NEW YORK CITY: The Apothetae and the Lark have named Drewcella Davis as the 2020-22 Apothetae and Lark Playwriting Fellow. The fellowship includes a two-year residency supported by the National Endowment for the Arts, the Ford Foundation, and the Howard Gilman Foundation.

The fellowship provides financial and artistic support and advocacy for d/Deaf and disabled writers with a cash award of $40,000, a $5,000 Opportunity Fund for project-related expenses, and a $10,000 Production Enhancement Fund to be allocated to a producing theatre in support of a full production of one of the fellow’s plays. In addition, the Lark and the Apothetae will provide resources, including artistic program participation, office and rehearsal space, and staff support.

“It has been a difficult year,” said Gregg Mozgala, Apothetae founder and artistic director, in a statement. “Our field has essentially been brought to a standstill by a killer virus that feeds on the very things that make gathering and being in community with one another to make and enjoy theatre so unique. It is with no small amount of gratitude that, despite all the hardships of this year, we are able to offer a second cycle of the Apothetae and Lark Playwriting Fellowship and Initiative, and to announce a new fellow and cohort of finalists.”

Davis, a finalist for the 2018-20 fellowship, was selected from a pool of 70 applicants by a committee of Apothetae and Lark artistic staff, as well as individual artists aligned with the program’s mission. Members of this year’s selection committee included Brian Balcom, Chicago-based director; Andrea Hiebler, director of Scouting and Submissions, the Lark; Tim J. Lord, inagural Apothetae & Lark Playwriting Fellow;  Mozgala; and Krista Williams, Roundtable and casting director, the Lark.

Two finalists for the award, Nikki Brake-Sillá and A.A. Brenner, were chosen as the inaugural recipients of the Jody Falco and Jeffrey Steinman Award, which offers each a $5,000 honorarium. Brake-Sillá and Brenner will also participate in Lark artistic programs.

“My plays are a conjuration spell for disabled Black communities,” said Davis in a statement. “I want to dismantle white supremacy by taking their perceived ideologies of otherness and flip them on their heads with Black magic. I’m excited to be a part of a community where I believe these ideas will be honored, nurtured, and encouraged.”