Theatergoers will choose the winners via Zoom in THINK FAST competition

Eight playwright/finalists in THINK FAST one-act play competition are pictured. The audience votes in the THINK FAST One Act Play competition.

UNION, NJ — Theatergoers from throughout North America will get to experience and participate in live theater—from home— as voters in The Theater Project’s prestigious THINK FAST short play competition, from Thursday, March 2, through Saturday, March 4.
Eight plays, some submitted from as far away as Seattle, Wash., have been chosen as finalists in the THINK FAST competition, a cornerstone in the spring season of The Theater Project, a leading incubator for rising talent and a showcase for new works in New Jersey and beyond.

Submissions for THINK FAST were invited this fall and the eight finalists, chosen by a committee of playwrights, are; Kim Ferse of Seattle, Wash.; Helen Mao of Olney, Md.; Cindi Sansone-Braff of East Patchogue, N.Y.; Teddy Durgin of Wake Forest, N.C.; Michael Towers of Westford, Mass.; Marcus Harmon of Brooklyn, N.Y.; Curt Strickland of Stoughton, Mass.; and Sarah Congress of Ashbury Park. Both Sansone-Braff and Congress are repeat finalists.

This is the 10th year for the THINK FAST competition and the third consecutive using the Zoom “vote from home” format. The event is part of the New Jersey Theatre Alliance’s Stages Festival, the state’s largest annual theater festival, which provides free and discounted theater events for all ages throughout the months of March, April and May.

“By holding this competition via Zoom, we’re able to bring live theater into homes throughout the country and give everyone — including the authors’ friends and family — the opportunity to participate in the voting,” said Theater Project award-winning playwright and THINK FAST coordinator Joseph Vitale.

While there will be several individual awards during the THINK FAST competition, only one play will be chosen as the winner of the $500 Judges’ Pick award.

Plays are pre-recorded and broadcast live on Thursday, March 2, and Friday, March 3, at 7:30 p.m., and Saturday, March 4, at 2 p.m.
Tickets are $15 and include a link to a live, post-broadcast Zoom meet-and-greet after each performance where audience members can chat with the actors, directors, playwrights and event organizers. The prizes, including commendations for best actor, actress and director, are announced at the virtual cocktail party following the final performance on Saturday at 2 p.m.

For information or tickets, visit [email protected] or call 908-809-8865.