Rover's Second Play Contest Announced

Rover Dramawerks announces
our second annual playwriting contest

ROVER SECONDS!

We are seeking FULL-LENGTH comedies or farces that have received ONE full production to be a part of our Sixteenth Season.

· Submissions will be accepted from March 20 to April 20.
· Only the first 150 full-length plays will be accepted.
· Comedies or farces only. No musicals or dramas.
· Plays must have been produced ONCE previously but not in the DFW Metroplex.
· Plays may not be published.
· Playwrights may submit only one full-length play of at least 60 pages.
· A cast list and brief synopsis must be included.
· Only PDF files will be accepted.
· Name and contact info must not appear anywhere on the script (i.e. this is a blind submission process).
· Submissions will ONLY be accepted via our website using the form provided. Submission Form

One full-length play will receive a cash prize of $500 and a full production by Rover Dramawerks in their Sixteenth Season.

Rover Dramawerks performs in a reconfigurable black box theatre that seats 90-130. Please take this into consideration when presenting your work to us for consideration.

We also strongly encourage you to check out our website at www.roverdramawerks.com to see the types of plays we generally produce.
(Specifically our current season and our past productions)

The judges reserve the right not to award prizes or productions for any category if they feel the caliber of plays received does not warrant a winner.

Please note: Rover Dramawerks has moved our 10-minute play contest to later in the year.

We get questions:

How about if it's had a staged reading?
What if part of it has been performed?
What if it's had a workshop?
Why don't you do World Premieres?
Why not drama/musicals/performance art/slam poetry?

Staged Reading / Workshop?
The goal of this competition is to provide a SECOND production, not a first.
A staged reading is a staged reading.
A workshop is a workshop.

A production says a company was willing to gamble
real money on a script, including extended rent, tech, manpower, costumes, etc.

Not to seem snooty about things, but the concept is that we, as an art and as a community of artists, have stacks of World Premieres each year and those scripts are abandoned (many rightfully so) by publishers to die without a second production. There's a little "prestige" to be had premiering things and that can help market a single production.

Until the second or third independent production shows the promise of making money with a script, publishers just don't seem to want to invest in them. That's what we want to start people thinking about with this project.
--
World Premieres?
We've done about one a year... inadvertently for the past several years.
--
As for "Drama" and "Musicals"
and "Performance Art" and "Slam Poetry"
--
Dramas do not sell easily.
We have to pay the bills even with this one.
Musicals cost an arm and a leg and frankly, the only people that come see musicals are people that only come see musicals. It doesn't really help our overall season.
... and did I mention we have to pay the bills.
--
Performance Art?
We have to pay the bills.
--
Slam Poetry?
We don't serve insanely overpriced coffee
and Bongo Liability Insurance doesn't grow on trees.
Oh.... nor does paying the bills?

Hope that helps.