Top 10 Pitfalls of 10-minute scripts

1. Absence of conflict. This is probably the biggest failing in most plays submitted. Theatre is conflict and far too many plays convey very little trace of it. Conflict between characters builds dramatic tension on stage.

2. Beginnings are easy ---- it's the middle and end that's hard . Sadly many plays start strongly but fail to deliver on that initial strength through the middle and to the end. The ending is the final impression your play will leave with your audience so it's vital to have a strong/good/powerful/unexpected one. (Just one of these is all you need!)

3. Undeveloped, unfinished. You need a good idea that is also well executed.

So set yourself a deadline of a few weeks before deadline to have your entry written--that will then give you time to develop the play further before you enter it.

4. Comedy skits or jokes with one punch line

Many submitted scripts are not ten-minute plays but rather one minute jokes which are stretched out over ten minutes. Even if the joke is great, finding a theatrically interesting way to tell the story leading up to it is even more important.

5. Give the girls a go. Our largest group of actors auditioning is women, 35-50 years of age. In fact they make up 40% of all actors who audition. So we are always on the look out for plays with good parts for this group.

6. It doesn't have to be just talk. We aim to present a wide range of theatrical styles. Theatre doesn't always have to be just about the spoken word.

7. The best way to work out the time of your play is to time it! Read it out loud yourself or get some friends (or actors) around to read it. It's only once you hear it out loud that you can get an idea of the running time.

9. Too many Scenes. Try to find the best way to tell your story in one smooth, flowing action rather than jumping between many different scenes.

10. Plays not films!

Theatre is not film and you must work out a way of telling your story ON STAGE rather than ON FILM.