The late 2007 Music winner Ornette Coleman (center-right) and Prime Time performed "Times Square" on "Saturday Night Live" in 1979. (NBC/NBCU)
The 2022 Drama and Music competitions will close at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time on December 31.
All entry materials must be uploaded to the Books, Drama and Music entry site (bdmentrysite.pulitzer.org), where the required entry form and $75 handling fee must also be remitted.
COVID-Related Drama Changes
As always, eligible works include full-length dramas by American authors that opened in the United States between January 1, 2021 and December 31, 2021. The creator(s) of a dramatic work should determine when it is ready for award consideration, as it may be submitted only once.
For the 2022 award, eligible entries also may include plays that were scheduled to be produced in theatres in calendar 2021 but were postponed or cancelled due to the pandemic, as well as plays produced and performed in places other than theaters, including online, outside or in site-specific venues, during the year.
Scheduled plays that went unproduced should include with the entry some confirmation (such as a screenshot or a PDF document) of their cancellation or postponement along with the playscript. For full-length dramatic works produced and performed in spaces other than theaters during calendar 2021, a script and production details will still be required.
For more information, please see the Drama entry guidelines.
Digital Upload Requirements
Required playscripts for Drama and scores for Music (if available) must be uploaded in PDF form. Streaming links (i.e. Vimeo or YouTube) are preferred for the recommended Drama performance video, while direct mp3/wav/flac uploads or externally hosted zip/rar directories are preferred for Music recordings.
Although links to YouTube and other streaming platforms are permitted in the Music category, please note that downloadable files may be requested at our discretion during the judging process.
Streaming videos and recordings must remain active and accessible through the Prize announcement. Please include any login credentials in the description field of the uploader. Any updates may be sent to [email protected].
Questionnaire
Since the 2020 competition, the entry form has contained a questionnaire modeled after the Journalism contest. The prompts are:
Please provide a brief summary of this work (60 word limit);
Please briefly describe the origins of and inspiration for this work (250 word limit);
Please note any challenges to the originality (or accuracy, if applicable) of this work (250 word limit).
These prompts are intended to provide a contextual framework for submissions to the judges. The third prompt applies strictly to formal and/or legal challenges to the work, such as allegations of fabrication or plagiarism.
Music Guidance
Alongside art composition in the Western tradition and jazz, the Pulitzer Board welcomes submissions from the full spectrum of American music, including hip-hop, R&B, pop, rock, blues, folk, country, Latin and electronic forms.
Logistics
General submission guidelines for the Drama Prize may be read here.
Guidelines for the Music Prize are here.
Should you have any additional questions, please contact us at [email protected]. We are open from 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on weekdays. As our office will be closed the week of December 27, please endeavor to complete your entry well in advance of the deadline.
Best of luck!