honoring John Logan Playwright & Screenwriter Recognized with Prestigious Award from Alma Mater Theater
Waterford, CT (April 23, 2019) — The Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, honored playwright and screenwriter John Logan with the 19th Monte Cristo Award. An alumnus of the O’Neill, John developed the musical Superhero, seen this season off-Broadway, at the O’Neill’s 2017 National Music Theater Conference and his Moulin Rouge bows on Broadway this summer. The gala evening celebrating Logan’s many achievements took place at the Edison Ballroom in New York City.
The O’Neill annually bestows its Monte Cristo Award on a prominent artist whose work has had an extraordinary impact on American theater, in memory of its namesake. The gala event supports the Center’s commitment to developing new work and new artists for the stage. A paddle raise supports scholarships for the Center’s undergraduate school, the National Theater Institute.
The evening commenced with remarks from Lin-Manuel Miranda, followed by remarks and performances by Forrest McClendon, Tom Kitt, Kate Baldwin, Kyle McArthur, Michael Grandage, Reed Birney, Sam Lilja, Bill Damashchke, Aaron Tveit, Cian McCarthy, and Tom Viertel. Judith Light presented Logan with the 2019 Monte Cristo Award, remarking: “The O’Neill is a paradise for an artist. The freedom that you have to explore and collaborate is a gift. John understood this instinctively and took advantage of every minute, every audience, as he developed [his musical Superhero at the O’Neill]. He truly embodies the O’Neill spirit.”
The O’Neill’s Executive Director Preston Whiteway said, “The American theater owes so much to John Logan, as a playwright and screenwriter, John creates singular and transformative stories that touch our common humanity. It is a particular delight to honor one of own this year, and one who has such broad impact on American culture – his work and his words shape American theater, film, television, music. I look forward to his many forthcoming projects and am grateful for the entire theater community’s support of John and the O’Neill.”
While accepting the Monte Cristo Award, Logan reflected on the importance of the O’Neill’s work: “For over 50 years, the O’Neill has been helping young artists like me – young yearlings who barely know how to stand – find a voice. And we in the theatre are about listening for and encouraging those voices. I’m overwhelmed and very thankful to be part of the ongoing O’Neill story.”
For more information, please visit: www.theoneill.org/mca and follow us @O’Neill_Center #ONeillMCA.
About the Honoree:
John Logan received the Tony, Drama Desk, Outer Critic Circle and Drama League awards for his play Red. This play premiered at the Donmar Warehouse in London and at the Golden Theatre on Broadway. Since then Red has had more than 200 productions across the US and has been presented in over 30 countries. In 2013, his play Peter and Alice premiered in London and I’ll Eat You Last: A Chat with Sue Mengers opened on Broadway. He also co-wrote the book for the musical The Last Ship and is the author of more than a dozen other plays including Never the Sinner and Hauptmann. Upcoming theater work includes Superhero at Second Stage, Moulin Rouge on Broadway, and a new adaptation of The Duchess of Malfi for the West End. As a screenwriter, Logan has been three times nominated for the Oscar and has received a Golden Globe, BAFTA, WGA, Edgar, and PEN Center award. His film work includes Skyfall, Spectre, Hugo, The Aviator, Gladiator, Rango, Genius, Coriolanus, Sweeney Todd, The Last Samurai, Any Given Sunday, Alien: Covenant, and RKO 281. He created and produced the television series Penny Dreadful for Showtime.
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About the Monte Cristo Award:
The Monte Cristo Award is presented to a prominent individual each year in recognition of a distinguished career exemplifying Eugene O’Neill’s “pioneering spirit, unceasing artistic commitment, and excellence,” and furthering the American theater.
Past recipients of the Award include actors Judith Light, Meryl Streep, Michael Douglas, Nathan Lane, Christopher Plummer, James Earl Jones, Jason Robards, Jr., Zoe Caldwell,Brian Dennehy, & Karl Malden; playwrights August Wilson, Wendy Wasserstein, Edward Albee, & Neil Simon; directors Harold Prince & George C. Wolfe; and Lin-Manuel Miranda & Arthur & Barbara Gelb.
About the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center:
The Launchpad of the American Theater, the O’Neill is the country’s preeminent organization dedicated to the development of new works and new voices for the American theater. Founded in 1964, and named in honor of Eugene O’Neill, four-time Pulitzer Prize-winner and America’s only playwright to win the Nobel Prize in Literature, the O’Neill has been home to more than 1,000 new works for the stage and thousands more emerging artists. Scores of projects developed at the O’Neill have gone on to full production at theaters around the world. O’Neill programs include the National Playwrights Conference, National Music Theater Conference, National Critics Institute, National Puppetry Conference, Cabaret & Performance Conference, and National Theater Institute – which offers six credit-earning undergraduate training programs. In addition, the O’Neill owns and operates the Monte Cristo Cottage as a museum open to the public. The O’Neill is the recipient of two Tony Awards and the National Medal of Arts. www.theoneill.org.
