For Students
YOUNG PLAYWRIGHTS FESTIVAL
The Young Playwrights Festival celebrates student voices by presenting original one‑act plays written by middle and high school students as fully produced professional performances at City Theatre. Each play is developed and staged with the same artistic care given to the theatre’s season programming, honoring young writers as serious storytellers and offering a rare opportunity to see student ideas realized on a professional stage.
The Festival includes public performances and student matinees paired with post‑show talkbacks, giving students insight into the play development process and how stories move from script to stage.
This year's plays include:
P1: Downtown by Jutus A. Payne
The Prince and the Poet by Jack Longstreth
My Own Sonnet 18 by Elroy Jung
The Weight of Nothing by Riley Kellar
Opening Night with a Twist by Ayla Roden
NEW THIS YEAR: Join us at the Play Ground: An interactive festival space featuring youth artists, hands-on creative activities, merch, food, and theatre-kid energy between performances. Free and open to the public. October 17-18 from 3:30-5:30pm.
YOUNG PLAYWRIGHTS CONTEST
The Young Playwrights Contest invites students in grades 7–12 to submit original one-act plays for consideration in City Theatre’s annual Young Playwrights Festival. Open to young writers across Southwestern Pennsylvania and Northern West Virginia, the contest celebrates creativity, storytelling, and student voice. Selected plays receive dramaturgical support and are professionally produced as part of the festival, giving students the opportunity to see their work come to life on stage.
Submissions open in January, and the deadline for the contest is March 31, 2027.
F.A.Q.
Interested in submitting your one-act play to our contest but aren’t quite sure what the scoop is? Here are some frequently asked questions we get from young playwrights:
Who is eligible to submit a one-act play?
7th-12th graders that reside in western Pennsylvania and northern West Virginia are eligible to submit their plays.
How long does my play need to be?
We recommend aiming for 25-30 pages or shorter in length. If your play goes over the recommended amount, that's fine, but most one-acts that we produce are around that amount.
How many characters should my play have?
No more than 8, please! And most of the plays we produce in our festival are around 2-4 characters. Think critically about how many characters you need: are they all really necessary? Can two or three characters actually be combined into one person? Are your characters superfluous or do they actually help drive the plot forward? These are important questions to think about to help determine what makes the most sense for your play.
What kind of plays are you looking for?
We are looking for plays with unique voices, point of views, and interesting stories. No subject or theme is off the table. If the story is important to you, it’s important to us!
What should I write my play about?
That’s entirely up to you! But we understand that sometimes it’s hard to come up with something out of thin air. We encourage you to observe the world around you and use it for inspiration. Is there a piece of art or a photograph that inspires you? What about a particular song that takes you on a journey? Inspiration can be found anywhere!
I’m afraid my play isn’t good enough. Should I still submit it?
We think the words “good enough” should be banned! Most of our young playwrights have never written a play before! Playwriting is a skill, and like every other skill, you have to practice it to get better. We encourage you to submit your play so that you can receive feedback on it. That feedback will help you develop your playwriting skills.
What happens to my play after I submit it?
After you submit your play, it is cataloged and distributed to our Literary Committee. The Literary Committee is made up of theatre professionals around the greater Pittsburgh area and across the nation. Your play will be read by at least two of our Literary Committee. They send their evaluations to us, and we compile it into a summary. Your summary is then emailed to you over the summer. Some playwrights take the feedback and revise their plays to resubmit the following year.
How will I know if I won the contest?
Contest winners are chosen by June and will be notified by phone.
Can I submit a play I previously turned in?
Of course! Writing a play is a long process and if you’ve revised a previously submitted play, we’d love to see the work you’ve done!
Does my play need to be formatted a certain way?
City Theatre prefers play submissions be written in the American Standard Format. We’ve created a guide to help you out!
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