Judges Award for the 2022 Bruntwood Prize for Playwriting
The Judges Award was won by Ipswich-based writer, producer and actor, Martha Loader, for Bindweed: a ‘skilfully crafted, gripping inquiry that attempts to go to…
Nathan Queeley-Dennis’ debut play BULLRING TECHNO MAKEOUT JAMZ won the overall 2022 Bruntwood Prize for Playwriting at the 2022 Award ceremony here at the Royal Exchange Theatre. The Birmingham-born actor took home the £16k prize for Bullring Techno Makeout Jamz, ‘a joyful galloping hymn to Black friendship and love and tender masculinity’
A full list of 2022 winners:
The 2022 Bruntwood Prize for Playwriting: Bullring Techno Makeout Jamz by Nathan Queeley-Dennis
Nathan Queeley-Dennis is an actor born and raised in Erdington, Birmingham. His acting credits include Black Love (Kiln Theatre) written by Chinonyerem Odimba, Really Big and Really Loud (Paines Plough) written by Phoebe Eclair-Powell and A Taste of Honey (National Theatre). Bullring Techno Makeout Jamz is his first play, which follows Nathaniel; a young man on his journey of self-discovery as he explores Black masculinity through Beyoncé lyrics, techno raves and the deeply intimate relationship a man has with his barber.
The judges said: “Nathan’s voice bursts off the page in this vibrant, laugh-out-loud, and ultimately moving tribute to being young and on the rise in Birmingham. In a moment when joy is so easily diminished, this absolutely joyful shout feels like the most radical, political statement of all: to remind us that our birthright as humans is not just to survive, but to thrive.”
International Award for the 2022 Bruntwood Prize for Playwriting: The Red Lead 红铅 by Roshelle Fong (Australia)
Hong Kong-born, multidisciplinary artist Roshelle Fong, who is based in Naarm/Melbourne, Australia has been announced as the winner of the International Award. Chosen from a shortlist of five plays submitted via partners in Australia, Canada and the US, The Red Lead 红铅 is a portrait of sisterhood, survival and an attempt to rise up in 1542 Ming Dynasty China.
Hong Kong born multi-disciplinary artist Roshelle Fong wrote, directed and produced the Melbourne Fringe award-winning immersive show ‘nomnomnom’ in 2018, and is currently completing a Master of Theatre (Writing) at University of Melbourne’s Victoria College of the Arts. The Red Lead 红铅 is set in 1542 Ming Dynasty China, painting an anachronistic portrait of sisterhood, survival and an attempt to rise up.
The judges said: “At once epic and intimate, this entertaining play immerses us in 16th century China palace intrigue. Bold and surprising in its visual imagery and with a sharp, contemporary voice the story slices through layers of sexual politics and class, upending preconceived notions on a massive scale without ever losing sight of the young women at the centre, their humanity and bravery in the face of systemic oppression, and the hope that comes through collective action.”
North West Original New Voice Award 2022: Leave the Morning to the Morning by Patrick Hughes
Patrick Hughes has been announced as the winner of the new North West Original New Voice Award and Residency, launched in recognition of the Prize’s Manchester home, for Leave the Morning to the Morning, a story exploring family dynamics, speaking the truth, and the right to live and die on your own terms which the judges praised for its ‘intimate exploration of the wrenching complexities of mental health.’
Patrick Hughes is a playwright, dramaturg and script reader based in Liverpool, who seeks to support and develop new writers in the North-West of England. Leave the Morning to the Morning is a story of heartbreak, speaking the truth and the right to live and die on your own terms.
The judges said: “An intimate exploration of the wrenching complexities of mental health, this play grapples with how we care for each other and ourselves, and what it means to have the dignity of choice in the midst of impossibly painful decisions.”
Judges Award for the 2022 Bruntwood Prize for Playwriting: Bindweed by Martha Loader
The Judges Award was won by Ipswich-based writer, producer and actor, Martha Loader, for Bindweed: a ‘skilfully crafted, gripping inquiry that attempts to go to the root of violence against women’ which explores domestic violence from within a community-led perpetrator group programme and its effect on individual lives.
Based in Ipswich, Martha Loader is a writer, producer and actor, who won the ‘Award for Promising Young Playwright’ presented by Richard Curtis at INK Festival 2019. She is an alumni of the Mercury Playwrights, Soho Writers Lab and HighTide Writers programmes. Bindweed follows the facilitator of a perpetrator programme for domestic abusers, whose life outside of work begins to buckle.
The judges said: “A skilfully crafted, gripping inquiry that attempts to go to the root of violence against women, mapping the many pathways it takes through our society. With an unflinching determination, the writer takes us through the painful realities that continue to plague our communities, refusing to simplify and demanding that attention be paid.”
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