The Harold and Mimi Steinberg /
ATCA New Play Award
Since 1977, the American Theatre Critics Association has been making an award to one or more outstanding new plays produced professionally in the United States but not yet produced in New York City, a city already well furnished with awards. Any play receiving its professional premiere as a finished work in the award year is eligible for nomination, as long as it hasn’t opened in New York by the end of that calendar year. Plays are nominated by ATCA members. Scripts are then read and honorees selected by the ATCA New Play committee composed of ATCA member critics from different regions of the country.
Starting in 1977 and through 1984, a single ATCA New Play Citation was named annually. In 1985 three plays were cited for the first time. Starting in 1986, one of the three was given the ATCA New Play Award, with citations to the two runners-up. The annual prize was first $500, then $1,000, with the money contributed some years by ATCA members’ newspapers.
In 2000, The Harold and Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust generously funded the awards, setting the main prize at $15,000 and two additional citations at $5,000. The award was then renamed the American Theatre Critics/Steinberg New Play Award and Citations (ATCA/Steinberg for short).
In 2006, the award was again renamed. The Harold and Mimi Steinberg/American Theatre Critics Association New Play Award and Citations (Steinberg/ATCA for short), with the award raised to $25,000, plus two additional citations of $7,500.
The list below provides the full list of winners and citations. Annual award announcement press releases linked at the bottom of the page provide more complete information for winners from 2009 to the present. Many selections have gone on to major off-Broadway or Broadway productions and other awards.
- 2023: the ripple, the wave that carried me home by Christina Anderson, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Berkeley, CA and Goodman Theatre, Chicago, IL
CITATIONS:
– Sally and Tom by Suzan-Lori Parks, Guthrie Theater, Minneapolis, MN
– Swing State by Rebecca Gilman, Goodman Theatre, Chicago, IL
- 2022: Poor Clare by Chiara Atik, Echo Theater Company, Los Angeles, CA
CITATIONS:
– Galatea by David Templeton, Spreckels Theatre Company, Rohnert Park, CA
– Young Money by Erlina Ortiz, Azuka Theatre, Philadelphia, PA
- 2021: Her Honor, Jane Byrne by J. Nicole Brooks, Lookingglass Theatre, Chicago, IL
CITATIONS:
– Graveyard Shift by khat knotahaiku, Goodman Theatre, Chicago, IL
– Verböten by Jason Narducy and Brett Neveu, House Theatre, Chicago, IL
- 2020: How the Light Gets In by E.M. Lewis, Boston Court, Pasadena, CA
CITATIONS:
– The First Deep Breath by Lee Edward Colston II, Victory Gardens Theatre, Chicago, IL
– Animal Control by Chandler Hubbard, Firehouse Theatre, Richmond, VA.
- 2019: Cambodian Rock Band by Lauren Yee, South Coast Repertory Theatre, Costa Mesa, CA
CITATIONS:
– Birthday Candles by Noah Haidle, Detriot Public Theatre, Detroit, MI
– Witch by Jen Silverman, Writers Theatre, Glencoe, IL
- 2018: The Book of Will by Lauren Gunderson, Denver Center for the Performing Arts
CITATIONS:
– Cry It Out Molly by Smith Metzler, Humana Festival at Actors Theatre of Louisville
– The Wolf at the End of the Block by Ike Holter, Teatro Vista, Victory Gardens Theatre, Chicago
- 2017: Man in the Ring by Michael Cristofer, Court Theatre, Chicago
CITATIONS:
– Mary Page Marlowe by Tracy Letts, Steppenwolf, Chicago
– Visiting Edna by David Rabe, Steppenwolf, Chicago
- 2016: Vietgone by Qui Nguyen, South Coast Repertory, Costa Mesa, CA
CITATIONS:
– Bloomsday by Steven Dietz, ACT, Seattle
– The Dangerous House of Pretty Mbane by Jen Silverman, InterAct Theatre Company, Philadelphia
- 2015: Luna Gale by Rebecca Gilman, Goodman Theatre, Chicago, and Kirk Douglas Theatre, Los Angeles
CITATIONS:
– The Christians by Lucas Hnath, Actors Theatre of Louisville
– Dontrell, Who Kissed the Sea by Nathan Alan Davis, Skylight Theatre Company and Lower Depth Theatre Ensemble, Los Angeles
- 2014: I And You by Lauren Gunderson, Marin Theatre Company
CITATIONS:
– Fear Up Harsh by Christopher Demos-Brown, Zoetic Stage, Miami
– Seven Spots on the Sun by Martin Zimmerman, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park
- 2013: All the Way by Robert Schenkkan, Oregon Shakespeare Festival
CITATIONS:
– Death Tax by Lucas Hnath, Humana Fesival, Actors Theater of Louisville
– Gidion’s Knot by Johnna Adams, Contemporary American Theatre Festival, Shepherdstown, WV
- 2012: Pilgrims Musa and Sheri in the New World by Yussef El Guindi, ACT Repertory, Seattle
CITATIONS:
– On the Spectrum by Ken LaZebnik, Mixed Blood Theatre, Minneapolis
– Edith Can Shoot Things and Hit Them by A. Rey Pamatmat, Humana Festival, Actors Theater of Louisville
- 2011: Nine Circles by Bill Cain, Marin Theatre Company
CITATIONS:
– The Good Counselor by Kathryn Grant, Premiere Stages, NJ
– The History of Invulnerability by David Bar Katz, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park.
