Theater News

Susan Smith Blackburn Prize Finalists Announced

The winner will be revealed in early March.

Aleshea Harris is the author of Is God Is.
Aleshea Harris is the author of Is God Is.
(photo provided by Blake Zidell & Associates)

The Susan Smith Blackburn Prize has announced 10 finalists for its 2018 playwriting award, the oldest and largest prize awarded to women playwrights writing in the English language.

Chosen from over 150 nominated plays, the finalists are:

Alice Birch (U.K.) – Anatomy of a Suicide

Elinor Cook (U.K.) – Out of Love

Fiona Doyle (Ireland) – The Strange Death of John Doe

Aleshea Harris (U.S.) – Is God Is

Colleen Murphy (Canada) – The Breathing Hole

Antoinette Nwandu (U.S.) – Pass Over

Nina Raine (U.K.) – Consent

Anusree Roy (Canada) – Trident Moon

Tori Sampson (U.S.) – If Pretty Hurts Ugly Must be a Muhfucka

Lauren Yee (U.S.) – The Great Leap

The winner of the 2017-2018 Susan Smith Blackburn Prize will be named in early March. The award comes with a cash prize of $25,000 and a signed print by artist Willem de Kooning, created especially for the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize. Each of the additional finalists will receive an award of $5,000.