“Call on Eddy, if your housing budget needs a friend.
Just name the kind of room you’d like to share and the scratch you’d pay.
Ed will pair you with an ATCA pal for a matching stay.
Call on Eddy, if your conf’rence budget needs a friend.” *

* With apologies to Jerry Herman.

That’s right, the inimitable “Fast Eddy” Rubin has volunteered to serve as the ATCA-SF17 housing matchmaker for members wanting to share accommodations during the conference. If you want his assistance, please email him at erubin5000@aol.com.

Speaking of accommodations, our room block at the Hilton is 79% full. Once we hit 100% the current low room rate may no longer be available and higher rates will likely apply. DO NOT CALL THE HOTEL. YOU MUST BOOK ONLINE.

Click here to book ‘em, Danno.

The clock is also ticking on the early bird rate for the conference registrations. The $195 rate converts to $245 on April 15, 2017. Save that $50 difference.

Click here to register.

The other deadline to consider comes on May 1, 2017. This is the deadline for current qualifying members - those who joined ATCA since the 2016 conference in Philadelphia - to request ATCA-SF17 registration sponsorship courtesy of the Foundation for ATCA. You can verify your eligibility for this sponsorship by sending an email confirming your plans to attend ATCA-SF17 using this benefit to atca-sf17@americantheatrecritics.org.

May 1 is also the deadline for new member applications to be filed in time to be vetted for acceptance and ATCA-SF17 attendance. So if you have been planning to encourage friends and colleagues who might want to come to San Francisco to apply, DO IT NOW.

As ever, you may send your questions on any other aspects of the San Francisco conference to atca-sf17@americantheatrecritics.org.

AMERICAN THEATRE CRITICS ASSOCIATIO
584 Castro Street - #119
San Francisco, CA  94114
415-964-8040

This year’s ATCA conference will be a groovy happening in San Francisco from June 15-18, 2017! You can save yourself half a C-note if you register by April 15, after which the Early Bird Man of Alcatraz jumps The Rock and registration fees go up to $245 for both members and guests.

Click here for the registration link.

If you are bringing a guest, please process your own registration first and then that of your guest. PLEASE NOTE: There will be NO refunds on registration fees.

If you are a “new” member of ATCA - meaning you joined since roughly the time of the conference in Philadelphia last April - Foundation ATCA will underwrite your San Francisco conference registration. If you wish to apply for this sponsorship, please send an email to atca-sf17@americantheatrecritics.org and request confirmation of your eligibility.

If you know someone who is considering joining, please tell them the membership application submission deadline for processing in time for consideration for this benefit for the San Francisco conference is May 1.

The Conference Commune

Thanks to a great connection with one of our Bay Area Travel Writers colleagues ATCA has secured an amazing rate at a hotel that could only be more centrally located if it existed inside a theatre! The Hilton San Francisco Union Square, the largest non-gaming hotel on the West Coast, is in the heart of the theater district and within walking distance of shopping, restaurants, cable cars and much more.

Click here to reserve your rooms!
Hilton San Francisco Union Square, 333 O’Farrell Street, San Francisco, CA 94102

The base room rate is $179 per night plus a 16.5% occupancy tax, so your cost for a three-night stay is $625.34 including taxes. Various upgrades are available including four-person occupancy, view rooms, and junior suites. All ATCA participants will receive complimentary guestroom internet, complimentary fitness center access, and waived check-in/check-out porterage charges. ATCA has reserved a block of thirty rooms for the conference. Additional rooms are subject to availability and rates may increase, so book early to ensure your accommodations.

For members who want to arrive early or stay late, the ATCA rate can be booked as early as Friday, June 9 for check in and extended through a Wednesday, June 21 check out, subject to availability, of course.

The hotel has a pool, restaurant on premises serving breakfast and dinner, food service from 6:00 a.m. to midnight, oh… and a cozy little bar called Cityscape… covering the whole 46th floor! 

Click here to reserve your rooms!

Scaling The Rock and Other Tales of the City

There’s been an exceptional amount of interest from conference attendees in being able to plan an excursion to Alcatraz. You can do so before or after ATCA-SF17 as a guest of Alcatraz as long as you have a solid assignment for writing a travel piece on San Francisco from your publisher. If you fit the bill, please email  with the following information to atca-sf17@americnatheatrecritics.org (copy and paste of the fields below into your email is encouraged):

1. Name:
2. Media Outlet(s):
3. Email Address:
4. Requested Alcatraz Visit Date:
5. Requested Alcatraz Visit Time:
6. Guests (if any):
7. Mobility Assistance Needed (Y/N):

IMPORTANT NOTES:

1. All bookings subject to availability.
2. Deadline for reservations is May 1.
3. ONE pass per journalist with writing assignment per media outlet.
4. Guest tickets will be approximately $37.00 per person.
5. Night Tour, Behind the Scenes and Alcatraz & Angel Island Tour options are NOT available.
6. Also, requested times may need to shift slightly subject to availability.

Here is the schedule that will be in effect in June. Just like theatre, once confirmed, tickets will be held at Will Call at the pier. You must bring a picture ID and you will be asked to pay for your guest tickets (if any) at that time. That’s all the carrier pigeon  wrote. These requirements are from the venue.

