''The Kilroys' List'' is a ''

gender parity Gender parity is a statistical measure used to describe ratios between men and women, or boys and girls, in a given population. Gender parity may refer to the proportionate representation of men and women in a given group, also referred to as Huma ...

'' initiative to end the "systematic underrepresentation of female and

trans Trans- is a Latin prefix meaning "across", "beyond", or "on the other side of". Used alone, trans may refer to: Sociology * Trans, a sociological term which may refer to: ** Transgender, people who identify themselves with a gender that di ...

playwrights" in the American theater industry. ''Gender disparity'' is defined as the gap of unproduced playwrights' whose plays are being discriminated against based on the writer's gender identification and

intersectional Intersectionality is an analytical framework for understanding how groups' and individuals' social and political identities result in unique combinations of discrimination and privilege. Examples of these intersecting and overlapping factor ...

identities of race, sexual orientation, ethnicity, socioeconomic class, age, and ability. Recent statistical research released in November 2015, entitled ''The Count'', gathered that 22% of total surveyed professional productions from 2011-2013 annual seasons were written by women playwrights, 3.8% of the total were written by women playwrights of color, and 0.4% of the total were written by foreign women playwrights of color. 78% of total surveyed professional productions were written by men playwrights. First released in June 2014, the list is an annual collection of highly recommended contemporary plays written by female and

trans* ''Trans*'' is a neologism and conceptual term that refers to a deliberately open-ended cluster of meanings, often used to describe gender-expansive identities, ontological frameworks, and critiques of hegemonic gender systems. The asterisk denote ...

authors, which are read or seen by an industry professional within the last twelve months. The list was established by ''The Kilroys'', a group of Los Angeles-based female-identified playwrights and producers who were tired of their plays remaining unproduced while artistic directors claimed "We chose the best plays" for their theater companies' annual seasons. The namesake of ''The Kilroys'' originated from the World War II graffiti tag, "

Kilroy Was Here Kilroy was here is a meme that became popular during World War II, typically seen in graffiti. Its origin is debated, but the phrase and the distinctive accompanying doodle became associated with G.I. (military), GIs in the 1940s: a bald-head ...

." The tagline for ''The Kilroys'' is "We Make Trouble and Plays." The founding Kilroys members were: Zakiyyah Alexander,

Bekah Brunstetter Rebecca Leah "Bekah" Brunstetter (born June 13, 1982) is an American writer. Her published plays include ''F*cking Art'', which won top honors at the Samuel French Off-Off-Broadway Short Play Festival, ''I Used to Write on Walls'', ''Oohrah!'' ...

Sheila Callaghan Sheila Callaghan (born 1973) is a playwright and screenwriter who emerged from the RAT ( Regional Alternative Theatre) movement of the 1990s. She has been profiled by ''American Theater Magazine'', "The Brooklyn Rail", ''Theatermania'', and ''Th ...

, Carla Ching, Annah Feinberg, Sarah Gubbins, Laura Jacqmin, Chelsea Marcantel, Joy Meads, Kelly Miller, Meg Miroshnik, Daria Polatin, Tanya Saracho, and

Marisa Wegrzyn Marisa Wegrzyn (born 1981) is an American playwright based in Chicago, Illinois. She won the 2009 Wasserstein Prize for her play ''Hickorydickory''. Early life Wegrzyn grew up in Wilmette, Illinois. Born to an anesthesiologist and former fligh ...

. In 2018, The Kilroys passed the baton from the founding members to a "new class" of 14 radical theatremakers composed of writers, producers and directors Jaclyn Backhaus,

Hilary Bettis Hilary Bettis is a playwright, a producer, and a writer. Life and career She won the 2019 Writers Guild of America Award, and was nominated in 2018, for her work on the Emmy and Golden Globe winning series ''The Americans'' on FX, which she wro ...

, Jennifer Chambers, Claudia de Vasco, Emma Goidel, Christina Ham, Jessica Hanna, Monet Hurst-Mendoza, Obehi Janice,

Hansol Jung Hansol Jung is a South Korean translator and playwright. Jung is a recipient the Whiting Award in drama and three of her plays were listed on the 2015 Kilroys' List. Jung is a member of the Ma-Yi Theater Writers' Lab and was a Hodder Fellow at ...

