The Playwrights' Center is a non-profit theatre organization focused on both supporting playwrights and promoting new plays to production at theaters across the country. It is located in the Seward neighborhood of Minneapolis, Minnesota. In October of 2020, the organization announced plans to move to a larger space in St. Paul.
History
The Playwrights' Center was founded in 1971 by a group of University of Minnesota undergraduate and graduate students, including Greg Almquist, Erik Brogger, Tom Dunn,
Barbara Field
Barbara Field is a playwright whose work has been seen at theaters across North America and Europe.
Education
Field is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania (BA) and the University of Minnesota (MA).
Career
She has written adaptations o ...
, Gar Hildenbrand, and Jon Jackoway. These playwrights conceived of the Playwrights' Center (initially called the Minnesota Playwriting Laboratory) as a place where writers could have the opportunity to hear their work read aloud by professional actors, to hear comments and criticism from peers and audience members, and to develop their scripts with the help of artistic collaborators and working professionals. After becoming a not-for-profit company in 1973, the founders held a series of play readings, discussion series, and one-acts performed at various venues in the
Twin Cities
Twin cities are a special case of two neighboring cities or urban centres that grow into a single conurbation – or narrowly separated urban areas – over time. There are no formal criteria, but twin cities are generally comparable in statu ...
. The focus was on a continued playwriting conversation and aiding works-in-progress. These ideals continued to be the mainstay of the center as membership expanded. In 1979, the center moved into the Olivet Lutheran Church in south Minneapolis, which remains its home today.
Jeremy Cohen serves as the producing artistic director, and the center is further supported by a full staff, an eighteen-member board of directors and a national advisory board of theater professionals. Members of the Playwrights' Center include artists such as
August Wilson
August Wilson ( Frederick August Kittel Jr.; April 27, 1945 – October 2, 2005) was an American playwright. He has been referred to as the "theater's poet of Black America". He is best known for a series of ten plays, collectively called ' (or ...
,
Lee Blessing
Lee Knowlton Blessing (born October 4, 1949) is an American playwright best known for his 1988 work, '' A Walk in the Woods''. A lifelong Midwesterner, Blessing continued to work in regional theaters in and around his hometown of Minneapolis thro ...
Paula Vogel
Paula Vogel (born November 16, 1951) is an American playwright who received the 1998 Pulitzer Prize for Drama for her play ''How I Learned to Drive.'' A longtime teacher, Vogel spent the bulk of her academic career – from 1984 to 2008 – at Bro ...
, and
Jeffrey Hatcher
Jeffrey Hatcher is an American playwright and screenwriter. He wrote the stage play ''Compleat Female Stage Beauty'', which he later adapted into a screenplay, shortened to just ''Stage Beauty'' (2004). He also co-wrote the stage adaptation o ...
,
Suzan-Lori Parks
Suzan-Lori Parks (born May 10, 1963) is an American playwright, screenwriter, musician and novelist. Her 2001 play ''Topdog/Underdog'' won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 2002; Parks was the first African-American woman to receive the award for d ...
,
Jordan Harrison
Jordan Harrison (born 1977) is a playwright. He grew up on Bainbridge Island, Washington. His play ''Marjorie Prime'' was a finalist for the 2015 Pulitzer Prize for Drama.
Biography
Harrison received a B.A. from Stanford University in 1999 a ...
, Carlyle Brown,
Craig Lucas
Craig Lucas (born April 30, 1951) is an American playwright, screenwriter, theatre director, musical actor, and film director.
Biography
Born on April 30, 1951, he was found abandoned in a car in Atlanta, Georgia. Lucas was adopted when he wa ...
,
Melanie Marnich
Melanie Marnich is an American television writer-producer and playwright. She co-created and serves as executive producer and co-showrunner for the upcoming Amazon series, '' The Expatriates.'' She has written for ''Big Love'' on HBO; Her episode ...
, and Kira Obolensky.
Recent partners have included
Tectonic Theater Project
Tectonic Theater Project is a stage and theatre group whose plays have been performed around the world. The company is dedicated to developing works that explore theatrical language and form, fostering dialogue with audiences on the social, pol ...
,
Mixed Blood Theatre
The Mixed Blood Theatre Company is a professional multiracial theatre company in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It was founded in 1976 by artistic director Jack Reuler, to explore race via the use of theater.
History
Jack Reuler founded Mixed Blood in 19 ...
The Public Theater
The Public Theater is a New York City arts organization founded as the Shakespeare Workshop in 1954 by Joseph Papp, with the intention of showcasing the works of up-and-coming playwrights and performers.Epstein, Helen. ''Joe Papp: An American Li ...
(NY),
Oregon Shakespeare Festival
The Oregon Shakespeare Festival (OSF) is a regional repertory theatre in Ashland, Oregon, United States, founded in 1935 by Angus L. Bowmer. The Festival now offers matinee and evening performances of a wide range of classic and contemporary pla ...
