Ten-Minute Play Contest

Source: https://arts.princeton.edu/about/opportunities/high-school-contests/ten-minute-play-contest/ Parent: https://arts.princeton.edu/academics/theater/

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Ten-Minute Play Contest ---

General Contest Information\ Contest Guidelines & Eligibility\ Frequently Asked Questions\ Contest Submission Form\ Past Contest Winners

Eligibility for this annual playwriting contest is limited to students in the eleventh grade in the U.S. (or international equivalent of the eleventh grade). Each year a guest playwright serves as contest judge. Acclaimed playwrights Anya Pearson, Jiehae Park, Dipika Guha, and others have judged the contest in recent years.

To receive email updates about submission deadlines for the contest each year, please subscribe to our list.

2025-26 General Contest Information

The online submission form for the 2025-26 contest will be available here on January 12, 2026. There is a limit of 250 entries for the contest. Once 250 entries are received, the contest will close and the submission form will no longer be available; no additional entries will be accepted.

If the 250-entry limit has not been reached by March 31, the contest will then close on March 31, 2026, at 12:00 p.m. (EDT). No late entries will be accepted.

Discover last year’s 2024-25 contest winners

Guidelines & Student Eligibility

Applicants may submit only one play
Entries can be maximum of 10 pages — 1 page equals 1 minute
Eligible students are in the eleventh grade in the U.S. or international equivalent of the eleventh grade
Please note that we cannot provide critical feedback on submissions.
Please note that we cannot provide timely updates on how many contest entries have been received at any given point during the submission window.

Prizes

First Prize – $500
Second Prize – $250
Third Prize – $100

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I submit my play to the contest?\ When the 2025-26 contest opens, the submission form will be posted to this web page. All plays must be submitted through this online portal.

How will I know if my play has been successfully submitted to the contest?\ Once the online contest form has been submitted, you will receive an email confirmation of your entry. This confirmation will be delivered to the personal email address you provide in the form. If you do not receive a confirmation email with a copy of your submission, first check your spam or junk folder for an email from LewisCenter@princeton.edu. If you do not see an email from the contest in your junk folder, then you will need to submit your entry again. With questions, please email LewisCenter@princeton.edu.

When and how will contest winners be notified?\ Winners will be contacted by email in June 2026.

When will contest winners be published?\ After all winners have first been notified, the contest prize winners (and any finalists or honorable mentions) will be published to the contest page after June 22, 2026.

Will any student who submits an entry receive a certificate of participation in the contest?\ No. There are no certificates given for participation in the contest, nor do winners receive an awards certificate.

Who is eligible for the contest?

Students in 11th grade or junior year in a U.S. high school or home school program
Students who are currently in an international equivalent grade to U.S. junior, which is the third year in high school

How will I know if/when the contest entry limit has been reached?\ The number of entries submitted will not be updated on the contest page. The contest will close—the submission form will no longer be available on this page—when the 250th entry has been received. Please note that for the past several years, the contest closed prior to the time deadline; 250 entries were submitted earlier than the deadline date. Submit your work early to the contest!

I attend school at home. Can I still participate?\ Yes. As long as you are studying at the 11th grade level, you are eligible for the contest.

Are late entries accepted?\ No. We strongly recommend that you submit your work well in advance of the stated deadline date.

Can I submit more than one play?\ No, only one entry will be accepted per person.

Can my play be longer than ten minutes?\ No, all plays must stay within the 10 minute guideline, which is a maximum of 10 pages (1 page equals 1 minute). You may submit an additional page for a title page or cast of characters, etc., but the play content itself should not exceed 10 pages.

Can I submit a pre-existing play that I wrote?\ Yes.

May I submit a play that has been entered in other contests?\ Yes.

Can I collaborate to write the play, or can my friend and I submit a play we wrote together?\ Yes, but only if both writers are juniors/in 11th grade in high school. Prizes are not awarded per person but would be shared among the writers. Only 1 student author should submit the co-authored play; additional details for both author’s personal and school information can be provided on a separate page in the PDF file of your play submission.

Are there any themes that my play should focus on?\ No, plays on any subject will be accepted.

Who owns the play after I submit it?\ You, the writer of the play.

Do you censor plays?\ No, we do not censor plays!

Can I submit a play written in any language?\ The plays submitted must be written in English.

Can I use AI?\ AI generated plays are not allowed.

Do you send critical feedback or return scripts?\ No, we cannot provide critical feedback on any submissions.

May I mail in or email my play submission to the contest?\ No, all entries must be submitted online on the contest page.

2026 Contest Submission Form

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Student Name(Required)

First Last

Address(Required)

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Personal Email Address(Required)

This is the email address that will receive a confirmation of your submission.

Personal or Home Phone #

I verify that I am a high school student in the eleventh grade in the U.S., or international equivalent of the eleventh grade. (The contest is only open to students in 11th grade, no exceptions.)(Required)

Yes, I am in the 11th grade or international equivalent grade.

School Information

School Name(Required)

If you are in a home school program, you can note that here.

School Address(Required)

School Phone #

Name of School Guidance Officer(Required)

If you are in a home school program, please use the name of the person who supervises your education.

First Last

Email Address of School Guidance Officer(Required)

Submission Details

Title of Your Play(Required)

Please upload your Play file here.(Required)

Please upload your play in PDF or Microsoft Word format.

Accepted file types: pdf, doc, docx, Max. file size: 50 MB.

I grant my permission to Princeton University's Lewis Center for the Arts to publish my submitted work on their public website at arts.princeton.edu if my play is selected as a winning entry.(Required)

Yes, I grant my permission.