, Chelsea Marcantel, Caroline V. McGraw, Bianca Sams, and Gina Young. In 2014 the list featured the Top 46, a collection of 46 plays highly recommended by selected Nominators. The Nominators consisted of a number of contemporary theater artists and administrators currently working in the theater industry. The 2015 List: The top 7% featured 53 plays.

Eligibility

To qualify as eligible for The List, a play must be: * "unproduced or have had only a single professional production" * written by a playwright who self-identifies as female or trans* * read or seen by an industry professional in the past twelve months * not included in previous years

Gender parity

Gender Parity is a term that has grown to widespread popularity in the theater industry in recent years. There have been several initiatives started to address the underrepresentation of, and discrimination against, women and

artists and administrators. Much of this work has been statistical research based on numbers of women and

artists and administrators filing roles within a theater organization's staff and theatrical season.

Statistical research and analysis

Considered the most recent statistical research and analysis on gender disparity, ''The Count'' was founded by playwrights and co-founders of the ''

Lilly Awards The Lilly Awards are an American awards ceremony recognizing extraordinary women in theatre. An annual celebration is held in New York to honor female writers, composers, directors, designers, producers and advocates. Some men have also been awar ...

'',

Marsha Norman Marsha Norman (born September 21, 1947) is an American playwright, screenwriter, and novelist. She received the 1983 Pulitzer Prize for Drama for her play '' 'night, Mother''. She wrote the book and lyrics for such Broadway musicals as ''The S ...

and

Julia Jordan Julia Jordan is an American playwright, television writer, and screenwriter. She is a graduate of Barnard College, class of 1989, and received a master's degree from Trinity College Dublin. Biography Jordan was born in Chicago and spent much of he ...

, and Rebecca Stump of the

Dramatists Guild The Dramatists Guild of America is a professional organization for playwrights, composers, and lyricists working in the U.S. theatre market. It was born in 1921 out of the Authors Guild, known then as Authors League of America, formed in 1912. ...

. This research was presented at the annual ''Lilly Awards'' in July 2015 and published in November 2015 by the , Dramatists Guild. Theaters that were eligible for survey must be not-for-profit and regional, including Off-Broadway and Off-Off Broadway. Broadway theaters were not included in the survey. In total, 153 theater companies' 2011-2012, 2012-2013, and 2013-2014 seasons were included in the national survey. Julia Jordan has been quoted saying, "We wanted to create a baseline and to document the change." This baseline consists of percentage breakdowns based on the coined terms'','' "Unique Writers," which allows each individual produced writer to be counted once within the data, and "Unique Productions," which allows each individual production of a writer's play to be counted once within the data. For instance, while

Lynn Nottage Lynn Nottage (born November 2, 1964) is an American playwright whose work often focuses on the experience of working-class people, particularly working-class people who are black. She has received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama twice: in 2009 for he ...

is considered a "Unique Writer," each production of her play ''

Intimate Apparel Underwear, underclothing, or undergarments are items of clothing worn beneath outer clothes, usually in direct contact with the skin, although they may comprise more than a single layer. They serve to keep outer clothing from being soiled ...

'' would be considered a "Unique Production." Within these categories, ''The Count'' measured representations based on the playwright's self-identified intersections of race, gender, and nationality. These percentages can be seen below in ascending order of percentage: In addition, ''The Count'' included percentage breakdowns by a U.S. regional map and by individual city. Selected cities consisted of: The Count will continue to be updated on an annual basis.

Additional gender parity initiatives

One of the first initial statistical research and analyses on ''gender disparity'' was an honors research project completed by, then Princeton undergraduate student, Emily Glassberg Sands titled, ''Opening the Curtain on Playwright Gender: An Integrated Economic Analysis of Discrimination in American Theater''. After what has become known as "the Summit"—a gathering of artistic directors and artists in Washington D.C., when an artistic director made a controversial comment about no plays by women in the American theater industry "pipeline"—the We Exist google document was created to document the names of women and trans* playwrights across the world. Other gender parity initiatives include

Theatre Communications Group Theatre Communications Group (TCG) is a non-profit service organization headquartered in New York City that promotes professional non-profit theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, us ...

