Zach Barr wins 2026 Steinberg/ATCA New Play Award for “The Pilon”
COSTA MESA, Calif. – Playwright Zach Barr has won the 2026 Harold and Mimi Steinberg/ATCA New Play Award for their play The Pilon.
The Steinberg/ATCA Award is given in partnership by the Harold and Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust and the American Theatre Critics/Journalists Association (ATCA). The award carries a $25,000 cash prize and recognizes an outstanding script that premiered in a professional production outside of New York City in 2025. The Pilon debuted at Red Theater in Chicago, IL..
“I’m shocked and overwhelmed that The Pilon has been honored with this award,” Barr said in a statement. “I hope this is seen as a win not just for myself and Red Theater, but for all of Chicago’s storefront theatre scene, and everyone developing new plays at the non-Equity level. Incredible work is happening even in the smallest spaces, and for this play to be plucked from obscurity and so generously recognized is gratifying beyond measure.”
Two 2026 Steinberg/ATCA citations were also presented to Berlin by Mickle Maher, produced by Court Theatre in Chicago, and Things With Friends by Kristoffer Diaz, produced by American Blues Theater in Chicago. Each citation carries a $7500 cash prize.
The 2026 awards were presented on Saturday, May 2, in Costa Mesa, Calif., as part of the 2026 Pacific Playwrights Festival. ATCA thanks South Coast Repertory for generously hosting the presentation.
With an annual prize total of $40,000, Steinberg/ATCA is one of the largest national new play award programs. ATCA began honoring new plays produced at regional theaters outside New York City in 1977, and the awards have been funded by the Harold and Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust since 2000. Plays receiving a production in New York City within the calendar year 2025 were not eligible for the 2026 Steinberg/ATCA award, recognizing the many other awards programs already in existence there.
The awards were presented by Jim Steinberg, director of the Harold and Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust; Cameron Kelsall, chair of the ATCA New Play Committee; Lou Harry, vice chair of ATCA; and David Ivers, artistic director of South Coast Repertory.
At the ceremony, ATCA also presented the 2026 M. Elizabeth Osborn Award to Noa Gardner for his play The Staircase, premiered by South Coast Repertory. Named for the late critic, new play advocate, and ATCA member M. Elizabeth (“Betty”) Osborn (1941-1993), the award recognizes the work of an emerging playwright who has not yet received a major New York production or a major national award. The Osborn Award carries a $3000 prize.
The recipients were selected from a pool of eligible scripts recommended by ATCA members from around the country. Cameron Kelsall (Philadelphia, PA) served as chair of the ATCA New Play Committee during the adjudication process. Other participating members included Nancy Bishop (Chicago, IL), Lindsay Christians (Madison, WI), Mike Fischer (Milwaukee, WI), Amanda Finn (Chicago, IL), Lou Harry (Indianapolis, IN), Elizabeth Kramer (Louisville, KY), Martha Wade Steketee (New York, NY), Doug Strassler (New York, NY), and Bob Verini (Boston, MA).
“Once again, ATCA is honored to partner with the Steinberg Foundation and to recognize the extraordinary playwriting development happening across the country,” Kelsall said. “This year, our Steinberg/ATCA grand prize winner premiered in a 44-seat rented theater in Chicago, and our Osborn winner received the award for his first professionally produced play. Our honorees also included a Pulitzer Prize finalist and Tony Award nominee, and a decades-long pillar of the Chicago theater community. We are thrilled to be in a position to celebrate such a diverse array of talent and to show that regional theater remains a vibrant incubator for new work.”
Past honorees of ATCA’s new play award include August Wilson, Horton Foote, Lynn Nottage, Moises Kaufmann, Lee Blessing, Marsha Norman, Nilo Cruz, Regina Taylor, Qui Nguyen, Lauren Yee, Michael Cristofer, and Rebecca Gilman. The 2025winner was Purpose by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins. A complete list of recipients can be found 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.
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