NEW WRITING
DO YOU WRITE?
The Dilys Guite Players (DGP) aim to give all people something positive to do and encourage them to develop new skills and interests. We believe that talent is all around but opportunity is often not. So we pride ourselves on offering unique benefits that many theatres often don’t, and give more expansive approaches to theatre that inspires our community to value themselves, to think big and to believe in succeeding.
We invite talented UK writers or individuals to submit their wonderful entries, which we can then build our festivals and digital programmes around, and provide a fantastic opportunity for people to see your work performed on stage or through YouTube.
NEW WRITING: THE SHORTS
Our New Writing events are performed annually. We welcome pieces that:
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Are no longer than fifteen minutes or six pages in length (one A4 page is roughly one - two minutes of stage time)
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Have no more than eight performers in the piece, but characters can be doubled up if needed
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Have no set changes
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Use minimal props and costumes
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Have been written by UK based writers
GENRES
We are open to writing on all subject matters; however, where possible, suitability for all audiences is preferred. We do look to create a varied production, so as a guideline please consider the following categories:
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Free choice
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Our Planet, Their Future
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Sheffield: Our City History
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Under 18’s Writers: Something Out There
To submit your work, please see the note below.
NEW WRITING: THE SHORTS, 2026 - submissions are now closed
LANTERN CREATES ‘26
We are inviting local writers to submit a one-act play for consideration that runs between 45 and 60 minutes.
Layout guidelines for this category are the same as for THE SHORTS, and the subject matter is Free Choice.
A short list of plays to be considered for performance will be compiled by 16 November 2025, and the writers will be invited to pitch their plays to the Festival team on 23 November 2025. Writers are invited to bring a director to the pitch, but this is not a requirement.
Closing date for submission is 11:59 PM, Saturday 15 November 2025
To submit your work, please see the note below.
How do I send you my work?
Guidelines and Important Notes
We welcome new writing submissions all year round, but we do have an official entry period in the build-up to our next festival. Whenever we begin planning the production, we look at all the pieces we've received, including those we couldn't include in previous years. The official submission and selection period for New Writing: The Shorts and Lantern Creates 2026 is now open.
Just make sure you read through our submission guidelines before emailing your entry to the address listed on that page.