Jackson Hole Playhouse "America's 250th" Contest Official Rules

1. ELIGIBILITY: The Jackson Hole Playhouse "America's 250th" Essay Contest (the "Contest") is open only to legal residents of the fifty (50) United States and the District of Columbia who are eighteen (18) years of age or older at the time of entry. Void in Colorado, Maryland, North Dakota, Vermont, and where prohibited or restricted by law. International entries are not eligible. Employees, contractors, and immediate family members of the Jackson Hole Playhouse are ineligible to win.

2. HOW TO ENTER: To enter, eligible patrons must purchase a valid ticket to a Jackson Hole Playhouse performance during the Contest Period and submit an original essay of 100 words or less responding to the prompt: "What is your favorite memory of live theater, and why does it matter to you?" Entries must be submitted via the official online Google Form link provided on the post-purchase confirmation page or ticket confirmation email. Limit one (1) entry per unique ticket purchased. Multiple entries under the same ticket confirmation number will result in all entries under that number being disqualified.

3. CONTEST PERIOD: The Contest begins at 12:00 AM MST on June 2, 2026, and all entries must be received electronically no later than 11:59 PM MST on June 30, 2026 (the "Contest Period"). The Playhouse computer system is the official timekeeper.

4. JUDGING CRITERIA AND SELECTION: All eligible entries will be subjected to a blind evaluation by a 3-person judging panel comprised of Jackson Hole Playhouse staff. Entries will be scored out of thirty (30) maximum points based on the following metrics: (a) Emotional Impact & Sincerity [1-10 points], (b) Relevance to Theme [1-10 points], and (c) Creativity & Wordcraft [1-10 points]. In the event of a mathematical tie, the entry with the highest individual score in the "Emotional Impact & Sincerity" category will be deemed the winner. Selection is based entirely on merit and skill; chance or random selection plays no role in determining the winner. The decisions of the judging panel are final and binding.

5. SOLE JUDICIAL DISCRETION: Disqualification based on suspicion of plagiarism, automated text generation, duplicate entry submission, or manipulation is at the sole and absolute discretion of the judging panel. The Playhouse is not required to provide algorithmic proof, score breakdowns, or third-party metrics to entrants regarding its institutional decisions.

6. PRIZE DETAILS: One (1) Grand Prize winner will receive a $250 Jackson Hole Playhouse Gift Certificate. The prize is non-transferable, cannot be redeemed or exchanged for cash, and has no cash value. The gift certificate does not expire and can be used for future ticket or Playhouse purchases subject to availability.

7. ORIGINALITY AND WARRANTIES: By submitting an entry, the entrant warrants and represents that the essay is their own original work, has not been previously published, does not infringe upon the copyrights, trademarks, rights of privacy, publicity, or other intellectual property of any third party, and was not generated, assisted, or enhanced by artificial intelligence (AI) tools or automated scripts.

8. INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY LICENSE: By participating, all entrants grant the Jackson Hole Playhouse an irrevocable, perpetual, worldwide, royalty-free, non-exclusive license to use, reproduce, modify, publish, and display their submitted essay, in whole or in part, in any media now known or hereafter developed (including but not limited to social media, websites, newsletters, marketing materials, and printed theater programs) for promotional and historical purposes, without further compensation, review, or notice.

9. TICKET CANCELLATIONS, CHARGEBACKS, AND REFUNDS: If a ticket purchase associated with a Contest entry is cancelled, refunded, or subject to a credit card chargeback for any reason prior to July 4, 2026, the corresponding entry will be rendered completely void. If an announced winner seeks a refund on their foundational ticket purchase post-announcement, the Grand Prize will be immediately forfeited, invalidated, and awarded to the runner-up.

10. BRAND ALIGNMENT AND CONTENT RESTRICTIONS: Entries must not contain profanity, defamatory statements, obscene content, commercial solicitations, or politically aggressive or discriminatory rhetoric. The Playhouse reserves the right to disqualify any entry it deems, in its sole discretion, to be disruptive or inconsistent with the family-friendly, community-focused values, image, or goodwill of the Jackson Hole Playhouse, regardless of the entry's objective rubric score.

11. MORALITY AND VETTING CLAUSE: The Playhouse reserves the right to run basic public records and social media reviews on the top finalists. If at any time prior to or within one year after the prize award, the winner is involved in any situation or occurrence that brings the individual into public disrepute, contempt, scandal, or criminal investigation, the Playhouse reserves the right to terminate the prize validity immediately and strip the winner of all public associations with the theater.

12. LIMITATION OF LIABILITY AND TECH DISCLAIMER: The Jackson Hole Playhouse is not responsible for lost, late, incomplete, corrupted, or misdirected entries, or for any technical, hardware, software, or server malfunctions, dropped internet connections, or failed form transmissions. If the Contest cannot run as planned due to hacking, tampering, fraud, or force majeure, the Playhouse reserves the right to cancel, modify, or suspend the promotion.

13. WINNER NOTIFICATION & PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENT: The potential winner will be notified via the email address used at form submission on or before July 3, 2026. The winner must respond within 48 hours to claim the prize, or an alternate winner will be selected. The final winner will be publicly announced on July 4, 2026 via the Playhouse email newsletter and social media channels.

14. WINNER'S LIST REQUEST: To request the name and city/state of the Grand Prize winner, send a self-addressed, stamped envelope to: Jackson Hole Playhouse, Attn: America's 250th Contest Winner's List, [Insert Street Address], Jackson, WY, to be received no later than August 31, 2026.