News & Events
The Recipients of the 2024 Jonathan Larson® Grants Announced
Two special concerts showcasing this year’s grant winners will be held on March 31 at Joe’s Pub
The American Theatre Wing (ATW), led by President and CEO Heather Hitchens, is thrilled to announce the recipients of the 2024 Jonathan Larson® Grant, the esteemed annual prize awarded to exceptional emerging musical theatre composers, lyricists, and librettists, or writing teams.
This year’s winners are: Fred Ebb award-winning song and book writing duo Cheeyang Ng (Composer / Book Writer) and Eric Sorrels (Lyricist / Book Writer); composer and lyricist Joriah Kwamé (Little Miss Perfect); Richard Rodgers Award-winning composer Dylan MarcAurele (Pop Off, Michelangelo!); award-winning composer and lyricist Kate Douglas (The Apiary, Centuries); and song and book writing duo of Shannon Burkett (The Female Pope) & Obie Award-winning composer Heather Christian (Oratorio for Living Things). Each person/group will receive a $16,000 unrestricted grant in addition to a $2,500 Saw Island Foundation Recording Grant to support the production of new demo recordings that better represent the artist’s vision.
Two special presentations, showcasing the work of this year’s Jonathan Larson® Grant winning artists, will be held on March 31 at Joe’s Pub, 425 Lafayette Street, at 6:30pm (invite only) and 9:00pm (open to the public). Tickets for the 9:00pm concert are available now, on a pay-what-you-can system. For more info, visit https://publictheater.org/programs/joes-pub/.
“We are continuously bowled over by this generation of composers, lyricists, and book-writers shaping the next wave of musical theater. The talent and range of this year’s Jonathan Larson Grant winners is profound, and many were not strangers to us, having been finalists in previous years,” says Heather Hitchens. “We are so grateful to our expert panel – each a star and thought-leader in their own right – for their indefatigable work. Please join us on March 31 to experience first-hand these future stars of musical theater!”
The 2024 Jonathan Larson® Grant recipients were selected by an expert panel consisting of: Artistic Director of the Public Theater Oskar Eustis; talent and literary agent at Creative Artists Agency Kevin Lin; Obie, Drama Desk, and Outer Critics Circle Award winning actor and comedian Larry Owens; and Grammy nominated composer and lyricist and past Jonathan Larson® Grant recipient Rona Siddiqui.
The American Theatre Wing’s Jonathan Larson® Grants are awarded annually to exceptional, emerging musical theatre composers, lyricists, and librettists, or writing teams. Recipients are given a platform to amplify stories, and free rein in the application of the grant – which serves as pivotal support to take their professional development to the next level and, in many cases, their work from creative concept to stage. The grants – named for seminal composer Jonathan Larson, who posthumously won a Pulitzer Prize and four Tony Awards – regularly serve as an indicator of who will be the next great theater-makers and culture-shapers. Past recipients include such luminaries as: Pasek & Paul (Dear Evan Hansen, La La Land), Michael R. Jackson (A Strange Loop), Tom Kitt and Brian Yorkey (Next to Normal), Shaina Taub (Suffs), Chad Beguelin and Matt Sklar (The Prom, Elf), Amanda Green (Bring it On, Mr. Saturday Night), Nell Benjamin (Mean Girls, Legally Blonde), Matt Gould (Lempicka, Invisible Thread), Laurence O’Keefe (Heathers, Legally Blonde), Dave Malloy (…The Great Comet), Nathan Tysen (Paradise Square), Steven Lutvak (A Gentleman’s Guide …), Glenn Slater (Sister Act, School of Rock), Joe Iconis (Be More Chill), Kait Kerrigan (The Great Gatsby), Bree Lowdermilk (The Mad Ones), and more.
2024 Jonathan Larson® Grant Winners – HEADSHOTS and BIOGRAPHIES
ARTISTS’ WEBSITES:
ABOUT THE AMERICAN THEATRE WING:
The American Theatre Wing (Heather Hitchens, President and CEO) invests in brave work, supports creative growth, and celebrates excellence in bringing inclusive stories to our national culture through theatre. Founded by seven suffragists in 1917, on the eve of America’s entry into World War I, the American Theatre Wing has spent a century honoring theatrical achievements and fostering artistry, by providing a platform for strong and fearless voices in the American theatre.
In addition to being the founder and co-presenter of the Tony Awards®, and the home of the OBIE Awards, the American Theatre Wing offers a powerful suite of programs that address all aspects of the national theatre ecology. Venerable programs like the Andrew Lloyd Webber Initiative nurture the work of young artists by providing access to theatre through education; esteemed annual prizes like the Jonathan Larson Grants and National Theatre Company Grants create essential pathways to success for emerging professionals; and unique resources like Master Class, The Network for Emerging Leaders, and the Emmy-nominated Working in the Theatre series, offer artists with unparalleled opportunities to connect and learn from industry luminaries. To learn more about the extensive programming and grant opportunities for students, theatre professionals, and audiences, visit AmericanTheatreWing.org. For the latest updates and news, follow the Wing on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube.