- 2010: Equivocation by Bill Cain, Oregon Shakespeare Festival and Seattle Repertory Theatre
CITATIONS:
– Time Stands Still by Donald Margulies, Geffen Playhouse, Los Angeles
– Legacy of Light, by Karen Zacarías, Arena Stage, Washington, DC
- 2009: Song of Extinction by E.M. Lewis, Moving Arts, Hollywood, CA
CITATIONS:
– Great Falls by Lee Blessing, Humana Festival, Actors Theatre of Louisville
– Superior Donuts by Tracy Letts, Steppenwolf Theater, Chicago
- 2008: 33 Variations by Moises Kaufman, Arena Stage, Washington, DC
CITATIONS:
– Dead Man’s Cell Phone by Sarah Ruhl, Woolly Mammoth Theatre, Washington, DC
– End Days by Deborah Zoe Laufer, Florida Stage, Manalaplan, FL
- 2007: Hunter Gatherers by Peter Sinn Nachtrieb, Killing My Lobster, San Francisco, CA
CITATIONS:
– Opus by Michael Hollinger, Arden Theatre Company, Philadelphia, PA; City Theatre, Pittsburgh, PA
– Guest Artist by Jeff Daniels, Purple Rose Theatre, Chelsea, MI
- 2006: A Body of Water by Lee Blessing, Guthrie Theatre, Minneapolis, MN
CITATIONS:
– Radio Golf by August Wilson, Yale Repertory Theatre, New Haven, CT
– Red Light Winter by Adam Rapp, Steppenwolf Theatre Company, Chicago, IL
- 2005: Singing Forest by Craig Lucas, Intiman Theatre, Seattle, WA
CITATIONS:
– The Clean House by Sarah Ruhl, Yale Repertory Theatre, New Haven, CT
– After Ashley by Gina Gionfriddo, Actors Theatre of Louisville, Louisville, KY
- 2004: Intimate Apparel by Lynn Nottage, Center Stage, Baltimore, MD; South Coast Repertory, Costa Mesa, CA
CITATIONS:
– Gem of the Ocean by August Wilson, Goodman Theatre, Chicago, IL; Mark Taper Forum, Los Angeles, CA
– The Love Song of J. Robert Oppenheimer by Carson Kreitzer, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, Cincinnati, OH
- 2003: Anna in the Tropics by Nilo Cruz, New Theatre, Coral Gables, FL
CITATIONS:
– Recent Tragic Events by Craig Wright, Woolly Mammoth Theatre, Washington, DC
– Resurrection Blues by Arthur Miller, Guthrie Theatre, Minneapolis, MN
- 2002: The Carpetbaggers Children by Horton Foote, The Alley Theatre, Houston, TX
CITATIONS:
– The Action Against Sol Schumann by Jeffrey Sweet, Victory Gardens Theatre, Chicago, IL
– Joe and Betty by Maurice Mednick, Padua Playwrights Productions, Los Angeles, CA - 2001: Anton In Show Business by Jane Martin, Actors’ Theatre of Louisville Humana Festival of New American Plays
CITATIONS:
– Big Love by Charles Mee, Actors’ Theatre of Louisville Humana Festival of New American Plays
– King Hedley II by August Wilson, Pittsburgh Public Theatre, PA; Seattle Repertory Theatre, WA - 2000: Oo-Bla-Dee by Regina Taylor, Goodman Theatre, Chicago, IL
CITATIONS:
– Compleat Female Stage Beauty by Jeffrey Hatcher, City Theatre, Pitttsburgh, PA
– Syncopation by Allan Knee, Long Wharf Theatre, New Haven, CT; George Street Playhouse, New Brunswick, NJ - 1999: (sponsored by the Providence Journal) Book of Days by Lanford Wilson, Purple Rose Theatre Company, Chelsea, MI
CITATIONS:
– Dinner with Friends by Donald Margulies, Humana Festival, Actor’s Theatre of Louisville, KY
– Expecting Isabel by Lisa Loomer, Arena Stage, Washington, DC - 1998: The Cider House Rules, Part II, by Peter Parnell, adapted from the John Irving novel, Seattle Repertory Theatre, WA
CITATIONS:
– Jitney by August Wilson, Pittsburgh Public Theatre, PA
