Daphne Rubin-Vega, Hari Nef & More to Perform at Relentless Picket Play Benefit

Building for the Arts and The American Playwriting Foundation have announced the winners and finalists of the Relentless Award's Picket Plays, created to support WGA writers as they recover from the financial hardship of the Writers' Strike.

The winning plays are: The Scorpion Dance by Jon Haller (“Last Man Standing,” “30 Rock”); A Ride in the Car in the Morning by Hannah Globus (“And Then What Happened,” “Secrets and Lies”); fire ants by Lily Houghton (“Day By Day”) and Sofya Levitsky-Weitz (“The Bear,” “The Dropout”); Love Your Work by Eric Pfeffinger (“Mommy Blogger,” “#MotherJudger”); WILDCAT by Kristen Adele Calhoun (“Sula,” “BLKNWS”); and Me. by Jill Twiss (“Last Week Tonight with John Oliver,” “The Amber Ruffin Show”).

The Award grants each of the six winning writers (or writing teams) $10,000. Their plays will be presented at a special benefit performance, directed by Danya Taymor (Heroes of the Fourth Turning, Pass Over), at Theatre Row on Sunday, November 5 at 7 pm by members of the newly formed Relentless Theater Company, including David Corenswet, Kevin Corrigan, Vincent D'Onofrio, Griffin Dunne, Tavi Gevinson, Mike Godere, Hari Nef, Elizabeth Rodriguez, Daphne Rubin-Vega and others.

The finalist plays are The Empty Space, or White People Ruin Everything by Dominic Colón (“The Corps,” Werq It); Hello, Stacey by Alice Stanley Jr. (“Busy Tonight,” “Day by Day”); Scabby by Dean Imperial (“Godfather of Harlem,” “Imposters”); Benefits by C. Quintana (“Orphan Black: Echoes,” “The Baker and the Beauty”); Merced by Alfredo Barrios Jr. (“Burn Notice,” “Magnum P.I.”); and Life With a French Bulldog by Chris Licud (“Something Strange Is Happening,” “Gringas”). Each finalist will be awarded $1,000.

“Many WGA members began their careers as playwrights,” commented American Playwriting Foundation Artistic Director David Bar Katz. “The Relentless Award, the largest cash prize in theater, was created for the specific purpose of supporting playwrights so that writing for TV and film wouldn't be their only option if they wanted to eat and pay rent. But during this time, when those avenues have been closed to them, the American Playwriting Foundation – the theater community, the first artistic home to many of these artists – is here for them and has their backs.”

Tickets for The Relentless Award Ten Minute Picket Plays: Voices from the WGA Picket Lines are available to the public starting at $75, with access to the afterparty with cast and writers starting at $250. Tickets are available now and can be purchased at americanplaywritingfoundation.org. 

Reactions from some of the winning WGA writers:

Jill Twiss: “The strikes have been rough for everyone in this industry. There are strike funds and incredible charities that offer writers and others grants or loans to get through the strike. But the Relentless Award offered writers what we actually needed the most – the chance to write. Just sitting down at the keyboard with a purpose helped me deal with all those days, walking around in a circle with a picket sign, wondering if I'd ever have a job again.

“What will I do with the money? Among other things, I'm finally gonna get the “H” key on my laptop fixed. No need to go into details, but it's been months and I've been finding very creative ways to type the letter ‘H'. So I'll be getting my keyboard fixed and typing ‘H's with reckless abandon.

“And as for what winning this prize means to me? Writing for theatre scares me the most because watching it is the thing I love the most. So for me, this award is a little nudge into the world of ‘Do More Writing That Scares You.'”

Lily Houghton: “My biggest fear, not just during the strike but throughout my jump from theater to television, was losing my imagination. Having the rare opportunity to collaborate with my best friend and favorite writer Sofya Levitsky-Weitz on this piece sparked my weirdness again in the absolute best way possible.”

