By PAM HARBAUGH

Bill Hirschman, the new chair of the American Theatre Critics Association, handed our $41,000 to playwrights at the final evening celebration for the 2015 Humana Festival of New American Plays. The festival is held each year at the Actors Theatre of Louisville.

The prizes come from both the Harold & Mimi Steinberg/ATCA New Plays Competition and the M. Elizabeth Osborn Award for emerging playwright.

More than two-dozen plays were nominated for the prizes. The winners, and even many of those nominated, will be plays you will hear about. Some of them are already on Broadway or headed there. However, these awards are regional ones and celebrates the fresh work coming out from across the country. Requirements include having had a first world premiere by a professional production in the year in which the play is nominated; and NOT having had a production within that same year anywhere in New York City, whether on Broadway or not.

The Steinberg/ATCA winning plays are first place winner ($25,000) to Rebecca Gilman’s “Luna Gale,” special citation ($7,500) to Lucas Hnath’s “The Christians” and another special citation ($7,500) to Nathan Alan Davis’ “Dontrell, Who Kissed the Sea.” The $1,000 Osborn prize went to Tom Coash for “Veils.”

For detailed information about the plays, click on these YouTube links for the individual award presentations and the playwrights’ acceptance speeches.

Rebecca Gilman’s “Luna Gale” click here.
Lucas Hnath’s “The Christians,” click here.
Nathan Alan Davis’ “Dontrell, Who Kissed the Sea,” click here.
Tom Coash’ “Veils,” click here.

To read descriptions of all the Steinberg/ATCA finalists, go to this page on BrevardCulture.