The Movement Theatre Company to Commission Two New Works in 2026
The Movement is awarding Ankita Raturi their joint Ladder Commission. Raturi will receive $10,000.
By: Chloe Rabinowitz Jan. 30, 2026
The Movement Theatre Company has revealed two new commissions. These awards reflect The Movement's deep commitment to artistic experimentation, community building, and advancing a bold vision of a world where the complexity and wholeness of artists of color are valued.
In partnership with The Black List, the renowned platform that connects writers, filmmakers, and storytelling industry professionals around the globe, The Movement is awarding Ankita Raturi their joint Ladder Commission. Raturi will receive $10,000 and work alongside the artistic team at The Movement to write and develop a new play that will culminate in a workshop in 2027.
Additionally, The Movement has revealed newest commission, The Jody Falco and Jeffrey Steinman Commission, has been awarded to Carolina Đỗ. She will receive $5,000 to write and develop a new play with the support of the artistic team at The Movement.
The finalist for the Ladder Commission is Aditi Pradhan. The semi-finalists are Diane Exavier, Jesse Jae Hoon, Utkarsh Rajawat, Nathan Yungerberg, Azudi Onyejekwe, T.J.L, Mariam Bazeed, Jaymes Sanchez, Leonardo Gonzalez Dominguez, Russell Nichols, Cris Eli Blak, Hera Anderson, Liz Morgan, and Sandra A. Daley-Sharif.
Deadria Harrington, Eric Lockley, Ryan Dobrin, and David Mendizábal, The Movement's Producing Artistic Leaders, said “The Movement strives to work with artists of color with herculean ideas, and Ankita and Carolina meet that goal and then some. Their thrilling ideas, collaborative spirits, and intrinsic interrogative spirits make them exciting new partners, and we can't wait to help shepherd those ideas into brand new plays over the next year.”
Franklin Leonard from The Black List says, “One of the highlights of my 2024 was sitting in the audience for the premiere reading of the Black List's first collaboration with The Movement Theatre Company: Marco Antonio Rodriguez's Walk-In. We are overjoyed to be joining them again to support unapologetically bold and authentic work, the hallmark of everything they do.”
The Movement first partnered with The Black List in January 2022 when the platform expanded into theater. Their first Ladder Commission was awarded to Marco Antonio Rodriguez for his play Walk-In. This year's Marco's adaptation of Junot Díaz's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao runs February 21 – April 5, 2026 at The Goodman in Chicago.
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