past playwrights

(1998 to present )

 
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2024

Jaclyn Backhaus* | The Orchards

Libby Carr | CALF SCRAMBLE

Lee Cataluna | Thursdays Come at Morning

Stephen Adly Guirgis* | Dog Day Afternoon

Alex Lin | barren.

Christina Pumariega | ¡VOS!

Mfoniso Udofia | The Ceremony

Steve Yockey* | Wonder

*Writer-In-Residence

2023

Ngozi Anyanwu | My Name … is Beatrice

Benjamin Benne | and thou shalt be healed

June Carryl* | Colossus

Mathilde Dratwa | Dirty Laundry

Julia Izumi | Akira Kurosawa Explains His Movies and Yogurt (with Live & Active Cultures!)

Madeline Sayet* | The Fish

DeLanna Studi* | "I" is for Invisible

Anne Washburn | The Burning Cauldron of Fiery Fire

*Writer-In-Residence

 

2022

Vivian J.O. Barnes | The Sensational Sea Mink-ettes

Lyndsey Bourne* | Sister and The Second Body

Bill Cain | God’s Spies

Jahna Ferron-Smith | Running While Black

Peter Kim George | To Red Tendons

Stephen Adly Guirgis | Dog Day Afternoon

Zora Howard* | Good Faith

Matthew Paul Olmos | a home what howls (or the house what was ravine)

Michael Shayan | Avaaz

Zakiya Young | Suburban Black Girl

Anna Ziegler | The Janeiad

*Writer-In-Residence

 
 

2021

New Works Festival*:

Will Arbery | Corsicana

Zora Howard | Hang Time

Elizabeth Irwin | Support

Julia Izumi | Regretfully, So The Birds Are

Mike Lew | tiny father

Yilong Liu | Good Enemy

Ramiz Monsef | The Ants

A Zell Williams | Diversity

Foundry Project*:

Jahna Ferron-Smith | Running While Black

Kate Hamill | The Re-Enactment and Re-Conciliation of Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle as Performed by the Undergrads of Labor History 101 Under the Direction of Adjunct Professor Alice Lehnkey

Matthew Paul Olmos | that drive thru monterey

Heather Raffo | Tomorrow Will Be Sunday

Zakiya Young | The Zakiya Young Project

*Note: Due to the ongoing pandemic, all play development work was done through two online programs, culminating in online workshop reading presentations.

2020

Foundry Project*:

Luis Alfaro | My Father’s House

Jon Robin Baitz | I’ll Be Seein’ Ya

Bill Cain | The Patriots

Franky D. Gonzalez | Even Flowers Bloom in Hell, Sometimes

Samuel D. Hunter | A Case for the Existence of God

Liza Powel O’Brien | Apostrophe

Gideon Jeph Wabvuta | One More Sunday

Anna Ziegler | Antigones

Writers in Residence:

Vivian J. O. Barnes | The Sensational Sea Mink-ettes

Eboni Booth | Primary Trust

Zora Howard | Bust

*Note: Due to the pandemic, OPC did not hold a Conference/New Works Festival in 2020, but instead worked with the writers (above) in online play development programs.

 

2019

Kimberly Belflower | John Proctor is the Villain

Sam Chance | Monument, Or Four Sisters (A Sloth Play)

Kate Cortesi | Love

Inda Craig-Galván | Welcome to Matteson!

Dave Harris | Tambo & Bones

Kimber Lee | “untitled f*ck m*ss s**gon play”

Sandra Tsing Loh*

James Morrison | Leave Your Fears Here

Thandiwe Mawungwa* | 33 Cents

Christopher Gabriel Núñez | Locusts

Liliana Padilla*

*Writer-In-Residence

2018

Jeff Augustin | The New Englanders

Jon Robin Baitz* | Faraway Friends

Stephen Belber | Joan

Keith Bunin | The Coast Starlight

Bill Cain* | The Patriots

Steph Del Rosso | 53% Of

Patrick Miller* | The Prophet

Lily Padilla | How to Defend Yourself

Quetzal**

Ruby Rae Spiegel | Blue Green

Alice Tuan | Cocks Crow

Charlayne Woodard | The Garden

*Writer-In-Residence

**Guest Artist

 

