Emerging Difficulties
by Richard Gleaves
After the debate over the 2009 San Diego Art Prize about what exactly is an emerging artist, it was fascinating to come across the very same debate taking place in a parallel universe.
Here are the relevant quotes:
After awarding Tony Kushner a record-breaking $200,000 for distinguished playwriting last fall, the Steinberg Trust suddenly realized there was a problem with its plan to present its other newly created award to two emerging playwrights this year. “What we immediately discovered was that we all described ‘emerging’ differently,” said Oskar Eustis, artistic director of the Public Theater in New York and a member of the selection committee. Some of his colleagues thought the prize, created by the Harold and Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust, was geared towards writers just a year out of school, while others considered “emerging” to refer to a playwright in mid-career.
Defining “emerging playwright” turned out to be like grasping a handful of Jello. Committee members settled on the idea that a writer was still emerging five years after a first production, only to soon note that someone could still be emerging 10 years out, said Ms. [Polly K.] Carl.
Mr. Eustis joined Ms. Carl’s end of the spectrum. Though the final selections are “not identical to who I would have picked,” Mr. Eustis said, he too understands the rough financial circumstances that face even accomplished playwrights. “It wasn’t really bitter, but every one of us is acutely conscious of how hard a life these writers have,” he said. “We didn’t feel like we could give a prize on the basis of need, but what would burst out consistently was, ‘Do you know what this money could mean?’”
This year all three winners have been produced by at least one member of the advisory committee. To Mr. Eustis, such connections are inevitable, since they are in the business of producing promising playwrights. As he said, quoting another producer, “No conflict, no interest.”