Job Details

DESCRIPTION

NY THEATER FESTIVAL

SPRING/SUMMER 2025

26TH CONTINUOUS SEASON

THE NEW YORK THEATER FESTIVAL COMPETITION

for PLAYS and MUSICALS

TOTAL PRIZES $8,000 • FIRST PRIZE $3,500 • FULL LENGTHS • ONE ACTS • SHORTS • SOLOS

No submissions fee - No participations fee

Producing your play or musical is the best way to review and develop your work.

No charge required for submitting. Every submission receives an answer within 5 days from the date of submission.

TESTIMONIALS

https://newyorktheaterfestival.com/testimonials/

ALL PRODUCTIONS CAN GET A VIDEO RECORDING OF THEIR SHOWS in 4K AFTER THE RUN IS OVER

WE MAKE A VIDEO RECORDING OF THE PRODUCTION AVAILABLE TO ALL PARTICIPANTS – WE USE FOUR CAMERAS SO PARTICIPANTS HAVE FOUR CAMERAS ANGLES WITH WHICH TO EDIT INTO A COHESIVE CUT.

THE FESTIVAL OFFERS RAW FOOTAGE FROM 4 CAMERAS OR CAN SIMPLY DELIVER THE RAW FOOTAGE FROM THE CENTRAL CAMERA’S WIDE ANGLE WHICH CAN FUNCTION AS A RECORDING WITHOUT ANY EDITING REQUIRED.

PARTICIPANTS CAN USE THE RECORDING OF THEIR SHOWS AS AN ASSET FOR FUTURE MARKETING AND TO PROVIDE REEL MATERIAL FOR FUTURE INDUSTRY MANAGERS

FURTHERMORE, FILMING THE SHOW MEANS THAT FRIENDS AND FAMILY CAN PURCHASE TICKETS TO ATTEND OVER ZOOM - SPECIFICALLY THOSE WHO CAN'T TRAVEL TO SEE THE PERFORMANCES. THIS MAKES IT AVAILABLE TO ANYONE ALL OVER THE COUNTRY OR THE WORLD

When you stage your work, you discover ways to enhance and improve your presentation and story.

This is a unique opportunity to invite people from the industry to see your production! People are more likely to go see a show than to read an unsolicited script - some industry people receive on average thousands of submissions per month. They understand that the journey for a show to be successful often goes through several productions and this is your chance to show that you can start that process!

Our dedicated team is here to help you get your work out. We are with you from the moment you begin tech rehearsals, all the way through to your closing performance.

You will never be left alone during the process. We will help you choose from the 85 set/furniture pieces we offer to dress your stage for your run, and we will give you a complete crash course on how to use the audio/light/video system in just 3 minutes, which are intentionally designed to be very user friendly.

After we show you how to use the tools we provide and how to best utilize the space, The Festival’s team will provide prime responses to every inquiry, as well as a telephone # you can call anytime during relevant hours throughout the run of your show

In 12 years and 22 seasons we have successfully hosted 1,400 plays and 300 musicals, as well as rewarding over 300 participating artists cash prizes.

Yours could be the next production onstage!

AMERICA'S LARGEST AND MOST PRESTIGIOUS PLAYWRIGHT-MUSICAL FESTIVAL-COMPETITION

To submit to the Festival, go to:
https://NewYorkTheaterFestival.com/ »

Send your submissions now – we only accept submissions from playwrights who lives within 30 miles of Manhattan.

PRIZES...

The Festival offers up to $8,000 in Prizes. $3,500 alone goes to the best play or musical.

Can you find another festival that gives away this much money in prizes? Our winners are selected by the festival’s team, so it’s not simply some “popularity contest” based on whoever brings in the largest audience. Sometimes the most “non-glitzy” smallest budget productions with the fewest audience members win first prize, simply because it was excellent. We love sincere, heart-felt performances, and honest writing.

Prize categories include:

BEST PRODUCTION $3,500
BEST PLAY/MUSICAL OR SHORT $500
MOST CREATIVE PLAY OR MUSICAL $500
BEST DIRECTOR $500
2 BEST ACTORS $500 each
2 BEST ACTRESSES $500 each
BEST SINGER $500
BEST MUSICAL SCORE $300
BEST CHOREOGRAPHY $300

YOU CAN ALSO RECEIVE FEEDBACK FROM YOUR AUDIENCE IF YOU LIKE, WHICH WILL GIVE YOU VALUABLE INFORMATION TO IMPROVE ANY FUTURE RUN OF YOUR PRODUCTION

Here’s a chance to have your Play or Musical live on a New York City stage in Manhattan!

Accepting plays and musicals of all genres between 5-90 minutes in length.

Why is the New York Theater Festival a mecca for new Productions?

Simple.

We offer:

A quality venue...

75 seats. A stage the size of your average 2-bedroom apartment in Manhattan (30’x22’) with plenty of backstage space, room in the wings, a huge dressing room complete with mirrors, and plenty of storage.

Need set pieces? No problem.

What other festival offers you the use of 85 set pieces in their storage for free? Not only do we invite you to use our set pieces but we also offer free storage for all the props you will need for your production for the duration of your run. Double parking your truck outside of theaters for every performance, only to find your windshield sporting a new parking ticket is an enormous hassle. It’s also annoying to lug all your props, set items, and costumes back and forth on the subway throughout the length of your run. Don’t sweat it. We have space- and that’s not easy to come by in NYC! Check out our set pieces at:

· https://NewYorkTheaterFestival.com/props/

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Easy to use technology
Where else will you get a lighting plot of 65 lights, complete with LED lights that can create a flush in a full range of deep colors for a variety of scenes? You are also free to use our projector that projects a backstage image of 16×12′. Our lighting and sound boards are extremely easy to use even for those that have had no previous experience. You do not need to be a tech expert to use them.

·

If MUSIC is the food of love, play on!
Need music? We also have a good upright piano you can for your use

· We offer long techs.
Do you know how important it is to have ample tech rehearsal time?
For a Full-Length (60-90 minutes) we give 4 hours for your tech.
For a One-Act (30-45 minutes) we give you 2 hours, and for a Short (5-20 minutes), we give you 60 minutes.

What can you accomplish with the short tech rehearsals (or none at all) offered by other theater festivals? Absolutely nothing (say it again)! We don’t want to risk your show looking miserable during your run because you did not have enough time to prepare. We want you to feel confident in how it will look. That’s why we offer a generous amount of tech time - (after all, time is money)!

What’s more important than advertising your show?

Many festival websites do not display your show properly. Many that do will have mundane descriptions and a thumbnail for a poster. Check out our posts with previous productions and you will immediately see the difference – we advertise with large posters and detailed information.

You can share the link of the post that we create for you without embarrassment and send it to your family, friends, colleagues, and community. Furthermore, all cast and crew from all productions are granted free tickets to see all the other shows in the festival!
Check out our posts:

https://NewYorkTheaterFestival.com/

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Prime performance hours
We give you only ideal prime time slots, 30 minutes of ample set-up time before performances, and since the festival runs for 2 months, each production has time to breathe.

· No seasonal volunteers
One of our principal team members is always at the theater to support you during your tech, box office times, and performances. You will always see a familiar face! Feel free to ask for help or special guidance to make your performance a success. Your questions will be answered in a matter of hours by the festival’s team. You will never have to wait days for a response. Our team members are knowledgeable and experienced, providing you with real answers and a personal touch.

· Award ceremony
An unforgettable award ceremony at the end of the festival to honor your talent in front of your artistic colleagues, similar to the Oscars!

SALARY

$0.00 – $0.00 per hour

UNION

NON-UNION

Pay: