Rules

RULES OF THE MAIDENHEAD DRAMA FESTIVAL 2026

Festival Dates: Tuesday 21st – Saturday 25th April 2026
Venue: Norden Farm Centre for the Arts, Maidenhead, SL6 4PF
Adjudicator: Andrew Head, GoDA Associate
Closing Date for Entries: 31st January 2026

CLASSES AND AWARDS

  1. CLASS 1 – OPEN
    The Maidenhead Advertiser Trophy
  2. CLASS 2 – YOUTH GROUPS (18 and under at the start of Festival)
    The Maidenhead Youth Drama Trophy
  3. CLASS 3 – THE BEST UNPUBLISHED PLAY
  4. CLASS 4 – THE BEST PERFORMANCE OF A SHORT PLAY (20–30 minutes)
  5. CLASS 5 – BEST COMEDY
    The John Rigg Trophy
  6. CLASS 6 – ALL-ENGLAND THEATRE FESTIVAL (Minimum qualification – 70 marks)
    The Lynda Whitworth Trophy

SPECIAL AWARDS

  • Stage Presentation Award: For imaginative and appropriate décor and lighting (not necessarily elaborate). Costume, make-up, properties, etc., will also be taken into account.
  • Backstage Award – The David Highmore Trophy: For the non-visible part of the group showing best organisation, technical ability, preparedness, and teamwork.
  • Adjudicator’s Award: May be withheld if, in the opinion of the Adjudicator, the required standard has not been attained.

MARKING SCHEME

  • Acting: 40 marks – Characterisation, speech, audibility, emphasis, variation in tone and gesture.
  • Direction: 35 marks – Interpretation, casting, movement, grouping, tempo, and handling of the cast.
  • Stage Presentation: 15 marks – Appearance of the stage, lighting, make-up, costume, and properties.
  • Dramatic Achievement: 10 marks – Overall impression, enterprise, and dramatic effectiveness.

