John Whiting Award
Encyclopedia
The John Whiting Award (from 2007 renamed the Peter Wolff Trust Supports the John Whiting Award) is awarded annually to a British or Commonwealth playwright
who, in the opinion of a consortium of UK theatres, shows a new and distinctive development in dramatic writing with particular relevance to contemporary society. The award was established in 1965 to commemorate John Whiting
and his distinctive contribution to post-war British theatre. Until 2006, the selection was made by the drama panel of the Arts Council England
, and the play did not need to have been staged, which allowed plays produced on radio to be considered.
From 2007 only plays which have been performed in the subsidised sector will be eligible. The award was initially worth £1000, but is currently worth £6000 per year. From 2007, the award is supplied by the Peter Wolff Theatre Trust and is administered by a consortium of UK theatres which specialise in new writing.
The theatres currently involved are:
On October 1st, the shortlist for the 2010 award was announced ahead of the presentation of the prize on October 13th.
THE WHITING AWARD SHORTLIST 2010
http://twp.posterous.com/shortlist-announced-peter-wolff-theatre-trust
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
who, in the opinion of a consortium of UK theatres, shows a new and distinctive development in dramatic writing with particular relevance to contemporary society. The award was established in 1965 to commemorate John Whiting
John Whiting
John Robert Whiting was an English dramatist and critic.Born in Salisbury, England, he was educated at Taunton School. His works include:* A Penny for a Song. A play * Marching Song. A play...
and his distinctive contribution to post-war British theatre. Until 2006, the selection was made by the drama panel of the Arts Council England
Arts Council England
Arts Council England was formed in 1994 when the Arts Council of Great Britain was divided into three separate bodies for England, Scotland and Wales. It is a non-departmental public body of the Department of Culture, Media and Sport...
, and the play did not need to have been staged, which allowed plays produced on radio to be considered.
From 2007 only plays which have been performed in the subsidised sector will be eligible. The award was initially worth £1000, but is currently worth £6000 per year. From 2007, the award is supplied by the Peter Wolff Theatre Trust and is administered by a consortium of UK theatres which specialise in new writing.
The theatres currently involved are:
- Birmingham Repertory TheatreBirmingham Repertory TheatreBirmingham Repertory Theatre is a theatre and theatre company based on Centenary Square in Birmingham, England...
- Bush TheatreBush TheatreThe Bush Theatre is based in Shepherd's Bush, in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. It was established in 1972 above The Bush public house by Brian McDermott, and has since become one of the most celebrated new writing theatres in the world. An intimate venue renowned for its close-up...
, London - Cleanbreak, London
- Hampstead TheatreHampstead TheatreHampstead Theatre is a theatre in the vicinity of Swiss Cottage and Belsize Park, in the London Borough of Camden. It specialises in commissioning and producing new writing, supporting and developing the work of new writers. In 2009 it celebrates its 50 year anniversary.The original theatre was...
, London - Liverpool EverymanEveryman TheatreThe Everyman Theatre stands at the north end of Hope Street, Liverpool, Merseyside, England. Established in 1964 in a former cinema, it encouraged local talent and played a part in the development of new artistes and writers. The theatre was rebuilt between 1975 and 1977, and was closed again for...
- Liverpool PlayhouseLiverpool PlayhouseThe Liverpool Playhouse is a theatre in Williamson Square in the city of Liverpool, Merseyside, England. It originated in 1866 as a music hall, and in 1911 developed into a repertory theatre. As such it nurtured the early careers of many actors and actresses, some of which went on to achieve...
- Nottingham PlayhouseNottingham PlayhouseThe Nottingham Playhouse is a theatre in Nottingham, England. It was first established as a repertory theatre in the 1950s when it operated from a former cinema. Directors during this period included Val May and Frank Dunlop.-The building:...
- Nuffield TheatreNuffield TheatreNuffield Theatre may refer to:* The Nuffield Theatre at the Lancaster University* The Nuffield Theatre at the University of Southampton...
, Southampton - Paines PloughPaines PloughPaines Plough is a London-based British touring theatre company founded in 1974 by writer David Pownall and director John Adams. They named the company after their favourite pub, the Plough, where they would drink pints of Paines....