In other travel writing news, conference attendees arriving early or staying later who have confirmed assignments to write stories 
about San Francisco as a travel destination should contact Laurie Armstrong at San Francisco Travel, for assistance with their local pre- or post-conference itinerary. larmstrong@sanfrancisco.travel

Playwright Lauren Yee

How do you find the words to express grief and loss, especially when they are tinged with guilt? That is the conundrum at the heart of in a word. Fiona and Guy’s seven-year-old adopted son, Tristan, disappeared two years earlier, apparently kidnapped. Tristan was a very bright but difficult child, and the day he vanished was a particularly taxing one for Fiona. The passage of time seems to have intensified her inability to cope with what has happened, rather than making things easier. Words elude her or change meaning even as she says them, and objects take on a life of their own. Her chronic distraction and fixation on Tristan’s disappearance are also creating what may become an irreparable rift in her relationship with Guy. 

What makes in a word so remarkable is the imaginative and unique way Yee plays with language. Words and their meanings become fluid and either merge or collide with one another. One critic commented that “reality swerves regularly into absurdism” in the play, and Yee says that in a word “captures my interest in both the form and architecture of language….the loss triggers not only a breakdown of their [Fiona and Guy’s] relationship but a breakdown of their conversations with each other and the outside world.” She continues, “To me, the funny and the painful go hand in hand. I’m interested in how human beings rely on fantasy and humor to get through difficult situations….My work varies wildly in subject matter and style. In each, the language is completely specific to the world of that particular play.”

in a word evolved through a series of readings from 2010 to 2014 at theaters as eclectic as the Williamstown Theatre Festival in Massachusetts, Lincoln Center’s LCT3 in New York City, and the Boston Court Theatre in Pasadena. It received its debut production at the San Francisco Playhouse in 2015 as a National New Play Network Rolling World Premiere with subsequent productions at the Cleveland Public Theatre, Mo’olelo Performing Arts Company in San Diego, and Strawdog Theatre Company in Chicago. The play has been published by Samuel French.

Yee is a member of the Ma-Yi Writers Lab, the largest resident company of Asian American playwrights, as well as a Dramatists Guild associate member and a Northwestern University playwriting module mentor. Previously she was a Playwrights’ Center Core Writer and playwright-in-residence at the Chance Theater and Second Stage Theatre. Theaters that have commissioned her plays include South Coast Rep, the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, Trinity Repertory Company, Portland Center Stage, Mixed Blood Theatre, Lincoln Center Theatre/LCT3, the Goodman Theatre, and Encore Theatre Company. She received her BA in theater studies and English from Yale and her MFA in playwriting from the University of California San Diego. She has been honored with numerous awards and fellowships. Other plays include Ching Chong Chinaman, The Hatmaker’s Wife, Hookman, King of the Yees, and Samsara.  

Yee was selected from 26 applicants by a nationwide committee of critics, chaired by Barbara Bannon (Salt Lake City, UT) and composed of Julie York Coppens (Juneau, AK), Marianne Evett (Arlington, MA), Kerry Reid (Chicago, IL), Lynn Rosen (Bellingham, WA), and Herb Simpson (Geneseo, NY).

“The Francesca Ronnie Primus Foundation was established to recognize and support emerging women artists who are making a difference in the theater community in which they work,” observed Barry Primus, the foundation administrator. Founded in 1997 in memory of actress and critic Francesca Primus, the Primus Prize was originally administered by the Denver Center Theatre Company. ATCA began overseeing the award in 2004.

ATCA is the nationwide organization of theater critics and an affiliate of the International Association of Theatre Critics. In addition to the Primus Prize, it administers two other playwriting awards: the Harold and Mimi Steinberg/ATCA New Play Award and the M. Elizabeth Osborn Award. ATCA members also recommend a regional theater for the annual Tony Award and vote on induction into the Theatre Hall of Fame.

Previous Winners of the Francesca Primus Prize

2015      Sharyn Rothstein, playwright, By the Water 
2014      Jennifer Haley, playwright, The Nether
2013      Stefanie Zadravec, playwright, The Electric Baby
2012      Tammy Ryan, playwright, Lost Boy Found in Whole Foods
2011      Caridad Svich, playwright, The House of the Spirits
2010      Michele Lowe, playwright, Inana
2009      Jamie Pachino, playwright, Splitting Infinity
2008      EM Lewis, playwright, Heads
2007      Victoria Stewart, playwright, Hardball
2006      Karen Zacarias, playwright and founder/artistic director of Young Playwrights’ Theater, Washington, DC, Mariela in the Desert
2005      Michelle Hensley, artistic director of Ten Thousand Things Theatre Company, Minneapolis
2004      Lynn Nottage, playwright, Intimate Apparel
2002      Alexandra Cunningham, playwright, Pavane
2001      S. M. Shepard-Massat, playwright, Some Place Soft to Fall
2000      Brooke Berman, playwright, Playing House
1999      Melanie Marnich, playwright, Blur
1998      Brooke Berman, playwright, Wonderland
1997      Julia Jordan, playwright, Tatjana in Color

The top award of $25,000 and two citations of $7,500 each, plus commemorative plaques, will be presented April 8 at Actors Theatre of Louisville during the Humana Festival of New American Plays. At $40,000, Steinberg/ATCA is the largest national new play award program of its kind.

In 1977, ATCA began to honor new plays produced at regional theaters outside New York City, where there are many awards. No play is eligible if it has gone on to a New York production within the award year. Since 2000, the award has been generously funded by the Harold and Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust.