RULES OF THE MAIDENHEAD DRAMA FESTIVAL

  1. Who can enter:
    a. As an independent Preliminary Round Festival, Maidenhead is not obliged to follow the AETF rules on eligibility, but it is our general intention to do so.
    b. Rules can be viewed in full on their website https://www.allenglandtheatrefestival.org/aetf-organisation-and-downloads
    c. We reserve the right to waive any of these rules if we believe it to be in the interests of our Festival.
    d. Such an entrant would not, obviously, be able to opt to go forward.
  2. Societies are allowed to enter more than one team if they wish, but no person shall perform on more than one occasion. An actor in any play may be the producer of another.
  3. Performers for entries for Class 2 (Youth Group) must be 18 or under at the commencement of the Festival; i.e. the age limit does not apply to producers, stage hands, etc.
  4. Entries shall consist of a ONE act play, a short play, an excerpt from a full-length play which is in itself intelligible to an audience unacquainted with the play from which the excerpt is taken, or a full-length play. The Festival Committee has discretion to accept or refuse plays, and priority will be given to one act plays. Playing time must be at least 20 minutes, and no longer than 55 minutes.
  5. Any competitor wishing to substitute another play for that originally entered will be liable for an additional fee to cover the Adjudicator’s extra work, and administrative costs.
  6. No entry can be considered unless it is accompanied by an original copy of the play marked with any cuts or alterations (a photocopy will only be accepted if the play is solely published on the internet, out of print, or unpublished). Copies of plays will be available for collection at the end of the Festival.
  7. Plays obtained over the internet are considered published and written permission to perform must be obtained, whether a fee is paid or not. Likewise, written permission to perform must be provided by the author of an unpublished play.
  8. It is the duty of all entrants to obtain, and produce to the Festival Organiser prior to the festival, a written licence for permission to perform and for permission to make cuts or alterations.
  9. The order of playing (time and date of performance) shall be decided by the Festival Committee with a view to arranging the best possible programme in the interests of the audience.
  10. No entry may take more than ten minutes to set and five minutes to strike. This includes special effects. These times are additional to the playing time allowed. Penalties on the same scale as detailed in Rule 24 below may be incurred if these times are exceeded.
  11. A set of curtains, a cyclorama and full stage lighting will be provided. A reasonable amount of scenery may be brought. All scenery and furnishings must be fireproofed. Portable lighting may be brought by the teams, but only by prior arrangement with the Festival Stage Director. Sound equipment is available but teams may bring their own equipment should they prefer to do so.
  12. Competing teams may meet the Festival Stage Director for a maximum of 50 minutes by appointment on the viewing day, to familiarise themselves with the facilities, test equipment and set lights.
  13. All scenery must be delivered to the scenery dock on the day of the performance.
  14. Naked lights will not be permitted on stage. Smoking is not permitted on stage. Any potential use of a gun or other weapons must be cleared with the festival/theatre in advance.
  15. Competing groups will be provided with one free ticket for each member of the cast and crew for the night of the performance and two free tickets for the final performance session and Awards.
  16. The Adjudicator will address the audience at the close of each session. On the final day, the winner in each of the Classes will be announced, and the Adjudicator’s decision shall be final.
  17. Trophies will be held by the winners until their return is requested by the Festival Organiser. Winning groups will be responsible for the cost of engraving their trophies, where applicable.
  18. No responsibility shall be accepted by the Festival Committee for the loss of or damage to the personal property of competitors, or for any other property or materials they may bring with them, or for any injury sustained by members of competing teams during the Festival.
  19. Except on matters strictly pertaining to adjudication, the ruling of the Festival Committee and its interpretation of these rules shall be binding on all competitors. Acceptance of this rule is an expressed condition of entry.
  20. By entering the Festival competitors have, in effect, undertaken a contract to give a public performance and are expected to appear even though, for example, one or more principal parts may have to be read.
  21. All performing groups should hold Public Liability Insurance with an insurer of repute, and with a minimum indemnity limit of £5,000,000.
  22. Maidenhead Drama Festival will be approved by the Royal Borough of Windsor & Maidenhead as a Body of Persons under S.37 Children & Young Persons Act 1963, which exempts the need for individual licences for any participants (on stage or off) who are children of compulsory school age. All groups, other than those constituting a recognised school, must, however, provide the Festival with such details of the participants as is required by RBWM, together with a copy of their child protection policy.
  23. CLASS 6: ALL-ENGLAND THEATRE FESTIVAL ENTRANTS
    a. The Festival will serve as a Preliminary Round of the All-England Theatre Festival. Unless indication is made to the contrary on the entry form, all eligible teams will compete for selection to go on to all subsequent rounds up to and including the British Final.
    b. These Teams will be governed by All-England Festival Rules and must obtain a minimum of 70 marks to qualify for further rounds.
    c. Copies of the All-England Theatre Festival Rules may be obtained from the Festival Organiser, or from the AETF website – https://www.allenglandtheatrefestival.org/aetf-organisation-and-downloads
    d. Financial assistance may, where appropriate, be given to the team going forward to the next stage.
    e. Teams undertaking to go forward must be available to compete in all later stages – see dates below.
  24. ALL-ENGLAND THEATRE FESTIVAL ENTRANTS – ADDITIONAL RULE
    The playing time of any All-England Theatre Festival entry should not be less than twenty minutes or more than fifty-five minutes. Contravention of this rule results in loss of marks, as follows:
    Up to 1 minute under or over time: 1 mark
    Up to 2 minutes under or over time: 3 marks
    Up to 3 minutes under or over time: 6 marks
    Up to 4 minutes under or over time: 10 marks
    Up to 5 minutes under or over time: 15 marks
    More than 5 minutes under or over time: Disqualification.

DEADLINES FOR THE 2025 FESTIVALS

31st January 2026:Entry Forms submitted
1st March 2026:Lighting and Stage Plots to Festival Stage Director
Programme details to be received by Festival Organiser
Young Persons Participating Form to be received by Festival Organiser
19th April 2026:Stage Viewing and rehearsals, times by appointment
20th April 2025: (If required) Stage Viewing and rehearsals
21st April – 25th April 2026:Maidenhead Drama Festival - Norden Farm Centre for the Arts, Maidenhead
24th May 2026:Eastern Area Final - Barn Theatre, Oxted, Surrey
30th May 2026:English Final - Leicester Little Theatre
4th & 5th July 2026:British Final - Theatre Clwyd, Mold, Wales

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