Barbour Playwrights Award 2023

On Wednesdays in June, EAG is partnering with The Skeleton Rep(resents) for our annual Barbour Playwrights Award! Together, we will present readings of three new plays, with one writer being awarded a prize of $500.

Wednesday, June 7 at 7:00 PM

Confessional by Emily Claire Schmitt

When the unsolved shooting of a Catholic high school girl rocks the tight-knit community of Staten Island, New York, Abby, who has begrudgingly moved back after years of living in Manhattan, finds herself inexplicably drawn back to the people and patterns of her youth. Is her creeping sense of guilt merely a byproduct of her Catholic upbringing, or are the persistent memories of sinister encounters with her own brother pointing her toward a darker truth? Confessional is a story of the questions we avoid asking and the secrets we keep from ourselves.

Directed by Ria T. DiLullo. Featuring Sam Given, Jamie Lorenzo, Marc Pierre, Juan Roman Jr., Gael Schaefer, and Isabella Jane Schiller.

Wednesday, June 14 at 7:00 PM

Abhinaya: A Dance Play by Veda Kumarjiguda

Avni is preparing for her arangetram, her Indian classical dance debut. Her training grounds her, even as her family falls apart. Money struggles, divorce, secrets, and the failed American dream combine with stories from the Ramayana and Mahābhārata. Abhinaya: A Dance Play explores the role of classical arts in the modern world.

Directed by Ria T. DiLullo. Featuring Yamini Kalluri, Shubhangi Kuchibhotla, Anuj Parikh, Avanthika Srinivasan, Girija Surya, and Preeti Vasudevan.

Wednesday, June 21 at 7:00 PM

Un Hombre: A Golem Story by Stephen Kaplan

A modern-day golem story about Rebecca Wolfson, a recently widowed single mother, who makes a clay man that comes to life and serves as a Bar Mitzvah and Spanish tutor for her 12-year-old son. As mother and son get wrapped up in the distractions that this seemingly perfect solution to their problems offers, the clay man begins questioning his own existence and purpose, forcing all three to confront the truths they’ve all been avoiding.

Directed by Ben Freeman. Featuring Jesse Castellanos, Tamra Paselk, and Sebastian Ruiz.

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In 2007, EAG established this special award to honor the legacy of actor, playwright and EAG member Thomas Barbour (Arthur, Great White Hope) whose support for emerging artists was an inspiration to many. The Barbour Award was established and endowed by Janet Barbour Carhart, Alison Barbour Fox, and from a portion of the gift left to EAG by Mr. Thomas Barbour’s estate. All proceeds from the staged readings of the Barbour finalists’ plays go directly to supporting future Barbour Awards.

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The Episcopal Actors' Guild (EAG) (est. 1923) provides emergency aid and support to professional performers of all faiths who are undergoing financial crisis. We are also dedicated to helping emerging artists advance their careers through scholarships, awards, and performance opportunities. For 100 years, we have been a safety net, providing crucial services to ensure the well-being of NYC's vital community of individual performing artists. ​www.actorsguild.org

The Skeleton Rep(resents) is a new works development company with a mission to explore modern myth through the sincere practice of craft. Their intention is not only to bring myths from the past into the present, but more importantly, to work with those preexisting narratives, archetypes, and structures in order to explore what is mythical about our own age.

Emily Claire Schmitt: Emily Claire Schmitt is a playwright and screenwriter focused on uncovering the mystical in the modern world. She is a frequent collaborator with The Skeleton Rep and is currently the Executive Director of The Catholic Artists Connection. Her musical The Inconvenient Miracle (with Ria T. DiLullo and Emily Rose Simons) recently played at EAG as part of their Open Stage space grant. 

Veda Kumarjiguda: Veda Kumarjiguda is a writer based in Queens, New York. She is a Primary Stages Echoes Writer in 2021-2022. Her theatrical work has appeared at New Jersey's South Asian Theater Festival and the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

Stephen Kaplan: Recent productions include: Tracy Jones (NNPN Rolling World Premiere) and Branwell (and other Brontës)…. Other plays produced off-Broadway at 59E59 and regionally. A 2021 Individual Artist Fellowship winner in playwriting from the NJ State Council on the Arts and finalist: Bay Street, Seven Devils, Woodward/Newman and semi-finalist: O’Neill, Bay Area, PlayPenn, and more. www.bystephenkaplan.com

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EAG's Covid Safety Rules: Masks are strongly recommended but no longer required in Guild Hall. Please stay home if you are sick or if you have tested positive for covid. For more details, please visit www.actorsguild.org/covid-safety-protocols.

Directions: The Episcopal Actors’ Guild (EAG)/Guild Hall is located at 1 EAST 29th STREET, NYC 10016 (midblock between Madison and Fifth, between #3 and #9 East 29th Street) on the second floor of the Church of the Transfiguration (aka the Little Church Around the Corner). We are NOT the big church on the corner of Fifth Avenue; that's Marble Collegiate. When you arrive at the Little Church, enter through the main gate and go through the garden to the door marked Guild Hall (between the main doors into the church and the door to the parish office).

Getting Here: The closest subways are the R/W or 6 at 28th Street or the B/D/F/M or N/Q/R/W at 34th Street/Herald Square. If you are arriving by bus, take the M1, M2, M3, M5, M6, or M7.

Lobby: Guild Hall does NOT have a lobby or waiting area. You are welcome to enjoy the Little Church’s garden (weather permitting) if you arrive before the house opens.

Accessibility: Guild Hall is not a fully ADA-compliant venue. However, we do our best to accommodate all patrons. Guild Hall is located up one flight of stairs (20 steps). There is no elevator; however, a stair chair is available for those who need assistance making it up to or down from Guild Hall. EAG’s staff will be happy to assist you upon request.

Late seating: We cannot guarantee late seating.