Cherry Lane Playwrights Collective to Name Inaugural Cohort with Annie Baker
Hannah Applebaum, Jeesun Choi, Banna Desta, Jimmy Fay, Onyekachi Iwu and Maureen Sebastian make up the group.
The Cherry Lane Playwrights Collective, the non-profit partnership with the historic Cherry Lane Theatre and Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright and director Annie Baker (The Flick, Janet Planet, John), has unveiled the writers for their inaugural cohort: Hannah Applebaum, Jeesun Choi, Banna Desta, Jimmy Fay, Onyekachi Iwu and Maureen Sebastian.
Starting on September 13, the nine-month developmental program will meet over ten Sunday evenings at the Cherry Lane, culminating in a series of individual readings from the cohort.
The collaboration between Baker and Cherry Lane continues the theatre's celebrated history of fostering up-and-coming NYC playwrights. As the city's oldest Off-Broadway theatre, Cherry Lane Theatre has hosted early and experimental works from legendary artists, including F. Scott Fitzgerald, Eugene O'Neill, Samuel Beckett, Pablo Picasso, T. S. Eliot, Tennessee Williams, Sam Shepard and many more.
Operating under the Cherry Lane Development Group with Baker's direction, all writers retain full ownership of work developed in the program.
ABOUT CHERRY LANE PLAYWRIGHTS COLLECTIVE
The Cherry Lane Playwrights Collective operates under Cherry Lane Development Group, a new non-profit with a mission to foster bold, innovative voices in the theatrical arts by cultivating a dynamic space where artists can take risks, deepen their craft, and shape new worlds for the stage.
ABOUT Cherry Lane Theatre
As the oldest Off-Broadway theatre in New York City, the century-old Cherry Lane Theatre has long been a staple in New York's cultural landscape. Acquired by A24 in 2023, the theatre has undergone a multi-year renovation and reopened in September 2025. Its programming includes theater, as well as comedy, music and film. A new addition to the theater is Wild Cherry, the latest bar restaurant from Lee Hanson and Riad Nasr, the team behind Frenchette, Le Rock, and Le Veau d'Or.
HANNAH APPLEBAUM
Hannah Applebaum is a writer and actor who lives in New York City.
JEESUN CHOI
Jeesun Choi is a transnational Korean playwright based in New York. Plays include Bia Kim, Melanie in Minneapolis, To the Ends of the Earth / 땅끝까지. Her work has been presented at Soho Rep, JACK, NYTW, Playwrights Realm, Bushwick Starr, American Opera Project, Nashville Rep and more. She has received Jerome Hill Artist Fellowship, MacDowell Fellowship, and NYC Women's Fund.
BANNA DESTA
Banna Desta (She/they) is an Eritrean and Ethiopian-American writer for the stage and screen who crafts stories about and for people of African descent.
Jimmy Fay
Jimmy Fay is a transdisciplinary dykefag writer from Arizona. They have just completed their MFA at Brown University.
ONYEKACHI IWU
Onyekachi Iwu is a Nigerian American playwright and director from Nashville, TN. Her Southern horror play, 'the magical south' is currently in development at Vineyard Theatre. As a director, Iwu has developed new plays with National Black Theatre, MCC Theater, New Dramatists, Mercury Store, Public Theater, and The Civilians.
Maureen Sebastian
Maureen Sebastian is an award-winning performer/writer/producer. She was recently listed as a finalist for The Leah Ryan Playwriting Prize and can currently be seen in AMC's 'The Terror: Devil in Silver.' She is a proud member of Ma-Yi Theatre's Writers Lab and The Actors Center.
