2010 Recipient: Robyn Quick

At its annual conference, The Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of the Americas (LMDA) recognized the extraordinary achievement of dramaturg Robyn Quick. Quick spearheaded the New Russian Drama Project (www.newrussiandrama.org), a major effort to bring contemporary Russian drama to an American audience. The project brought together The Theatre Arts Department at Towson University and Philip Arnoult's Center for International Theatre Development (CITD). With Quick as a lynch pin, the two organizations partnered in a series of commissioned translations, classroom studies, productions at the professional and university level, and a series of artistic collaborations and exchanges. The Elliott Hayes Award was announced at the celebration concluding the conference, held this year in Banff, Alberta, Canada from June 29 – July 1.

The LMDA Prize in Dramaturgy is named in honor of Elliott Hayes, the late literary manager and dramaturg at The Stratford Festival in Canada. The Elliott Hayes Award, which is accompanied by a $500 prize, is presented annually in recognition of dramaturgical contributions to the conception, development, and / or production of specific theatre projects; for recent writing or other publications about dramaturgy or theatre in general; for contributions to an institution or theatre season; for significant accomplishments in advocacy for the field of dramaturgy; or for exemplary educational projects. 

This year the Award honors dramaturg Robyn Quick, Professor of Theatre at Towson University, and her work as project coordinator and season dramaturg for the New Russian Drama Project. The project focuses theatrical work created by Russian artists who came of age after the fall of the USSR. Says Quick: “Many artists and scholars still know little about this movement and have limited access to the plays themselves in translation. As a result, the plays have not yet found their place on U.S. stages or in academic study. Our project hopes to acquaint more people in the United States with this writing and to use the plays as a point of departure for enriching our understanding of the current social and cultural concerns of the Russian people. Given the historic tensions between the Soviet Union and the United States, as well as the environment of misunderstanding that still permeates our country’s relationship with Russia, insights we might gain about this culture from the plays seem particularly timely and necessary.”

Introducing the award at the LMDA banquet, LMDA President Shelley Orr praised Quick’s tireless dedication to the project and to the vital role of the dramaturg as collaborator, artist, and advocate: “There were 10 plays produced, dominating the university’s season. Just imagine convincing your whole institution to take on a three-year project of this kind, something that involved every faculty and staff member, and most of the graduate and undergraduate students. The dramaturg recruited and guided a team of more than 20 student dramaturgs, who received in-depth, first-hand experience working on new plays that provided a variety of challenges and invaluable learning experiences. The efforts all culminated in a recent three-day conference where nearly 100 theatre professionals were treated to 5 productions and 4 panel discussions with the playwrights discussing the work.”

Jay Herzog, Chair of the Department of Theatre Arts at Towson University, said of Quick’s work: “If you want to see a successful teacher of dramaturgy creating an outstanding level of interest and commitment for students, you only need to see what Robyn Quick has done. […] She is highly qualified, has found ways to incorporate the student into everything she does, and has created an experience this department, the university and the theatre community will recognize as a turning point for Russian Drama in America.” Quick was also praised by her collaborator Philip Arnoult, Director of the Center for International Theatre Development, a Baltimore-based arts organization with collaborative projects in countries from East Africa to Bulgaria. Arnoult praised Quick’s work this way: “Without [her] passion, determination, and really hard work, many of the voices of the new Russian drama would not have reached our national theatre community.”

With this award, Quick joins the select group of previous Elliott Hayes Award recipients: Michele Volansky and Lue Morgan Douthit (1999), Rebecca Rugg and Lynn Thomson (2000), Judith Rudakoff (2001), Megan Monaghan and Freddie Ashley (2002), Brian Quirt and Mallory Cattlett (2003), Scott Horstein (2004), Lee Devin (2005), Amy Steele and Melinda C. Finberg (2006), Ed Sobel (2007), Ilana Brownstein (2008) and Brian Quirt (2009).

 LMDA presents the Elliott Hayes Award in line with its core organizational objectives: to affirm, support, and broaden the roles that literary managers and dramaturgs play in the theatre; to promote the exchange of information about the function, practice, and value of literary management and dramaturgy, both within our membership and with theatre professionals, scholars, and the general public; to encourage cooperation among theatre professionals and their academic counterparts; and to expand the boundaries of the field to include other literary and performance media and institutions.

Like dramaturgy itself, the Elliott Hayes Award rests on the philosophy that creative inspiration and thoughtful analysis lead to theatrical productions and dramaturgical projects that achieve the highest artistic, social, and spiritual goals. 

For more information about Robyn Quick or the Elliott Hayes Awards, contact Danielle Mages Amato, LMDA’s President.