NEW YORK CITY: The Drama Critics’ Circle has named Mary Jane by Amy Herzog best play of the 2017-18 season, and Hangmen by Martin McDonagh best foreign play. The selections were made at the organization’s 83rd annual voting meeting.
Special citations were voted to Park Avenue Armory for adventurous theatre programming, to the theatre company Transport Group, and to the staging, design, and illusions of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.
Herzog’s Mary Jane, directed by Anne Kauffman, received its world premiere at Yale Repertory Theatre in May 2017 and its New York premiere at New York Theatre Workshop on September 25, 2017. The New York production closed on October 29, 2017.
McDonagh’s Hangmen, directed by Matthew Dunster, had its world premiere at London’s Royal Court Theatre in September 2015 before receiving its West End premiere on Dec. 7, 2015. The play’s New York premiere was Feb. 5, 2018 at the Atlantic Theater Company; the production closed March 25, 2018.
The awards will be presented at a private cocktail reception on Thursday, May 10. The award for best play carries a cash prize of $2,500, which is made possible by a grant from the Lucille Lortel Foundation.
The New York Drama Critics’ Circle comprises 19 drama critics from daily newspapers, magazines, wire services and websites based in the New York metropolitan area. The New York Drama Critics’ Circle Award has been awarded every year since 1936 to the best new play of the season with optional awards for foreign or American plays, musicals and special achievements.
