November 16, 2025 Dear Michigan Theatre Directors– We are excited to present the first season of Short Plays, a new collaborative event with the Michigan Educational Theatre Association! A debut of six Short Plays will take place at the META Thespian Festival in Lansing on December 12-13, 2025. Then the inaugural season for MIFA Short Plays will take place as part of the MIFA State Theatre Festival, to be held at St. Johns High School on Friday, February 13 and Saturday, February 14, 2026. The festival features the work of hundreds of theatre students from across the state as they compete in 45-minute adjudicated shows. Six Main Stage and six Studio Production shows will be presented each day with the hopes of being named the next state champion in their division. Short Plays will take place as a separate, exposition event alongside the State Finals for MIFA’s Main Stage and Studio Production events. Short Play is designed to be an introduction to adjudicated theatre where students receive oral and written feedback from knowledgeable critics. We have room for up to twelve Short Plays to be presented on each day of the festival. MIFA members are encouraged to cast students who aren’t participating in their Main Stage or Studio shows, and/or be sure to choose a time slot that will not potentially conflict with their school’s Mainstage or Studio performance. Event Details Short Play Rules Short Play Ballot Script Selectionsfor this year’s event must come from this anthology of TRW Short Plays. This is the same selection of scripts that will be used for Short Plays at the META Thespian Festival. The licensing company Theatrical Rights Worldwide (TRW) is generously providing this free perusal to allow you to make an informed decision about which script to perform; however, you are required to purchase a full set of scripts. They are offering a 20% discount on your script purchase. TRW is waiving royalty fees for short play performances at META and MIFA. After selecting the play you wish to perform, you need to email Jim Hoare with the title, noting that this is for the Michigan Interscholastic Forensic Association Short Play Festival - [email protected], He will have someone from the plays team email a performance license, waiving all royalties, including a test run at your school, the performances at the festival, and if selected, the performances at the state MIFA competition in March.
You must purchase the scripts but TRW has provided a discount code, TRW Conf20 to receive a 20% discount on purchasing the PDF digital copies or print versions of the books.
Registration and Fees: Time slots will be available for both Friday, February 13 and Saturday, February 14, 2026. Directors may sign up for a time slot of their choice. Time slots will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis until all time slots are filled. Time slots will be made available starting December 2025. Please sign up for only one Short Play time slot to allow all interested schools to have a chance to perform. The Executive Director will allow schools to sign up for additional Short Play time slots beginning January 1st if any are still available. Fee for non-MIFA members: $75 if director agrees to adjudicate a Short Play performed by another school / $100 if not Fee for MIFA members: $50 if director agrees to adjudicate a Short Play performed by another school /$75 if not The registration fee includes wristbands for festival admission at no charge for the participating director(s) and students. Please note that all spectators are required to purchase wristbands for festival admission. MIFA Membership:This new event is open to any high school in Michigan, although MIFA members will receive a discount on registration.New schools can become a MIFA member for just $1 membership fee for the first year! Gain the ability to participate in the other theatre events, Main Stage and Studio Production and the other activities MIFA offers! Additionally, membership gives you a community of directors at your fingertips for networking, support, guidance, and friendship. Contact Becca Weissman for more information: [email protected] Questions?:Please direct any questions to the following contacts: Jon Becker, Executive Director: [email protected] Jackie Charneski, Theatre Committee Chair: [email protected]
We look forward to celebrating the amazing work of even more theatre students around our state! Thank you for your time and consideration.
