other format or to any other destination. Snail mail submissions are NOT being accepted.
Submission Restrictions
Please read the following carefully so that your script can be given due consideration:
1. Playwrights can submit 2 plays, but only 1 play per writer will be produced. Members of Exit 7 Players are eligible to submit to the contest, but if their script is chosen as one of the 12 semifinalists, they will be prohibited from working on the production of the contest in any capacity.
2. Scripts should require 2 to 5 actors. Please note that a play can include more than 5 characters, as long as they can be played by 2 to 5 actors. Scripts requiring more than 5 actors will be rejected.
3. We will not consider one-man or one-woman shows, musicals, or children’s theatre.
4. Entries must be original plays. Scripts may be co-authored, based on factual material, or an adaptation. Legal clearance of materials not in the public domain is the full responsibility of the playwright.
5. We will consider unproduced works as well as plays that have been previously produced, so long as their first date of production was on, or after, June 15th of 2013.
6. Submissions are restricted to plays that have not been published in any form, and they must be royalty-free to Exit 7 for this contest.
7. We’re seeking plays, not skits or sketches. Plays should have a beginning, a middle, and an end (though not necessarily in that order) and feature character development. Above all, make the script compelling.
8. Exit 7 is a community theatre. If we foresee difficulty producing a play due to unusual script requirements, the play may be rejected.
9. While Exit 7 is a family-friendly theatre, adult content is acceptable. Profanity, if it is fully justified by the script and for the character, will not be cause for outright rejection; however, profanity is no replacement for good writing. We will reject any script that requires nudity.
10. Keep set, lighting, sound, costume, and prop requirements to a minimum. The contest will feature 6 plays per night, with quick changeovers. A script with complex technical requirements could lead to its rejection.
Play Selection Process and Contest Format
1. Plays which do not meet submission requirements will be disqualified. A play selection committee of five Exit 7 members will read those plays which meet the submission requirements.
2. The play reading committee will select 12 plays for competition: 6 comedies and 6 dramas. Six plays will be presented on the first semifinals night (3 dramas and 3 comedies) and six plays on the second (again, 3 dramas and 3 comedies).
3. An audience vote on each semifinals night will select the finalists—four dramas and four comedies. The audience of the finals night will select a winner in the drama category and a winner in the comedy category, who will receive a prize of $150 each. A detailed explanation of the performance format and of the audience voting system will be made available to the playwrights whose plays are chosen as semifinalists.
Additional Information
1. By submitting your script you are agreeing to the following:
a. You have read, understand, and agree to all of the contest rules and guidelines as detailed on Exit 7’s website.2. No playwright revisions will be accepted once a script has been submitted; Exit 7 reserves the right to request changes to any script, but none will be made without playwright consent.
b. You understand that Exit 7 reserves the right to change any contest rules as needed (but we will attempt to keep any such changes to a minimum).
c. You attest that your submission is an original piece, and that you are the author of said submission.
d. You attest that your play has not had a production prior to June 15, 2013.
e. You understand that Exit 7 reserves the right to reject any submission for reasons including, but not limited to, length, quality, content, or for otherwise not meeting submission requirements.
f. You give Exit 7 non-exclusive permission to perform your play as part of The Exit 7 New Short Play Contest free of any royalties, as well as to record any performance of your play for archival purposes (not for resale or profit).
3. No written or oral critique will be given on plays submitted.
4. Exit 7 will post the names of the semifinalists and their plays on its website and Facebook page once the selections have been made.
5. We will promote your play, but you should too.
6. Complimentary tickets will be made available to participating playwrights; those playwrights will be informed of our comp policy at a future date.
7. Playwrights must agree to allow Exit 7 to record their plays for archival purposes (not for resale or profit). A DVD copy of your play only will be copied for all semifinalist playwrights. You may use the footage of your play for self-promotion purposes, e.g. on your own website, if desired.
A Final Note
We are expecting literally hundreds of submissions…so make your plays compelling from the very first line of dialogue!
Audiences will choose the two prize winning plays from only 12 semifinalists, so once you’re in the contest, your chances are pretty good…the tough part is getting a play into the semifinals. Write a great script that grabs us, makes us laugh or makes us think, or both. Good luck! Keep an eye out for announcements on exit7players.org, and “Like” Exit 7 Players Theater on Facebook.