, London (touring) - Royal Court TheatreRoyal Court TheatreThe Royal Court Theatre is a non-commercial theatre on Sloane Square, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. It is noted for its contributions to modern theatre...
, London - Sgript CymruSgript CymruSgript Cymru is a Welsh theatre company that specialises in new writing in Welsh or English by Welsh and Wales-based playwrights.The company was created in 2000 and is based in the Chapter Arts Centre in Cardiff...
, Cardiff - Soho TheatreSoho TheatreSoho Theatre is a theatre in the eponymous Soho district of the City of Westminster. It presents new works of theatre, together with comedy and cabaret....
, London - Tamasha Theatre CompanyTamasha Theatre CompanyTamasha is a British theatre company founded in 1989 by director Kristine Landon-Smith and actor / writer Sudha Bhuchar with a mission to bring contemporary drama of Asian influence to the British stage....
, London - Traverse TheatreTraverse TheatreThe Traverse Theatre is a theatre in Edinburgh, Scotland. It was founded in 1963.The Traverse Theatre commissions and develops new plays or adaptations from contemporary playwrights. It also presents a large number of productions from visiting companies from across the UK. These include new plays,...
, Edinburgh
On October 1st, the shortlist for the 2010 award was announced ahead of the presentation of the prize on October 13th.
THE WHITING AWARD SHORTLIST 2010
- A Day at the Racists by Anders Lustgarten
- Behud by Gurpreet Kaur Bhatti
- Cock by Mike Bartlett
- Ditch by Beth Steel
- Free Folk by Gary Owen
- it felt empty when the heart went at first but it is alright now by Lucy Kirkwood
- Mish Gorecki Goes Missing by Skye Loneragan
- Moscow Live by Serge Cartwright
- Posh by Laura Wade
- Really Old Like 45 by Tamsin Oglesbury
- The Author by Tim Crouch
- What Fatima Did by Atiha Sen Gupta
| Year | Playwright | Play |
|---|---|---|
| 1967 | Tom Stoppard Tom Stoppard Sir Tom Stoppard OM, CBE, FRSL is a British playwright, knighted in 1997. He has written prolifically for TV, radio, film and stage, finding prominence with plays such as Arcadia, The Coast of Utopia, Every Good Boy Deserves Favour, Professional Foul, The Real Thing, and Rosencrantz and... |
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead |
| Wole Soyinka Wole Soyinka Akinwande Oluwole "Wole" Soyinka is a Nigerian writer, poet and playwright. He was awarded the 1986 Nobel Prize in Literature, where he was recognised as a man "who in a wide cultural perspective and with poetic overtones fashions the drama of existence", and became the first African in Africa and... |
The Interpreters The Interpreters The Interpreters were a Power pop band formed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1996. They were composed of singer/bassist Herschel Gaer, guitarist Patsy Palladino and drummer Branko Jakominich. In 1997 they released the EP "In Rememberance[sic] of That Fine, Fine Evening" which was produced by... |
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| 1967 | Peter Nichols Peter Nichols Peter Nichols FRSL is an English writer of stage plays, film and television.Born in Bristol, England, he was educated at Bristol Grammar School, and served his compulsory National Service as a clerk in Calcutta and later in the Combined Services Entertainments Unit in Singapore where he... |
A Day in the Death of Joe Egg A Day in the Death of Joe Egg A Day in the Death of Joe Egg is a 1967 play by English playwright Peter Nichols, first staged at the Citizens Theatre in Glasgow, Scotland before transferring to London's West End theatres in 1968.-Plot summary:Characters* Bri* Grace* Joe* Freddie... |
| 1968 | Peter Barnes Peter Barnes Peter Barnes was an English Olivier Award-winning playwright and screenwriter. His most famous work is the play The Ruling Class, which was made into a 1972 film for which Peter O'Toole received an Oscar nomination.... |
The Ruling Class The Ruling Class The Ruling Class is a 1972 British black comedy film. It is an adaptation of Peter Barnes' satirical stage play which tells the story of a paranoid schizophrenic British nobleman who inherits a peerage. The film costars Alastair Sim, William Mervyn, Coral Browne, Harry Andrews, Carolyn Seymour,... |