's ''82 Theatre Companies With Playwriting Parity'' ''(and Better)'', published by American Theatre Magazine in September 2015. In addition, there have been formations of citywide Women's Playwriting Festivals such as the 2015 ''D.C. Women's Voices Theater Festival'', which produced 56 new plays by women at 51 theaters across the greater D.C. area, and city-based Gender Parity Task Force Groups. There has also been increased scholarship in uncovering plays by women, for instance Susan Jones's ''The Other Canon'', a list of plays by women that date back 10 centuries. In addition, there are annual theater awards for recognition of contemporary women playwrights such as the ''Lilly Awards'', named after playwright

Lillian Hellman Lillian Florence Hellman (June 20, 1905 – June 30, 1984) was an American playwright, Prose, prose writer, Memoir, memoirist, and screenwriter known for her success on Broadway as well as her communist views and political activism. She was black ...

, which was founded in 2010 by playwrights Marsha Norman, Julia Jordan, and

Theresa Rebeck Theresa Rebeck (born February 19, 1958) is an American playwright, television writer, and novelist. Her work has appeared on the Broadway and Off-Broadway stage, in film, and on television. Among her awards are the Mystery Writers of America's ...

, as well as theater companies dedicated to producing work written and directed by women such as the Women's Project Theater.

New Play Exchange

For the 2015 List, the ''Kilroys'' partnered with the

National New Play Network The National New Play Network (NNPN) is the United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, stat ...

for their online database, the New Play Exchange. The exchange allows playwrights to create accounts to include their professional work in the form sample pages or full-length plays. The website is an initiative to address how professional theaters can use a more efficient selection process to determine which plays will be produced for their annual seasons. In previous years, "There had been hundreds of conversations about how the submission model was broken, how people filled their offices and built furniture out of unread scripts, how playwrights waited for years to hear back about the plays they just knew were perfect." In addition to uploading samples pages or full length pages of scripts and musical scores, playwrights can include information on casting breakdowns, keywords, and past production history. Anyone can create profiles to find playwrights, to read and privately evaluate plays, build a "private library," and "watch" others on the New Play Exchange as they add more to their profiles. It will serve as a "tool for students, audiences, and new play lovers everywhere to access new works. It will serve organizations so that they can let playwrights know what they are looking to read, to develop, and to produce."

Impact of the lists

The ''Kilroys' List'' has been covered nationwide in newspapers and other online media sources. After the 2014 list was released, the Kilroys were determined to expand the nominating pool "to increase riterrepresentation along class, ability, sexual orientation, and gender lines (including genderqueer, trans*, and other non-binary gender identities)." In June 2015, American Theatre Magazine wrote, "The impact of that initial list is hard to measure precisely, particularly given the long lead times of some theatres’ season planning, but the Kilroys have reported that 28 of the original 47 plays have since been produced, and individual writers cited on the list have reported more interest and requests for their scripts, if not a spate of production commitments." In addition, there have been publicly promoted initiatives to utilize the lists, including a reading series of 3 selected plays from the 2014 List, hosted by the ''Lilly Awards''. Also, playwright Sheila Callaghan is quoted in American Theatre Magazine saying, “A school is doing a class on just the Kilroys plays...That’s part of the movement, too.”

Notable listees

2014

* Christina Anderson: ''Man in Love'' *

Tanya Barfield Tanya Barfield is an American playwright whose works have been presented both nationally and internationally.DeVoti, Emily"Blue Door: Painting within the lines of history with Tanya Barfield"brooklynrail.org, October 2006, Accessed 13 September 21 ...

: ''The Call'' and ''Bright Half Life'' *

: ''The Oregon Trail'' *

: ''Women Laughing Alone With Salad'' * Eliza Clark: ''Future Thinking'' *

Larissa FastHorse Larissa FastHorse is a Native Americans in the United States, Native American (Sicangu, Sicangu Lakota) playwright and Choreography, choreographer based in Santa Monica, California. In 2023, she became the first known female Native American playwr ...

