The Theater Project’s 10th Annual Young Playwrights Competition Submissions Deadline is  January 23, 2012 for NJ High School Student Playwrights.  Open to all secondary school students, ages 13 to 18, in New Jersey. 

The Theater Project, is accepting submissions for its 10th annual Young Playwrights' Competition.  The competition seeks original works only, no adaptations.   All submissions must be at least 10 but no more than 30 pages typed in play format, and all entrants must be New Jersey residents in secondary schools (ages 13 to 18).  Entries must be postmarked by January 23, 2012.

The winning scripts will be performed in March 2012 by The Theater Project during the state-wide Family Week at the Theater celebration of theater and New Jersey’s youth.  Monetary prizes and certificates will be awarded at that time to all winning authors.  First place will receive a $600 savings bond, second place will receive a $400 savings bond and third place will receive a $200 savings bond.

The goal of the Young Playwrights' Competition is to encourage the next generation of theater practitioners and audience by honoring their work and bringing it to life.  The competition was inspired by a generous donation from Linden resident Bill Mesce, Jr., an award-winning playwright and screenwriter, whose recent novel The Advocate was published by Bantam Books.

How to Enter: By January 23, 2012, please submit a 10-30 page script to The Theater Project, Box 101, Union, NJ 07083 or e-mail to TheaterProject@aol.com.  All entries must include a SASE (self-addressed stamped envelope), a 50 word biography of the author including contact information, and the $5 entrance fee (check or money order, payable to THE THEATER PROJECT) which can be sent via snail mail for emailed scripts.  Only one entry per author.  Please remember that you must be a resident of New Jersey and a secondary school student in the 2011- 2012 academic year to be eligible.

All questions can be directed to The Theater Project at (908) 809-8865 or by email at THEATERPROJECT@aol.com.

ABOUT THE THEATER PROJECT

Begun in 1994, The Theater Project is an award-winning Associate Member of the New Jersey Theater Alliance.  In 2011 it joined forces with the What Exit? Theatre Company.  The Theater Project strives to cultivate a more thoughtful and creative community by inspiring and challenging our audiences in an intimate and engaging setting through powerful, relevant and rarely-seen theatrical productions that explore contemporary values and topical issues, as well as through educational offerings and programs that benefit our  community.  The Theater Project has recently received grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, the New Jersey State Council for the Arts, and the Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders. More information is available at TheTheaterProject.org.