| Edward Bond Edward Bond Edward Bond is an English playwright, theatre director, poet, theorist and screenwriter. He is the author of some fifty plays, among them Saved , the production of which was instrumental in the abolition of theatre censorship in the UK... |
Saved Saved (play) Saved is a play written by Edward Bond, and was first produced at the Royal Court Theatre in November 1965. It was originally enacted privately, under "club" auspices, since the play was initially censored due largely to the infamous 'stoning of a baby' scene.The play itself is set in London during... |
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| 1969 | Howard Brenton Howard Brenton -Early years:Brenton was born in Portsmouth, Hampshire, son of Methodist minister Donald Henry Brenton and his wife Rose Lilian . He was educated at Chichester High School For Boys and read English Literature at St Catharine's College, Cambridge. In 1964 he was awarded the Chancellor's Gold Medal... |
Christie in Love Christie in Love Christie in Love is an early play by Howard Brenton concerning the life of serial killer John Christie, who murdered at least six women between 1943 and 1953, when he was caught, tried and hanged.-Stage history:... |
| 1970 | Freehold Company and Peter Hulton (joint) | Freehold on Antigone |
| 1971 | Mustapha Matura Mustapha Matura Mustapha Matura is a Trinidadian playwright living in London.In 1971 his play As Time Goes By was first performed at the Traverse Theatre Club in Edinburgh and the Theatre Upstairs at the Royal Court Theatre, with a cast of noted Caribbean actors including Stefan Kalipha, Alfred Fagon, Mona... |
As Time Goes By |
| 1972 | Heathcote Williams Heathcote Williams Heathcote Williams is an English poet, actor and award-winning playwright. He is also an intermittent painter, sculptor and long-time conjuror... |
AC/DC |
| 1973 | John Arden John Arden John Arden is an award-winning English playwright from Barnsley . His works tend to expose social issues of personal concern. He is a member of the Royal Society of Literature.... |
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| 1974 | David Rudkin David Rudkin James David Rudkin is an English playwright of Northern Irish descent. Coming from a family of strict evangelical Christians, Rudkin was educated at King Edward's School, Birmingham and read Mods and Greats at St Catherine's College, Oxford... |
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| 1975 | David Edgar David Edgar (playwright) David Edgar is a British playwright and author who has had more than sixty of his plays published and performed on stage, radio and television around the world, making him one of the most prolific dramatists of the post-1960s generation in Great Britain.He was resident playwright at the Birmingham... |
Destiny |
| 1976 | David Lan David Lan David Lan is an English playwright, filmmaker and theatre director.Born in Cape Town, South Africa in 1952, he emigrated to London in 1972. Since 2000 he has been artistic director of the Young Vic theatre in London's South Bank.-Career:... |
The Winter Dancers |
| 1977 | ||
| 1978 | David Halliwell David Halliwell David William Halliwell was a British dramatist.Halliwell was an art student at Huddersfield College of Art who later studied acting at RADA and was expelled for a time from the former institution... |
|
| Snoo Wilson Snoo Wilson Snoo Wilson, , born Andrew James Wilson, is an English playwright, screenwriter and director. His early plays such as Blow-Job were overtly political, often combining harsh social comment with comedy... |
The Glad Hand | |
| 1979 | Stephen Bill | The Old Order |
| 1980 | ||
| 1981 | David Pownall David Pownall David Pownall FRSL is a British playwright and author of novels and short stories. Some of his plays have been adapted as films, for instance, Music to Murder By , and others were written as radio plays.-Life and career:... |
Beef |
| 1982 | Karim Alrawi Karim Alrawi Karim Alrawi is a British/ Canadian/ Egyptian writer born in Alexandria, Egypt. His family emigrated to England then to Canada. Alrawi graduated from University College, University of London and the , England... |