The finalists, alphabetically by play (including comments from the judging panel):

The Ice Treatment, by Nate Eppler – “Compelling, with fast moving story and well-constructed dialogue…plus a cosmonaut,” opined one panelist of Eppler’s darkly funny take on celebrity, concerning a “modern day, working-class monster—or is she?” “Always on the verge of careening out of control, the tonal shifts are wild,” chimed in others of this “interrogation of the American Dream” as an ice skater “writes her own story, regardless of the truth. “The Ice Treatment” had its world premiere at Actors Bridge Ensemble in Nashville, TN.

in a word, by Lauren Yee – “Important and honest questions are being asked, here,” commented one panelist. “Yee’s masterful drama about a mother’s living nightmare after a child’s disappearance is a mystery of word puzzles” that are “lyrical and haunting and very well-constructed.” “To have an ending that is satisfying dramatically but still appropriately unresolved is a tough nut to crack and this one does it.” “in a word,” received a rolling world premiere via the National New Play Network at the San Francisco Playhouse, the Cleveland Public Theatre, and Chicago’s Straw Dog Theatre.

Man in the Ring, by Michael Cristofer – With “the inexorable feel of a classic tragedy,” this drama “with its Caribbean songs and its rhythm and thrust, seems at first to be a play of beautiful and utter simplicity. But au contraire.” Based on the true story of a boxer who killed a man in the ring, “the playwright threads through guilt and tragedy, weaving past and present together seamlessly.” This rich play stays “within the playwright’s total control while allowing for the frayed edges that make it feel alive and not premeditated.” “Man in the Ring” premiered at Chicago’s Court Theatre.

Mary Page Marlowe, by Tracy Letts – “Generous and incredibly specific,” Letts’ play drew panelists in “by both the flawed, multifaceted woman at the play’s center and how the non-linear storytelling painted this vivid picture of her.” Added others: “The beauty of this play, the originality, the well-crafted scenes – with a scope so much larger than so many ‘issue’ plays” brought to life “an imperfect, fascinating, stalwart character…who doesn’t yield her story to any of the people around her.” “Mary Page Marlowe” premiered at Steppenwolf Theatre in Chicago.

Time is On Our Side, by R. Eric Thomas – Who gets to tell our stories? And why do they tell them? Those are some of the questions asked in Thomas’ tale of podcasters who discover a hidden diary. The play features “fantastic language,” and “sharp wit” that “could have become a sentimental mess at any moment but somehow always saved itself.” “Time is On Our Side” premiered at Philadelphia’s Sympatico Theatre.

Visiting Edna, by David Rabe – With “extraordinarily constructed dialogues and monologues that are simultaneously wide-ranging and super specific,” Rabe’s play is primarily focused on a dying mother and her son but with characters including her TV…and Cancer itself. “While aging and dying may be all around us in the theater, right now,” commented one panelist, “I found this play particularly brave and honest and deep, without getting sentimental or trying to be existentially profound, about what it means to face death (both for mother and son). I can’t shake this play. And I don’t want to.” “Visiting Edna” had its world premiere at Chicago’s Steppenwolf Theatre.

These six finalists were selected from eligible scripts recommended by ATCA members from around the country. They were evaluated by a committee of theater critics, led by Lou Harry of the Indianapolis Business Journal/IBJ.com.

Other committee members are: Misha Berson, Seattle Times, American Theatre (Seattle, WA); Bruce Burgun, The New Orleans Advocate (New Orleans, LA.); Lindsay Christians, The Capital Times (Madison, WI); Mike Fischer, The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel (Milwaukee, WI); Pam Harbaugh, BrevardCulture.com,florida.theatreonstage.com (Indialantic, FL); Michael P. Howley, theatremontgomery.blogspot.com (Montgomery, AL); Erin Keane, managing editor, Salon.com (Louisville, KY); Mark Lowry, TheaterJones.com, Fort Worth Star-Telegram (Dallas, TX); Jonathan Mandell, NewYorkTheater.me, DC Theatre Scene (New York, NY); Julius Novick, veteran critic and professor (New York City); Marjorie Oberlander, The Shakespeare Newsletter  (New York, NY); Kathryn Osenlund, Phindie, CurtainUp (Philadelphia); Wendy Parker, freelance (Midlothian, Va); David Sheward, ArtsinNY.com, Theaterlife.com (Jackson Heights, NY); Martha Wade Steketee, Howlround.com, TDF Stages (New York, NY); and Perry Tannenbaum, Creative Loafing, CVNC.org, (Charlotte, NC).

“The opportunity to experience outstanding work from around the country is one of the great pleasures of working on this project,” said committee chair Lou Harry. “Another is to participate in debates among learned colleagues with a wide range of theatrical experience. The result, I’m proud to say, is that awards will be going to deserving playwrights who are adding to the theatrical wealth of the world. Thanks to the Steinbergs, these plays will have extra light shining on them.”

Since the inception of ATCA’s New Play Award, honorees have included Lanford Wilson, Marsha Norman, August Wilson, Arthur Miller, Mac Wellman, Adrienne Kennedy, Donald Margulies, Moises Kaufman, Craig Lucas, and Robert Schenkkan. Last year’s honoree was “Vietgone” by Qui Nguyen. For a full list of all of our winners and runners-up, go towww.americantheatrecritics.org and click on Steinberg-ATCA under Awards.

The Harold and Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust was created in 1986 by Harold Steinberg on behalf of himself and his late wife. Pursuing its primary mission to support the American theater, it has provided grants totaling millions of dollars for new productions of American plays and educational programs for those who may not ordinarily experience live theater.

