Description
Deadline: December 1, 2024
This competition honors the memory of Thomas W. Stephens, PhD, playwright and PlayZoomers Board Member Emeritus.
PlayZoomers, a live, online, nonprofit theater company, seeks one-act scripts (20 – 30 minutes) suitable for online production, on any subject, related to any genre, with no more than six characters. No submission fee is required. Two playwrights will each receive a $100 prize. We plan to produce the two, winning one-act plays (together) on a Friday and Saturday evening in the spring of 2025.
Please email scripts (PDFs only) to playzoomers@gmail.com In the subject line, put “Stephens Competition: Script submission [title of play] by [playwright].” If you are submitting multiple scripts, send each one in a separate email. Please do not submit scripts you have previously sent us.
On the first page of your script include the title, playwright name, estimated run time, and contact information. On the next page, include a logline/synopsis, a detailed character breakdown, production history, and a short playwright bio. At the end of the script, describe production details, such as backgrounds, costumes, props, music, and sound effects. For additional script formatting guidance, go to https://www.dramatistsguild.com/script-formats
The deadline for this round of submissions is Dec 1, 2024. As we read through scripts, we will acknowledge your submission and reach out to you only if your script is selected for production.
With 117+ professionally produced plays since 2020 - involving more than 285 playwrights, directors, designers, and actors - PlayZoomers has become a national online theatre company and an international theatre community. We feature plays of different genres and lengths, with cast sizes typically ranging from two to six. We work closely with playwrights to adapt their work to an online platform. We welcome theatre artists and audience members of all ages, genders, and backgrounds. Learn more about our theatre company at https://www.playzoomers.org.
Thomas W. Stephens, PhD (1942-2024)
Thomas W. Stephens was an educator, award-winning playwright, director, and sometime actor. Tom founded the Department of Theatre at Randolph College (formerly Randolph-Macon Woman’s College) in Lynchburg, Virginia, where he was Thoresen Professor of Theatre, Emeritus. An active participant in regional theatre, he was a past president of the Southeastern Theatre Conference and former regional chair of the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival. Tom’s plays were produced nationally and internationally. He held a BA in English from Gannon University, an MFA in Speech and Drama from The Catholic University of America, and a PhD in Theatre from the University of Denver. Tom was an early, ardent, and generous supporter of PlayZoomers. He joined the PlayZoomers Board of Directors and provided wise counsel and a rich array of scripts. His PlayZoomers legacy includes two productions he directed: “Infidelity” and “Greening Zabella” and seven he wrote: “When I Leave This Place Behind,” “Sketching,” “Grandpa is with Jesse,” “That Froelich Girl,” “May Tag,” “Greening Zabella,” and “The Follow-Up Fellow.” Bringing heart, kindness, and humor to every interaction and theatrical project, Tom was a deeply respected and much-loved member of the PlayZoomers community.
