ATCA awards fourth annual Edward Medina Prize for Excellence in Cultural Criticism to Citlali Pizarro
NEW YORK, NY | Oct. 29, 2025 – The American Theatre Critics/Journalists Association will award writer and producer Citlali Pizarro (she/her) the fourth annual Edward Medina Prize for Excellence in Cultural Criticism on Nov. 8 during its 2025 conference in New York.
ATCA created the award in 2022 to honor their colleague Edward Medina and to recognize United States theater critics and journalists from historically underrepresented groups who write about theater and its role in highlighting people from various cultures, backgrounds and experiences. The prize also aims to increase the readership of these writers of cultural criticism.
“We are incredibly honored to have Citlali as the fourth ever winner of the Medina Prize in the short line of some of the best young critics in our industry. She is a phenomenal young writer, and our organization could not be prouder to have her name now associated with this prize’s legacy,” said David John Chávez, ATCA’s executive chair. “In four short years, this prize has honored Ed’s passions, created space for marginalized critics and added their unique perspectives to the American theater. While Ed left us entirely too soon, everyone on the prize committee continues to do an incredible job keeping his name and legacy alive.”
Pizarro (she/her) is a New York-based writer and theater producer with bylines in 3Views, American Theatre, Current Affairs and Howlround. In 2023, she was named a TCG Rising Leader of Color in Arts Journalism and a fellow at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center’s National Critics Institute. In 2021-22, she was a PEN America Writing for Justice Fellow, a Shadowproof Marvel Cooke Fellow for abolition journalism, and the inaugural Lin-Manuel Miranda Family Fellow in Connectivity at Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company. She currently works in The Public Theater’s producing department.
“I was really excited when I heard I won the prize. Very, very excited,” said Pizarro, who applied with no expectations. “Over the past few years, I have dedicated much more time and energy to a cultural criticism practice, so this feels really rewarding to have that recognized.”
Pizarro will receive a cash award, a complimentary annual ATCA membership, and a stipend to help offset attendance costs for the November 2025 ATCA conference in New York City. During the 2025 ATCA conference, Belonging, Equity, Inclusion and Diversity Committee members, including Medina’s widow, Nate Hinkle, will present Pizarro with the award.
The Edward Medina Prize is sponsored in part by The Foundation ATCA and Critical Minded, an initiative that invests in cultural critics of color that was cofounded in 2017 by The Nathan Cummings Foundation and The Ford Foundation.
The judges who reviewed applications included theater, journalism and communications professionals. One of them was Sharon Mizota (she/her), art critic and archivist.
“I was impressed by Citlali’s enthusiastic engagement with the arts and the passion with which she writes,” Mizota said. “But more than that, it was her ability and willingness to dig deeply — and critically — into how art functions in society that really made her writing stand out.”
Other 2025 prize judges representing theater, journalism, and communications professionals, included Daniela Cintron (she/her), journalist, editor and producer; Andrea Henderson (she/her), journalist at St. Louis Public Radio; Jade Lambert-Smith (she/her), director-dramaturg and executive producer at Lambert Smith Media; and Blake Zidell (he/him), president of Blake Zidell & Associates.
ATCA established the prize in honor of Edward Medina, a proud Puerto Rican born and raised in New York City. His rich background and multifaceted talents paved the way for a successful and well-established life in the arts and entertainment industry.
Medina was a critic and American Theatre Critics/Journalists Association member who served on the Executive, Membership, and Belonging, Equity, Inclusion and Diversity committees. He emphasized the need for increasing diversity within theatrical production and criticism and sought to provide fresh opportunities and support for new critics finding their calling in this vital field.
Founded in 1974, the American Theatre Critics/Journalists Association is the only national association of professional theater critics and journalists in the United States. ATCA champions greater communication among theater critics and journalists; provides training and networking opportunities and programs to foster emerging writers; advocates for freedom of expression; maintains ethical standards; responds to the continued evolution of the profession; and increases public awareness of theater criticism as an important national resource. Our members work nationwide for newspapers, magazines, radio, television, and online services.
###
CONTACT: David John Chávez, Chair, ATCA Executive Committee | 408-914-8292 | theatrechavez@gmail.com
Read Citlali Pizarro’s work at https://linktr.ee/citlalipizarro.
Read an interview from the American Theatre Critics/Journalists Association with Citlali Pizarro here.
Learn more about the American Theatre Critics/Journalists Association at americantheatrecritics.org
Learn more about the Medina Prize at americantheatrecritics.org/edward-medina-prize/
Learn more about Edward Medina at EdwardMedina.nyc
Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.