ATCA was founded in 1974 and works to raise critical standards and public awareness of critics’ functions and responsibilities. The only national association of professional theater critics, with several hundred members working for newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations and websites, ATCA is affiliated with the International Association of Theatre Critics, a UNESCO-affiliated organization that sponsors seminars and congresses worldwide.

ATCA also presents the M. Elizabeth Osborn Award, honoring emerging playwrights. It also administers the $10,000 Francesca Primus Prize, funded by the Francesca Ronnie Primus Foundation, honoring outstanding contributions to the American theater by female artists who have not yet achieved national prominence. Annually, ATCA makes a recommendation for the Regional Theatre Tony Award presented by the American Theatre Wing/Broadway League and votes on inductions into the Theater Hall of Fame. For more information on ATCA, visit www.americantheatrecritics.org.

For more information on the Steinberg/ATCA Award, contact Lou Harry, ATCA New Plays Chairman, Arts & Entertainment Editor/Indianapolis Business Journal/IBJ.com, lharry@ibj.com or Wm. F. Hirschman, chairman of ATCA executive committee  muckrayk@aol.com

— 30 –

The seven finalists are Mia Chung for “You for Me for You,” Cheryl Davis for “Maid’s Door,” Laura Jacqmin for “Look, we are breathing,” Martyna Majok for “Ironbound,” Melissa Ross for “Nice Girl,” Stephanie Walker for “The Art of Disappearing” and Lauren Yee for  “in a word.”

Mia Chung’s “You for Me for You” is set in North Korea, where two sisters are desperate to escape their bleak existence. Junhee is successful, Minhee is not, but the world that Junhee finds in America is as alien and unfriendly as the one her sister must cope with at home. The play premiered at the Woolly Mammoth Theatre in Washington, D.C., in 2012, but Chung completely revised it for new productions at the Royal Court Theatre in London, Portland Playhouse, and Mu Performing Arts at the Guthrie Theatre.

Ida, the central character in Cheryl Davis’ “Maid’s Door,” is an elderly African American woman who is slipping into dementia. Her mind keeps carrying her back to the days when she worked as a maid for a white family and had to use a separate door. The play interweaves scenes from the past and present with her family to capture her feeling of confused timelessness. “Maid’s Door” was part of the 2015 National Black Theatre Festival.

Laura Jacqmin’s “Look, we are breathing” takes a unique perspective: Mike, its central character, is dead. Three women who knew him well—his mother, a high-school teacher who clashed with him, and the young woman who wanted to be his girlfriend—paint contrasting portraits of him. Was he a rude, rebellious teenager or only misunderstood? The play premiered at the Rivendell Theatre Ensemble in Chicago.

Darja, the central character of Martyna Majok’s “Ironbound,” is as tough minded and stubborn as the play’s title. She has had to be that way to survive as an immigrant factory worker in New Jersey. The play focuses on her conflicted relationship with the three important men in her life—her ex-husband, her son, and her longtime lover—over the course of 22 years. “Ironbound” premiered at the Round House Theatre in Bethesda, Maryland.

Melissa Ross’ “Nice Girl” takes a hard look at the ambivalent relationship between a dominating, needy mother and a daughter anxiously longing for more in her life. When Jo, the daughter, meets Donny, will their relationship open new doors for her or simply drive a deeper wedge between her and her mother? “Nice Girl” debuted at Labyrinth Theater Company in New York City.

Melissa, the daughter in Stephanie Walker’s “The Art of Disappearing,” has never felt accepted by her family. When her mother Charlotte begins to show signs of developing dementia, their inability to communicate and Melissa’s feelings that her mother has never encouraged or appreciated her need to be an artist intensify. “The Art of Disappearing” premiered at the 16^th Street Theater in Chicago.  

We become incoherent in the presence of grief and loss. Lauren Yee vividly captures this experience in “in a word.” When Fiona and Guy’s young son, Tristan, disappears—apparently kidnapped—Fiona cannot cope with or even express her feelings of loss and guilt. The fact that Tristan was a difficult child only makes her feelings more ambivalent. The play was a National New Play Network rolling world premiere at the San Francisco Playhouse and the Cleveland Public Theatre. 

The seven finalists were selected from 26 award applicants by a nationwide committee of critics, chaired by Barbara Bannon (Salt Lake City, UT) and composed of Julie York Coppens (Juneau, AK), Marianne Evett (Arlington, MA), Kerry Reid (Chicago, IL), Lynn Rosen (Bellingham, WA), and Herb Simpson (Geneseo, NY). Playwrights can nominate themselves for the award or be nominated by theater companies where their work has appeared. 

“The Francesca Ronnie Primus Foundation was established to recognize and support emerging women artists who are making a difference in the theater community in which they work,” observed Barry Primus, the foundation administrator. The Primus Prize originated in 1997 in memory of actress and critic Francesca Primus. For a fuller description of the award, with information about applying and a list of previous winners, click here.

ATCA is the nationwide organization of theater critics and an affiliate of the International Association of Theatre Critics. In addition to the Primus Prize, it administers two other playwriting awards: the Harold and Mimi Steinberg/ATCA New Play Award and the M. Elizabeth Osborn Award.

For more information, contact Barbara Bannon at bbannon@xmission.com.

