Artists Rep Honors Andrea Stolowitz with Folwer/Levin Prize

In early 2011, two longtime supporters of Artists Repertory Theatre approached Producing Artistic Director Allen Nause with a proposal to commission a new script to be produced and performed at Artists Rep. In January 2011, Artists Repertory Theatre invited playwrights from across the county to submit their ideas for the now-named Fowler/Levin Prize. Of the 14 playwrights who submitted proposals, Andrea Stolowitz's play concept was the unanimous choice by the artistic leadership at the theater."We are grateful to Stephanie Fowler and Irving Levin for supporting Artists Rep's longstanding commitment to new work with their tremendously generous gift," said Allen Nause, Producing Artistic Director. "Andrea Stolowitz is an amazingly gifted playwright whose work I have long admired and I look forward to this new play with great excitement and anticipation!"

Stolowitz's challenging new work explores the life of a woman Marine who served in Afghanistan and her subsequent re-entry to civilian life.The play, currently being written, follows the emotional journey of this woman through the American landscape, as she is forced to either face her demons or be consumed by them. Stolowitz's work draws from interviews with veterans and their families.

This is a play "about the intensity of human connections in a war zone and at home," says the playwright, Andrea Stolowitz. "[This is] a play for our times about war, friendships, guilt, being human, and staying alive."

With the generosity and vision of the commissioning donors, Stephanie Fowler and Irving Levin, Artists Rep will support the writing of this script with plans to workshop it in 2012 and present the world premiere of the work in our 2012/13 Season.

Andrea Stolowitz is a graduate of the MFA playwriting program at the University of California San Diego. She has had her plays developed and presented at many venues, including The Cherry Lane, The Old Globe, The Long Wharf, New York Stage and Film, and Mill Mountain. She is a member of the Dramatists Guild. She has served on the theater studies faculty at Duke University and UC San Diego. She was a fellow at The Sewanee Writers Conference in 2005, completed a residency at Ledig House Writer's Colony in the fall of 2006, was awarded a North Carolina Playwrights Grant in 2007 and has received grants from the Regional Arts and Culture Council as well as the Oregon Arts Commission. Stolowitz is a recipient of a 2012 Oregon Literary Arts Fellowship.

This new play commission has been supported by residencies at Hedgebrook, The Whiteley Center, and also through a grant from the Susatainable Arts Foundation.

Her play, Knowing Cairo, had its professional world premiere at The Old Globe Theater (San Diego) in 2003. The play received the Fremont Centre Theatre's New Play Prize, was a finalist at the Mill Mountain Theater New Play Festival and the Kennedy Center Fund for New American Plays award, and was the runner-up for the 2003 Princess Grace Award at New Dramatists. Knowing Cairo was published by Playscripts Inc in the fall of 2006 and was part of the 2008 New York Stage and Film/Vassar summer season.

Other plays include: Seascapes, which was the winner of the Women at the Door New Play Competition (2003), a finalist for the O'Neill National New Plays Conference (2003), a finalist for Play Labs at the Playwrights Center; Tales of Doomed Love, which was developed at the StreetSigns Center for Literature and Performance(Chicago) and the Artists of Tomorrow festival (NYC), was produced in Washington, DC as part of the 2008 Capital Fringe Festival, and named best new script in 2004 by the Triangle Independent.

She has written other full-length plays that have been finalists for various awards and prizes including the Jerome Foundation Grant, PlayLabs, the JET Theatre New Play Prize, the O'Neill National Playwrights Conference, and The Princess Grace Award.

Stolowitz's play, Antarktikos, was workshopped at Artists Repertory Theatre as a part of The Fertile Ground Festival, a Portland festival of new works, including theater, dance, and music. Antarktikos is being produced in March 2013 at Pittsburgh Playhouse.

The 2011/12 Artists Repertory Theatre season is presented by the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation. The 2011 print media sponsor is The Oregonian, the season radio sponsor is KINK.FM. Season hotel sponsors are Mark Spencer Hotel and Hotel deLuxe. Other support comes from All Classical, Oregon Arts Commission, the Regional Arts & Culture Council, Work for Art and Maletis Beverage.

Entering its 30th year with the 2012/13 Season, Artists Repertory Theatre is the longest-running professional theater company in Portland. Artists Rep strives to challenge artists and audiences with plays of depth and vibrancy in an intimate setting. Artists Rep explores the strengths, frailties, and diversity of the human condition primarily through regional premieres, commissioned works and selected classics appropriate to contemporary issues.

Photo credit: Roxanne Spiegel