NEW YORK CITY: Lincoln Center Theater has created and launched the Helen Gurley Brown Theater Lab, a new lab for writers developing new work for the theatre. The inaugural group of Helen Gurley Brown Theater Lab fellows includes playwrights James Ijames, Martyna Majok, Abigail Barlow, Emily Bear, Avery Deutsch, and Ro Reddick. 

The lab was made possible through a gift of $4.25 million to Lincoln Center Theater from the Helen Gurley Brown Foundation. The foundation was created through the estate of the celebrated former Cosmopolitan magazine editor-in-chief. The funds will be given to the company over the next five years.

“Helen loved the theatre, and partnering with Lincoln Center Theater is the exact type of endeavor she would have relished,” said Eve Burton, president of the Helen Gurley Brown Foundation, in a statement. In addition to its support of new theatre works, the organization also supports after-school youth programs.

The fellows will be given space, financial resources, and development support to bring their works to the stage. Dates for the presentation of the fellow’s work have yet to be announced. 

“There is a fundamental need to allow great work to come into being,” said LCT artistic director Lear deBessonet in a statement. “Artists need more than a place to put a play on its feet. They need the time and support to explore new ideas and take creative risks.”

The new lab also comes with title changes within the organization. Maria Manuela Goyanes, the current artistic director of LTC3, will now serve as the Helen Gurley Brown artistic director and producer of LCT3. Kalina Ko, currently the literary manager at Atlantic Theater Company, will now serve as the Helen Gurley Brown Theater Lab manager and associate producer. 

“We’re so proud to bring the Theater Lab to life, and to create an environment that advances innovation and transformation for the well-being of society,” deBessonet said in a statement.