The six finalists are Liz Duffy Adams for “A Discourse on the Wonders of the Invisible World, Nambi Kelley for her adaptation of Richard Wright’s “Native Son,” Tira Palmquist for “Ten Mile Lake,” Yasmine Rana for “The War Zone Is My Bed,” Sharyn Rothstein for “By the Water,” and Catherine Trieschmann for “Hot Georgia Sunday.”

“A Discourse on the Wonders of the Invisible World” revisits Arthur Miller’s “The Crucible” 10 years after the Salem witch trials. An older, wiser Abigail Williams returns to Massachusetts to find Mercy Lewis and try to determine what caused the hysteria that destroyed so many lives; she discovers that prejudice and religious fanaticism are still forces to reckon with. The play was produced by Moxie Theatre in San Diego.

Nambi Kelley’s “Native Son,” which debuted at the Court Theatre in Chicago, turns a dramatic eye on Richard Wright’s classic portrait of Bigger Thomas, an impoverished and oppressed black man from Chicago’s south side who falls victim to mainstream white society. To depict the conflicted feelings raging within Thomas, Kelley ingeniously creates an alter ego, the Black Rat.

Tira Palmquist found the perfect place to stage “Ten Mile Lake”—a dock in Serenbe, Georgia, that dramatically duplicated the play’s setting. “Ten Mile Lake” portrays the uneasy relationship between a dying father, Howard, and his daughter, Maggie, when she returns home to care for him. Howard’s caregiver, Donny, the play’s third character, becomes a crucial link between the two. The Serenbe Playhouse produced the play.

Yasmine Rana’s “The War Zone Is My Bed” follows the interlocking stories of six characters caught up in the war in the Balkans and Middle East. The play focuses on the impact of war, especially on women, and asks provocative questions about the role of journalists and the effect of what they write on both themselves and those around them. The Halcyon Theatre in Chicago produced the play.

Sharyn Rothstein’s “By the Water” is set on Staten Island during the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. Marty and Mary Murphy return to the shell that once was their home and must decide whether to rebuild or—like many of their neighbors—accept a government buyout and move to higher ground. The resulting debate reopens old family wounds. The Manhattan Theatre Club debuted the play.

Finally, Catherine Trieschmann offers a slice of rural, small-town, working-class life in “Hot Georgia Sunday.” The play uses a series of interrelated monologues to tell the same stories from several different points of view. At the center are two sisters, Jenny and Flora, who are trying to figure out who they are and what they want. “Hot Georgia Sunday” premiered at the Haven Theatre in Chicago.

The six finalists were selected from 39 award applicants by a nationwide committee of critics, chaired by Barbara Bannon (Salt Lake City, UT) and composed of Julie York Coppens (Juneau, AK), Marianne Evett (Arlington, MA), Kerry Reid (Chicago, IL), Lynn Rosen (Bellingham, WA), and Herb Simpson (Geneseo, NY). Playwrights can nominate themselves for the award or be nominated by theater companies where their work has appeared.

“The Francesca Ronnie Primus Foundation was established to recognize and support emerging women artists who are making a difference in the theater community in which they work,” observed Barry Primus, the foundation administrator. The Primus Prize originated in 1997 in memory of actress and critic Francesca Primus. For more about the history of the award, click here.

ATCA is the nationwide organization of theater critics and an affiliate of the International Association of Theatre Critics. In addition to the Primus Prize, it administers two other playwriting awards: the Harold and Mimi Steinberg/ATCA New Play Award and the M. Elizabeth Osborn Award.

“To be very clear, the writer is not a member of our organization,” said Wm. F. Hirschman, chairman of ATCA’s executive committee. “But, nonetheless, we want to stress that our code of conduct specifically forbids taking advantage of the generosity of theaters’ decades-old practice of providing a second ticket to reviewers. 

The code governing our membership requires: “I will respect the intent of complimentary items (tickets, merchandise) given to me in the course of my job and not use them for financial gain.”

Chairman of ATCA’s Committee on Ethical Standards Victor Gluck wrote, “The ultimate problem with reviewers selling their complimentary tickets is that it casts an ethical pall over the entire the critical community.”

Gluck wrote, “It is standard practice that if a critic cannot use one or more of his or her tickets, the press agent will be notified and the tickets returned to box office or reassigned to another critic who was not fortunate enough to have been provided with tickets. As critics’ tickets represent a loss of revenue to the theater, selling the tickets is in effect stealing from the event.”

In fact, reports of such behavior are quite rare. In New York City, an offending critic has been summarily dropped from the press list and barred from future events. In addition, such prestigious critics’ organizations as The Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle have expelled members proved to be selling their complimentary tickets.

ATCA is concerned that the public confidence in criticism is endangered when anyone can claim to be an arts journalist, regardless of their knowledge of theater and professional experience. ATCA is in the process of exploring the ethical challenges that have arisen in the past few years and we are fine-tuning what we hope will be suggested industry-wide standards for professionals to consider in developing their own code of ethics. One benefit of ATCA membership is access to colleagues to discuss standards of practice and hopefully avoiding such episodes.

ATCA was founded in 1974 and works to raise critical standards and public awareness of critics’ functions and responsibilities. The only national association of professional theater critics, with members working for newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations and websites, ATCA is affiliated with the International Association of Theatre Critics, a UNESCO-affiliated organization that sponsors seminars and congresses worldwide.

ATCA administers Harold and Mimi Steinberg New Play Award, the Francesca Primus Prize honoring outstanding contributions to the American theater by female artists, recommends a nominee for the Regional Theater Tony and votes on inductions into the Theater Hall of Fame.

