The Old Globe is pleased to announce the inaugural Powers Playwriting Fellowship, a new program committed to supporting playwrights, fostering relationships and collaborations, and establishing The Old Globe as a center for the creation of new plays. The Fellowship is generously funded by Paula and Brian Powers and will be managed by The Old Globe’s New Plays and Dramaturgy Department under the direction of its Director of New Plays and Dramaturgy Danielle Mages Amato. In its first iteration, the nominated and selected Fellows for the 2024 cohort are Mathilde Dratwa, Nimisha Ladva, and Seayoung Yim.

The Powers Playwriting Fellowship provides a unique opportunity for three playwrights to spend 18 months in collaboration with The Old Globe. The $20,000 Fellowship allows the writers to work on a project of their choosing, spend time in San Diego to write and research, and meet regularly with the artistic staff of the Globe. The Fellowship will culminate in a workshop and a publicly streamed presentation of the playwright’s Fellowship project. For this inaugural round of the Fellowship, writers were chosen from nominations by playwrights who have previously participated in the Powers New Voices Festival. The Fellowship represents a broadening of the Globe’s new play infrastructure, as well as a desire to support playwrights in process in a more robust way.

Potential fellows for the inaugural Powers Playwriting Fellowship were nominated by the network of playwrights who participated in the first 10 years of the Globe’s annual Powers New Voices Festival, and the finalists were chosen by the Globe’s artistic staff and resident artists. The 18-month fellowship for Mathilde Dratwa, Nimisha Ladva, and Seayoung Yim was effective on January 1, 2024.

The nominating circle for the 2026 Powers Playwriting Fellowship will be announced in 2025.

Major funding for the Powers Playwriting Fellowship is provided by the Powers New Works Fund. Financial support for The Old Globe is provided by The City of San Diego. The Theodor and Audrey Geisel Fund provides leadership support for The Old Globe’s year-round activities.

Press Release