, Ten Thousand Things Theater Company,
Berkeley Rep
Berkeley Repertory Theatre is a regional theater company located in Berkeley, California. It runs seven productions each season from its two stages in Downtown Berkeley.
History
The company was founded in 1968, as the East Bay's first resident pr ...
,
Marin Theatre Company The Marin Theatre Company (MTC) is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization and professional LORT D regional theater located in Mill Valley, California. Jasson Minadakis is the company's Artistic Director and Meredith Suttles its Managing Director / CEO.
...
,
Seattle Repertory Theatre
Seattle Repertory Theatre (familiarly known as "The Rep") is a major regional theatre located in Seattle, Washington, at the Seattle Center. It is a member of Theatre Puget SoundWalker Art Center
The Walker Art Center is a multidisciplinary contemporary art center in the Lowry Hill neighborhood of Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States. The Walker is one of the most-visited modern and contemporary art museums in the United States and, t ...
and
Minnesota History Center
The Minnesota History Center is a museum and library that serves as the headquarters of the Minnesota Historical Society. It is near downtown Saint Paul, Minnesota, and is considered one of Minnesota's finest public buildings.
The History Cent ...
to develop theater that deepens their programming.
Programs
The Ruth Easton Lab
The Ruth Easton New Play Series is a uniquely intimate and accessible way to experience the thrill of raw new work. It gives selected Core Writers 20 hours with collaborators to workshop their script—to write, rewrite, experiment, and shape their work. Each year a handful of plays are selected from the Core Writers for development in The Ruth Easton Series. With funding from the Ruth Easton Lab, the plays receive a director, a designer who works with the playwright on one design element of his or her work, rehearsal time, and, if the playwright chooses, a two public readings of the play which are free for everyone.
Core Writers
Each term is three years; Core Writers may re-apply for additional terms.
Core Apprentices
Schools participating in the New Plays on Campus program may nominate students to become Playwrights’ Center Core Apprentices, a unique and high-profile opportunity. In partnership with the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival, the Core Apprentice program provides student playwrights with such benefits as a year of mentorship with a professional playwright and a full workshop of a new play at the Playwrights’ Center. Five student playwrights are selected each year to be “Core Apprentices”.
PlayLabs
PlayLabs is an annual new play festival that occurs during a two-week span in October and is the largest development event of the Playwrights' Center's season. Each playwright is paired with a director, designer, and cast of actors. The selected plays receive 30 hours of rehearsal and two readings with allocated writing and revision time. All readings are free to the public. The festival extends beyond the readings including a Jerome Fellows showcase, a panel discussion, and a festival celebration. According to The Playwrights' Center 2005 annual report, seventy four percent of Playlabs playwrights go on to receive professional productions or further development opportunities.
Fellowships
Jerome Fellowships
* The Playwrights’ Center Jerome Fellowships are awarded annually, providing emerging American playwrights with funds and services to aid them in the development of their craft. Four $16,000 fellowships will be awarded for 2015-16, in addition to $1,500 in development support. Fellows spend a year-long residency in Minnesota and have access to Playwrights' Center opportunities, including workshops with professional directors, dramaturgs, and actors.
* The Playwrights’ Center has awarded these fellowships in partnership with the Jerome Foundation since 1976. Past recipients include
Lee Blessing
Lee Knowlton Blessing (born October 4, 1949) is an American playwright best known for his 1988 work, '' A Walk in the Woods''. A lifelong Midwesterner, Blessing continued to work in regional theaters in and around his hometown of Minneapolis thro ...
, Lisa D’Amour, Kristoffer Diaz, Dan Dietz, Sarah Gubbins,
Naomi Iizuka
Naomi or Naomie may refer to:
People and biblical figures
* Naomi (given name), a female given name and a list of people with the name
* Naomi (biblical figure), Ruth's mother-in-law in the Old Testament Book of Ruth
* Naomi (Romanian singer) (bo ...
,
Melanie Marnich
Melanie Marnich is an American television writer-producer and playwright. She co-created and serves as executive producer and co-showrunner for the upcoming Amazon series, '' The Expatriates.'' She has written for ''Big Love'' on HBO; Her episode ...
,
Peter Sagal
Peter Daniel Sagal (born January 31, 1965) is an American humorist, writer, and host of the National Public Radio game show '' Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!'' and the PBS special ''Constitution USA with Peter Sagal''.
__TOC__
Early life, fami ...
August Wilson
August Wilson ( Frederick August Kittel Jr.; April 27, 1945 – October 2, 2005) was an American playwright. He has been referred to as the "theater's poet of Black America". He is best known for a series of ten plays, collectively called ' (or ...
