The six finalists are "Annapurna" by Sharr White, which premiered in November at the Magic Theatre in San Francisco; "Edith Can Shoot Things and Hit Them" by A. Rey Pamatmat, which premiered at the Humana Festival last spring; "On the Spectrum" by Ken LaZebnik, which premiered November 12 at Mixed Blood Theatre in Minneapolis; "Pilgrims Musa and Sheri in the New World" by Yussef El Guindi, which premiered in June at ACT Repertory in Seattle; "A Twist of Water" by Caitlin Montanye Parrish, which premiered in February at the Route 66 Theatre in Chicago; and "Water by the Spoonful" by Quiara Alegria Hudes, which was first produced in October by Hartford Stage.
The top award is a $25,000 prize. Two runners-up will receive citations of $7,500 each, plus commemorative plaques. This is the largest national new play award of its kind, with prizes totaling $40,000.
These six finalists were selected from 27 eligible scripts submitted by ATCA members. They were evaluated by a committee of 12 theater critics, chaired by Wm. F. Hirschman, FloridaTheaterOnStage.com, and including David Sheward, special sections editor and theater critic for Back Stage. Other committee members include Misha Berson, Seattle Times; Bruce Burgun, Bloomington Herald Times (Ind.); Michael Elkin, Jewish Exponent (Pa.); Pam Harbaugh, Florida Today (Melbourne); Elizabeth Keill, Independent Press (Morristown, N.J.); Jerry Kraft, aislesay.com (Port Angeles, Wash.); Julius Novick, freelancer (New York City); Wendy Parker, The Village Mill (Midlothian, Va.); Herb Simpson, totaltheater.com and capitalcriticscircle.com (Geneseo, N.Y.); and Tim Treanor, DC Theater Scene (Washington, D.C.).
"Despite vanishing government support and faltering donations, America's regional theaters have persevered and prevailed as this country's preeminent crucible for vibrant and important new works," Hirschman said. "The recommended plays encompass a dizzyingly wide range of styles and themes, produced by a cadre of experienced and novice playwrights who are inarguable proof that theater remains a vital and relevant art form in the 21st century."
Since 1977, ATCA has honored new plays produced at regional theaters outside New York City. No play is eligible if it has gone on to a New York production within the award year. Since 2000, the award has been funded by the Harold and Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust, which was created in 1986 by Harold Steinberg on behalf of himself and his late wife to support American theater.
Past honorees of ATCA's New Play Award have included Lanford Wilson, August Wilson, Arthur Miller, Donald Margulies, Lynn Nottage, and Moises Kaufman. ATCA also presents the M. Elizabeth Osborn Award, honoring emerging playwrights, which will be presented with the New Play Award on March 31.
For more information about the American Theatre Critics Association, visit www.americantheatrecritics.org.