: ''What Would Crazy Horse Do?'' *

Halley Feiffer Halley Feiffer is an American actress, playwright and television writer, known for her award-winning plays ''I'm Gonna Pray for You So Hard'', ''Moscow Moscow Moscow Moscow Moscow Moscow'' and ''A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Gynecologic ...

: ''I'm Gonna Pray For You So Hard'' *

Madeleine George Madeleine George is an American playwright and author. Her play ''The (curious case of the) Watson Intelligence'' was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 2014 and she won the 2016 Whiting Award for Drama. George works as a writer and ...

: ''The (Curious Case of the) Watson Intelligence'' *

Martyna Majok Martyna Majok ( ) is a Polish-born American playwright who received the 2018 Pulitzer Prize for Drama for her play ''Cost of Living''. She emigrated to the United States as a child and grew up in New Jersey. Majok studied playwriting at the Yale ...

: ''Ironbound'' * Meg Miroshink: ''The Tall Girls'' *

Dominique Morisseau Dominique Morisseau (born March 13, 1978) is an American playwright and actress from Detroit, Michigan. She has written more than nine plays, three of which are part of a cycle titled ''The Detroit Project.'' She received a MacArthur Fellowship ( ...

: ''Skeleton Crew'' *

: ''Zealot'' *

Tanya Saracho Tanya Selene Saracho is a Mexican Americans, Mexican-American actress, playwright, dramaturge and screenwriter. With a background in theater before writing for television, she co-founded in 2000 and was its co-artistic director for ten years. ...

: ''The Tenth Muse'' *

Heidi Schreck Heidi Schreck (born September 26, 1971) is an American playwright, screenwriter, and actress from Wenatchee, Washington. Her play ''What the Constitution Means to Me'', which she also performs in, was a finalist for the 2019 Pulitzer Prize for Dr ...

: ''The Consultant'' and ''Grand Concourse'' *

Jackie Sibblies Drury Jackie Sibblies Drury is an American playwright. ''The New York Times'' called Drury's 2012 play '' We Are Proud to Present a Presentation About the Herero of Namibia, Formerly Known as Southwest Africa, From the German Sudwestafrika, Between the ...

: ''Really Really Really Really Really'' * Jen Silverman: ''The Moors'' and ''The Hunters'' *

Paula Vogel Paula Vogel (born November 16, 1951) is an American playwright. She is known for her provocative explorations of complex social and political issues. Much of her work delves into themes of psychological trauma, abuse, and the complexities of hum ...

: ''Don Juan Comes Home From Iraq'' *

Timberlake Wertenbaker Timberlake Wertenbaker is a British-based playwright, screenplay writer, and translator who has written plays for the Royal Court, the Royal Shakespeare Company and others. She has been described in ''The Washington Post'' as "the doyenne of po ...

: ''Jefferson's Garden'' * Anna Ziegler: ''Boy''

2015

* Zakiyyah Alexander and

Imani Uzuri Imani Uzuri is an American vocalist and composer. Uzuri has collaborated with artists across various disciplines including co-writing and singing the song "Be Still" for Herbie Hancock's album '' Future 2 Future''. In 2012, Uzuri released her ...

: ''Girl Shakes Loose Her Skin'' * Christina Anderson: ''The Ashes Under Gait City'' *

Clare Barron Clare Barron is a playwright and actor from Wenatchee, Washington. She won the 2015 Obie Award, Obie Award for Playwriting for ''You Got Older''. She was a finalist for the 2019 Pulitzer Prize for Drama for ''Dance Nation.'' Early life In an ...

: ''You Got Older'' and ''Dirty Crusty'' *

: ''The Ghosts of Lote Bravo'' and ''The History of American Pornography'' *

Jocelyn Bioh Jocelyn Bioh is a Ghanaian-American writer, playwright and actress. She graduated from Ohio State University with a BA in English and got her master's degree in Playwriting from Columbia University. Jocelyn's Broadway credits include '' The Curio ...