. The 2014-2015 Jerome Fellows are Steve Moulds, Kate Tarker, Josh Wilder, Deborah Yarchun.
Many Voices Fellowships
The Many Voices Fellowship was created in 1994 in partnership with the Jerome Foundation in order to create a home for early-career playwrights of color. Since that time, the Many Voices program has provided 140 fellowships for some 100 emerging playwrights of color, offering class instruction, play development workshops, and mentoring opportunities.
*Many Voices Fellowships are awarded annually to two artists of color with previous playwriting experience and/or training. One fellowship is awarded to a Minnesota playwright, and one fellowship is awarded to either a Minnesota or national playwright. Recipients include Aamera Siddiqui, Jessica Huang,
Naomi Iizuka
Naomi or Naomie may refer to:
People and biblical figures
* Naomi (given name), a female given name and a list of people with the name
* Naomi (biblical figure), Ruth's mother-in-law in the Old Testament Book of Ruth
* Naomi (Romanian singer) (bo ...
,
Daniel Alexander Jones
Daniel Alexander Jones (born 1970) is an American performance artist, playwright, director, essayist and educator.
Birth
Jones was born on February 9, 1970, to Georgina Leslie Jones and Arthur Leroy Jones at Wesson Women's Hospital in Springfiel ...
Junauda Petrus
Junauda Juanita Petrus-Nasah is an American author, filmmaker, performance artist, and "pleasure activist". Her debut novel, '' The Stars and the Blackness Between Them'', was a winner of a Coretta Scott King Honor Award.
Early life
Petrus w ...
, and Janaki Ranpura. Many Voices Fellowships provide:
**a $10,000 stipend,
**an additional $2,500 for living expenses,
**$1,500 in play development funds
**assistance building connections with theater leaders and companies in the Twin Cities and nationwide
*Many Voices Mentorships are awarded annually to two Minnesota-based beginning playwrights of color. Mentorships focus on the nuts and bolts of playwriting through a curated package of writing and development services intended to aid the participant toward the completion of a play script. Mentorships provide a $1,000 stipend as well as free access to a number of services designed to introduce beginning playwrights to the craft of playwriting. These services include a staged reading with professional actors, two six-week classes taught by leading playwriting professionals, an array of one-night seminars, a One-on-One with a Dramaturg session, and a two-year Playwrights' Center membership.
McKnight Fellowships
*McKnight Advancement Fellowships recognize playwrights whose work demonstrates exceptional artistic merit and excellence in the field, and whose primary residence is in the state of Minnesota. The grants are intended to significantly advance recipients' playwriting development and their careers.
*McKnight National Residency and Commission aids in the commissioning and development of new works from nationally recognized playwrights. Past recipients include:
Kia Corthron
Kia Corthron (born May 13, 1961) is an American playwright, activist, television writer, and novelist.
Early life and education
Kia Corthron was born on May 13, 1961, in Cumberland, Maryland. Corthron's father worked at a paper mill in the ar ...
,
Kate Fodor
Kate Fodor is an American playwright and television writer. Her debut play, ''Hannah and Martin'', opened Off-Broadway on March 20, 2004 by the Epic Theatre Ensemble. The play, based on the relationship between political theorist Hannah Arendt and ...
,
Daniel Alexander Jones
Daniel Alexander Jones (born 1970) is an American performance artist, playwright, director, essayist and educator.
Birth
Jones was born on February 9, 1970, to Georgina Leslie Jones and Arthur Leroy Jones at Wesson Women's Hospital in Springfiel ...
,
Sibyl Kempson
Sibyl Kempson (born 1973) is an American playwright and performer, who received the 2018 PEN/Laura Pels International Foundation for Theater Award for an American Playwright in Mid-career.
Kempson was raised in Pequannock Township, New Jersey.
...
,
Craig Lucas
Craig Lucas (born April 30, 1951) is an American playwright, screenwriter, theatre director, musical actor, and film director.
Biography
Born on April 30, 1951, he was found abandoned in a car in Atlanta, Georgia. Lucas was adopted when he wa ...
, Taylor Mac, Ruth Margraff,
Dan O'Brien
Daniel Dion O'Brien (born July 18, 1966) is an American former decathlete and Olympic gold medalist. He won the Olympic title in 1996, three consecutive world championships (1991, 1993, 1995), and set the world record in 1992.
Early life
O'Br ...
,
Betty Shamieh
Betty Shamieh is an American playwright, author, screenwriter, and actor of Palestinian descent. She has written 15 plays.
Background
Shamieh was born in San Francisco, California. She holds degrees from Harvard University and the Yale Scho ...
, Kathleen Tolan, and
Mac Wellman
Mac Wellman, born John McDowell Wellman on March 7, 1945, in Cleveland, Ohio, is an American playwright, author, and poet.Stephen Yoakam.