To enter the Festival, a school must be a member of the Massachusetts High School Drama Guild, with membership dues paid in full prior to the annual directors' meeting in January. A school may elect to perform on a non-competitive basis by checking the appropriate box on the Entry Form. All rules governing Festival apply. No entry may exceed 40 minutes running time. Scene change music, incidental music, background music, and songs which occur in the text of a non-musical play are permitted.
Dance is permitted if it occurs in the text of a non-musical play.
Interpretive movement, with or without music, is also permitted if it occurs in the text of a non-musical play. A use of music request form is sent to all directors upon receipt of festival entry registration and must be returned at the mandatory Directors' Meeting in January. A school may not enter a play in Festival that it entered in the previous three years. Since host schools vary greatly in their production resources, directors are strongly advised to keep the technical elements of their productions simple and flexible . The director, cast, and crew must attend all levels of Festival in which they participate.