No, I do not want my work published.

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2024-25 Contest Prize Announcement

To request a disability-related accommodation to access archival PDFs of winning plays, please email LewisCenter@princeton.edu.

Past Contest Winners

2024

First Prize: I Apologize For My Husband by Ella Kim\ Second Prize:Gun Shopby Dominic Landes\ Third Prize: The Beginning Meets The End by Jack Honeyman

Honorable Mentions:\ Appreciate by Sophia Zhou\ Motif with Interlude by Bella Rotker

2023

First Prize: Autumn, 1968 by Yahney-Marie Sangare\ Second Prize: The Sillyad by Eli Ander-Biegelsen\ Third Prize: Colt 1911 by Arianna Brar

Finalists:* Alexandra by Grace Lee\ Callas by Niveah Glover\ You’ll be Okay by Emma Minnick\ That Whole Kindness Thing by Emma Yan\ One Such Beaming by Erica Lu\ If The Dress Fits by Abigail McMullen\ Reflections from the Bathroom by Alexis Tuchinda\ Stalling by Imogen Russell\ (whispers)lesbians by Etta Singer\ Shutdown by Faer Son\ It Goes Like This* by Kate Rodriguez

Honorable Mentions:* The Tea of Forgetfulness by Aaron Chen\ Angare Barse by Aarushi Gupta\ The Heat That Burns Us All by Anna O’Sullivan\ Breaking the Ice by Anna Schwartz\ I’ll Wear My Pearls by Ava Noe\ and the moon hangs lonesome tonight by Dechen Tamang\ Critics by Isabel Davison\ This Bullet Will Not Silence Us by Kathryn Poletti\ NORA by Maia Gosselin\ YAMS by Maria Bortei-Doku\ Two Straight White Men Written by a Woman by Reese Jones\ Sarajevo, Pieta by Sarah Graham\ Gyopo by Stephanie Groves\ Red Opal* by Erin Erter

2022

First Prize: 1, 2, 3 by Rayan Afif\ Second Prize: A Loi Ah by Audrey Lim\ Third Prize: The Butterfly in an Electrocuting Moth Grid by Lok Yiu Cheung

Honorable Mentions:* Abraham, Isaac and Steve by Daniel Slater\ Beyond the Belly by Celia Irving\ A Jungle by Dylan Sherman\ Lord, Give Me Strength by Annabelle Smith\ This is Water by Clara Passarinho\ Their Stories by Daria Volkova\ A Deeply Disturbing Dive into the Family Dynamics of a Teen Rom-Com* by Anka Chiorini

2021

1st place: Khan by Kiran Rajagopal\ 2nd place: It’s Only A Cardboard Moon by Anya Jiménez\ 3rd place: The Old Man and the Thousand Cranes by Hoonsun Lee

Honorable Mentions:\ Big Sky by Miles Gantcher\ Nephi by Danju Liu\ Tasmanian Devils by Zachary Garfinkle\ Things I Think About When We Say Grace by Phoebe Levitsky

2020

1st place: Wafflehouse by Frances McKittrick\ 2nd place: Train to Anywhere by Serena Suson\ 3rd place: Dead Serious by Adam Soukup

Honorable Mentions:\ Snake Story by Maia Siegel\ The Cherry by Jordan Ferdman

2019

1st place: Viewer Discretion Advised by Alethea Shirilan-Howlett\ 2nd place: The Artist by Isabella Cho\ 3rd place: The Carol Variations by Eka Savojol

Honorable Mentions:\ Explanations by Emily Gil\ Peanut by Gemma Hong\ Just Ordinary by Erin Spake

2018

1st place: Bus Ride by Katherine Rooks\ 2nd place: Of Sound Mind and Body by Kate Fitzgerald\ 3rd place: God Makes a Hiring Decision by Shereen Lee

Honorable Mentions:\ Platinum by Cayleigh Pine\ Derailed by Jared Goudsmit\ Untitled (Guinea Pig Play) by Patrick Kirwin

2017

1st place: Three Months by Jordan Oakley\ 2nd place: Sea Turtles by Jalexis James\ 3rd place: Ledgeside by Benjamin Connor

Honorable Mentions:\ Alone with Me By Your Side by Emily Trend\ Drowning by Mia Nelson

2016

1st place: Odalisque by Jaelynn Walls\ 2nd place: Supermarket of Lost by Cassandra (Jing Thong) Hsiao\ 3rd place: Discount Shelf by Cavan Bonner

Honorable Mentions:* Beatrix by Molly Littman\ Thanksgiving Surprise* by Betsy Zaubler

2015

1st place: An Unaware Bird by Kanishk Pandey\ 2nd place: For an Ocean by Emily Zhang\ 3rd place: The Boy Who Cried “Potato” and “Sally” by Alinah Vision

Honorable Mention:\ Reflections by Emma Taussig

2014

1st Place: Packing by Catherine Valdez\ 2nd Place: Wide Eyed and Barely Six Years Old by Arya Sundaram\ 3rd Place: Liquid Gold by Eden Gordon

Honorable Mention:\ Mother Dear by Kailey McLaughlin

2013

1st Place: Stalling by Anne Merrill\ 2nd Place: This Is Not A Play by Alexa Derman\ 3rd Place: Three Thousand Terajoules by Lauren Byrne

Honorable Mention:\ Mother’s Orange Sorbet by Amelia Jane Nierenberg

2012

1st Place: Thirst by Kathleen Cole\ 2nd Place: Cupcakesby Isaac Dwyer\ 3rd Place: Hookedby Bianca Hunter

Honorable Mention:\ This is How the Moslems Feel by Nathan Engel