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Thursday, October 23, 2014

The Great Gay Play and Musical Contest


Dramatists Guild Members are exempt from paying this entry fee by using the discount code 2014DG when applying. You will be asked to provide your DG number.

The Great Gay Play and Musical Contest seeks to develop the highest quality work with LGBT characters or themes. We seek material that is innovative and groundbreaking, and that deals with LGBT history, or issues of importance to the community. While we do appreciate the traditional well made play with LGBT themes, we like hearing fresh stories told in new ways. and we hope to begin relationships with writers looking to engage in that work.

As you explore our website, you will see on our production history that we have already produced world premieres of material that has been developed in the contest. And we have produced Chicago premieres of work done elsewhere, along with historical LGBT pieces. http://pridefilmsandplays.com/pfp-production-history-and-awards/

And while there is an entry fee to apply, Dramatists Guild Members are exempted from that fee.

Awards & Prizes

The contest generally has a semi-final round, and a final round of up to five finalists. The finalists receive $400 cash prize and a chance to work with the artists of Pride Films and Plays to develop their work in rehearsals in Chicago. The finalists work is presented in 'enhanced staged readings' performed at the Center on Halsted, and featuring members of the PFP Artistic Ensemble along with guest artists.

Rules & Terms

Pride Films and Plays
www.PrideFilmsandPlays.com
773 250 3112
Pridefilmsandplays@gmail.com

The Great Gay Play and Musical Contest

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN A PRIZE. A purchase will not increase your chances of winning. The entry period for The Great Gay Play Contest (the "Contest"), sponsored by Pride Film and Plays (the “Sponsor”), an Illinois not-for-profit corporation, begins September 1, 2014 at 12:01 am. Central Time (CT) and ends October 31, 2014 at 11:59:59 p.m. CT (the “Entry Period”; October 31, 2014 will be referred to as the “Deadline Date”). Sponsor’s computer is the official timekeeping device for the Contest. Void where prohibited by law.

1. ENTRANT ELIGIBILITY:

The Contest is open to individuals who are at least eighteen (18) years of age or the age of majority in the state/country/province in which they reside on the date of entry who are legal residents of, and physically residing in, one of the fifty (50) United States (excluding Puerto Rico, United States territories, possessions, and protectorates, and foreign based United States military installations) or one of the following countries:

Albania Hungary
Andorra Iceland
Argentina Ireland
Armenia Israel
Austria Italy
Australia Jamaica
Azerbaijan Japan
Bahamas South Korea
Belarus Latvia
Belgium Liechtenstein
Bolivia Lithuania
Bosnia/Herzegovina Luxembourg
Brazil Malta
Bulgaria Mexico
Canada Monaco
Chile Montenegro
Columbia Netherlands
Costa Rica New Zealand
Cyprus Norway
Czech Republic Poland
Denmark Portugal
Egypt Romania
Estonia Russia
Ecuador Slovakia
Finland Slovenia
France South Africa
Germany Spain
Georgia Sweden
Greece Switzerland
Hong Kong United Kingdom
Venezuela

Sponsor, employees of Sponsor, prize donors and all of their respective partners, parent companies, divisions, subsidiaries, affiliates, trustees, franchisees, licensees, distributors, advertising, promotion and public relations agencies and their respective officers, directors, employees, agents, independent contractors, representatives and agencies (collectively, the "Sponsor Entities") are not eligible to participate in the Contest and/or win the Prize (as defined below). Additionally, relatives of such employees and persons living in the same household as such employees (whether related or not) are not eligible to win. For the purposes of this Contest, “relatives” is defined as spouse, domestic partner, parent, in-laws, grandparent, brother, sister, children and grandchildren.

2. ELIGIBILITY:

All plays and musicals entered into the Contest must be original. Plays or musicals adapted from pre-existing material will not be accepted, unless the author of the Play is also the owner of the material from which the Play is adapted or has the rights to said material. Plays must be written in standard play format, in English and can be no more than 120 8 ½” x 11” pages in length and in PDF format. The title of your PDF should be the exact title of your play – or your play title with GGPC – but should not include your name or any other words in the title. Do not put any information on or in the play that would identify you and/or your co-author(s) including, without limitation, your name, your co-author’s name(s), your contact information or your co-author’s contact information. Entrants will be judged only on the play accompanying their entries. Entrants will not be allowed to rewrite or correct their plays once submitted. Do not submit anything with your play including artwork. Any additional material accompanying the play will be discarded.