Migrations |
| 1983 | Peter Flannery Peter Flannery Peter Flannery is a British playwright and screenwriter. He was educated at Bath Spa University and is best known for his work while a resident playwright at the Royal Shakespeare Company in the late 1970s and early 1980s... |
Our Friends in the North |
| 1984 | Ron Hutchinson | The Rat in the Skull |
| 1985 | Guy Hibbert Guy Hibbert Guy Hibbert is an award-winning screenwriter. He wrote the 2009 film Five Minutes of Heaven. This film was premiered at the 25th Sundance Film Festival, where Hibbert won the World Cinema Screenwriting Award.-External links:... |
On the Edge |
| Heidi Thomas Heidi Thomas Heidi Thomas is an English screenwriter and playwright.-Career:After reading English at Liverpool University, Thomas gained national attention when her play, Shamrocks And Crocodiles, won the John Whiting Award in 1985. Her play Indigo was performed by the Royal Shakespeare Company in their... |
Shamrocks & Crocodiles | |
| 1986 | Nick Dear Nick Dear Nick Dear is a writer for stage, screen and radio. He received a BAFTA for his first screenwriting credit, a TV adaptation of Jane Austen's Persuasion.... |
The Art of Success |
| 1987 | ||
| 1988 | Iain Heggie | American Bagpipes |
| 1989 | Billy Roche Billy Roche Billy Roche is an Irish playwright and actor. He was born and still lives in Wexford and most of his writings are based there... |
A Handful of Stars |
| 1990 | ||
| Lucy Gannon Lucy Gannon -Life:Lucy Gannon once worked as a military policewoman, a residential social worker, as well as a nurse and lived in a concrete council house with no central heating. Now she resides in a converted barn, in Derbyshire, and is one of the most sought-after TV writers aroundShe started in 1987, to... |
Keeping Tom Nice | |
| 1991 | Terry Johnson Terry Johnson (dramatist) Terry Johnson is a British dramatist and director working for stage, television and film. He is a Literary Associate at the Royal Court Theatre. At The Court he directed Dumb Show by Joe Penhall and opened his play Piano/Forte... |
Imagine Drowning |
| 1992 | Rod Wooden | Your Home in the West |
| 1993 | Martin Crimp Martin Crimp Martin Andrew Crimp is a British playwright.Sometimes described as a practitioner of the "in-yer-face" school of contemporary British drama, Crimp though rejects the label... |
The Treatment |
| Helen Edmundson Helen Edmundson Helen Edmundson is a British playwright particularly well-known for her adaptations of various literary classics for the stage.Edmundson's first play Flying was produced at the National Theatre Studio in 1990... |
The Clearing | |
| 1994 | Jonathan Harvey Jonathan Harvey (playwright) Jonathan Harvey is a British playwright whose work has earned multiple awards. He is also a former secondary school English teacher.-Life and works:... |
Beautiful Thing Beautiful Thing Originally Beautiful Thing is a play written by Jonathan Harvey and first performed in 1993. A screen adaptation of the play was released in 1996 by Channel 4 Films, with a revised screenplay also by Harvey. Initially, the film was only intended for television broadcast but it was so well-received... |
| 1995 | Joe Penhall Joe Penhall Joe Penhall is a British playwright and screenwriter.Born in London, his first major play was Some Voices for the Royal Court Theatre, London, in 1994, which won the John Whiting Award. It has twice been revived off Broadway... |
Some Voices |
| 1996 | Ayub Khan-Din Ayub Khan-Din Ayub Khan-Din is a British Pakistani actor and playwright.As an actor, Khan-Din participated in some 20 British films and TV series in the late 1980s and the 1990s... |
East is East East is East (film) East Is East is a 1999 British black comedy/drama film, written by Ayub Khan-Din and directed by Damien O'Donnell. It is set in a British household of mixed-ethnicity, with a British Pakistani father and an English mother in Salford, Lancashire, in 1971... |
| 1997 | Ann Coburn | Get up and Tie your Fingers |
