New Harmony Project 38th annual spring residency line has been announced.
Spearheaded by executive artistic director Jenni Warner, the national nonprofit arts organization works to support writers “interrogating the complexity of hope.” More than 530 applicants were evaluated by a diverse selection panel for the 2025 company, and from May 22-June 1, more than 50 writers will gather for residencies with New Harmony Project in the idyllic New Harmony, Indiana.
“Throughout U.S. history, writers have been critical to the creation of our American identity,” Jenni Werner, executive artistic director, said in a statement. “This exceptional group of writers are creating transformational stories about the world and our place in it. The town of New Harmony was itself founded on the concept of creating a better world, and I know that these writers and their collaborators will be inspired and rejuvenated by this wellspring of creativity.”
Artists selected for the residencies include:
• Brittany Allen (“Redwood,” Portland Center Stage)
• Deborah Asante (Asante Arts Institute, Indianapolis)
• Kimberly Belflower (“John Proctor is the Villain”)
• Matthew Chong (David Geffen School of Drama at Yale, “Lessons”)
• Margot Carmody (Carnegie Mellon University, “Olvidame – Forget Me”)
• Kristiana Rae Colón (“The Chi”)
• Ty Defoe (Ojibwe and Oneida Nations, “Firebird Tattoo”)
• Maddie Easley (Wyandot Nation, “Representatives for Those at Peace”)
• Zachariah Ezer (“Black Women in Tech”)
• Miriam Gonzales (“10 Seconds”)
• Franky Gonzalez (Bishop Arts Theatre Center Playwright in Residence)
• Jessica Huang (James Still Playwright in Residence at the Indiana Repertory Theatre)
• Monet Hurst-Mendoza (“Torera,” Alley Theatre)
• Alex Lin (The Juilliard School, “Chinese Republicans”)
• Nehemiah Luckett (“Ruby,” Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe)
• Christopher Lysik (University of Iowa, “Pierogi Play”)
• Rajendra Ramoon Maharaj (“The Factotum,” Lyric Opera of Chicago)
• Gloria Majule (“My Father was Shot in the Back of the Head”)
• Vaibu Mohan (“Jala Smriti,” premiering at Atlanta Opera in 2026)
• Abigail Onwunali (“Jewel”)
• Phanésia Pharel (“The Waterfall”)
• Amalia Oliva Rojas (Columbia University, “How to Melt Ice, or How the Coyote Fell in Love with the Butterfly who tried to be a Lizard”)
• Madeline Sayet (Mohegan Tribe of Connecticut, “Where We Belong”)
• Michael Shayan (AVAAZ)
• Mark Valdez and Ashley Sparks (mark-n-sparks, “The Most Beautiful Home…Maybe”)
New Harmony Project partners with several organizations to maintain a “healthy arts ecology,” according to a press release. This year, the organization is continuing its partnership with the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival, which supports residences for five award winners in the Kennedy Center’s Michael Kanin Playwrighting Awards Program as well as a dramaturgy fellow.
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New Harmony Project is partnering with Thrown Stone Theatre company to fund the development of “The Waterfall” by Phanésia Pharel, directed by Taylor Reynolds. New Harmony Project will also continue to support the development of “For My Next Trick…” by Michael Shayan, which will be featured in the organization’s Celebration of New Plays along with all of the writers in the residency May 30-31.
Additionally, New Harmony Project will partner with Ericka Ratcliff and Court Theatre for the development of “BLK EURYDICE” by Kristiana Rae Colón — set to have a summer workshop and reading in Chicago.
The final weekend Celebration of Playwrights is scheduled for May 30-31 in New Harmony, Indiana, and will feature live readings and events celebrating the 2025 cohort of writers and residency participants.
For more information, visit newharmonyproject.org/2025-residency-announcement.
Contact Arts & Culture Reporter Chloe McGowan at 317-762-7848. Follow her on X @chloe_mcgowanxx.
Chloe McGowan is the Arts & Culture Reporter for the Indianapolis Recorder Newspaper. Originally from Columbus, OH, Chloe graduated with a degree in journalism from The Ohio State University. She is a former IndyStar Pulliam Fellow, and her previous work includes freelancing for Indy Maven, Assistant Arts & Life Editor for The Lantern, and editorial assistant at CityScene Media Group. Chloe enjoys covering all things arts and culture — from local music, visual art, dance, theater and film, as well as minority-owned businesses. In her free time, Chloe enjoys reading, cooking and keeping her plants alive.
