What's Happening!

  • GRIEF HOTEL RETURNS FOR FOUR WEEKS AT THE PUBLIC THEATER

    We are thrilled to announce that Grief Hotel – which ran to sold-out houses at Summerworks, and was recently recognized with three Obie Awards – will return for four weeks this spring, in residency at The Public Theater. And we’re excited to add that we’ll be bringing it back in partnership with our friends at New Georges. We hope you’ll join us (or join us again!) for this special production – CLICK FOR TICKETS

  • APPLY FOR THE CLUBBED THUMB NEW PLAY DIRECTING FELLOWSHIP

    In this five-month new play directing intensive, three fellows work on 30-minute commissioned pieces with writers from the Clubbed Thumb community. These plays are developed over the course of a semester with Playwrights Horizons Theater School student and alumni actors, in rehearsal rooms at Playwrights Downtown. In January, the same plays are rehearsed in the same rooms in quick processes with professional actors, and performed as part of Winterworks: a five-day industry showcase.

     

    LEARN MORE AND APPLY HERE

  • CONGRATULATIONS - AND A SAVE THE DATE

    This weekend, we were delighted by the news that Maryann Plunkett, dots, Liza Birkenmeier and Tara Ahmadinejad had all received Obie Awards for their work on Summerworks. Richly Deserved!

    Maybe you are one of the many many people who heard how amazing Liza, Tara and dots’ work on Grief Hotel was, and were sorry to have missed it??

    WELL GUESS WHAT! It’s coming baaaack…. this spring! Location to be announced when ticket sales open — but SAVE THE DATE!

  • WINTERWORKS 2024 HAS COME TO A CLOSE

    Thank you to the hundreds of people who joined as at Houghton Hall for the 9th annual Winterworks. We were so proud of the work these amazing artists made — and we managed to cram everyone in to share it.

  • WINTERWORKS 2024

    Happy new year! We’re back with our 9th Annual Winterworks – a progressive performance of three short-ish plays, which culminates our New Play Directing Fellowship – featuring:

    Lauren Zeftel directing MY SIX THERAPISTS by Julia Izumi

    Carsen Joenk directing WATCH ME by Justice Hehir

    Miranda Cornell directing CHAIRS by Hayley Stahl

    with an incredible ensemble of actors. There are only 7 showings, and capacity is extremely limited! Tickets are free, but an RSVP is required.

  • MEET THE INCOMING COHORTS OF OUR EARLY-CAREER WRITERS' GROUP AND NEW PLAY DIRECTING FELLOWSHIP

    We’re back in action with two new groups to introduce you to! Meet the Early-Career Writers – with whom we’ll convene for play reading and dinner eating, often joined by one of their estimable mentor writers – by CLICKING HERE. During Summerworks we’ll present readings of their plays-in-progress, so join us then to get to know their work.

     

    And get to know the directors and writers in this season’s New Play Directing Fellowship by CLICKING HERE. Program mentors Anne Kauffman and Daniel Aukin, along with Clubbed Thumb staff, will support these new play processes in two phases: first with Playwrights Horizons Theater School students this fall, then in quick and scrappy workshop productions at Winterworks in January. Stay tuned for more info on that and more!

     

  • THANK YOU FOR MAKING OUR GALA A BIG SUCCESS!

    This fall’s Gala, celebrating our dear friend and collaborator Anne Kauffman, was beautiful, moving and very fun. Thank you to everyone who attended, contributed a song or a bit of writing, volunteered, donated and otherwise supported this very special night.

     

    See more photos from the event on our Instagram (and tag @clubbedthumb if you’re posting your own) — we’ll have more in the coming days!

     

    At the event, we raised funds in honor of Anne to help us better support the directors in our community – and we happily exceeded our goal. But there’s no such thing as a late donation! If you’d like to contribute to the fund, CLICK HERE

  • SUMMERWORKS #26 HAS COME TO AN END

    Thank you to the artists, craftspeople, technicians, production staff, interns and everyone else who made this year’s Summerworks possible. We are immensely proud of the work we put out into the world, and delighted by how it was received.

    And thank you to thousands of audience members who came out to see a show – our largest attendance ever! It is moving to see so many old friends and so many new faces gathered together in the Wild Project. With each iteration, our community expands. Thanks for being a part of it.

    We’ll be spending the next two months wrapping things up and making plans for the future. You’ll hear from us in a few weeks, as we announce the cohorts of next year’s programs, and a few other projects we have cooking.

    Until then: have a great summer!

    Maria, Michael & Rachel

  • LUNCH BUNCH RETURNS!

    “DRAGON FRUIT! BLACK BELUGA LENTILS! PERFECTLY SOFT-BOILED EGGS!” Seven public defenders seek meaning, belonging, and some semblance of order via their frenzied quest for the perfect lunch – while battling ACS, inequality, burnout, and a big ole serving of existential dread.

    It is with great delight that we share the news that, at long last, a big hit of both Winterworks AND Summerworks 2019, NYT’s Critic’s Pick Lunch Bunch is returning for a limited run, with The Play Company. CLICK FOR TICKETS

  • Meet the soon-to-be graduates of Brown University's MFA Playwriting Program

    We’re excited to join forces once again with Brown University’s MFA Playwriting Program in the Department of Theatre Arts & Performance Studies
    to present readings of plays by two new graduates: Alexa Derman and Jesús I. Valles, on Mon April 2nd and Tue April 3rd at Playwrights Horizons.

  • OUR NEW ANTHOLOGY - ON SALE NOW

    We’ve been eager to put out a second anthology since Funny, Strange, Provocative was published in 2007, and the last year finally provided us with the time to take on this long-awaited project. We are thrilled to announce that Unusual Stories, Unusually Told, published by Bloomsbury/Methuen, is now available!

    In it you’ll find seven Clubbed Thumb plays that span 18 years of our history, as well as essays and interviews about the work, and the often atypical processes that led to their productions.

    Read more about the book and get your discounted copy (and our first anthology) HERE

SUMMERWORKS 2011

Enfrascada

By Tanya Saracho
Directed by Jerry Ruiz

With Flora Diaz, Annie Henk, Anna Lamadrid, Jessica Pimentel, Christina Pumariega

Sets by Steven C. Kemp
Costumes by Emily DeAngelis
Lights by Christian DeAngelis
Sound by Jana Hoglund
Stage Manager Mary Spadoni

In which Alicia tries to make time go backward, ensnarling her expressive friends, their conjurers, and a lot of jars.

June 5 – 11, 2011

Our Lot

By Kristin Newbom and W. David Hancock
Directed by May Adrales

With Joanna P. Adler, Nathan Hinton, Mariann Mayberry, Paul Niebanck

Sets by Timothy Mackabee
Costumes by Alixandra Gage Englund
Lights by Gina Scherr
Sound by Ryan Maeker
Stage Manager Lizzy Lee

In which three siblings clear out their dead step-dad’s trash. Or is it their legacy? And who gets the haunted van?

June 12 – 18, 2011

Civilization (All You Can Eat)

By Jason Grote
Directed by Seth Bockley

With Jeff Biehl, Reyna de Courcy, Melissa Miller, Andres Munar, Melle Powers, Elizabeth Rich, Tony Torn

Sets by Laura Jellinek
Costumes by Jessica Pabst
Lights by Raquel Davis
Sound by Shane Rettig
Choreography by Dan Safer
Stage Manager Sunneva Stapleton

In which ambitious gurus, entertainers, wage slaves and a giant pig let their appetites get the better of them.

June 19 – 25, 2011