Scripts that have no production history will be accepted. We will also consider scripts that have been supported with staged readings or workshops as well as scripts that at the time of entry have had one community theater, educational theater, or one non-Equity production (which ran for no more than 25 performances). Plays which have received Equity productions are not eligible.

Plays which do not meet the above requirements will be disqualified.

Be sure to retain a copy of your play because Sponsor will not return the play you submit for the Contest.

3. HOW TO ENTER:

You can enter the Contest via the Internet only.

There is a fee to enter the Contest (the “Fee”). Members of the Dramatists Guild and the PFP Writers Network are exempt from that fee. Entries must be paid with Visa/MasterCard/American Express/Discover. The amount of the Fee is based on the date of entry as follows:

Date of Entry Fee

September 1 to September 30, 2014 US $30.00
October 1 to October 31, 2014 US $45.00
Dramatists Guild Members are exempt from paying this entry fee by using the discount code 2014DG when applying. You will be asked to provide your DG number.

To enter, log on to www.filmfreeway.com, find the information on our Contest page, and follow the appropriate links to register. Register for the Contest by including your name, your mailing address, your primary phone number (with area code/country code), your cell phone number or alternate phone number (if any) (with area code/country code), your birth date and your e-mail address. You will attach your script to the Film Freeway entry, and need not send it any other way. Music for musicals (in mp3 filesO should be emailed to PrideMusical@gmail.com. Entry can only be made electronically – no snail mail applications will be accepted under any circumstances.

Authors may enter one play only in the contest.

Entries submitted or received after the Deadline Date will be disqualified.

4. SELECTION OF CONTEST WINNER

The Contest winner will be determined by two (2) rounds of judging. Each round will be judged by a panel of judges selected by Sponsor in its sole discretion.

Subject to the provisions of this Paragraph 4, the first round panel judges will judge all eligible play entries received by the Deadline Date. That panel will select up to five (5) finalists based on the following judging criteria: play characters (20%); dialogue (20%); story and structure (20%); originality (20%); and overall impression (20%) (collectively, the “Judging Criteria”). Judge’s comments/forms will not be made available to Contest entrants.

Notwithstanding anything contained herein to the contrary and in the event that fewer than twenty (20) entries are received by the Deadline Date, the Sponsor has the right to cancel the Contest. In the event of such cancellation, all entry fees will be returned.

Each finalist will be notified via telephone and/or e-mail on or about January 2, 2015 that he/she, subject to verification, is a finalist. If a potential finalist, within two (2) days of Sponsor’s first attempt to reach him/her: (i) cannot be reached, (ii) fails to respond to the notification, (iii) declines to serve as a finalist, and/or (iv) has his/her notification returned as undeliverable, an alternate winner may be selected in Sponsor’s sole discretion. If the potential winner, within five (5) days of notification, (i) fails to return a completed affidavit of eligibility, liability/publicity release, or other documents(s) as required by Sponsor, (ii) fails to provide Sponsor with a copy of his/her valid government-issued photo identification or social security number, and/or (iii) is found to be ineligible, an alternate winner may be selected at Sponsor’s sole discretion. Sponsor reserves the right to modify the notification and affidavit/release procedures in connection with the selection of an alternate winner, if any.

Each finalist’s play will be performed as an enhanced stage reading during the Gay Play and Musical Weekend (the “Festival”) in Chicago, Illinois, USA in the first quarter of 2015, with final dates to be announced. Details of these staged readings are found in the PRIZE section below.

The winner of the Contest will be chosen from the finalists by a third panel of judges which includes PFP’s Artistic Associates and Artistic Ensemble. The Contest winner will be announced at the Festival following the final staged reading.

In the event of a tie in any judging round, the play entry with the highest “overall impression” score will move forward into the next judging round or will be declared the winner in the final judging round. If two or more tied entries have received the same “overall impression” score, the tie will be decided based on the entry with the highest “story and structure” score.

5. PRIZE:

The finalists will receive a prize of $400 each.

In addition each Contest finalist’s play will be performed as an enhanced staged reading at the 2015 Gay Play and Musical Weekend in Chicago, Illinois, at the Hoover-Leppen Theater in the Center on Halsted. Casting for each staged reading will be conducted by Sponsor in advance of that staged reading; cast members for each staged reading will be selected in Sponsor’s sole discretion. Each entrant acknowledges that one performer may perform the role of more than one character in that entrant’s play.

Finalists who wish to attend one or more staged readings are solely responsible for all costs and expenses to attend the reading including, without limitation, transportation to and from Chicago, housing in Chicago, meals and ground transportation in Chicago. Finalists are invited to join their artistic team for up to ten (10) hours of rehearsal in Chicago.

There will be no additional prizes awarded to the winner chosen by the judging panel.

After previous Gay Play Weekends, PFP entered into developmental or production contracts with various finalists. But if one is a finalist in spring 2015, one should not assume that a similar contract will be offered.

Decisions made by Sponsor are final in all matters, including interpretation of these Official Rules and awarding of the Prizes, and cannot be appealed. No substitutions of the Prizes are offered, except that Sponsor and the Sponsor Entities reserve the right in their sole discretion to substitute a Prize(s) or any portion of a Prize(s) for a prize(s) of equal or greater value. No transfer of a Prize(s) to a third party is permitted and the cash value of a Prize(s) will not be awarded in lieu of a Prize where it applies, except in Sponsor’s sole discretion. Any applicable international, federal, state and local taxes, including, without limitation, excise tax (including sales tax), and other expenses not specifically set forth herein are the sole responsibility of the Contest finalists and the Prize winner (as applicable).

6. RIGHTS

By entering, each entrant acknowledges and agrees that Sponsor and the Festival each have the non-exclusive, irrevocable and royalty-free right to make use of that entrant’s play for judging purposes and to perform that entrant’s play as a staged reading at the Festival as further described in the PRIZE section above. Each entrant agrees, as a condition of entry, not to exhibit, disseminate, produce or broadcast, or authorize any third party to exhibit, disseminate, produce or broadcast, in any manner, media or format, the play submitted as part of his/her entry (or portions thereof) for a period of one (1) month following the conclusion of the Contest.

7. REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES

Each Contest entrant represents and warrants the following:

The entry is submitted voluntarily and is not submitted in confidence, and no confidential relationship between the entrant, Sponsor and Sponsor Entities is intended to be created by these Official Rules or the submission of the entry.

The play is wholly original to the entrant (and any coauthors) and was written solely by the entrant (and any coauthors). Entrant and any coauthors are the sole and exclusive owners of all right, title and interest in and to the play and they have the sole, exclusive and unconditional power and right to submit the play under the terms and conditions of this Contest.

The play has not been copied from any other source or previously broadcast or otherwise distributed or disseminated in any medium or format.

The play is not in the public domain.

The play does not violate the rights, common law, statutory or otherwise, of any person or entity.

Sponsor shall have the right to disqualify any play which, in Sponsor’s sole judgment, violates the representations and warranties contained in this Paragraph 7. Each entrant agrees that he/she will obtain, at entrant’s sole cost and expense, the written permission/consent/release of any person or entity depicted or mentioned in the entrant’s play if in the sole judgment of Sponsor such permission/consent/release is required. If entrant fails to secure such permission/consent/release, Sponsor shall have the right to disqualify the entry.

8. LIMITATION ON LIABILITY/DISCLAIMER:

All entries must be completed in full in order to be eligible. Any attempted form of entry other than as described herein is void. Entries generated by a script, macro or other automated means will be disqualified. No mechanical reproductions, alterations, or forged entries allowed. Incomplete, illegible, and corrupted entries are void. Sponsor reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to disqualify any individual (and his/her entry) who tampers with the entry process.

Any person who supplies false information, enters by fraudulent means, or is otherwise determined to be in violation of these Official Rules in an attempt to obtain the Prize will forfeit the Prize won and may be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. All federal, state and local laws and regulations apply. You further agree to not knowingly: damage or cause interruption of the Contest; prevent others from using the Contest; or obtain or modify another user's account information without their consent.

CAUTION: ANY ATTEMPT TO UNDERMINE THE LEGITIMATE OPERATION OF THE CONTEST VIOLATES CRIMINAL AND/OR CIVIL LAWS. IF SUCH AN ATTEMPT IS MADE, SPONSOR MAY DISQUALIFY ANY CONTEST ENTRANT MAKING SUCH ATTEMPT AND SPONSOR MAY SEEK DAMAGES TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW.

