The Yale Drama Series is an annual international competition for emerging playwrights. The winner receives the David Charles Horn prize of $10,000, publication of their manuscript by Yale University Press and a professional staged reading at Lincoln Center’s Claire Tow Theater. Ayad Akhtar is the judge for the 2018-2019 competitions.

Submission Guidelines 

• This contest is restricted to plays written in the English language. Worldwide submissions are accepted.
• Submissions must be original, unpublished full-length plays written in English. Translations, musicals, adaptations, and children’s plays are not accepted. The Yale Drama Series is intended to support emerging playwrights. Playwrights may win the competition only once.
• Playwrights may submit only one manuscript per year.
• Plays that have been professionally produced or published are not eligible. Plays that have had a workshop, reading, or non-professional production or that have been published as an actor’s edition will be considered.
• Plays may not be under option, commissioned, or scheduled for professional production or publication at the time of submission.
• Plays must be typed/word-processed, page-numbered, and in Yale Drama Series play format.
• The Yale Drama Series reserves the right to reject any manuscript for any reason.
• The Yale Drama Series reserves the right of the judge to not choose a winner for any given year of the competition and reserves the right to determine the ineligibility of a winner, in keeping with the spirit of the competition, and based upon the accomplishments of the author.
• Please omit your name and contact information from your manuscript. The manuscript must begin with a title page that shows the play’s title, a 2-3 sentence keynote description of the play, a list of characters, and a list of acts and scenes. Please enter the title of your play, your name and contact information (including address, phone number, and email address), and a brief biography where indicated in the electronic submission form.

Deadlines 

Electronic submissions for the 2019 competition must be submitted no earlier than June 1, 2018 and no later than August 15, 2018. The submission window closes at midnight EST.

For more information please go to http://dchornfoundation.org/about-yds

To submit an electronic copy of your manuscript please go to: https://yup.submittable.com/submit.