In the SpotlightPrograms

Calling Young Playwrights!

adminsyt ,

See Also…

Spotlight PLAYFEST 2024-’25
Young Playwrights’ Competition

Spotlight Youth Theatre’s annual Playfest competition is for young adult playwrights to create a one-act (short) play for young actors. Every writer who enters will receive custom feedback from dramatists at SYT about the strengths of their play and challenges to work on.

Winners of the PLAYFEST competition will receive a $100 prize and will have their play fully produced on the Spotlight Stage!

  • The entry period is August 10 through September 10, 2024
  • Winners will be announced on September 17, 2024
Click here to submit your Playfest 2023-’24 contest entry and script.

Click and read all directions below.

Requirements for Entry

  • The deadline is September 10, 2024.
  • Open to playwrights ages 13–24 (as of August 2024.)
  • Playwrights must reside in the Phoenix metropolitan area.
  • Playwrights may work as teams, but only a single $100 prize will be awarded for each winning play.
  • Playwrights may enter more than once, but each play requires a separate entry.
  • There is an entry fee of $5 per script. This is a non-returnable donation to Spotlight Youth Theatre.  If you are unable to enter because of the fee, please contact playfest@sytaz.org about your circumstances. The fee is not a barrier to enter. All entrants will get a response from us with a review of your work.
  • Each PLAYFEST participant grants permission to Spotlight Youth Theatre to announce them by name and involve them in the promotion of the PLAYFEST event (for contest winners) or to congratulate them by name (for entrants who receive an honorable mention.)
  • Each PLAYFEST winner grants permission to Spotlight Youth Theatre to:
    • Work with playwrights to refine their work
    • Produce their play once (for example, a two-weekend run of Playfest)
    • Make photography and video of that particular production available to theatregoers
    • Promote the play and the theatre in the traditional manner, and  allow the director’s discretion in staging the play as a workshop that may require small changes
    • While agreeing to those permissions, playwrights retain ownership/copyright and all other exclusive rights to their creations beyond agreeing to the above aspects of one production. Spotlight Youth Theatre does not “own” any play submissions.
  • Winners must arrive in-person for awards and publicity.

Requirements of the Play

  • The run time of the play must be no less than 15 minutes and no more than 25 minutes
  • Even though your submission doesn’t need to be a children’s story, mixed ages might be involved in PLAYFEST. Therefore, language and situations must stay within acceptable limits.
  • The play must NOT be based directly on any licensed works. It can’t be a new Star Wars chapter, for example, or continue the adventures of Harry Potter, or adapt any other famous franchise/book/show that is under copyright.
  • The play must take place in one location, OR allow the use of a single set to creatively show changes of setting, without having to move large set pieces on and off the stage during the play. Within reason, suggestions for background projections can be made for necessary scene changes. 

Theme and Content

  • Writers are encouraged to address themes that are important to them.
  • All genres are welcome.
  • Judges will look for a wide variety of works, possibly appealing to different age groups.

Submission and Format

  • Commit to finishing the play. If you haven’t written it already, start early and prepare to submit your best. For best results, have others read it aloud with you, offer feedback, catch obvious errors, etc. Don’t just send your first draft.
  • Put the play in .doc, .docx or .rtf format that may be edited later. 
  • Omit your name / by-line from the file that you attach, to hide your identity initially from the judges. (We aim to be impartial.)
  • Make the script as easy to read as most published plays. Each character’s dialogue should (at least) appear on separate lines, as in “NAME: Dialogue…” format. Traditional script format (more lines and margins) is also welcome, although we aren’t picky about it. Here is an example of standard play formatting originally published by Writopia Lab.
  • At the beginning of the script, include:
    • Character list with descriptions
    • Story summary, with intended audience of the play, and set description.
  • Minimize acting directions in the script, beyond actions and overt moods in parentheses. In-depth explanations and “invisible” details may be provided with the summary, character descriptions, and set description added to the beginning of the script — not so much in the middle of the action.
  • Click here to submit your Playfest 2023-’24 contest entry and script.
  • The deadline is September 10, 2024.
  • Email playfest-contest@sytaz.org if you have any questions.