: ''Nollywood Dreams'' *

Fernanda Coppel Fernanda Coppel is a playwright and screenwriter. Her plays have been produced by Second Stage Theatre and the Atlantic Theater Company in New York. She has written for ''The Bridge,'' '' Kingdom'', and ''How to Get Away with Murder''. Backgroun ...

: ''King Liz'' *

Lydia R. Diamond Lydia R. Diamond (born April 14, 1969, in Detroit, Michigan) is an American playwright and professor. Among her most popular plays are ''The Bluest Eye'' (2007), an adaptation of Toni Morrison's novel; ''Stick Fly'' (2008); ''Harriet Jacobs'' (201 ...

: ''Smart People'' *

Sarah DeLappe Sarah DeLappe is an American playwright. Her play '' The Wolves'' premiered Off-Broadway in 2016 to acclaim. It received the American Playwriting Foundation's Relentless Award in 2015 and was a finalist for the 2017 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. DeLa ...

: ''The Wolves'' *

Lindsey Ferrentino Lindsey Ferrentino is an American contemporary playwright and screenwriter. Early life Lindsey Ferrentino is the daughter of comedian and magician John Ferrentino.

: ''

Ugly Lies the Bone ''Ugly Lies the Bone'' is a 2015 play by Lindsey Ferrentino. The play had a developmental workshop at by the Theatre Program of Fordham University in October 2014, before having its world premiere production by Roundabout Underground, and play ...

'' * Karen Hartman: ''Supertrue'' * Laura Jacqmin: ''Residence'' *

: ''Cardboard Piano'', ''No More Sad Things'', and ''Wolf Play'' *

: ''Petty Harbour'' * Mona Mansour: ''Unseen'' *

Honor Molloy Honor Molloy (born May 22, 1961) also known as Honour Kane, is an Irish-American playwright. Her plays have been produced by The Public Theater, Clubbed Thumb, New Georges, WOW Café, NADA, The Cell Theatre, Irish Repertory Theatre, Irish Thea ...

, ''

Crackskull Row ''Crackskull Row'' is a play by Honor Molloy. Originally premiering Off-Broadway at The Cell Theatre in September 2016, the play subsequently transferred to the Irish Repertory Theatre, beginning February of 2017. ''The New York Times'' named the ...

'' *

Mary Kathryn Nagle Mary Kathryn Nagle is a playwright and an attorney specializing in tribal sovereignty of Native nations and peoples. She was born in Oklahoma City, OK, and is an enrolled citizen of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma. She previously served as the ...

: ''

Manhatta ''Manhatta'' (1921) is a short documentary film directed by painter Charles Sheeler and photographer Paul Strand. Production background ''Manhatta'' documents the early 20th-century look of Manhattan. With the city as subject, the film consis ...

'' *

: ''Sweat'' *

: ''Fade'' * Jen Silverman: ''The Roommate'' *

Charise Castro Smith Charise Castro Smith (born August 30, 1983) is an American playwright, actress, screenwriter, producer, and director. She is best known for co-writing and co-directing the Disney animated film ''Encanto'' (2021). Personal life Castro Smith is ...

: ''Feathers and Teeth'' *

Susan Soon He Stanton Susan Soon He Stanton is an American playwright, television writer, and screenwriter. Stanton was a producer and writer for HBO's ''Succession'', for which she won Emmy, WGA, and Peabody Awards. She has also written for '' The Baby'', '' Modern Lo ...

: ''Today Is My Birthday'' *

Lucy Thurber Lucy Thurber is an American playwright based in New York City. She is the recipient of the first Gary Bonasorte Memorial Prize for Playwriting, a Lilly Award and a 2014 Obie Award for ''The Hill Town Plays''. Biography She was born ...

: ''The Insurgents'' * Leah Nanako Winkler: ''Kentucky'' *

Bess Wohl Bess Wohl is an American playwright, screenwriter, and actress whose plays include ''Grand Horizons'', ''Small Mouth Sounds'', ''Liberation,'' and the book for the musical ''Pretty Filthy'' with composer/lyricist Michael Friedman and The Civilian ...

