Ayad Akhtar & Lucas Hnath Honored with Steinberg Playwright Awards

Pulitzer winner Ayad Akhtar, whose new play Junk is about to debut on Broadway, and recent A Doll's House, Part 2 Tony nominee Lucas Hnath have been named recipients of the 2017 Steinberg Playwright Awards. The acclaimed writers will be honored at a gala on December 4 at Lincoln Center Theater.

The Steinberg Playwright Awards are presented annually to honor the outstanding artistry and accomplishments of some of the most gifted American playwrights. Akhtar and Hnath will each receive a cash award of $50,000 from the Harold and Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust.

“I am so honored to share the company of the amazing artists who've won this award. I am deeply grateful to the Steinberg Trust for this support and very excited about the work this gift will make possible for me,” Akhtar said.

“I can’t really say anything about this incredible honor without saying a lot about the Steinberg Charitable Trust. Their support has meant a great deal to me over the course of my career. The Trust has created and sponsored programs that have helped me become the playwright I am, and now with this award, they are helping me continue to make theater—and grow and evolve and take even bigger risks,” Hnath said.

The Steinberg Playwright Awards are presented biennially to playwrights in early and middle stages of their careers, who have distinctive and compelling voices, and whose current bodies of work exhibit exceptional talent and artistic excellence. Past recipients have included Sarah Ruhl, Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, Dominique Morisseau, Stephen Adly Guirgis, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph.