11TH InspiraTO Playwriting Contest

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Full details (no fee, open to all):

SUBMISSISION GUIDELINES

Please read the full details below before applying.

1.This year's creative challenge: Shift. The play must show that a "shift" has taken place or is about to take place in the play.

shift: Move from one place to another, especially over a small distance. Change positions. Adjust. Correct. Lift. Land, people, buildings, structures or objects repositioned. Distruption. Swerve. Pivot.

Show us.

Leave your comfort zone.

2. The play must be a ten-minute play. The contest is open to anyone without geographic or age restrictions. You must submit online. Please fill out the submission form below and submit your play by December 1, 2015. There are no fees. Once you submit you will be taken to a page confirming that we have received your submission. You may only submit one play.

The story can be a comedy, a drama, a parody, absurd or anything in between (in English only). We accept any style except musicals.

The cover page should have the title of the play, the playwright's name and the list of characters. The pages should be numbered. The format should be easy to read. We accept previously produced plays (but not plays that have produced in InspiraTO before). The playwright must own the rights to the play up to June 12, 2016 (i.e. the script cannot be owned by a publisher).

We are particularly interested in scripts that aren't afraid to make bold choices: quality writing backed by imaginative staging. Only those playwrights whose plays have been selected will be notified by January 15, 2016.

The plays will be selected by a committee from the Toronto theatre community. If selected, your play will be performed in Toronto, Canada from June 2 - June 12, 2016. Between ten to eighteen, ten-minute plays will be selected and performed. 1st Prize: $500 CDN. Should your play be selected for inclusion in the festival, you are giving the non-exclusive right to Theatre InspiraTO to produce and perform the play in the 11th Annual InspiraTO Festival in Toronto (Canada's largest ten-minute play festival), in the June 2016. The InspiraTO Festival will find the cast, crew and market your play. Authors retain copyright and full ownership of their plays.

3. The submission must be a play. A ten-minute play is distinct from a sketch, or a skit; it is a compact play, with a beginning, middle and an end. You need a character facing obstacles in pursuit of some specific goal. You need rising action, conflict, and a climactic moment and your play must tell a complete story.

Generally speaking, scripts (including the stage directions, character names and dialogue) that are over 1,900 words are more than ten minutes long on stage. This does not mean that all plays under 1,900 words are under ten minutes, so be wise: use Word Count and read the play out loud while timing the length (including all pauses). You don't want your hard work rejected because it was too long.

Get inspired. See your story come to life!

Must submit plays online at http://www.theatreinspirato.ca/participate/play