: ''Small Mouth Sounds'' *

Lauren Yee Lauren Yee ( zh, 余秀菊) is an American playwright. Early life and education Yee was born and raised in San Francisco, California. She graduated from Lowell High School in 2003. Yee graduated from Yale University in 2007, majoring in Engli ...

: ''King of the Yees'' and ''The Tiger Among Us'' *

Stefanie Zadravec Stefanie Claire Zadravec (born 1968) is an American playwright. Her full-length plays include ''Tiny Houses'', ''Colony Collapse'', ''The Electric Baby'', ''Honey Brown Eyes'', and ''Save Me''. She has won numerous awards including the Helen Merril ...

: ''Colony Collapse'' * Anna Ziegler: ''The Last Match''

2016

: ''Dance Nation'' *

: ''School Girls; or the African Mean Girls Play'' * Karen Hartman: ''Roz and Ray'' * Chisa Hutchinson: ''Somebody's Daughter'' *

: ''Wild Goose Dreams'' * Aditi Brennan Kapil: ''Orange'' *

: ''Cost of Living'' *

Lenelle Moïse Lenelle Moïse (born c. 1980) is a poet, actress and playwright born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Currently based in the United States, she performs at colleges throughout the country, presenting work about race, gender, class, immigration and sexua ...

: ''Merit'' * Antoinette Nwandu: ''Pass Over'' * Jen Silverman: ''Collective Rage: A Play in Five Boops'' and ''Wink'' *

: ''Cygnus'' *

: ''Transfers'' *

Marisela Treviño Orta Marisela Treviño Orta is a third-generation Mexican-American playwright and poet from Lockhart, Texas. She attended the University of San Francisco where she received an MFA in Writing. While she was trained in poetry, Treviño Orta began writin ...

: ''Wolf at the Door''

2017

* Christina Anderson: ''How to Catch Creation'' * Aziza Barnes: ''Blks.'' *

: ''Magic City or Julie in Basel'' *

: ''El Huracán'' * Carla Ching: ''Nomad Motel'' *

: ''The Thanksgiving Play'' *

Aleshea Harris Aleshea Harris is an American playwright, spoken word artist, author, educator, actor, performer, and screenwriter. Her play ''Is God Is'' won the American Playwriting Foundation's Relentless Award in 2016. In 2023, her play ''On Sugarland'' was ...

: ''Is God Is'' * Chisa Hutchinson: ''Somebody's Daughter'' * Antoinette Nwandu: ''Breach'' * Christina Quintana: ''Azul'' *

Kristiana Rae Colón Kristiana Rae Colón (born April 16, 1986) is an American poet, playwright, actor, educator, Cave Canem Fellow, creator of #BlackSexMatters and co-founder of the #LetUsBreathe Collective. She was awarded 2017 Best Black Playwright by The Black ...

: ''Florissant & Canfield'' *

Heather Raffo Heather Raffo (born in Michigan, United States) is a Lucille Lortel Award-winning Iraqi-American playwright and actress, best known for her leading role in the one-woman play '' 9 Parts of Desire''. Biography Early life Her father is Iraqi, bo ...

: ''Noura'' *

: ''we, the invisibles'' * Leah Nanako Winkler: ''Two Mile Hollow'' *

: ''Cambodian Rock Band'' and ''The Great Leap''

2019

* Audrey Cefaly: ''Alabaster'' * Georgina Escobar: ''Stoneheart'' * Monet Hurst-Mendoza: ''Torera'' *

Ana Nogueira Ana Nogueira (born May 2, 1985) is an American actress, playwright, and screenwriter. She is known for her roles as Sarah on ''Sarah + Dee'' and Penny Ares on ''The Vampire Diaries''. She originated the role of Eliza Hamilton in the original V ...

: ''Mask Only'' *

Erika Dickerson-Despenza Erika Dickerson-Despenza is an American playwright. She won the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize in 2021 for her play, ''cullud wattah''. Early life and education Originally from Chicago, Illinois, Dickerson-Despenza graduated from the University of ...

: ''cullud wattah'' and '' ieroglyph'

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kilroys' List, The Theatrical organizations in the United States 21st-century theatre 2014 in theatre 2015 in theatre