Playwriting Competition

Logo for Inkslinger Playwriting Competition

Welcome to our 10th Annual Inkslinger Playwriting Contest. We are excited to celebrate our tenth year of supporting new works. Southeastern Theatre is committed to developing  emerging voices in theatre by providing  full productions of yet-to-be-published winning plays as part of its Mainstage Season. No other undergraduate theatre program in our region dedicates a quarter of its season every academic year to new play development at this level. Our students benefit from being part of the process of developing a new play and our audiences and students have the opportunity to meet with the playwright in production and in post-show audience talkbacks. Every year the Inkslinger contest continues to grow with more and more playwright submissions extending around the world. 
 

The winner will receive a full production, transportation to and from Hammond, Louisiana to attend the production, and up to two nights' housing while attending the play. Our venue, The Vonnie Borden Theatre, is under renovation and all of our productions until it is complete are at nearby theatres such as The Columbia Theatre for the Performing Arts and Reimer's Memorial Auditorium in downtown Hammond. 

  

Rules and Submission Guidelines

1) The contest is open to all playwrights.

 

2) All submissions must be original and unpublished. Play should be intended for a college-aged cast and audience.  Your play will still qualify if it's been produced, but again it must not be published.

 

3) We will only be accepting full-length plays. No musicals at this time will be considered.

 

4) Playwrights may submit as many plays as they wish.  There is a $10 submission fee, made out to SLU, per script.

 

5) Scripts must be typed and arranged in professional play script format.

 

6) Please fill out the Google Form below to enter your submission.  You can attach your script in the form.

    IMPORTANT: Please attach a blind copy of your script.

    Submission Form

 

7) Please submit the submission fee to the address below. Please make checks payable to SLU.

 

The deadline for submissions is Monday, March 20, 2023 (postmarked). Submissions postmarked after March 20 will not be judged. The winner and production dates will be announced on this page after May 1, 2023.

 

Mail submission fee to


Southeastern Louisiana University
Inkslinger Playwriting Contest: Chad Winters
Visual Art + Design Department
SLU Box 10765
Hammond, LA 70402 

Please make checks out to SLU. DO NOT make the check out to Chad Winters. At this time we are unable to accept fees electronically.

 

For more submission opportunities, visit PlaySubmissionsHelper.com/blog for a list of contests and other play submission opportunities.

 

 Playwright Cathy DresbachPlaywright Ben TylerCathy and Ben in The View From the

 

Spotlight on 9th Annual Inkslinger Playwright Winners

Cathy Dresbach and Ben Tyler with The Truth About Winnie Ruth Judd 
April 26-29 at Reimer's Memorial Auditorium in Hammond, LA.
 

Cathy Dresbach and Ben Tyler hail from Phoenix, Arizona and have been writing together since
the days of their misspent youth. As members of the comedy group, The Ajo Repertory
Company, they wrote and performed sketch comedy for adults (nightclubs) and for children
(television program - The Wallace and Ladmo Show). Ben’s fascination with Arizona history
resulted in his plays, Escape from Papago Park, Barry Goldwater: Mr. Conservative, Guv the
Musical and others. Cathy wrote for local radio and television as well as the play 3 No Trump.
She and Ben collaborated on several children’s plays for Theater Works, along with the late,
great David Wo. They have also shared the stage as actors numerous times. The Truth About
Winnie Ruth Judd brought them back to the roles of writing partners.

 

Past Winners