NEW YORK — The Relentless Award, the largest annual cash prize in American theater awarded to a playwright for a new full-length work, is marking its 10th anniversary this year.
The prize, which alternates annually with a musical-theater honor, recognizes fearless work by American applicants who have not previously had a production. It was created in honor of Philip Seymour Hoffman, the late actor known for his relentless pursuit of truth in art, and expanded in 2020 to include a musical theater component in memory of Adam Schlesinger, co-founder of Fountains of Wayne.
The Relentless Award is administered by the American Playwriting Foundation and has become a launching pad for rising writers. The foundation and Katz have said that beyond the cash prize, the award provides a platform for productions that otherwise might be difficult to mount in today’s theater ecosystem. The goal, Katz has said, is to give artists a much-needed breathing room while also expanding the legacies of Hoffman and Schlesinger.
Past winners have gone on to notable successes. Aleshea Harris’ 2016 winner Is God Is was adapted into a film starring Janelle Monáe, Vivica A. Fox, Sterling K. Brown and Kara Young. Alicia, another recipient highlighted by Katz, is cited as exemplifying the award’s aim to change lives at a moment when artists feel financially strained. The Wolves by Sarah DeLappe and Dance Nation by Clare Barron, joint winners in 2015, helped propel both writers toward Pulitzer Prize finalist consideration, Katz notes, underscoring the award’s broader impact on theater.
This year’s honoree is Jack D. Coen, winner in the current cycle for his musical Jo Jenkins Before the Galactic Court of Consciousness. Coen will receive $65,000, and his musical—along with the works of the finalists—will be celebrated at a ceremony and performance on Oct. 12 at Building for the Arts’ multi-theater complex, Theatre Row. Chris Collingwood of Fountains of Wayne is slated to perform as part of the evening.
Jo Jenkins Before the Galactic Court of Consciousness is described as an inventive, existential sci‑fi comedy about a marine biologist who becomes an actuary and must defend humanity before an intergalactic council. Katz says the show tackles the environmental crisis in a fresh way, arguing that a musical approach can move audiences in ways that polemics alone may not.
“The first step was getting this money to artists that need it and giving them a launching place and some notoriety,” Katz says. “But the dream was also then to be able to put it up because that is the hardest thing to get done now. Everybody has readings and no one has a production.”
The selection process is anonymous, and the 2024–25 committee includes Katz, Rachel Bloom, Jason Robert Brown, David Javerbaum, Sam Hollander, Laura Grill Jaye, Lynn Nottage, Brontez Purnell and Lucy Thurber, among others. The American Playwriting Foundation emphasizes that the award aims to provide both financial support and a path to production for new work with real-world impact.
The annual ceremony at Theatre Row provides a rare visibility window for writers whose works have often struggled to reach commercial stages. By pairing prize money with a staged presentation, the foundation hopes to give writers a credible opportunity to reach audiences, investors and program directors who shape the next season’s calendar.
As the Relentless Award enters its second decade, Katz and the foundation say the emphasis remains on empowering artists to tell urgent stories with originality and courage. The award’s legacy, they contend, lies not only in the prize money but in the momentum it creates for a generation of writers who might otherwise be squeezed out of the industry.