| 1998/9 | Roy Williams Roy Williams (playwright) Roy Samuel Williams, OBE is an award-winning English playwright. Williams has many awards including the George Devine Award for Lift Off, the 2001 Evening Standard Award for Most Promising Playwright for his play Clubland, the 2002 BAFTA Award for Best Schools Drama for Offside and 2004 South Bank... |
Starstruck |
| 1999 | ||
| 2000 | David Greig David Greig (dramatist) David Greig is a Scottish playwright and theatre director.Greig was born in Edinburgh in 1969 and was brought up in Nigeria. He studied drama at Bristol University. He has been commissioned by the Royal Court Theatre, the Royal National Theatre and the Royal Shakespeare Company amongst others.His... |
The Cosmonaut's Last Message to the Woman He Once Loved in the Former Soviet Union The Cosmonaut's Last Message To The Woman He Once Loved In The Former Soviet Union The Cosmonaut's Last Message To The Woman He Once Loved In The Former Soviet Union is a 2005 play by David Greig set during the collapse of the Soviet Union.-External links:... |
| Tanika Gupta Tanika Gupta Tanika Gupta, MBE is a British playwright of Bengali origin. Apart from her work for the theatre, she has also written scripts for television.-Background and education:... |
The Waiting Room | |
| 2001 | Zinnie Harris | Farther than the Farthest Thing |
| 2002 | Peter Rumney | Jumping on my Shadow |
| 2003 | Rona Munro Rona Munro Rona Munro is a Scottish writer. She has written plays for theatre, radio, and television; was the author of the screenplay of Ken Loach's Ladybird, Ladybird and co-author of Aimée & Jaguar by German director Max Färberböck.Munro is also known for being the author of the last Doctor Who television... |
Iron |
| 2004 | Owen McCafferty Owen McCafferty Owen McCafferty is a playwright from Northern Ireland.Born in Belfast, Northern Ireland, McCafferty held several jobs, including tiling and working in an abattoir, before becoming a full-time writer... |
Scenes from the Big Picture |
| 2005 | Fin Kennedy | How to Disappear Completely and Never Be Found How to Disappear Completely and Never Be Found How to Disappear Completely and Never Be Found is a book by Doug Richmond, originally released in 1985, which is a how-to guide on starting a new identity, and has been described as "one of the odder self-help titles on the market"... |
| 2006 | James Phillips James Phillips (playwright) James Phillips is a British playwright and director.Educated at St Catherine's College, Oxford, Phillips' first play, The Rubenstein Kiss, won both the John Whiting Award and the TMA Award for Best Play... |
Rubenstein Kiss Rubenstein Kiss The Rubenstein Kiss is the debut play by British playwright James Phillips, and the winner of the John Whiting Award and the TMA Award for Best New Play.... |
| Fraser Grace | Breakfast with Mugabe | |
| 2007 | ||
| 2008 | Bryony Lavery Bryony Lavery Bryony Lavery is a British dramatist, known for her successful and award-winning 1998 play Frozen. In addition to her work in theatre, she has also written for television and radio... |
Stockholm Stockholm Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area... |
| 2009 | Alexi Kaye Campbell Alexi Kaye Campbell - Biography :Alexi Kaye Campbell was born Alexi Komondouros in Athens, Greece to a Greek father and British mother. He was brought up in Athens. After graduating from Boston University with a degree in English and American Literature, Kaye Campbell went on to study acting at The Webber Douglas... |
The Pride |
| 2010 | Tim Crouch | The Author |
| Lucy Kirkwood Lucy Kirkwood Lucy Kirkwood is a British playwright. She is writer in residence at Clean Break Theatre Company.Kirkwood is from East London and has a degree in English Literature from the University of Edinburgh where she performed as part of the improvisational comedy troupe, The Improverts.-History:In 2005,... |
it felt empty when the heart went at first but it is alright now | |
External links
- Arts Council England
- Peter Wolff Theatre Trust
- Birmingham Repertory Theatre
- Bush Theatre
- Cleanbreak
- Hampstead Theatre
- Liverpool Everyman & Playhouse
- Nottingham Playhouse
- Nuffield Theatre
- Paines Plough
- Royal Court Theatre
- Sgript Cymru
- Soho Theatre
- Tamasha Theatre Company
- Traverse Theatre
- The Stage
http://twp.posterous.com/shortlist-announced-peter-wolff-theatre-trust