NEW YORK CITY: The Susan Smith Blackburn Prize has announced the finalists for its 2015–16 playwriting award, the oldest and largest prize given to female playwrights. Selected from more than 150 nominated plays, the 10 finalists are Sarah Burgess for Dry Powder; Rachel Cusk for Medea; Sarah DeLappe for The Wolves; Sam Holcroft for Rules for Living; Anna Jordan for Yen; Dominique Morisseau for Skeleton Crew; Lynn Nottage for Sweat; Suzan-Lori Parks for Father Comes Home From the Wars (Parts 1, 2 & 3); Bea Roberts for And Then Come the Nightjars; and Noni Stapleton for Charolais.
The judges for the 2015–16 prize are Kate Bassett, Jeremy Herrin, Tanya Moodie, Greta Gerwig, Sam Gold, and Branden Jacobs-Jenkins.
The winner will be announced on Feb. 22 at a presentation at the National Theatre in London. The winner will receive a cash prize of $25,000 and a signed print by artist Willem de Kooning created especially for the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize. The other finalists will each take home an award of $5,000.
The Susan Smith Blackburn Prize, a Houston-based organization, reflects the values of American actor and writer Susan Smith Blackburn. She grew up in Houston and lived in London for the last 15 years of her life. Since the award’s inception in 1978, more than 350 playwrights have been honored as finalists.
