THE ORIGEN OF LOVE (sic) by Anderson Cook at Dixon Place

The unnerving (and unconventionally-spelled) play THE ORIGEN OF LOVE by Anderson Cook (MFA '18) will be seen at Dixon Place in January. Full details about the production can be found here.

Amy Gijsbers van Wijk to be published in ONE MINUTE PLAYS from Routledge

PROS & CONS by Amy Gijsbers can Wijk (MFA '16) will be included in ONE MINUTE PLAYS: a practical guide to tiny theatre, edited by Steve Ansell and Rose Burnett Bonczek. The book will be published by Routledge in the new year.

John-Paul Nickel nominated for Writers Guild Award

John-Paul Nickel (MFA '08) is a 2016 Writers Guild Awards nominee for his episode of Amazon Studios' JUST ADD MAGIC.

Carnegie Mellon reaffirms its commitment to inclusion and diversity.

On November 9, 2016, the president of the university, Subra Suresh, reaffirmed the campus's commitment to inclusion and diversity. "In order to achieve that diversity and fully include all members of our community, we must respect our different experiences, perspectives and identities, in all that we say and do," said President Suresh. "We will not be deterred from that aspiration by internal or external circumstances."

You can read the full statement here.

THE SUBJECT, global project by Carolyn Kras, addresses sexual assault

THE SUBJECT by Carolyn Kras (MFA '10) has received readings around the world to raise awareness of sexual assault and protest lenient rape sentences. The play was developed with the support of a Fulbright LUSK Award.

Whitney Rowland's YOUR PRINCESS IS IN ANOTHER CASTLE at Pittsburgh New Works Festival

Whitney Rowland's comic-con fantasia YOUR PRINCESS IS IN ANOTHER CASTLE runs through September 24 at the Pittsburgh New Works Festival.

Julianne Jigour's BRIGHT SHINING SEA in San Francisco

Julianne Jigour's (MFA '15) short play BRIGHT SHINING SEA is in the PlayGround Festival of New Works in San Francisco this month.

CMU playwright in Thailand: Josh Ginsburg's STICK FIGURES

STICK FIGURES by Josh Ginsburg (MFA '14), first seen in the New Works Series at Carnegie Mellon, is running at Thong Lor Art Space in Bangkok, where it is being performed in Thai and English on alternating nights.

ALLERGEN by Jess Honovich in Providence's Festival51

The second annual Festival51 celebration of plays by women in Providence, Rhode Island, will produce ALLERGEN by Jess Honovich (MFA '17). The four winning plays were selected from over 400 submissions to the festival from female writers worldwide.

Liza Birkenmeier and James McManus in City Theater's Momentum Festival

City Theatre in Pittsburgh will feature the work of two CMU playwrights in this year's Momentum: New Plays at Different Stages Festival.

RADIO ISLAND by Liza Birkenmeier (MFA '12) was also a finalist for the inaugural Philip Seymour Hoffman Relentless Award, and Ms. Birkenmeier was recently named a member of the Emerging Writers Group at the Joseph Papp Public Theater.

DRY BONES is a new play from James McManus (MFA '06), who is a resident playwright at New Dramatists and winner of the Helen Merrill Playwriting Award.

Dan O'Neil's BEAR SLAYER at Ars Nova

BEAR SLAYER will be produced in New York as part of Ars Nova's Project Residency. The play is a collaboration between playwright Dan O'Neil (MFA '11), director Joshua William Gelb (CMU Directing MFA), and choreographer Katie Rose McLaughlin, and has its distant origins in classwork at the School of Drama.

Amy Gijsbers van Wijk at Horizon Theatre and PearlArts Studios

Amy Gijsbers van Wijk (MFA '16) will serve as an MFA mentor for the New South Young Playwrights Festival at Horizon Theatre Company in Atlanta, Georgia, from May 30–June 4. She will spend the week mentoring the high school and college playwrights whose work will be presented at the festival.

In addition, Ms. Gijsbers van Wijk collaborated on a multidisciplinary piece using virtual reality at PearlArts Studios in Pittsburgh. The piece, LOVUSCHKE, is the subject of this article in The Brooklyn Rail.

WHERE ALL GOOD RABBITS GO produced at Alfred University

WHERE ALL GOOD RABBITS GO by Karina Cochran (MFA '16) was produced at Alfred University in New York in April 2016, in a production directed by Nazim Kourgli.

SPACE GIRL by Mora V. Harris named a Kendeda Finalist

SPACE GIRL by Mora V. Harris (MFA '16) has been named a finalist in the Alliance/Kendeda National Graduate Playwriting Competition, which solicits plays from the leading MFA graduate programs in the United States. A one-of-a-kind opportunity for emerging playwrights, the Competition transitions student playwrights to the world of professional theatre. Readings of SPACE GIRL will be presented in New York and at the Alliance Theatre in Atlanta.

BOXED IN by Mora V. Harris is a finalist for the John Cauble Award

BOXED IN by Mora V. Harris (MFA '16) has been named a National Finalist for the John Cauble Award for Outstanding Short Play. A reading of the play will be presented at the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival from April 12–16 in Washington, DC.

Dan Giles wins the Mark Twain Prize

BREEDERS by Dan Giles (MFA '15) is the recipient of the Mark Twain Prize for Comic Playwriting. This comes with a $1000 cash award, an invitation to the Kennedy Center for the KCACTF National Festival April 12-16, membership in the Dramatists Guild and with the Playwrights’ Center in Minneapolis, and a professional development residency.

Isabella D'Esposito a TEDxBroadway Young Professional

Isabella D’Esposito (MFA ’17) was selected for the TEDxBroadway Young Professionals Program, underwritten by The Nederlander Organization and The Shubert Foundation.

OCEANUS by Dan Hirsch to be developed in Bay Area

OCEANUS by Dan Hirsch (MFA ’17) will be part of Custom Made Theatre Company’s New Works Development program. The San Francisco company is part of the National New Play Network, which fosters rolling world premieres of new additions to the canon of dramatic literature.

Jess Honovich's NO MORE MONSTERS at Theater Masters

Jess Honovich (MFA '17) is a 2016 Theater Masters winner. Her play NO MORE MONSTERS will be produced in Aspen and New York and published by Samuel French.

Whitney Rowland invited to Mid-America Theatre Conference

UMBRELLAS FOR EVERYONE by Whitney Rowland (MFA ’17) will be part of the Playwriting Symposium’s Dramatists Play Lab at the 37th annual Mid-America Theatre Conference in Minneapolis.

Eugenie Carabatsos wins Steinberg National Student Playwriting Award

WE WILL NOT DESCRIBE THE CONVERSATION by Eugenie Carabatsos (MFA ’16) is the recipient of the Harold and Mimi Steinberg National Student Playwriting Award. This comes with a $5000 cash award, an invitation to the Kennedy Center for the KCACTF National Festival April 12-16 (all expenses paid), membership in the Dramatists Guild and with the Playwrights’ Center in Minneapolis, and a professional development residency to be mutually determined. In addition, Samuel French will publish the play.

Levi Jelks receives Lorraine Hansberry Award

A IS FOR APRON by Levi Jelks (MFA ’16) is the co-recipient of the Lorraine Hansberry Playwriting Award. This comes with a $1000 cash award, an invitation to the Kennedy Center for the KCACTF National Festival April 12-16, membership in the Dramatists Guild and with the Playwrights’ Center in Minneapolis, and a professional development residency to be mutually determined.