Manhattan Repertory One-Act Competition.

This competition was one of my favorites to enter.  I won this competition, and it paid a thousand dollars, which more than compensated for the $150 participation fee.  The space is extremely small, but the event is very well organized by Ken Wolf.  He is fair and extremely efficient.

Manhattan Rep's competitions work the same way many festivals in New York work.  To advance to the next round, you have to get your friends and family there to vote for your play.  As a result, this competition has the same difficulty that all festivals and competitions in Manhattan seem to have.  Because they must make money, they include plays in the lineup that are painful to watch.  Inviting friends and family can be tricky because they have to shell out $20 for tickets and when they do, they must endure bad plays to get to see your good one.  It gets better as the festival progresses, and semi finals and finals eliminate most of the bad plays.

One great thing about this competition that I really want to mention is that your play will run for a week in the initial round.  That gives it a chance to settle in.  Not many festivals offer as many chances to perform the work.

As I mentioned already, the space is very small, but Ken makes it work beautifully.  I strongly recommend this competition.