Young Playwrights Festival
Watch your words come alive
Wharton Center for Performing Arts and MSU Department of Theatre are happy to announce the 28th Annual Young Playwrights Festival. The Young Playwrights Festival is a showcase of six original works, written by high school students, produced by MSU Department of Theatre students and performed at the Pasant Theatre, Wharton Center on the campus of Michigan State University.
Michigan high school students are invited to submit a one-act play to a juried competition. Twelve semifinalists are chosen, and from those 12 the jury will select the six finalists whose plays will be produced. The six finalists will each be assigned a professional theatre mentor to help the playwright revise their play. Each finalist will receive a $200 cash award and a staged production of their play performed at the Pasant Theatre. The other six semifinalists will receive a $100 cash award.
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Submit a script
All entries must be electronically submitted to laurie.briseno@whartoncenter.com by Friday, December 15, 2023. Failure to meet any of the rules or guidelines will be grounds for disqualification from the festival. Judges’ decisions are final. Awards are not transferable.
The best plays have something to say. The best plays reveal something that we may already know, but in a unique way or with a different slant. Plays have a chance to move, repel or unite audiences. A play with a clear purpose, a clear premise, a clear message is always the best for me.
Playwrights have a chance to illuminate whatever excites or angers them. Playwrights can always look for inspiration in their own lives, but they have a responsibility to shape these events into a unique message. Before you put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard), know what you want to say.