For more information on ATCA or this issue, visit www.americantheatrecritics.org or contact Hirschman at muckrayk@aol.com.

 .

Alan Smason sums up the conference and issues thanks.

Thank you all for a wonderful time in the Big Easy. As Conference Chair for our first-ever New Orleans Conference, I can attest that it took lots of planning to pull this thing off and I certainly hope you enjoyed yourselves. I am sorry for those of you that missed out on the past six days of fun and frivolity (and, oh yes, theatre too).

New Orleans conference logo: ATCA meets TennesseeThanks to our immediate past excom chair Jonathan Abarbanel for his help in making this conference special, forcing me to keep to a budget and posting a profit, meagre as it was. Thanks to our many “sponsors,” including Zatarain’s, Aunt Sally’s Pralines, the Sazerac Company, Quintin’s Ice Cream, Community Coffee, but most especially to the New Orleans Theatre Association for their generous grant, without which our conference would not have been in the Crescent City. I also want to offer my personal thanks to retired Indiana professor, Bruce Burgun (now a resident of New Orleans), who was our ambassador at the opening jazz reception at Gallier Hall. Last of all, I am indebted to Barry Gaines, our executive director, for assisting me with all the details for the conference.

Wednesday began with the visits to the National World War II Museum, the Ogden Museum’s Tennessee Williams painting exhibit, the welcome jazz reception at Gallier HallAnnette Smason by Al Hirschfeld with the exclusive showings of 11 Al Hirschfeld original pen and ink drawings and lithographs from the personal collection of Annette Smason (my mom). We ended the night with a visit to the new JPAS facility on Airline Drive before seeing Rivertown Theaters for the Performing Arts’ showing of “When Ya’ Smilin’,” a comedy about growing up in New Orleans in the 1950s.

While Thursday was a rainy day (“Don’t you just love those long rainy afternoons in New Orleans when an hour isn’t just an hour - but a little piece of eternity dropped into your hands - and who knows what to do with it?”),Barbara Bannon and Jennifer Haley we did make the Primus Prizepresentation for 2013 to Jennifer Haley (“The Nether”). Some of us did manage to see the impressive Saenger Theaterbefore a very informative assembly of the area’s main artistic directors and a former theatre critic. We huddled from the rainstorm as we caught the “Hotel Plays” - a joint production of the Tennessee Williams New Orleans Literary Festival and theProvincetown Tennessee Williams Theatre Festival -  at the historic Hermann-Grima House. After “second-lining” to Tableau Restaurant for a lovely meal, we were treated to a showing of “Dinner with Friends” at Le Petit Theatre du Vieux Carré.

Friday’s “Perspectives in Criticism” talk with Hedy Weiss (Chicago Sun Times) followed our morning membership meeting and that night we all enjoyed a special tribute reading for Tennessee Williams (“Blue Devils and Better Angels”) at theUrsulines Convent featuring several noted actors (Keir Dullea, Mya Dillon), humoristAmy Dickinson, playwright John Shanley and director and filmmaker John Waters.

Bryan BattSaturday morning it was my pleasure to welcome Broadway and TV star Bryan Batt to our gathering. It was so enjoyable to see him and all of the members reveling in his love of acting and New Orleans. That was followed by the matinee performance ofSouthern Rep’s ”Suddenly Last Summer” at the new Ashé Power House Theater. Saturday night our members and guests caught a staged reading of “I Never Get Dressed on Till After Dark on Sundays“ by members of The NOLA Project.

As some of us packed and got ready to leave the Crescent City, many ATCA members and guests availed themselves of the ability to take part in Sunday morning’s TWNOLF events including seeing former New Yorker theatre critic John Lahrand Williams biographer John Lahr (“Mad Pilgrimage of the Flesh”). Immediately following was a panel with playwrights John Biguenet (“Rising Water” and “Broomstick”), Femi Euba (“The Gulf” and “The Eye of Gabriel”) and John Shanley (“Doubt: A Parable” and the Academy Award winning screenplay “Moonstruck”). 

My very best wishes to newly elected Ex Comm Chair William “Bill” Hirschman as he begins to take charge of the course of our organization for the next several years. We said goodbye to two long-standing members of the Ex Comm and thanked them for their service and also welcomed several new or familiar faces to leadership roles.

If you are a member, don’t forget to keep posting to our ATCA New Orleans Conference Facebook page (it is now a closed group). All production photos are listed there as well as an Excel spreadsheet with the names, addresses and email addresses of all registered ATCA members and guests who attended. You can get there by scanning the QR code on your name badge. Also, don’t forget to tweet to #ATCA2015 and to @ATCA_Member                                   
It was so very good to you all in my hometown and I look forward to seeing you again in Philadelphia next year with our host and conference chair Howard Shapiro, so I can get rid of this accursed hat.Alan Smason and the accursed conference hat

M. Elizabeth Osborn Award goes to Tom Coash

The American Theatre Critics Association (ATCA) has selected Rebecca Gilman’s Luna Gale as the recipient of the Harold and Mimi Steinberg/American Theatre Critics Association New Play Award, recognizing playwrights for scripts that premiered professionally outside New York City during 2014.

Gilman’s shattering play about the moral dilemma facing a social worker received the top award of $25,000 and a commemorative plaque during the Humana Festival of New American Plays at Actors Theatre of Louisville on April 11.