2017

Will Arbery | Evanston Salt Costs Climbing

Jon Robin Baitz* | Vicuña: The Epilogue

Jennifer Barclay | Ripe Frenzy

Bill Cain | The Last White Man

Rick Cleveland*

Robin Gerber* | The Shot

Samuel D. Hunter | Greater Clements

JC Lee | What You Are

Sandra Tsing Loh | Blue State

Richard Montoya & Roger Guenveur Smith* | Venice is Dead

Hallie Palladino* | Infatuation

Ren Dara Santiago | The Siblings Play

Korde Arrington Tuttle | graveyard shift

*Writer-In-Residence

2016

Robert Askins | Our Father

Jon Robin Baitz | Vicuña

Aziza Barnes | BLKS

Perla Batalla, David Batteau, Oliver Mayer* | Blue House

Bekah Brunstetter | The Cake

Steve Connell**

Nick Gandiello*

David Jacobi | Ready Steady Yeti Go

Kudzai Sevenzo | Born Free (aka Under the Rubble)

Kristina Wong | Attention Please

Martín Zimmerman | On the Exhale

*Writer-In-Residence

**Guest Artist

 

2015

Robert Askins*

Father Greg Boyle**

Richard Cabral**

Mike Daisey | Why We Hate Art

Ellen Fairey | Support Group for Men

Nick Gandiello | The Blameless

JC Lee | Women of a Certain Age

Gina Loring, Sunni Patterson, Jaha Zainabu | 3 Women

Christopher Gabriel Núñez | The Surgeon and her Daughters

Jiehae Park | Peerless

Alice Tuan* | Private Rivals

Gideon Jeph Wabvuta | Mbare Dreams

*Writer-In-Residence

**Guest Artist

2014

Robert Askins | Permission

Bill Cain | Hasty Pudding

Chankethya Chey | My Mother and I

Mike Daisey | Our Man in Havana

Nick Gandiello | Sunrise Highway

Sandra Tsing Loh | The Madwoman in the Volvo

Meow Meow**

Brendan Millburn and Valerie Vigoda**

Ruby Rae Spiegel | Dry Land

Stew and Heidi Rodewald | two zero zero one three

Alice Tuan* | California Love

Alan Zachary and Michael Weiner**

*Writer-In-Residence

**Guest Artist

 

2013

Luis Alfaro | St. Jude - Part Two

Lucy Alibar | Carl the Raping Goat Saves Christmas

(renamed Throw me on the Burnpile and Light Me Up)

Richard Cabral | Fighting Shadows

Samuel D. Hunter | Rest

Sean Lewis | Dogs of Rwanda

Jiehae Park | Hannah and the Dread Gazebo

Laura Schellhardt | The Comparables

Alice Tuan*  | Cocks Crow

David Wiener | Goliath

*Writer-In-Residence

2012

Luis Alfaro | St. Jude

Robert Askins | Fish Display

Stephen Adly Guirgis* | Between Riverside and Crazy

Jennifer Haley | Sustainable Living

Matt Hoverman | The Glint: A Mean Little Comedy

Terrence McNally | And Away We Go

Liza Powel O’Brien | Judith of Laurelton

Nikkole Salter* | Of Great Merit

*Writer-In-Residence

 

2011

Stephen Belber* & Adam Duritz* | Black Sun 

Father Greg Boyle & the Homies* | Tattoos on the Heart 

Richard Cabral**

Bill Cain | 30.3 thirty three

Rick Cleveland | Rick & Dick

Danai Gurira |The Zimbabwe Project

Kenneth Lin | Fallow 

Don Nguyen | Red Flamboyant 

Sarah Treem | When We Were Young & Unafraid

*Writer-In-Residence

**Guest Artist

2010

Jon Robin Baitz* | Other Desert Cities

Kate Fodor | Rx

Thomas Higgins | Wild Animals You Should Know

Len Jenkin | Psalm 151: Heaven Have Mercy

Mona Mansour | Urge for Going

Ben Rosenthal* | Neptune Kelly

Leslie Carrara‐Rudolph** | Wake Up Your Weird

Trieu Tran | Uncle Ho to Uncle Sam

Bess Wohl | Barcelona

*Writer-In-Residence

**Guest Artist

 

