Spending the last two months with Deep Blue Sound has been a joy and a balm. We are deeply proud of the work, and humbled by the talent and dedication of this company of artists.
The show played for six sold-out weeks and we added as many shows as we could – but sadly, we closed this weekend. Thank you to the over 4,000 people who came to visit our island. And thank you to all the artists, staff, funders and friends who made it possible. This was a special one.
New play directors who have worked at least three years outside of an educational setting, and who plan to be in NYC September 2025 through January 2026, are welcome to apply for the fellowship by completing the form HERE – applications due April 1st!
Our “devastatingly beautiful” production from Summerworks 2023 returns for a limited engagement, in residence at the Public Theater. Now playing! CLICK HERE FOR TICKETS
Thank you to the hundreds of people who joined as at Playwrights Downtown for the 10th annual Winterworks. We were so proud of the work these amazing artists made — and we managed to cram everyone in to share it. Congratulations especially to Directing Fellows Iris McCloughan, NJ Agwuna and Laura Dupper – read more HERE
This year we lost one of our great comic dramatists: Christopher Durang. We’ve been reflecting on how powerful and much-needed savage humor like his is in a world like ours today. So, for the 10th Biennial Commission, please consider his work, especially from the 1980’s. Applications are due March 20th, 2025. Read more and submit yours HERE
We are thrilled to announce that Deep Blue Sound – which ran to sold-out houses at Summerworks 2023 – will return for five weeks this winter. After a wildly successful run of Grief Hotel earlier this season, we are excited to return to The Public Theater with another Summerworks hit. CLICK FOR TICKETS & INFO
Monday night’s Gala, celebrating our dear friends and collaborators dots, was beautiful, moving and very fun. Thank you to everyone who attended, performed, volunteered, donated and otherwise supported this very special night.
See photos from the event on our Instagram (and tag @clubbedthumb if you’re posting your own)!
At the event, we raised funds in honor of dots to help us better support the designers 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
The last six months were the busiest in our history. We started with Winterworks at Houghton Hall in January, followed by six weeks of Grief Hotel at the Public in the spring, and we rounded it all out with Summerworks at the Wild Project, where we managed to cram in 47 performances over seven weeks.
Some of you saw it all, some just a piece, and some met our work for the first time. We were thrilled to share it with all of you.
Here are some photos and essays from the season, to tide you over until we have work to share again in the fall (or when we see you at our gala honoring dots!)
Lastly: We had our most successful season at the box office ever. If you were there, you know it was full to overflowing. And you might remember that your ticket was pretty affordable—maybe even free. That’s important to us.
But what that means is, even when we sell out all the time, tickets only cover a fraction (about 1/7th) of what it all costs, especially considering we pay people better every year (That’s important to us too!)
Throughout the year, we support hundreds of artists, mostly early in their careers, whether in our writers or directors groups, readings, workshops, commissions, retreats, or in production. So, if you can, make a donation today and be a part of our effort to pay artists, to make beautiful, affordable work, and to do it even better next year!
We were thrilled to bring Summerworks 2023’s Obie-winning hit production Grief Hotel back for a six-week run at The Public Theater, in partnership with our friends New Georges. It was very special to dig back into the play and production with the exceptional group of artists who made it, and such a joy to share it with so many more people. We had a tremendous run – sold out, extended and beloved by critics and audiences – thank you to all who attended and to all who made it possible. CLICK HERE TO READ ESSAYS AND MORE ABOUT THE SHOW
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
by Anne Washburn
directed by Johanna McKeon
With Jeff Biehl, Elliotte Crowell, Laura Flanagan, Jennifer R. Morris, James Stanley, Jay Smith, T. Ryder Smith
Sets by Michael Carnahan
Costumes by Carol Ann Pelletier
Lights by Driscoll Otto
Sound by Emily Wright
Choreography by Karinne Keithley
In which true prophets, false prophets, and non-prophets battle for the salvation of ancient New York.
June 4 – 10, 2006
by Erin Courtney
directed by Pam MacKinnon
With Cohlie Brocato, Maria Dizzia, Sheri Graubert, Quentin Maré
Sets by Sue Rees
Costumes by Kirche Leigh Zeile
Lights by Dans Maree Sheehan
Sound by Jeremy J. Lee
In which an influential self-improvement guru suddenly finds herself the one who needs help.
June 11 – 17, 2006
by Rachel Hoeffel
directed by Kip Fagan
With Gerry Bamman, Zuleyma Guevara, Elizabeth Meriwether, Benjamin Pelteson, Everett Quinton
Sets by David Evans Morris
Costumes by Jessica Pabst
Lights by Garin Marschall
Original Music/Sound Design by Eric Shim
In which a paranoid paralegal negotiates loss, cigarette smoke, and sex in the supply closet.
June 18 – 24, 2006
Featuring the works of David Adjmi, Scott Adkins, Deron Bos, Andy Bragen, Kirsten Greenidge, Jason Grote, Kristin Kosmas, Julie Marie Myatt, Kristen Palmer, Molly Rice, Sonya Sobieski, Adam Szymkowicz, Alison Tatlock, Chris Wells, Gary Winter, and Anna Ziegler.
Direction by Scott Adkins, Sarah Benson, Samuel Buggeln, Mallory Catlett, Shana Gold, Maria Goyanes, Josh Hecht, Kristin Kosmas, Lou Morena, Brooke O’Harra, Katie Pearl, Mike Shapiro, Sarah Sunde, Chris Wells, Miriam Weiner, and Paul Willis.
These past five years have included more change than most, but in the shadow of all the Time Magazine-sized events are equally interesting stories, from the papers as well as from our own lives. People lose all their hair, paper fortunes are lost, waves of diet programs sweep the nation, seemingly ubiquitous celebrities disappear from view, extreme weather cycles shift. Come to the Ohio by 8pm on the 31st for this special (and we mean that in a slightly mysterious way) presentation, and help us usher in our 11th festival of new work.
Wednesday, May 31, 2006 at 8pm
by Rinne Groff
directed by Hal Brooks
With Andrew Dolan, Meg MacCary, Piter Marek, Merritt Wever
Sets by Jo Winiarski
Costumes by Kirche Leigh Zeile
Lights by Kirk Bookman
Sound by Jill BC DuBoff
In which a woman becomes an architect and builds a dream home, but only in her dreams.
January 7 – 28, 2006