Requirements:

 

1. Originality: The play must be your original work. 

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2. Submission: Submit one copy of  your completed one act play. 

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 3.Formatting: 

    a. Typed and double-spaced

    b. Maximum of 20 pages

    c. Include a one-page synopsis

    d. Each page should include your name, page number, unit name and number (Coraopolis NAACP #26AB-B).

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4. Deadline: Send in your work by the deadline of March 10, 2027. Email to coraopolisnaacp@gmail.com

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5. Interview: Contestants will be interviewed by a panel of judges to discuss their work. 

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6. Contestant Introduction: State your introduction in full, per the Contestant Introduction Script, before your interview.
 

7. Statement of Integrity: Submit a completed Statement of Integrity Form with your application.

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Required Submissions

• Bio (PDF) → First_Last_Bio
• Contestant Photo (PDF) → First_Last_CP
• Statement of Integrity (PDF) → First_Last_SOI
• Written Project (PDF) → First_Last_WP
 

When uploading your documents, you must name each file exactly as shown above in order for it to be properly uploaded and integrated into our automated system.
 

Example: John_Doe_WP (using your own first and last name, followed by the file label 
shown for your category).
 

Note: If files are not received in these formats, they are out of compliance and ineligible until rectified. If they are not corrected before the deadline, the contestant will no longer be able to compete at this year's iteration of the National Competition

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Contestants Will Be Judged By The Following Criteria:

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20 Points: Dramatic Structure & Action

20 Points: Characterization

20 Points: Dialogue & Subtext

15 Points: Theatricality & Use of the Stage

15 Points: Voice, Originality & Meaning

10 Points: Craft & Script Presentation

 

100 Total Points

 

Dramatic Structure & Action:
• Does the play develop effectively through dramatic action —progression, conflict, stakes, consequences, pacing, and transitions —and does the ending grow logically from what precedes it?
Note: A traditional beginning-middle-end structure, conventional climax, or neatly resolved conclusion is not required. Nonlinear, episodic, or experimental structures should be judged on their own dramatic logic.
 

Characterization:
• Are the play's major characters specific, complex, and motivated, with clear agency, relationships, and differentiation from one another?
Note: Complexity does not require a character to transform. A character who convincingly refuses to change can still be exceptionally well developed if that refusal is dramatically meaningful.
 

Dialogue & Subtext:
• Does the dialogue reveal character, affect relationships, create or respond to conflict, advance the action, and convey meaning?
Note: Realistic dialogue is not automatically better dialogue. Verse, heightened language, sparse dialogue, repetition, fragmentation, and direct address can all be highly effective.
 

Theatricality & Use of the Stage:
• Does the playwright use the possibilities of live performance intentionally, rather than relying primarily on spoken explanation or prose techniques?
Note: Elaborate scenery or technical complexity should not be rewarded on their own. A simple, intentional staging choice can demonstrate greater theatricality than an elaborate one.
 

Voice, Originality & Meaning:
• Is the playwright's perspective distinctive, and do form, language, characters, situations, and dramatic choices work together to develop meaning?
Note: Originality is about the specificity of the student's treatment, not 
whether the subject matter itself is new.
 

Craft & Script Presentation:
• Is the script readable and well-formatted, with proofreading and consistent use of playwriting conventions (including stage directions) to communicate the playwright's intentions?
Note: Judge clarity and command of the format, not access to professional scriptwriting software. A correctly formatted document created in Word should not score lower than one made in specialized software