Two citations that carry $7,500 each were presented to Lucas Hnath’s The Christians and Nathan Alan Davis’ Dontrell, Who Kissed The Sea.

ATCA also presented the M. Elizabeth Osborn Award, which recognizes emerging playwrights, to Tom Coash of Atlanta for his play Veils.

In 1977, ATCA began to honor new plays produced at regional theaters outside New York City, where there are many awards. Since 2000, the award has been generously funded by the Harold and Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust. At $40,000, Steinberg/ATCA is the largest national new play award program recognizing regional theaters as the crucible for new plays in the United States.

Luna Gale depicts a social worker with a crushing caseload and personal baggage facing a Gordian Knot: leave a child with neglectful drug addict parents or place her with a grandmother who is a religious zealot. This complex and disturbing work about faith and forgiveness is a heart-breaking high-stakes tragedy both relevant and timeless, what one judge called “a pure adrenaline rush.” The play does not provide easy answers for the lifelong after-effects of abuse. And it is clear-sighted about how people struggle to fill the holes in their lives with religion, drugs and public service. Its first production was in January 2014 at the Goodman Theatre in Chicago and it subsequently played at the Kirk Douglas Theatre in Los Angeles.

Gilman is the author of the acclaimed plays Spinning Into Butter and Pulitzer-finalist Boy Gets Girl. She is currently an artistic associate at the Goodman, and associate professor of playwriting and screenwriting at Northwestern University.  

In Hnath’s The Christians, the audience is thrust into a Sunday morning service in a well-heeled church with an affable, charismatic pastor. But the preacher advocates a profound departure from dogma, causing a huge rift in the congregation. This even-handed, compelling and theatrical work investigates belief on a personal and theological level. It asks deep moral and spiritual questions about doctrine, faith and belief without condescension and with verve and skill. The work debuted last spring at Actors Theatre of Louisville through the Humana Festival, which also premiered Hnath’s 2013 Steinberg citation recipient Death Tax.

Davis’ Dontrell, Who Kissed The Sea is a powerful, metaphoric and poetic drama tracing one young man’s odyssey in present day Baltimore to palpably connect with his roots by embracing a heroic ancestor who preferred to die drowning in the Atlantic Ocean than arrive in America as a slave. Simultaneously grounded in modern day America, yet gloriously lyrical and theatrical, it mixed the sacred and the mundane. The work was formally unveiled as part of the National New Play Network Rolling World Premiere Program in a co-production at the Skylight Theatre Company and Lower Depth Theatre Ensemble in Los Angeles after a developmental production at the DC Source Theater Festival.

The Osborn Award, funded by ATCA, was given to Coash’s play, Veils, a unique look at the differences and similarities between America and the Middle East as viewed in the clashing sensibilities of women’s rights and traditional roles in both civilizations. Two young Muslim women attending the American Egyptian University in Cairo just before the anarchic Arab Spring in 2010 are complex three-dimensional characters, with the American the more traditional of the two while the Egyptian is enamored of western pop culture. But both are searching for sustaining definitions of how they should lead their lives in order to honor both their faith and their integrity in the world. Its premiere was held in February 2014 at Portland Stage in Maine.

Selected from 27 eligible scripts submitted by ATCA members, the plays were evaluated by a committee of 18 theater critics, led by chairman Wm. F. Hirschman, FloridaTheaterOnStage.com, and vice-chairman Lou Harry, Indianapolis Business Journal/IBJ.com. Other committee members were Misha Berson, Seattle Times; Bruce Burgun, freelance (Bloomington, Ind.; Lindsay Christians, The Capital Times (Madison, Wisc.); Mark Cofta, Philadelphia City Paper; Pam Harbaugh, BrevardCulture.com  (Melbourne); Michael P. Howley, theatremontgomery.blogspot.com; Erin Keane, culture editor, Salon.com; Jerry Kraft, www.SeattleActor.com, (Port Angeles, Wash.); Mark Lowry, TheaterJones.com and Fort Worth Star-Telegram; Julius Novick, veteran critic and professor (New York City); Kathryn Osenlund, CurtainUp, Phindie (Philadelphia); Wendy Parker, Midlothian, Va); David Sheward, ArtsinNY.com, Theaterlife.com, CulturalWeekly.com; Herb Simpson, artesmagazine.com/theater and totaltheater.com (Geneseo, N.Y.),; Perry Tannenbaum, Creative Loafing, CVNC.org, Charlotte, NC); and Tim Treanor, senior reviewer, DC Theatre Scene (Washington, D.C.) 

Hirschman said this year’s entries validated the future of a vibrant 21^st Century theater that mirrors today’s issues as almost never before. “Far from disconnected and elitist, the plays reflected themes and settings encompassing bullying, racism, sexual identity in a repressive society, a street-level view of the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and genocidal civil war. Some works complete re-invented established 20^th Century works like The Crucible, The Seagull and The Heiress for a new century and a new audience. They referenced how technology is creating previously unimagined ethical questions and asked tough questions about how the economic downtown has challenged what people thought were their unshakeable values. Refuting concerns about theater as a relevant and popularly embraced art form, the stunning array and high quality of scripts we read confirmed the enduring commitment of regional theaters and a dazzling diversity of playwrights to be the primary standard-bearers for new works,” he said.”

Since the inception of ATCA’s New Play Award, honorees have included Lanford Wilson, Marsha Norman, August Wilson, Arthur Miller, Mac Wellman, Donald Margulies, Lynn Nottage, Moises Kaufman and Craig Lucas. Last year’s honoree was Robert Schenkkan’s All The Way which subsequently opened on Broadway.

