Midtown International Theatre Festival Seeks Short Subject Submissions

The Midtown InterNational Theatre Festival (MITF) continues to seek Short Subject submissions for its fourteenth season, running from July 15 - August 4, 2013. Instead of a traditional deadline for submissions (long past), the search for short plays is ongoing.

In order for a show to qualify for the Short Subjects division it must be a one-act, between 30 and 60 minutes, and non-union. There is no application fee for Short Subjects submissions. If selected, there is a participation fee of $100, which entitles the show to inexpensive rehearsal space, free insurance, and free external storage space (if available).

The Festival features performances of all genres - any sort of stage play, musical or otherwise, new or revived, mainstream or focused on an ethnic or cultural niche. To be eligible each show must have a producer and production team attached to the project. This year, the MITF Short Subjects will utilize the same theatres as the full-length plays, expanding their audience potential.

John Chatterton, executive producer of the MITF, says he hopes to become the king of short plays in New York City, and maybe beyond. His Midwinter Madness Short Play Festival, in February, featured 35 shows in repertory, and his Short Play Lab features some 140 short plays in the course of a season. "How many short plays can we book in our four theatres during the MITF?" he asked. "Seventy? Eighty? The sky's the limit!"

Mr. Chatterton created the MITF in 2000, a Midtown alternative to other theatre festivals, as a way to present the finest off-off Broadway talent in convenience, comfort, and safety. In 2003, the MITF moved its activities to their current location, the Theatre Building on W. 36th St., where it has been successfully ensconced since. In 2008 the Festival expanded from two theatres in that building to four, at the WorkShop Theater and Abingdon Theatre Company spaces. The MITF's artistic emphasis is on the script itself, and therefore the Festival focuses on minimal production values.

Application forms for the Midtown InterNational Theatre Festival are available online at www.MidtownFestival.org (see the Festival Manual, "Application Process"). Applications must be completed online. Scripts must be sent by e-mail, participation fees by PayPal or snail mail. There's no deadline for the remaining Short Subjects, but eventually Mr. Chatterton will either run out of time or out of space for more plays in the Festival, and it will be time to plan the next short thing.

The 2013 Festival will take place at the June Havoc Theatre, 312 W. 36th Street, 1st floor; the Dorothy Strelsin Theatre, 312 W. 36th Street, 1st floor; the Main Stage Theater, 312 W. 36th Street, 4th floor; and the Jewel Box Theater, 312 W. 36th Street, 4th floor.