2024 New Play Award WINNER -
'CIRC' by Eddie Grey
When an eighteen year old boy undergoes an elective circumcision, he's confronted with his soon-to-be-excised body part in human form, demanding answers. What follows is an exploration of Australian queerness, wherein the boy is thrust back into his seminal sexuality-forming memories in order to provide an answer, so that he can wake up from this nightmare.
Eddie Grey’s Bio: I write, direct & act and the Guinness world records says I’m the first and only person to do that. Now to third person so it's less cringe: Eddie's scripts have won accolades and been produced into short films. As an actor he has appeared on Broadway in shows including The Book of Mormon and Harmony to name exactly two. In his spare time he loves to write bios. @eddiepgrey website; eddie-grey.com
2024 New Play Award RUNNER-UP -
'Snakeface' by Aliyah Knight
Snakeface is a modern day retelling of the myth of Medusa, exploring power, sexuality, creation and destruction. Following the titular Snakeface from age 13 to 23, It’s a revenge fantasy which confronts our relationship with rape-culture, and asserts that victims don’t have to be perfect.
Aliyah is a storyteller and performer living and working on unceded Gadigal land. She is passionate about telling queer and diverse stories. Aliyah is the recipient of Performance Space’s 2024 Stephen Cummins Residency, during which they are developing a new hybrid work THE DOG HOUSE. She is also a member of ATYP’s Fresh Ink cohort, and will have her short play Four Legs Good performed as part of ATYP’s 2024 Intersection Festival. @a1iyahknight ; aliyahknight.com
2024 New Play Award Finalist -
'Riot' - Composed by Paul Hodge & Libretto by Michelle Law
RIOT is an original opera-musical inspired by true events. In 1888, Chinese-Australian siblings Ding and Li move to Brisbane on the eve of a state election. But when an anti-Chinese race riot erupts on election day, Ding and Li must choose whether or not to flee their home country.
Paul Hodge is an award-winning writer-composer from Brisbane, Australia. Paul’s work has been produced Off-Broadway, in London, Edinburgh and Australia, including at the Sydney Opera House. Paul is currently developing the musical adaptation of the iconic Australian/BBC children’s TV show Round The Twist. With Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg, the Academy Award-nominated and Tony Award-winning writers of Les Miserables and Miss Saigon, Paul is co-lyricist of Martin Guerre, which will premiere in London. @pauljmhodge ; pauljhodge.com
Michelle Law is an award-winning writer and actor working in print, screen and stage. Her works include the plays, Single Asian Female (La Boite Theatre Company), Top Coat (Sydney Theatre Company), and Miss Peony (Belvoir); the television show Homecoming Queens (SBS); and the book Asian Girls are Going Places (Hardie Grant). @msmichellelaw ; ms_michellelaw (X) ; http://michelle-law.com/
2024 New Play Award Finalist -
'The God Algorithm’ by Ross Mueller
What happens when the Prime Minister believes he can Speak in Tongues? Do the Staffers believe he believes this, or do they organise a coup? The God Algorithm is an imagined political comedy thriller set inside the modern-day Temple to power, ambition, greed and lost principles, Parliament House, Canberra.
Mueller’s plays have been performed at Griffin, Melbourne Theatre Company and STC. He has been a writer in residence at Royal Court London & New York New Dramatists NYC. In 2020 he won the Georgi Markov Award at the BBC. In 2022 his comedy, A Simple Act of Kindness was nominated for most Outstanding New Writing in the Victorian Green Room Awards. He is the co-founder of Pelican Nation and Director of Australian Writers Theatre. @TheMuellerName (X) ; www.pelicannation.com.au
2024 New Play Award Finalist -
'This Motherless Earth' by Kate Vozella
This Motherless Earth unfolds two decades after a virus decimated the female population, leading to enforced sterilizations and the introduction of synthetic children. When two childhood friends unexpectedly reunite, they uncover secrets that challenge everything they thought they knew about their drastically altered world.
Kate Vozella (she/her) is an Australian multidisciplinary artist and playwright based in New York City. Her work, spanning theater, film, and movement, has been acclaimed at venues like the National Portrait Gallery of Australia and on platforms such as Google Arts + Culture Hub. Her play "Burning Falling Rising Monster," was shortlisted by Platform Presents and is set for a 2025 NYC production with Arterial Projects starring Damon Daunno and Gabby Beans. Vozella currently sits on the judging panel for the Scholastic Artists & Writing Awards. katevozella.com