Edgerton Foundation New Play Awards Announce First Round of 2021 Recipients
The first round of awards were presented to: Born with Teeth by Liz Duffy Adams; Noir, music by Duncan Sheik book by Kyle Jarrow, and more.
By: Chloe Rabinowitz Jun. 21, 2021
Theatre Communications Group has announced the recipients of the first round of the 2021 Edgerton Foundation New Play Awards. The awards, totaling $1,072,000, allow 28 productions extra time for the development and rehearsal of new plays with the entire creative team, hoping to extend the life of the world premiere play after its first run. This round represents the first iteration of the New Play Awards after theatres' seasons were cancelled by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Over the last 15 years, the Edgerton Foundation has awarded over $14,385,000 to 458 productions, enabling many plays to schedule subsequent productions following their world premieres. Thirty have made it to Broadway, including: Curtains, 13, Next to Normal, 33 Variations, In the Next Room (or The Vibrator Play), Time Stands Still, Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo, A Free Man of Color, Good People, Chinglish, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, Bronx Bombers, Casa Valentina, Outside Mullingar, All the Way, Eclipsed, Bright Star, Hamilton, The Columnist, In Transit, A Doll's House Part 2, Indecent, Dear Evan Hansen, Oslo, Escape to Margaritaville, The Prom, JUNK: The Golden Age of Debt, SUMMER: The Donna Summer Musical, and Head Over Heels. Sixteen plays were nominated for Tony Awards, with All the Way, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, Hamilton, Dear Evan Hansen, and Oslo winning the best play or musical awards. Eleven plays were nominated for the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, with wins for The Hot Wing King (2021), Cost of Living (2018), Hamilton (2016), The Flick (2014), Water by the Spoonful (2012), and Next to Normal (2010).
"After the most difficult year in our theatre field's recent history, the Edgerton Foundation's transformational investment in new plays has never been more important," said Teresa Eyring, executive director, TCG. "The Foundation's support of longer rehearsal processes has always been valuable, but now, as our field reopens with a focus on safety and inclusion, that support is truly life-giving. Theatre artists will have a chance to breathe, and to take the time they need after the losses of last year as they make the plays that will knit our country back together."
The first round of the 2021 Edgerton Foundation New Play Awards were presented to:
Born with Teeth
at Alley Theatre
Noir
music by Duncan Sheik
book by Kyle Jarrow
lyrics by Kyle Jarrow &
at Alley Theatre
House of Shades
by Beth Steel
at Almeida Theatre, London, UK
Father/Daughter
at Aurora Theatre Company
The Garden
at Baltimore Center Stage
Refuge
co-created by Satya Jnani Chavez & Andrew Rosendorf
transcreation by Marialuisa Burgos
at Curious Theatre Company
Soft Target
at Geffen Theatre
Wicked Soul in Cherry Hill
words and music by Matt Schatz
at Geffen Theatre
Good Night, Oscar
by Doug Wright
at Goodman Theatre
to the yellow house
by Kimber Lee
at La Jolla Playhouse
Mother Russia
by Lauren Yee
at La Jolla Playhouse
Prayer for the French Republic
at Manhattan Theatre Club
The Harriet Holland Social Club Presents the 84th Annual Star-Burst Cotillion in the Grand Ballroom of the Renaissance Hotel
music and lyrics by Dionne McClain-Freeney
at New Georges and The Movement Theatre Company
Mr. Dickens' Hat
at Northlight Theatre
A.D.16
by Cinco Paul & Bekah Brunstetter
at Olney Theatre Center
Tambo & Bones
by Dave Harris
at Playwrights Horizons
Wish You Were Here
by Sanaz Toossi
at Playwrights Horizons
Suffragist
by Shaina Taub
Top of the World
at Repertory Theatre of St. Louis
"We declare you a terrorist..."
by Tim J. Lord
at Round House Theatre
The Magician's Elephant
book and lyrics Nancy Harris
music and lyrics Marc Teitler
adapted from the novel by Kate DiCamillo
at Royal Shakespeare Company
Bruce
Letters of Suresh
by Rajiv Joseph
at Second Stage Theater
A Case for the Existence of God
at Signature Theatre
Bald Sisters
by Vichet Chum
at Steppenwolf Theatre Company
Nan and the Lower Body
at TheatreWorks Silicon Valley
This Land Was Made
by Tori Sampson
Row
book by Daniel Goldstein
music and lyrics by Dawn Landes
inspired by A Pearl in the Storm by Tori Murden McClure
at Williamstown Theatre Festival
"A story of reconnection, reconciliation, and regrowth, The Garden turned out to be the perfect play for this moment. As we're moving through this incredibly difficult time for our industry and our world, it is so meaningful for us to be able to support these artists as they remind us of our collective capacity to heal and to love," said Stephanie Ybarra, artistic director, Baltimore Center Stage. "With this grant from the Edgerton Foundation, Baltimore Center Stage is able to provide Charlayne Woodard an additional week of rehearsal that will undoubtedly be a vital opportunity to further explore the text in the room from the unique position as both the playwright and performer. Furthermore, this added time will allow the space for The Garden's team to seek and engage with audience feedback as we prepare to film the production for streaming - an invaluable piece of the process that has been complicated by the pandemic."
"A cast of 12! A three-piece band! Songs to learn, choreography to learn, immersive antics, breakaway ballgowns! The Cotillion, a play with music, toys with spectacle and -- for our two small theater companies -- will be no small feat," said Susan Bernfield, artistic director and producer, New Georges. Deadria Harrington, of The Movement Theatre Company's producing artistic leadership team, added "By granting us funds for additional rehearsal weeks with the 25 members of The Cotillion's all-Black-woman cast and creative team, the Edgerton New Play Award will have immeasurable impact on fulfilling their capacious vision."
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