– The Old Settler by John Henry Redwood, McCarter Theatre, Princeton, N.J.; Long Wharf Theatre, New Haven, CT - 1997: (sponsored by The Orlando Sentinel) Jack and Jill by Jane Martin, Actors Theatre of Louisville, KY
CITATIONS:
– The Last Night of Ballyhoo by Alfred Uhry, The Alliance Theatre, Atlanta, GA
– The Ride Down Mount Morgan by Arthur Miller (revised 1996) - 1996: (sponsored by Columbus Dispatch) Amazing Grace by Michael Cristofer, Pittsburgh Public Theatre, PA
CITATIONS:
– Jungle Rot by Seth Greenland, Cleveland Playhouse, OH
– Seven Guitars by August Wilson, Goodman Theatre, Chicago, IL - 1995: (sponsored by The Salt Lake Tribune) The Nanjing Race by Reggie Cheong-Leen, McCarter Theatre, NJ
CITATIONS:
– Rush Limbaugh in Night School by Charlie Varon, San Francisco Marsh Theatre, CA
– The Waiting Room by Lisa Loomer, Mark Taper Forum, Los Angeles, CA - 1994: (sponsored by the Cleveland Plain Dealer) Keely and Du by Jane Martin, Actors Theatre of Louisville, KY
CITATIONS:
– Black Elk Speaks by Christopher Sergel, Denver Theatre Center, CO
– Hurricane by Anne Galjour, Climate Theatre, San Francisco, CA - 1993: Children of Paradise: Shooting a Dream by Steven Epp, Felicity Jones, Dominique Serrand and Paul Walsh, Theatre de la Jeune Lune, Minneapolis, MN
CITATIONS:
– Dark Rapture by Eric Overmyer, The Empty Space, Seattle, WA
– Unfinished Stories by Sybille Pearson, Mark Taper Forum, Los Angeles, CA - 1992: Could I Have This Dance? by Doug Haverty, Colony Studio Theatre, Los Angeles, CA.
CITATIONS:
– American Enterprise by Jeffrey Sweet, Organic Theatre Co., Chicago, IL
– Miss Evers’ Boys by David Feldshuh, Illusion Theater, Minneapolis, MN - 1991: Two Trains Running by August Wilson, Goodman Theatre, Chicago, IL
CITATIONS:
– Sincerity Forever by Mac Wellman, Unicorn Co., Berkshire Theatre Festival
– The Ohio State Murders by Adrienne Kennedy, Great Lakes Theatre Festival, Cleveland, OH - 1990: 2 by Romulus Linney, Milwaukee Repertory, WI
CITATIONS:
– Pick Up Ax by Anthony Clarvoe, Eureka Theatre, San Francisco
– Marvin’s Room by Scott McPherson, Goodman Theatre, IL - 1989: The Piano Lesson by August Wilson, Goodman Theatre, Chicago, IL
CITATIONS:
– Generations by Dennis Clontz, Colony Studio Theatre, Los Angeles, CA
– The Downside by Richard Dresser, Cricket Theatre, Minneapolis, MN - 1988: Heathen Valley by Romulus Linney, Milwaukee Repertory
CITATIONS:
– The Voice of the Prairie by John Olive, Hartford Stage, CT
– The Deal by Matthew Witten, Philadelphia Festival for New Plays, PA - 1987: A Walk in the Woods by Lee Blessing, Yale Repertory Theatre, CT
CITATIONS:
– The Film Society by John Robin Baitz, Los Angeles Theatre Center, CA
– Back to the World by Stephen Mack Jones, Attic Theatre, Detroit, MI - 1986: Fences by August Wilson, Yale Repertory Theatre, CT
CITATIONS:
– Fugue by Leonora Thuna, Long Wharf Theatre, CT
– Hunting Cockroaches by Januscz Glowacki, Byrdcliffe Theatre, Woodstock, NY - 1985: (no principal honoree)
CITATIONS:
– Scheherazade by Marisha Chamberlain;
– The Shaper by John Steppling
– A Shayna Maidel by Barbara Lebow - 1984: Wasted by Fred Gamel
- 1983: Closely Related by Bruce McDonald
- 1982: Talking With by Jane Martin
- 1981: Chekhov in Yalta by John Driver and Jeffrey Haddow
- 1980: Custer by Robert E. Ingham
- 1979: Loose Ends by Michael Weller
- 1978: Getting Out by Marsha Norman
- 1977: And the Soul Shall Dance by Wakako Yamauchi
