STAAR Theatre announces 2026 New One-Act Play Contest
PULASKI, Tenn. – STAAR Theatre is inviting playwrights across the South to submit original works for its 2026 New One-Act Play Contest, a new program designed to celebrate storytelling rooted in Southern life.
The contest is open to writers of all ages and experience levels. Entries must be original one-act plays set in the South. Submissions will be now through June 30, with adult submissions closing earlier if 300 scripts are received before the deadline.
The contest will include two divisions: Junior, for ages 9 through 18, and Adult. The Junior division is open to all genres. Adult entries must be submitted in one of six categories: drama, historical, romance, comedy, fantasy or cultural.
Finalists will be presented in public readings Aug. 15 at STAAR Theatre in Pulaski. Rehearsals for finalists will be held Aug. 13 and 14 from 6 to 8:30 p.m. The Junior division readings will be held Aug. 15 from 10 a.m. to noon. Adult division readings will be presented in two sessions from 3 to 5 p.m. and 7 to 9 p.m.
Three Junior plays and six Adult plays will be selected as finalists. One finalist will be chosen in each Adult category. In the final judging, three Adult plays and one Junior play will be named winners. Those plays will receive fully produced presentations at a later date.
Contest organizers said the goal is to encourage both emerging and experienced playwrights to dramatize stories that reflect the people, culture, history and imagination of the South.
Playwrights who enter are asked to live in the South, and their plays should in some way reference life in the South. Musicals will not be considered. Plays must be unpublished and unproduced as of August 2026 and may be no longer than 20 pages. Scripts must be submitted in PDF format.
STAAR Theatre is asking playwrights to attend the festival in person if selected as finalists. Winning playwrights will grant the theatre one-time permission to produce the winning plays without compensation. All other rights remain with the writers.
Each submission should include a title page with the playwright’s name and contact information, a one-paragraph synopsis, a character breakdown and the script itself. Judges will review scripts without the identifying title-page information.
A printable flyer and complete contest guidelines are available online, along with the submission form.
Complete contest information is available on the STAAR Theatre website at https://staartheatre.org/staar-one-act-contest-2026/. There you will find the submission form, full rules and guidelines, downloadable flyers and QR codes that make it easy to share this opportunity in print or online.