Home › Festivals › 5min Festival ›

Festival Info

Introduction

We live in an age when no-one has time. Average viewers spend between 3 and 7 minutes on an internet video. Advertisers get whole stories into 30 seconds. Reduced Shakespeare squeezed the bard’s works into 70 minutes. Hamlet thought brevity the soul of wit, the Japanese that haiku was the highest form of art.

Can you join the masters and create a piece of theatre to bewitch an audience and make five minutes memorable? It’s the ultimate challenge, and if you dare try there’s a world of possibilities. Think what you can do in 300 seconds...

 

What we want

We are looking for young emerging/newcomer playwrights, poets, spoken word artists, comedians, actors (who write their own material), physical performers who have something different or interesting to say. There are only 3 main rules for entering this Festival – that whatever you submit must be less than 5 minutes in length, it must have a narrative thread and that either the writer, director or cast must be under 27 years old.

 

What we offer

This year we are running the Festival as a competition. If you are accepted to be part of it, you will get to perform your work on the stage at the LOST Theatre on one of the heat nights (Monday 28th Nov – Thurs 1st Dec). Each night, 2 shows will be selected by our panel of experts to play again on Friday 2nd Dec in our grand finale. Two shows from the first four days will also be selected by audience vote using a Facebook Poll. On the Friday 10 shows will play and the 2 that the panel feel are the best will each win a £50 prize. The entire event will be organised and publicised by the LOST Theatre and the panel of experts will give written feedback to all participants.

 

What’s included

If your entry is accepted by the Festival Artistic Committee, you will be offered the following:

• A performance slot at our venue within the time period given (see schedule). The participant must get-in, perform & get-out within their time slot. The nature of the Festival means that all shows must be available to perform not only on their allocated day, but also at Friday’s grand finale.

• A presenter to introduce and MC the whole evening.

• A Technical/Dress rehearsal on the days assigned for each category (see Timings). As with the performance slot allocation, this slot is non negotiable. Please ensure all cast are available and that everything required for your performance is available. This will be your only opportunity to rehearse the show in the venue prior to your performance.

• A Technical Operator and Festival Manager will be present for your Technical/Dress rehearsal and performance. We do not allow outside technical staff to operate lighting. Outside technical staff may not be backstage unless by prior arrangement.

• Full administration including Publicity, Box Office and Insurance.

• Substantial discounts on our normal rehearsal room hire rates.

• A presenter to introduce and MC each evening.

We do have a preference for applicants who are able to produce their own work on stage, but we do accept scripts that are not backed by a director/producer. We can do provide rehearsal space at a discounted rate at our venue in Stockwell.

 

Entry fees

LOST is a non profit-making company but in order to cover costs, we ask that each company pay a non-refundable fee of £10. This fee covers admin costs of the festival.

This is payable on your acceptance of the slot offered and must be accompanied by a £50 guarantee cheque which will be returned once your performance has been completed. The £50 cheque is our way of ensuring that once companies accept a slot, they are unlikely to pull out – otherwise we will cash the cheque.

 

Entry considerations

As well as keeping within the 5 minute performance time, we ask that you consider the following:

• The 5min Festival will not accept any entries of published work unless entered by the author themselves.

• Each production will perform on one evening only. If your production is unavailable for that date you are therefore unable to enter the festival.

• Each production must consist of no more than 4 cast members.

• LOST will provide 4 chairs and 1 table that will be available for each show to use. These will be the only items of furniture/set allowed on stage.

• No costumes or hand props can be stored at the venue before or after your performance day. So if you can't carry it to and from the venue it is not advisable to use it.

• There is a limited amount of space backstage, and please remember this has to be shared with 9 other shows. Therefore we recommend simplifying your show as much as possible.

• If there is a chance that the running time could exceed 5 minutes, please cut the script down. Shows that are over-running at dress rehearsal will be withdrawn from the Festival and their guarantee will not be refunded.

 

Expert Panel

One of the main aims of the Festival is to encourage all participants to develop and improve their work. To this end LOST will appoint a panel of experts to view all plays and compose a series of short notes and comments of constructive criticism which will be available to all participants.

 

Tickets

Tickets are sold for each evening of the Festival - they are not sold for individual shows within an evening. Out of respect to your fellow participants, we expect audience members to watch all shows on your performance day. New audience members will not be admitted once the performances have started. Please do not ask any one attending your performance to arrive purely for your show as they will not be admitted.

Each company will be allocated 2 complimentary tickets for the evening their show is performing (box office permitting other members of their company will be allowed in to watch the other performances on their night). It is the responsibility of the individual company to purchase tickets for anyone they wish to invite. LOST will provide tickets for industry professional at the concessionary rate provided we are given the names in advance.

 

Timings

Deadline for receipt of entries We are still looking for a few more scripts to complete our line up. So we have extended the deadline to This SATURDAY (the 15th)

Offer of performance slot to successful applicants and invitation to reserves Sunday 16th October

Deadline for receipt of Entry fee from successful applicants and offer to reserves Sunday 23rd October

Deadline for receipt of Entry fee from reserve list Saturday 29th October

Production Meeting Sunday 30th October

 

Festival dates

Monday 28th November

 

  • Rehearsal/Tech: 10am to 6pm
  • Performance: 7:30pm – 10:30pm

 

Tuesday 29th November

 

  • Rehearsal/Tech: 10am to 6pm
  • Performance: 7:30pm – 10:30pm

 

Wednesday 30th November

 

  • Rehearsal/Tech: 10am to 6pm
  • Performance: 7:30pm – 10:30pm

 

Thursday 1st December

 

  • Rehearsal/Tech: 10am to 6pm
  • Performance: 7:30pm – 10:30pm

 

Friday 2nd December

 

  • Rehearsal/Tech: 10am to 6pm
  • Performance: 7:30pm – 10:30pm