The Writers’ Gathering Announcement – September 21-28, 2019
It is with great excitement I announce to you the creative writers selected to join me in Israel for their first steps on the soil of an ancient land which continues to change the course of history. Beyond seeing some of the most recognized sites in the country the following writers will be meeting many people of story with varied perspectives who call this place home. It is a historic time to understand stories of the past, experience the momentum of the present, and envision the future.
Thanks to all who have generously donated to make this happen and those of you who will commit to sustain The Writers’ Gathering vision. To be part of this story click here.
Enjoying the walk home,
Cindy Bayer
Erika Dickerson-Despenza
Playwright and Educator
Erika Dickerson-Despenza is a Blk feminist poet-playwright, cultural worker, educator and grassroots organizer from Chicago, Illinois. She’s the recipient of the 2019 Princess Grace Playwriting Award and was a 2018 Relentless Award Semifinalist. She’s the 2019-2020 Tow Playwright-in-Residence at Public Theater, a 2019 Writers’ Gathering Jerusalem Writer-in-Residence, a 2019 New York Stage and Film Fellow-in-Residence, a 2019 New Harmony Project Writer-in-Residence, a 2018-2019 Dramatists Guild Foundation Fellow and was The Lark’s 2018 Van Lier New Voices Fellow. Erika is a 2019-2020 member of Ars Nova Play Group and a member of Ensemble Studio Theatre’s Obie-winning Youngblood collective. Her work has been developed at The Lark, Vineyard Arts Project, New York Stage and Film, Public Theater, Victory Gardens Theater, Fault Line Theatre and Jackalope Theatre.
Anne Nelson
Non-Fiction Writer, Educator, Screenwriter, Playwright
Anne Nelson is an award-winning author and educator who has addressed issues of human rights and freedom of expression in a variety of media. Her most recent books, Red Orchestra (2009) and Suzanne’s Children (2017), tell the true stories of anti-Nazi resistance movements in Berlin and Occupied Paris. Suzanne’s Children was a finalist in the National Jewish Book Award. The two books have been published in a dozen different countries in various languages. Nelson’s play “The Guys” recounted her experience helping a New York fire captain write eulogies for the men he lost on September 11. It has been produced in all fifty states and some fifteen countries, and as a feature film starring Sigourney Weaver.
Crystal Skillman
Playwright, TV writer, Comic Book writer, Educator
Plays include: OPEN (NYTimes and TONY Critics Pick), GEEK, KING KIRBY, ANOTHER KIND OF LOVE, and CUT. She is the author of the play PULP VÉRITÉ (Director: Margot Bordelon) which was workshopped at the Playwrights Foundation last fall and just announced on the 2019 Kilroy’s List as Honorable Mention. Her play RAIN AND ZOE SAVE THE WORLD, winner of the 2018 EMOS Prize, was presented in an industry reading at MTC Studios this spring. Crystal is the musical theater book writer of MARY AND MAX (composer/lyricist: Bobby Cronin) which was awarded the 2018 MUT Award Critics Prize. MARY AND MAX recently premiered at Theatre Calgary, and has just announced its European premiere this fall at Landestheater Linz.