Sofya Levistky-Weitz: “We felt - like many writers - that the strike, though difficult, presented an opportunity to open up creative space. So much of the pressure of working in film and TV under execs and studios is that the process feels different. The mystery we get to play in with theatre is inverted, and as playwrights first, we know that mystery and space is so important. Winning this award eases some financial hardship of the strike, but it also shows us that we can have both: some support from theatre and the ability to work on something that feels magical and original. This piece came from wondering what it means to have those spaces in your brain freed up again - and to reconnect with the childlike wonder and play we had when we were little, the imagination that created a direct line into who we are as storytellers now.

“We are so grateful for the opportunity to collaborate for something so worthwhile. Thank you to APF for supporting the WGA and its writers! Especially those of us who share our time and energy between film and tv and our first love, theatre.”

Kristen Adele Calhoun: “While I was thinking about what I wanted to write, I was taken by how the strikes in our industry are a part of a larger labor movement that has been rising up for years. I wanted to highlight the struggles of some of our labor siblings fighting for fair wages in various sectors. Though our work couldn't be more different, our battles are the same.

“My experience with APF has been phenomenal. I'm beyond grateful that this award exists and honors fearless writing that speaks to the critical issues of our time. It is a dream come true to be selected particularly with a play that honors the radical genius, long history of organizing and fighting spirit of the Black American south.”

Eric Pfeffinger: “Every writer is chasing after respect and money. Conventional wisdom is that writing for the stage gets you respect and writing for the screen gets you money. It's always one or the other. And sometimes you don't get enough of either, hence the WGA's recent necessary and successful labor action. But the reason I've been in love with the American Playwriting Foundation since day one is because it asks, ‘Why not both?'”

Jon Haller: “This was therapeutic. Trying to think of an idea for a play about the strike was difficult at first because I didn't find much conflict on the picket line.  Only solidarity, thick-soled shoes and a lot of granola bars.  The conflict, the real fight, was between the writers and the corporations who have taken over and nearly destroyed our industry. My play came from a place of rage and fear, from wanting to speak truth to power, and imagining what someone who has had a lot less luck than I would get to say to the corporate CEOs who have put our livelihood in peril by prioritizing profits over all else. I'm thankful the American Playwriting Foundation gave me this opportunity and am relieved to retire my Hokas and eat something other than Nature Valley granola bars for breakfast.”

ABOUT THE AMERICAN PLAYWRIGHTING FOUNDATION, THE RELENTLESS AWARD AND BUILDING FOR THE ARTS:

The American Playwriting Foundation believes that the survival of writers is essential to our society and that writers deserve respect and support—financially and artistically. APF is committed to offering that support, and to celebrating writers' relentless spirit and invaluable creative contributions to American life.

The annual Relentless Award for full-length plays will return later this year.

The American Playwriting Foundation, established in honor of Philip Seymour Hoffman and his relentless pursuit of truth in the theater, has presented the Relentless Award annually to a playwright in recognition of a new work. In its mere eight years, the Relentless Award has become one of the most impactful award in theater in terms of launching some of theater's brightest new artists who are revitalizing the American stage: Obie Award-winner Aleshea Harris, whose plays have been produced non-stop since her Relentless win; Clare Barron, whose winning play Dance Nation went on to become a Pulitzer Prize finalist and winner of the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize; Harrison David Rivers, whose play The Bandaged Place was produced at Roundabout Theater Company; and Sarah DeLappe, whose play The Wolves has received over 500 productions.

Building for the Arts (BFA) expands access to the performing arts by providing creative space, learning opportunities, and hubs for artistic connection. BFA's signature projects – Theatre Row, Music and the Brain, and the American Playwriting Foundation– nurture artists, audiences, and youth with a focus on accessibility and inclusion.

PERFORMANCE DETAILS: 

The Relentless Award Ten Minute Picket Plays: Voices from the WGA Picket Lines
Directed by Dayna Taymor
Sunday, November 5, 2023 at 7:00 PM
Theatre Row
410 W 42nd St
New York, NY 10036
Ticket Information: americanplaywritingfoundation.org

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