Amas Musical Theatre Reveals 8th Annual Eric H. Weinberger Award for Emerging Lyricists

Amas Musical Theatre will present the eighth year of The Eric H. Weinberger Award for Emerging Librettists, a juried cash and production grant to be given annually to support the early work and career of a deserving musical theatre librettist. The Award commemorates the life and work of playwright/librettist Eric H. Weinberger (1950-2017), who was a Drama Desk Award nominee for Best Book of a Musical (Wanda’s World), and the playwright/librettist of Class Mothers ’68, that earned Pricilla Lopez a Drama Desk Award nomination.

The winner will receive $2,000 to help pay cost-of-living expenses. The winning musical will receive development assistance in the 2026 New Works Development Program of Amas Musical Theatre, which is administering the Award. The development assistance culminates in the work being rehearsed and performed by New York theatre professionals in an Amas Lab production. Amas was the development home for several of Mr. Weinberger’s musicals and produced the World Premiere of Wanda’s World and the New York Premiere of Tea for Three.

“We are grateful to be afforded this opportunity to continue making theatre and creating an impact in our community while welcoming a new wave of inspiring voices to our musical theatre family” says Donna Trinkoff, Amas Artistic Producer. “We are thrilled to present Dubbo Championship Wrestling,by 2024 winners Daniel and James Cullen, as part of our upcoming “Dare To Be Different” Festival in November."

Submissions will open on September 30, 2025, and will close November 30, 2025. All submissions must be sent through an online application that can be found at Eric H. Weinberger Award for Emerging Librettists. Only one submission per playwright/librettist will be accepted. The winner of the award will be announced in March/April 2026.For further information, please visit www.amasmusical.org.