Samuel D. Hunter named MacArthur Fellow

Samuel D. Hunter, a Core Writer at the Playwrights’ Center from 2011 to 2014, has been awarded a MacArthur Fellowship, commonly called the “genius grant.”

According to the MacArthur Foundation, “The MacArthur Fellows Program awards unrestricted fellowships to talented individuals who have shown extraordinary originality and dedication in their creative pursuits and a marked capacity for self-direction.” Fellows receive no-strings-attached stipends of $625,000, paid out over five years.

Playwrights’ Center audiences will remember Hunter’s The Few from our 2011-12 Ruth Easton New Play Series (premiered at The Old Globe in 2013). He also developed A Great Wilderness here, which premiered at Seattle Repertory Theatre in January, 2014.

Congratulations, Sam!