Asst. Prof Thome Wins Prestigious Helen Merrill Award

Thome, assistant professor of theatre and performance, will receive $25,000.

Each year, the Helen Merrill Fund awards talented playwrights, and supports those in need of financial assistance. Theatrical agent Helen Merrill established the fund as part of The New York Community Trust to help playwrights pursue their talents with less financial pressure.

Thome is a Chilean and Costa Rican American playwright. Recent works include Fandango for Butterflies (and Coyotes), a music-theatre piece created with composer Sinuhé Padilla-Isunza and inspired by interviews with undocumented immigrants and the theatrical installation A Dozen Dreams, both commissioned by En Garde Arts.

Thome co-created the Lark’s México-U.S. Playwright Exchange and the satire group Fulana, and was a New Dramatists resident playwright.