George Street Playhouse to Honor Emily Mann at 2026 Gala Benefit

George Street Playhouse's 2026 Gala Benefit will honor Emily Mann, playwright and former Artistic Director of McCarter Theatre Center, with the Arthur Laurents Award for Distinguished Artistic Achievement. This distinguished honor has only been awarded twice before in George Street Playhouse’s over 50-year history. 

The 2026 Gala Benefit will take place on Wednesday May 6 beginning with a champagne reception and dinner at Stage Left/Catherine Lombardi followed by a cabaret and awards presentation at New Brunswick Performing Arts Center. 

The Arthur Laurents Award for Distinguished Artistic Achievement honors an individual whose career exemplifies artistic excellence, leadership, and a deep commitment to the transformative power of theatre. Past recipients include Marlo Thomas and David Saint. George Street Playhouse has produced nine plays by Arthur Laurents, and their theater at New Brunswick Performing Arts Center is also named for him because of his unique relationship to the company.

Emily Mann’s groundbreaking body of work and visionary leadership have reshaped the American theatre for more than five decades. A Tony Award-nominated playwright and director and a Tony Award–winning Artistic Director, Mann led McCarter Theatre Center for 30 years, directing more than 50 productions and writing 15 plays and adaptations. During her tenure, she premiered works by some of the most influential voices in contemporary theatre, including Athol Fugard, Tarell Alvin McCraney, Edward Albee, Danai Gurira, and Nilo Cruz. Her plays—produced on Broadway, Off Broadway, regionally, and internationally—include Having Our Say, Execution of Justice, Annulla: An Autobiography, Still Life, Betsey Brown (an R&B musical), Greensboro: A Requiem, Meshugah, Mrs. Packard, Gloria: A Life, and The Pianist. She is currently developing a new play, Code Red.

George Street Playhouse has played a meaningful role in the recent chapter of Mann’s career. The Pianist had its world premiere at George Street Playhouse in the fall of 2023, marking a pivotal artistic moment for both the playwright and the theatre. The production exemplified the institution’s commitment to new work at the highest level and resonated deeply with audiences and critics alike. 

George Street Playhouse later produced Mann’s celebrated play Having Our Say, under the direction of Artistic Producer Laiona Michelle, further cementing a creative partnership that has had a lasting and meaningful impact on the theatre’s artistic identity and national profile. Her many honors include a Peabody Award, Guggenheim Fellowship, seven Obie Awards, the Hull-Warriner Award, NAACP Award, Margo Jones Award, and multiple Lifetime Achievement Awards, including from the Lilly Awards, the Gordon Davidson Award, and the Dramatists Guild. She has been inducted into both the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the American Theater Hall of Fame.

Reflecting on the award and her relationship with George Street Playhouse, Mann shared, “Shortly after I left McCarter, George Street Playhouse reached out to me about producing my newest play, The Pianist. At a moment when I was searching for what might come next, that gesture was deeply moving, and one I will never forget. I know firsthand how rare it is for a theatre to offer an artist full trust and support, creating conditions that allow you to do your very best work. From the start, George Street Playhouse felt like a new home. That relationship was beautifully reaffirmed with the production of Having Our Say under Laiona Michelle’s exquisite direction. I am honored and deeply grateful to receive the Arthur Laurents Award for Distinguished Artistic Achievement."

“Emily Mann’s work reflects everything Arthur Laurents believed theatre could be—bold, uncompromising, and unafraid to confront injustice,” said George Street Playhouse Artistic Producing Triumvirate Christopher J. Bailey, Scott Goldman, and Laiona Michelle. “Through her writing and leadership, Emily has consistently centered voices too often unheard and used the stage as a place for truth, empathy, and dialogue. Her career exemplifies the values this award was created to honor.”

The 2026 Gala Benefit will bring together artists, patrons, and civic leaders in celebration of George Street Playhouse’s artistic excellence and its vital role in New Jersey’s cultural life, while raising critical support for the theatre’s productions, education programs, and community engagement initiatives. The evening will also include a dinner reception, cabaret performances, and presentation of the 2026 Thomas H. Kean Arts Advocacy Award. Recipients of the Kean Award will be announced in the coming weeks