Popcorn Award For New Play Writing at The 2020 Edinburgh Fringe Announce The Short List
The prize fund has doubled this year to £5,000 and there will be three awards of £2,500, £1,500 and £1,000.
What links the mental, emotional and physical challenge of learning to live with a disability, overcoming grief and depression, and celebrating the complexity and joy of love in all it's multitude of forms?
They are among the subjects covered in this year's shortlist for the 2020 Popcorn Award for new plays that were scheduled to premiere at the cancelled Edinburgh Fringe.
This year's final shortlist of eight from 133 eligible plays that were due to premiere at Assembly, Gilded Balloon, Pleasance, Summerhall, Traverse Theatre and Underbelly, includes work from all over the UK and champions marginalised communities, shining a light on people who's stories are just not heard or seen.
The prize fund has doubled this year to £5,000 and there will be three awards of £2,500, £1,500 and £1,000.
Charlotte Colbert and Jessica Malik of Popcorn Group said: "We believe in the bold and adventurous spirit of the Edinburgh Fringe and although it has been cancelled this year, we wanted to help to find a way to keep its spirit alive. The standard of work entered this year was incredibly high and if this process is indicative of the quality of the emerging writers in this country, the future is very bright."
Winner of last year's inaugural Popcorn award for 'I'm a Phoenix, Bitch', Bryony Kimmings, who is on this year's judging panel, said: "The Popcorn Award is special as it buys a writer or artist one of the most scarce and undervalued commodities... time."
Anthony Alderson, Director of Pleasance Theatre Trust said of the award: "Given the tragic state that the theatre industry is currently in, awards such as this - the first of its kind at the Edinburgh fringe - help highlight and give recognition to a group of hugely talented writers who need all the support we can offer."
The Edinburgh Fringe has long been the beginning of the journey for many of the biggest names in the industry and it is facing financial devastation with a predicted deficit of £21 million.
Phoebe Waller-Bridge has said, "It's a vital part of our culture and our future. Without it, we lose the voices of artists who bring inspiration to our lives and success to our shores."
The final shortlist and their venues are:
'Daddy' by Camilla Whitehill (Pleasance)
'Little Miss Burden' by Matilda Ibini (Traverse Theatre)
'Sticky Door' by Katie Arnstein (Pleasance)
'Silkworm' by Vlad Butucea (Assembly Festival)
'BURN' by Chris Thompson (Assembly Festival)
'Es and Flo' by Jennifer Lunn (Traverse Theatre)
Denouement by John Morton (Traverse Theatre)
'Autopilot' by Ben Norris (Summerhall)
Judging Committee:
Ruth Wilson
Golden Globe and Olivier-winning actress
Anthony Alderson
Artistic Director of The Pleasance Theatre Trust
Aurora
acclaimed Norwegian singer, songwriter, and record producer
Fatima Bhutto
columnist and writer of 'The Shadow of the Crescent Moon'
co-founder of Popcorn Group, artist and filmmaker
Philip Colbert
co-founder of Popcorn, artist and neo-pop surrealist
Natalie Denton
Development Executive at Popcorn Group
Kerry Fox
multi award-winning actor known for 'Shallow Grave', 'Intimacy', 'Little Joe', and 'An Angel at My Table'
Tony Grisoni
writer of several of director Terry Gilliam's films, including 'Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas' and 'Tideland'
Bryony Kimmings
winner of last year's inaugural Popcorn Award,
Performance Artist, associate of Soho Theatre
Art Malik
award-winning, TV, film and stage actor
Jessica Malik
(Producer) Head of Film, TV and Theatre for Popcorn Group, she is also the incumbent chair of the London Board of Cinemagic
Gonzalo Maza
writer of 'A Fantastic Woman', which won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Film in 2018 as well as numerous other accolades
Francesca Moody
Producer known for award-winning and Olivier-nominated 'Fleabag' by Phoebe Waller-Bridge
Wunmi Mosaku
BAFTA-winning actress, known for 'Damilola, Our Loved Boy', 'Moses Jones' and 'Temple'
Katie Pennick
disability campaigner and creative
The Popcorn Group
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