SoHo Playhouse Names Winner of 2023 The Lighthouse Series

SoHo Playhouse has revealed the winner of the 2023 Lighthouse Series, the second annual iteration of the Playhouse’s new short play competition.

The Lighthouse Series was designed to showcase the best up-and-coming New York City playwrights and offer them an opportunity to reach a wider Off-Broadway audience.

“With the theater industry still reeling from the effects of the pandemic, we felt it was important to stand by our mission statement and help the young artists of today have the opportunity to present their work and to be seen by the theater public. We are very proud to have presented fifteen different new works through the Lighthouse Series this year and even more excited to be working with John and Chesney to develop their show further and let the public see a full run of this amazing piece,” said Mr. Lafield.

The Lighthouse Series was presented as a competition with fifteen different productions, in which audiences were able to see three shows per night and vote on their favorites. The six audience-nominated finalists reprised their performances for a second round of the Lighthouse Series in June. From these six, a winner was chosen: It’s Not What It Looks Like, written by playwright John Collins, co-created with collaborator Chesney Mitchell, and directed by Vincent DeGeorge. John Collins and Chesney Mitchell will star. It’s Not What It Looks Like will receive a full production on the historic SoHo Playhouse mainstage within the next calendar year.

It begins at the end. Two people are alone on stage, covered in blood, and drenched in guilt.

It’s not what it looks like.

At least, that’s what they want you to think. To prove their innocence, they go back to the beginning with their own version of how things ended up. As tensions rise, their narrative begins to crumble, and the truth comes out.

“We are thrilled to be premiering It’s Not What It Looks Like at Soho Playhouse. The Lighthouse Series has been such a rewarding experience for us. We’re looking forward to sharing this funny, suspenseful and exciting story in its entirety.” - John Collins and Chesney Mitchell.

The 2022 Lighthouse Series winner, JOB, written by Max Wolf Friedlich, directed by Michael Herwitz, and starring Peter Friedman and Sydney Lemmon, will be playing at SoHo Playhouse from September 6-October 8. Tickets are available here.

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