Published by New Jersey Stage
originally published: 10/19/2025
(BRICK, NJ) -- Stargazer Performing Arts is proud to announce the return of the Jersey Shore Young Playwrights Festival, an exciting opportunity for young writers to see their original plays brought to life on stage.
The festival invites submissions from playwrights ages 13–18 who live in or attend school in Monmouth, Ocean, Atlantic, or Cape May counties. Selected works will be performed as staged readings at the Grunin Performing Arts Academy in Toms River on Saturday, April 25, 2026.
"Our goal is to celebrate and nurture the voices of young theatre artists along the Jersey Shore," said Jim DeVivo, co-founder of Stargazer Performing Arts. "Every submission receives feedback from Stargazer — it's a valuable opportunity for students to grow as writers and storytellers."
Up to six plays will be chosen for presentation at the festival. Plays must be original works of 20 minutes or less, written by a single author, and submitted by January 31, 2026.
The Jersey Shore Young Playwrights Festival is produced by Stargazer Performing Arts, an organization dedicated to providing educational theatre programs for young people across the region.
Submission Guidelines
* Playwrights must be between the ages of 13-18 and residents of Monmouth, Ocean, Atlantic, or Cape May counties, or attending a school in those counties, at the time of the festival.
* Plays must be the work of a single writer. Collaborations will not be considered at this time.
* Plays must be original works. Adaptations, or works derived from other stories, or source material, will not be considered.
* Plays can be about any subject, but writers should consider that this is a high school event and that some language and material may not be suitable for our audience.
* Plays cannot include copyrighted material such as music, song lyrics, poetry, etc.
* Plays should have a running time of 20 minutes or less (approximately 20 typed pages).
For complete guidelines and submission details, visit www.stargazerperformingarts.com/playwriting-contest.
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