 

2009

Stephen Belber | Dusk Rings a Bell

Bill Cain | How to Write a New Book for the Bible

Leslie Carrara‐Rudolph | Entertaining a Thought: The Imagination Project

Frances Ya‐Chu Cowhig | Lidless

Stephen Adly Guirgis | Motherf**ker with the Hat

Lisa Kron & Jeanine Tesori* | Fun Home

David Wiener | Extraordinary Chambers

*Writer-In-Residence

2008

Bill Cain | Nine Circles

Dan Dietz | The Sandreckoner

Yussef El Guindi | Language Rooms

Danai Gurira | Eclipsed

Samuel D. Hunter | I Am Montana

Terrence McNally | Unusual Acts of Devotion

Sarah Treem* | Vienna's Amazing (renamed The How and the Why)

Bernard Weinraub**

*Writer-In-Residence

**Guest Artist

 

2007

Bill Cain | Equivocation

Julia Cho**

Steve Connell**

Rick Cleveland**

Cody Henderson | The Lawn

Ben Rosenthal | The Bog Lacuna

Lloyd Suh | American Hwangap

T.D. Mitchell**

Annie Weisman | Surf Report

Charlayne Woodard | The Night Watcher

**Guest Artist

2006

Stephen Belber | Muscles in Our Toes

Lee Blessing | Lonesome Hollow

Rick Cleveland**

Sherry Kramer | When Something Wonderful Ends

David Hollander | South Pole

Len Jenkin*

T.D. Mitchell | Beyond the 17th Parallel

Ben Rosenthal | The Monkey Puzzle Tree

Steve Connell and Sekou (tha misfit)**

*Writer-In-Residence

**Guest Artist

 

2005

Luis Alfaro | Holy Road

Keith Bunin | The Busy World is Hushed

Bill Cain | The Laying On of Hands

Julia Cho | Durango

Stephen Adly Guirgis* | The Little Flower of East Orange

Rogelio Martinez | My First Radical

Steve Connell & Sekou Tha Misfit | The Word Begins

*Writer-In-Residence

2004

Stephen Belber | For Reele

Keith Bunin & Peter Parnell | White Bicycles

Danai Gurira & Nikkole Salter | In the Continuum

Linda Hunt | The Little Locksmith

Julia Jordan | Dark Yellow

Susan Miller | A Map of Doubt and Rescue

 

2003

Jon Robin Baitz | Chinese Friends

Lee Blessing | Flag Day

Danny Hoch | Till the Break of Day

Joe Loya | The Man Who Outgrew His Prison Cell

Peter Morris | Pro Bono Publico

Charlayne Woodard | Flight

2002

Luis Alfaro | No Holds Barrio

Jon Robin Baitz | The Paris Letter

Jessica Goldberg | Katzman and the Mayor

Arthur L. Kopit | The Discovery of America

Lisa Loomer | Living Out

Kelly Stuart | Mayhem

 

2001

Doris Baizley | Glass Mountain

Mary Lathrop | Tales from the Salt Mines

Lynn Manning | Middle Passage: Section One

John Rafter Lee | Frankincense

2000

Jessica Goldberg | Good Thing

David Ives | Polish Joke

Deborah Zoe Laufer | Fortune

Adam Rapp | Nocturne

Ari Roth | Love & Yearning in the Not‐For‐Profits, and Other Marital Distractions

 

1999

Neena Beber | Hard Feelings

Heather Dundas | Rules for Cheaters

John Quincy Long | Year of the Baby

Kira Obolensky | Lobster Alice

Adam Rapp | Finer Noble Gases

1998

Neena Beber | Tomorrowland

Rick Cleveland | Danny Bouncing

Christopher Durang | Betty's Summer Vacation

Elroyce D. Jones | A Thimble of Smoke

David Lindsay‐Abaire | The Devil Inside

Bernardo Solano | Wild Life