In 2014 NotaBle Acts introduced its high school playwriting competition. Inspired by the quality and quantity of submissions we’ve received to our high school competition, NotaBle Acts is now launching an Elementary School Competition as well. Outlines of both are featured below:

High School Competition

Maximum # of winners to be selected: 1

The winning playwright will receive:

• $200 cash prize
• Free tickets to the 2016 NotaBle Acts Summer Theatre Festival
• Script support (dramaturgy) from an established Canadian playwright; previous dramaturges have included Don Hannah, Colleen Murphy, Jenny Munday, and Ryan Griffith.
• Active involvement in the production process (mandatory—see note below)*
• A workshopped reading* of the play at the 2016 summer festival: this includes dramaturgy, venue space, publicity, director, and actors
• A full production of the play at a later date.

Length of plays: 30-50 minutes

Maximum # of actors: 4

Elementry School Competition

Maximum # of winners to be selected: 1

The winning playwright’s class will receive:

• $300 cash prize
• Script support (dramaturgy) from an established Canadian playwright; previous dramaturges have included Don Hannah, Colleen Murphy, Jenny Munday, and Ryan Griffith
• Active involvement in the production process (mandatory—see note below)*
• A workshopped reading* of the play at the 2016 summer festival: this includes dramaturgy, venue space, publicity, director, and actors.

The Runners up’s class will receive:

• Classroom Book Bundles

Length of plays: 20-30 minutes

Maximum # of actors: 4

Staging Comments: The content in the winning plays must be school appropriate and cannot feature any copyrighted material such as full songs, etc. Preference given to plays about a social justice issue. The winning plays will be produced as workshopped readings as part of the festival’s main stage offerings: the play will be assigned a dramaturge and director and will be cast for a full in-character reading with minimal stage directions and lighting effects.

* In the case of every play chosen for presentation at the festival, it is essential that the winning playwright be accessible in May and June for early revisions and able to attend rehearsals and productions in July. The winning playwrights need not be in Fredericton for this entire time period but should be accessible via phone or email when they are not.