Jewish Literary Foundation Launches Inaugural Playwrights Programme

The Jewish Literary Foundation has launched its new Jewish Playwrights Programme, supporting emerging playwrights through the process of developing a full-length play, and helping to foster a strong presence of Jewish culture within the UK theatre industry.  

The six-month programme offers mentorship, industry advancement, and focused script development. Welcoming emerging Jewish writers or writers whose work engages with Jewish culture, its goal is to empower and platform new voices, while  developing Jewish stories for UK stages.

The playwrights will also be offered a final showcase performance at London’s longest running literary festival, Jewish Book Week 2026, in celebration of the festival’s 75th anniversary. Held annually at the world-class venue Kings Place, the festival has attracted the likes of Nicholas Hytner, Greg Doran, Tracy-Ann Oberman, Maureen Lipman, and David Hare over its long history.

A stellar group of facilitators will offer guidance to the emerging playwrights, including award-winning director and writer Daniel Goldman, Olivier-award winner Mark Rosenblatt, director and dramaturg Emma Jude Harris, award-winning writer and director Josh Azouz, playwright and writer Samantha Ellis, and writer for stage and radio Amy Rosenthal.

The diverse group of emerging writers joining this year’s first-ever cohort includes Stella Green, whose recent play Book of Alice was shortlisted for the 2024 George Devine Award; playwright and lyricist Rachel Bellman who writes across plays and musicals;Sam Thorpe-Spinks, an actor, writer and screenwriter whose debut script The Hoax earned him a place on the 2022 Brit List; Noga Flaishon, whose plays have been recognised by the Papatango Award, Verity Bargate Award and the International Jewish Play Contest; Amitai Landau-Pope, a playwright and theatre director; and Uri Agnon, a composer and theatre-maker.

As Rachel Borchard Lewis, Trustee of the Shoresh Charitable Trust says,

“We are thrilled to support the Jewish Playwrights Programme, reflecting our commitment to new Jewish playwriting in the UK. This initiative brings together an exceptional group of writers and facilitators at a crucial stage in script development.”

The initiative builds on the success of the Jewish Literary Foundation’s Genesis Emerging Writers Programme, which has supported the careers of 50 authors to date across fiction, non-fiction, and poetry since 2021. It is also the latest addition to the Jewish Literary Foundation’s ever-expanding range of literary activities – from the Freudenheim Translation Prize to the Jewish Children’s Book Awards and the Risa Domb/Porjes Prize for Hebrew/English translation, all celebrating Jewish literature and creativity, and sharing it with readers around the world.

As Claudia Rubenstein, Director of the Jewish Literary Foundation, says,

“We are delighted to welcome this new group of playwrights to the Jewish Literary Foundation. The programme builds on our long history of supporting new writers as they develop their craft – giving them recognition, confidence and a platform from which to grow, while ensuring that Jewish writing and ideas continue to flourish.”

More information about the Jewish Playwrights Programme and the cohort can be found here.

For details, images, and interview requests, please contact: charlotte@jewishliteraryfoundation.co.uk

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