The Blank Theatre's YOUNG PLAYWRIGHTS FESTIVAL Reveals 12 Winners
The winning plays will be staged at the Skylight Theatre in Los Feliz, featuring works from playwrights across nine states
Now celebrating its 34th anniversary year, The Blank Theatre's Nationwide Young Playwrights Festival (YPF) has chosen 12 plays by playwrights aged 15–19 from nine different states. The festival will be in residence at the Skylight Theatre in Los Feliz from July 9–August 2.
This year's winning plays are: Roadtrip by Max Leventon, age 18, Greenwich, CT (three-time winner); Running Gun by Ace Perez, age 17, Bronxville, NY; In the Name of Love by Charlotte Long, age 18, Aldie, VA; Iphis and Ianthe by Mina Feldman, age 19, Cambridge, MA (two-time winner); The Bolt and the Bumper by Abdullah Muzammil, age 16, South Plainfield, NJ; Guesswork by Elle Prince, age 16, Playa del Rey, CA; Who Would Believe Sadie Kessler? by Emma Wolff, age 15, Harrison, NY; Young Girls by Emma Gordon, age 17, Omaha, NE; Monsters by Katie Giglio, age 18, Belmont, MA; Rocky Hotdog Picture Show by Townes Powell, age 18, Louisville, KY; Forgotten Fields by Kaizer Larson, age 15, Flushing, NY; and Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dating by Walton Hurley, age 17, Portland, OR.
The 2026 YPF selection committee included (in alphabetical order) Paulo Andrés, Lemon Baardsen, Anissa Borego, Erik Carabasi, Cassandra Carmona, Parvesh Cheena, Joe Choi, Nathalia Coppa, Crystal Craft, Major Curda, Jennifer DeRosa, Eileen Fogarty, Aliza Goldstein, Kila Kitu, Scott Lowell, Joe Mahon, Jonathan Messer, Emery Minh, Ignacio Navarro, Sarah Nilsen, Jorge-Luis Pallo, Alexa Pereira, Andres Vergara, Rebecca Wyman, and Chase Yenser. Mentors, directors, and casting will be announced later.
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