
ELIGIBILITY & FEES​​
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Straight plays only
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Runtime: 90 minutes maximum/60 minutes minimum
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No intermission
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8 or fewer actors (doubling roles is acceptable)
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Solo shows accepted
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Musicals/performance pieces
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Runtime: no more than 110 minutes
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Optional: 10 minute intermission (must be included in total runtime)
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8 or fewer actors (doubling is acceptable)
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Performances include either a live, up to 4-piece ensemble OR high quality produced tracks that you provide
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$40 - Submission Fee (All Plays)--
A nonrefundable reader fee for all applicants. In return, you will receive a critique of your play regardless of acceptance.
$1000 - Acceptance Fee (Straight Plays)
$2500 - Acceptance Fee (Musicals)
A one-time, non-refundable fee that applies ONLY if your show is accepted. This fee covers your 4-hour tech and three full performances in a professional theatre, complete with front of house services, such as ticket sales, ushering and marketing. We also provide your board operator. This fee also includes our trademark training: intensive one-on-one dramaturgical sessions, all the tools we feel playwrights need to effectively and affordably produce their plays, zooms with industry experts and theatre producers of all levels and our commitment to not let you fail.
Please note: The costs associated with your production are separate and are your responsibility. BBTF strives to keep these costs low by recommending proven directors, stage managers and actors willing to work within the parameters of the festival environment. Playwrights MUST keep their sets minimal and forgo elaborate costuming. Upon acceptance, we provide you with a templated budget to help keep your costs down and give you a legitimate range for line item costs. In addition, our professional team will work with you during the entire production process so you will always have support. ​​​​
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SUBMISSIONS OPEN January 1, 2025
BBTF is a developmental festival for serious playwrights to develop their work in a nurturing setting with one-on-one mentoring. BBTF prides itself on empowering self-producing artists who are interested in actively shaping their success as theatre-makers. This is our vision. These are the standards we hold ourselves to and the shift we want to create in our community.
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KEY DATES
for BBTF 2025​
Step 1
March 10, 2025
Submission and application deadline 11:59 PM EST. All submissions must be made through this web page. (Late applications, applications mailed via the postal serve, e-mailed or via social media will not be accepted – no exceptions.)
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Step 2
Mid-March 2025
Finalists interviews with festival general manager, via telephone.
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Step 3
March 31, 2025
Acceptance offers for the 15 available participation slots.
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Step 4
April 10, 2025
Deadline for participants to submit signed contract and non-refundable participation fee.
OUR SUBMISSION PROCESS
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A blind submission process allows for the selection of the highest caliber of writing. All selections are based on the merits of the submission and do not allow the process to be lead (whether consciously or unconsciously) by the expectations inspired by the author's institutional affiliation, reputation, gender identity, race, ethnicity, religion, abilities, age, sexual preference or orientation.
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All submissions are read in full by the Festival Director and members of our reader panel, all professional playwrights with published and produced works. (BBTF does not only read the first 10 pages, as other festivals do.)
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All submissions undergo careful scrutiny. Upon completion of the decision-making process, BBTF will email you a critique of your script, which should help you understand the reason your play was or was not selected. Our critiques provide dramaturgical advice and professional feedback of your work. ​​
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Critiquing Rubric: Each play is vetted using the BBTF critiquing rubric. It consists of two categories: Plot Development and Character Development. The third category is where we share our non-prescriptive advice on how to make your play stronger. A fourth category for musicals includes an analysis of the musical score.
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BBTF will never put our stamp on any of the shows it co-produces. We neither require any acknowledgment in future productions as other festivals do, nor do we take a percentage of future revenues nor require the distribution of producer points.