Inspiring excellence in writing plays
To promote, support and encourage improvement in play writing on the one-act circuit in Ireland.
Entries for the competition for original new plays which have not been performed in public before 2022 should be received before Friday 16th September 2022.
Eligibility criteria:
Those amateur playwrights who were born in Ireland, have gained Irish citizenship or who have lived in Ireland for a minimum of three years.
An original play which has not been performed in public, and which has not received any other funding.
The panel can only judge one play per entrant.
The judging panel:
The judging panel will be made up of 3 members selected by the 6/6 committee.
There will be an independent chairman, a member of DLI and a member of ADCI who will oversee the judging of the competition. The panel for the 2022 competition will be: Chair Walker Ewart, Anne Mekitarian representing DLI and Trisha Keane representing ADCI.
Judging the plays:
The play will be judged solely on the quality and potential of the writing.
The judging panel will provide the playwright with general points taken from the current year’s competition and short feedback on the individual play.
The award: The overall winner for the year will be announced on the final night of the All-Ireland One-Act Drama Finals. The decision of the judges, overseen by the ADCI/DLI Joint Committee, will be final.
The winner will be awarded a week’s residency in the Tyrone Guthrie Centre at Annaghmakerrig, Co. Monaghan sponsored by the Ramor Theatre, Virginia, Co Cavan. S/he will be expected to present a short report and some evidence of the work done during their residency.
The panel reserve the right NOT to award the prize where the overall quality is deemed to be not sufficiently good.
There will be a certificate for the first and second runner-up plays. As well as the top three plays, at the discretion of the judges, a limited number of plays may be ‘highly commended.’
In addition to the winning, ‘’performance ready plays, there will be a short-list of up to 6 plays which are ‘works in progress’ and which, with a little more work and guidance, could be made performance ready.
A copy of the play, of whichever draft, should be forwarded by e-mail to Walker Ewart (walker.ewart@gmail.com) by Friday 16 September 2022.
Please see the attached notes to aid your application.
Guidelines on the Presentation of Entries to the Play-Writing Competition 2022
General
It is permissible to send a draft of the play which may change as rehearsals go forward.
All entries should be typed in Arial size 12.
Please ensure that there is a complete list of cast members.
There should be a clear delineation between the lines of each character, with any stage directions either in brackets or italics.
Front page
The front page should have the title of the play with the name of the author.
At the bottom of the page please have the name of the group which will be performing the play and, if known, the festivals entered.
Introductory page
It would be useful for the panel to have:
some background to the author (e.g member of a particular group? How long writing? Any other published pieces? First time attempt?); and some information as to the themes explored within the play and why you chose to write it.
The judging is based on the potential of the writing and not on how well the play does on the festival circuit. There will be 4 categories judged and it may help you to consider them as you review your writing: (a) development of character: 40%; (b) situations/scenes creating dramatic effect: 35%: (c) lighting/sound/technical: 15%; (d) overall appeal: 10%.
An area which needs consideration is that of lighting/sound/technical. Is there a particular effect you would like the director to achieve within your play? What guidelines can you give on the technical side of things?
To download a copy of this information click here – The DLI ADCI Annual Playwriting Competition 2022