Julia Cho Among Recipients of Windham-Campbell Prizes; Each To Receive $165,000

Playwrights Aleshea Harris (What to Send Up When it Goes Down, Is God Is) and Julia Cho (Aubergine, Office Hour) the Windham-Campbell Prizes for drama. They are each recipients of $165,000.

Cho plays haver been seen early in her career at New Haven’s Long Wharf Theatre, including “Office Hours.”

The awards were established in 2013 by novelist Donald Windham in memory of his partner, Sandy M. Campbell. The prizes honor literary achievement written in English,. Eight writers are honor annually: two each in drama, poetry, fiction and non-fiction.

The awards will be given out in September in New Haven during an annual international literary festival at Yale celebrating the honored writers with a series of open-to-the public free readings and talks and lectures.

The other 2020 winners, who are nominated and judged anonymously, are: in fiction, Yiyun Li, from the U.S., and Namwali Serpell from the U.S. and Zambia; in poetry, Jonah Mixon-Webster from the U.S, and Bhanu Kapil from the U.S. and the U.K.; and in nonfiction, Anne Boyer from the U.S., and Maria Tumarkin from Australia. 

In 2019, the prize in drama was awarded to Young Jean Lee, and in 2018, to playwrights Suzan-Lori Parks (In the Blood, Fucking A) and Lucas Hnath (A Doll’s House, Part 2; The Christians).

Information:t WindhamCampbell.org.