Sponsor and Sponsor Entities are not responsible for lost, late, incomplete, destroyed, forged, damaged, tampered with, mass machine generated, unintelligible, incomprehensible, misdirected entries, otherwise not in compliance with these Official Rules or mail related to or resulting from participation in the Contest. Sponsor and Sponsor Entities are also not responsible for Internet traffic congestion, technical, hardware or software failures of any kind, lost or unavailable network connections or failed, incomplete, garbled or delayed software transmissions which may limit an entrant’s ability to participate in the Contest or damage to user’s system as a result of participation in the Contest or downloading any information necessary to participate in the Contest. Sponsor reserves the right in its sole discretion to cancel or modify the Contest if the Contest is not capable of running as planned, including, without limitation, any computer virus, malfunction, tampering, unauthorized intervention, fraud, technical failure or other cause beyond its control which corrupts, threatens or adversely affects the administration, security, fairness, integrity or proper operation of the Contest.

As a condition of entry, you agree to be bound by these Official Rules and the decisions of Sponsor. Except where prohibited by law, by entering this Contest, you consent to (i) the use of your name, voice, picture, likeness, image and biographical data and/or any other information contained in your entry in advertising, promotional and marketing materials by Sponsor and the Sponsor Entities worldwide in all media now known or hereafter discovered (including Sponsor’s and Sponsor Entities’ web sites) without additional compensation, notice, approval or review and (ii) the modification, editing, adaptation, electronic alteration, use, assignment and/or disposal of online entries however it sees fit and for any purpose without any notice or compensation to you or any third parties. By entering this Contest, you agree to waive any right to claim ambiguity with the Official Rules. You acknowledge that if you are chosen as the Contest winner, certain of your personally identifying information may be disclosed to third parties at least as required by law, including, without limitation, on a Winner’s List.

All Prize claims and documents provided by the Winners must be verified by Sponsor.

EACH winner, by acceptance of a Prize, agrees to release Sponsor AND the Sponsor Entities from AND AGAINST any and all liability, claims or actions of any kind whatsoever for injuries, death, disability, attorneys’ fees, costs of litigation and settlement as well as damages or losses to persons and property that may be sustained in connection with the receipt, ownership, REDEMPTION or use of A Prize or while traveling to and/or from a location to obtain or use A Prize.

Neither Sponsor nor the Sponsor Entities make any warranty, representation, or guarantee, express or implied, in fact or in law, relative to the use of any Prize including, without limitation, quality, merchantability, or fitness for a particular purpose. Further, no responsibilities are accepted for any additional expenses, omissions, delays, re-routing, or acts of any government or authority.

Sponsor and Sponsor Entities shall not be liable to any winner or any other person for failure to supply a prize or any part thereof, by reason of any acts of God, any action(s), regulation(s), order(s) or request(s) by any governmental or quasi-governmental entity (whether or not the action(s), regulations(s), order(s) or request(s) prove(s) to be invalid), equipment failure, terrorist acts, earthquake, war, fire, flood, explosion, unusually severe weather, hurricane, embargo, labor dispute or strike (whether legal or illegal), labor or material shortage, transportation interruption of any kind, work slow-down, civil disturbance, insurrection, riot, or any other cause beyond Sponsor’s sole control.

9. GOVERNING LAW.

The Contest and these Official Rules will be governed by the laws of the State of Illinois, USA without giving effect to any choice of law or conflict of law rules (whether of the State of Illinois or any other jurisdiction) which would cause the application of the laws of any jurisdiction other than the State of Illinois. The Illinois state and federal courts located in Cook County, Chicago, USA shall have exclusive jurisdiction in the event that any dispute arises regarding the Contest or the Prize. Any and all disputes, claims and causes of action arising out of or connected with this Contest or any prize awarded shall be resolved individually, without resort to any form of class action. Any and all claims shall be limited to actual out-of-pocket costs incurred including costs associated with entering this Contest but in no event attorneys’ fees. Entrants hereby waive all rights to claim punitive, incidental and consequential damages and any and all rights to have damages multiplied or otherwise increased.


10. WINNERS’ LIST:

A Winner’s List can be viewed at www.pridefilmsandplays.com by June 15, 2015.

11. OFFICIAL RULES:

For a copy of the Official Rules, go to www.pridefilmsandplays.com.

SPONSOR: Pride Films and Plays, 3023 N. Clark Street, Suite 327, Chicago, Illinois, USA 60657.

© 2014 Pride Films and Plays. All rights reserved.

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