Clare Barron Wins 2017 Susan Smith Blackburn Prize

Playwright Clare Barron has received the 2017 Susan Smith Blackburn Prize for her new play Dance Nation. The award was presented in a ceremony held March 6 at Playwrights Horizons.

The Susan Smith Blackburn Prize is awarded annually to recognize women from around the world who have written works of outstanding quality for the English-speaking theater. Evan Cabnet, artistic director of LCT3 and one of this year's judges, presented Barron with the prize, which comes with a $25,000 award and a signed and numbered print by artist Willem de Kooning.

Dance Nation will be presented at Playwrights Horizons in April 2018. The work follows the trials and tribulations of a preteen dance competition.