Lauren Van Hemert For this edition of Critic Spotlight, Lauren Van Hemert speaks uninterrupted by interviewer questions. Van Hemert, based in Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina, has written for Broadway World and now her own website Beltline to Broadway (formerly RDU Onstage). Here is Lauren, in her own...
New York — At its annual meeting held on Zoom on August 18, 2021, the Foundation of the American Theatre Critics re-elected Jay Handelman as president for a ninth term. Handelman previously served four three-year terms as an ATCA board member and four years as...
Bill Hirschman Current Executive Committee member (and dedicated ATCA member of several decades) Bill Hirschman has added another laurel to his collection. Hirschman, founder and chief critic of Florida Theater On Stage, recently won second place in the Sunshine State Awards of the Society of Professional...
Richard Oliver Dallas, TexasPrimary outlets: Theater Jones, Texas Classical Review, The Whole Review Richard Oliver How did you get started as an arts critic? When I went to college I knew I wanted to pursue music. But I loved writing, so I made a deal with myself: I would...
J. Nicole Brooks NEW YORK – Playwright J. Nicole Brooks has won the 2021 Harold and Mimi Steinberg / American Theatre Critics Association New Play Award for their play “Her Honor, Jane Byrne.”The Steinberg/ATCA Award, which carries a $25,000 cash prize, recognizes an outstanding script that premiered professional outside...
Douglas Williams NEW YORK – Douglas Williams has won the American Theatre Critics Association’s (ATCA) 2021 M. Elizabeth Osborn Award for his play “SHIP.” Given by ATCA in memory of critic, director, educator and new play advocate M. Elizabeth “Betty” Osborn (1941-1993), the prize recognizes the work of a...
David John Chávez San Jose area criticPrimary outlets: BayAreaPlays.com; Mercury News, American Theatre Magazine David John Chávez How’d you get started in this wacky business? Years ago, I had a job on a daily newspaper (the Fresno Bee, a McClatchy newspaper that covered the central San Joaquin Valley) on...
New York -- Leadership ratification after the June 2021 electronic election occurred this week, with installation of new leadership on various committees. The 2021 Executive Committee electronic voting process opened on Monday June 7, 2021 and concluded on Friday June 11, 2021. As announced in...
Chris Jones (Chicago Tonight / WTTW) ATCA member Chris Jones, who has served on the Executive Committee and as ATCA's connection to the TONY Awards among many other roles, has added a new professional role to his resume. While noting that he will continue to write about...
June 14, 2021 -- The Theater Hall of Fame, for which ATCA members compose the majority of the electorate, announced today the 2021 class of inductees. The 2021 cohort includes playwright Lynn Nottage, actor-playwright Anna Deavere Smith, composer Alan Menkin, set designer Bob Crowley, actor...