The Players is now accepting playwright submissions for its 23rd Annual New Play Festival from now until May 1, 2024. A committee of judges will select five plays to be presented in a “Reader’s Theater” style format during the week of July 8 - 12, 2024. One of the winning plays will be selected as "Best of Series" and will be workshopped and produced on the main stage Summer 2025. Guidelines: Entrant must be a resident of the Gulf Coast area (defined for this contest as extending from Tampa/Clearwater to Fort Myers) and over the age of 18; Full-length plays are preferred but one-acts will be considered; Maximum number of performers needed to produce the play is 8. Playwrights are asked to delineate if there are multiple roles that can be doubled; Manuscripts must be submitted digitally to npf@theplayers.org in 12-point font with playwrights’ biographies included in a single PDF; No evaluations will be rendered with any entries not selected; Author (and collaborator, if any) may submit only one script per year; Play must not have had a prior production, although those work-shopped before non-paying audiences are acceptable; Published plays are not eligible; Entries that have been previously submitted to The Players ARE eligible, but only if the work has been substantially re-written; Musicals are not accepted; Submission deadline is May 1, 2024; No submissions will be accepted past that date; Plays not following the guidelines listed above will be disqualified. Winning selections: At least five (5) entries will be presented in rehearsed readings at The Players from July 8 - 12, 2024. The five finalists will be announced via The Players website by June 3, 2024. Winning entries will have a director assigned and will organize at least two rehearsals. Playwrights are responsible for supplying updated and corrected copies of their script to their director and cast. Auditions TBA. Once finalists are selected, actor auditions for the staged readings will be held June 22 – 23, 2024. Staged readings will be held July 8 – 12, 2024.

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