The Ridgefield Theater Barn is excited to announce that submissions will soon open for our Annual Evening of One Acts — one of our favorite traditions and a celebration of engaging, inventive storytelling.

This year marks an exciting new chapter for our Evening of One Acts festival.

For the past decade, the festival has been guided by the vision, dedication, and tireless efforts of Paulette Layton. Although the festival was originally conceived and developed by Cheryl Boyd, Paulette has nurtured the program into one of RTB’s most beloved annual traditions. What began as an opportunity to showcase new, unpublished work has grown into a festival that serves as an exemplar of the spirit of the RTB. As Paulette steps away from leading the festival, we will carry it forward, and will do so with deep gratitude for the foundation she built and the countless hours she devoted to making the Evening of One Acts a success year after year.

Looking ahead, we are excited to continue evolving the festival while remaining true to the spirit that has made it so special: celebrating new voices, fostering artistic collaboration, and creating opportunities for emerging and established playwrights alike. This year’s updates to the submission process are designed to help us sustain the festival for years to come while continuing to provide a rewarding experience for playwrights, artists, and audiences.

Every year, we are humbled by the number of playwrights who trust us with their work. In an effort to keep the festival community focused, we are opening submissions to local entrants first. Also, this year’s submission window will follow a structured schedule with a daily submission cap.

How to Submit

All submissions must be made through the official RTB One Acts Google Form. Email submissions will not be accepted.

Playwrights will be asked to complete the form with their contact information, mailing address, eligibility confirmation, and script upload. The script itself must be submitted as a blind PDF, with no playwright name or identifying information anywhere in the document.

The Google Form will open on the start date and will timestamp each submission. Submissions will be accepted in the order they are received until that day’s cap has been reached.

Submission Schedule

June 15–17

Submissions will be open exclusively to playwrights based in:

• Connecticut
• New York
• New Jersey
• Massachusetts
• Rhode Island

Playwrights submitting during these dates must include a mailing address located in one of these states. Submissions received during this period from playwrights outside the region may not be considered.

June 18–20

Submissions will then open to playwrights from all locations.

Submission Cap

We will accept up to 50 submissions per day, for an initial maximum of 250 submissions over the five-day submission period.

If we have not reached 250 submissions by June 20, the window will remain open until the cap is met.

Submission Guidelines

• One submission per playwright
• Playwrights who have submitted to and been accepted by the Evening of One Acts within the last two years are not eligible to submit this year.
• Plays must be 15 pages or fewer and must be in .pdf format
• Submissions must be blind
  • Please do not include your name or identifying information anywhere in the script document itself, or in the file name
  • Contact information should appear only within the Google Entry Form used to submit. 

Please Note

• Submissions officially open on June 15
• Scripts submitted June 15–17 by playwrights without a CT, NY, NJ, MA, or RI address may not be accepted
• Playwrights must submit original, unpublished plays only. Playwrights may not submit plays that have already been submitted to RTB.  
• Playwrights who have submitted to the Evening of One Acts and have been accepted in the past two years are not eligible to submit this year.
• While the evening has traditionally leaned toward comedy and lighter fare, we welcome a wide range of tones and styles. 
• Submission days/times are based on Eastern Time.

We know these guidelines are structured differently than in years past, and we appreciate everyone’s understanding as we continue working to make this process sustainable, equitable, and artist-friendly.

Thank you for sharing your work with us. Theater IS community, and we’re honored each year to read the stories you choose to place in our hands.