The longlist for the company’s inaugural Phil Fox Award for Playwriting has been confirmed.
As the UK’s only theatre company and participatory arts charity focused on addiction, Outside Edge Theatre Company has announced details of its first Phil Fox Playwriting Award.
Named after OETC’s founder who passed away in 2014, the long list was selected from 350 entrants. The prize was created to recognise original scripts by playwrights from all backgrounds and experience levels, tackling issues around addiction.
The long list is as follows:
- A is for Appy by Dominic McHale
- A short guide to staying alive by Olga Nikora
- Bitter by Louise Coulthard
- Boomerang by Jack Stanley
- Circle Game by Sophie Swithinbank
- Daisies and iPhones by Daphne Di Cinto
- Drift by Kristian Phillips
- Empty Orchestra by Mark Fenton
- Entropy by Kate Reid
- Grotesque, Stupid and Ungrateful by Natalie Jones
- Jerk by Nick Edgeworth
- Lessons for Diving by Silas Parry
- Necropolis by John Straiton
- Nibble Nibble Gnaw by Isla Cowan
- Parlour Games by Simon Glass
- Pushing on Open Doors by Sarah Connors
- Skinhead Moonstomp by Karen Brown
- Squirrels by Ayse Evans
- The Goodest Boys by Vikki Stone
- Well Wishes by Matthew McGuigan
- What’s Lost in the Gaps by Jack Robson
The winning script will be announced on 4th November and the chosen playwright will receive a £6,000 commission and mentorship from chair of the judging panel, Tony Award-winning playwright Enda Walsh.
Joining Walsh on the judging panel is Matt Applewhite (Nick Hern Books Managing Director and Commissioning Editor), Barbara Broccoli OBE (Film Producer), Sonya Hale (OETC Associate Theatre Facilitator and Heretic Voices award-winning playwright), Indhu Rubasingham (Artistic Director of the Kiln Theatre), Matt Steinberg (OETC Artistic Director) and Simon Stephens (Tony and Olivier Award-winning playwright of The Curious Incident of the Dog In The Night-Time).
Talking about the prize Artistic Director of Outside Edge Theatre Company Matt Steinberg today said, “We have been overwhelmed with the enthusiastic response to Outside Edge’s inaugural script competition. Playwrights with a range of experience from across the country have sent us extraordinary plays about the varied aspects of addiction, with stories ranging from substance misuse to social media addiction. The creativity of the writers and ingenuity of these plays are a fitting tribute to the legacy of our founding Artistic Director, Phil Fox, whose lived experience of moving from addiction to recovery remains at the heart Outside Edge Theatre Company’s unique programme of work.”
To find out more about the prize or the the theatre company visit: http://edgetc.org/