For a full list of 38 years of winners and runners-up, click here.

The Harold and Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust was created in 1986 by Harold Steinberg on behalf of himself and his late wife. Pursuing its primary mission to support the American theater, it has provided grants totaling millions of dollars for new productions of American plays and educational programs for those who may not ordinarily experience live theater.

ATCA was founded in 1974 and works to raise critical standards and public awareness of critics’ functions and responsibilities. The only national association of professional theater critics, with members working for newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations and websites, ATCA is affiliated with the International Association of Theatre Critics, a UNESCO-affiliated organization that sponsors seminars and congresses worldwide.

ATCA also administers the $10,000 Francesca Primus Prize, funded by the Francesca Ronnie Primus Foundation, honoring outstanding contributions to the American theater by female artists who have not yet achieved national prominence. Annually, ATCA makes a recommendation for the Regional Theater Tony Award presented by the American Theatre Wing/Broadway League and votes on inductions into the Theater Hall of Fame.

For more information on the Steinberg/ATCA Award, contact Wm. F. Hirschman, ATCA chair (954-478-1123), or Lou Harry, New Plays Committee chair (317-472-5202).

For those of you who have been patient, we have some fantastic events lined up for you, several in conjunction with the Tennessee Williams New Orleans Literary Festival (TWNOLF). First of all, we encourage everyone to arrive early so that they may enjoy our “lagniappe” show - the only musical on tap for the conference. The show by the Victory Belles at the National World War II Museum’s Stage Door Canteen is free to all ATCA members and guests and starts at 12:45 p.m. on Wednesday, March 25. (Lunch is not included, but is an option available, beginning at 11:00 a.m.)

HERE’S THE ENTIRE ATCA NEW ORLEANS CONFERENCE SCHEDULE (Please note that some events are still not finalized such as the Perspectives in Criticism talk)

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 25

Ex Com meeting 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Suggested tour to National World War II Museum (Streetcar ride)

Lunch option available prior to “Victory Belles” show

Performance: “America’s Sweethearts: A Tribute to the Andrews Sisters” - 12:45 p.m.

Optional side trip two blocks away to Ogden Museum after the show to view the “Tennessee Williams: Artist” display there featuring paintings rendered by the playwright and author. ($10 admission cost not included in fees)

(Streetcar ride or walk back to Astor Crowne Plaza Hotel)

Opening reception (Buses pick up beginning at 4:30 p.m.) 

Gallier Hall reception welcome with Tim Laughlin Trio (also reception by the Honorable Mayor Mitch Landrieu 5:00 -7:00 p.m. (Bus transport)

Stop off at JPAS new performance hall – reception by Jefferson Parish President, the Honorable John Young

Rivertown Theaters for the Performing Arts – reception by the Mayor of the City of Kenner, the Honorable Mike Yenni

Performance: “When Ya Smilin’” 8:00 p.m.

Return by bus to Astor Crowne Plaza Hotel 10:30 p.m.

Option to have beignets at Café du Monde and walk back to hotel (IF BUS DRIVER HAS TIME LEFT)

THURSDAY, MARCH 26

Breakfast 7:45 – 9:00 a.m.

ATCA meeting 9:00 a.m. – 12 noon

Progressive Theaters tour by bus 1:00 – 3:00 p.m. (includes “lunch”)

Performance: “Tennessee Williams Hotel Plays” 3:30 – 5:30 p.m**

Dinner on your own or “Dinner with Friends” at Tableau Restaurant prix fixe dinner $35.00 per person (not included with registration) - restaurant is on site at Le Petit Theatre, 616 St. Peter St. (6:00-7:15 p.m.)

Performance: “Dinner with Friends” – Le Petit Theatre du Vieux Carré 7:30 p.m.

Late night free to hang in French Quarter or return to hotel

FRIDAY, MARCH 27

Breakfast 7:45 – 9:00 a.m.

ATCA meeting 9:00 a.m. – 12 noon

Perspectives in Criticism Time TBD

Remainder of afternoon free to tour city

Professional reading: 8:00 p.m.: “Tennessee Williams Tribute” – Ursuline Convent featuring John Waters*

SATURDAY, MARCH 28

Continental breakfast 8:00 – 9:30 a.m. (ATCA Elections)

Ex Com and ATCA Foundation meetings 9:00-12:00 noon

Early afternoon free

Performance: 3:00 p.m.: “Suddenly Last Summer” – Produced by Southern Rep (Site: Ashé Powerhouse Theater)(Bus Transportation to and from theater)

Professional reading: 8:00 p.m.: “Don’t Get Dressed Until After Dark on Sundays” - The NOLA Project – Monteleone Hotel Ballroom*

SUNDAY, MARCH 29

Breakfast on your own

10:00 a.m. Interview with critic and author John Lahr*

11:30 a.m. Playwrights panel with John Patrick Shanley and Martin Sherman* 

Afternoon free to check out more of the TWNOLF events or to tour French Quarter

Jewish New Orleans side tour with tour guide Julie Schwartz available (indicate your preference to me via email)

4:00 Stella and Stanley shouting contest* - Pontalba Apartment Building (near Le Petit Theatre)

*Denotes TWNOLF event

**Denotes exclusive ATCA event (a part of TWNOLF)

+Denotes independent event associated with TWNOLF

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