Lawrence and Lee Theatre Research Institute Announces 2023 Margo Jones Award

Susan V. Booth, artistic director of the Goodman Theatre, Chicago, IL is the 2023 recipient of the Margo Jones Award.

The annual award honors "that citizen-of-the-theatre who has demonstrated a significant impact, understanding and affirmation of the craft of playwriting, with a lifetime commitment to the encouragement of the Living Theatre everywhere." The award commemorates Jones, a pioneer of the American professional regional theatre movement. Established in 1961 by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee, the award is administered by the Lawrence and Lee Theatre Research Institute at The Ohio State University.

Booth rejoined Goodman Theatre in the fall of 2022, having previously served as the theater's director of new play development. In the intervening years, she was the Artistic Director of Atlanta's Tony Award-winning Alliance Theatre, where she initiated both local and national programming serving artists, young people, educators and civic partners.

Booth has directed nationally at Goodman Theatre, Hartford Stage, Ford's Theatre, La Jolla Playhouse, St. Louis Repertory Theatre, Cincinnati Playhouse, New York Stage and Film, Actors Theatre of Louisville, Northlight Theatre, Victory Gardens, Court Theatre and others.

She holds degrees from Denison and Northwestern Universities and was a fellow of the National Critics Institute and the Kemper Foundation. Booth taught at Northwestern, DePaul and Emory Universities and is a past president of the board of directors for the Theatre Communications Group, the national service organization for the field. She has been a grants panelist for the Doris Duke, Mellon, Heinz, USAA and NEA, and has been a frequent TEDx speaker. She serves on the board of the Emory Center for Ethics and is a member of the International Women's Forum.

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