‘The Lake Effect’ revolves around two estranged Indian American siblings.
By Deepak Chitnis
WASHINGTON, DC: Playwright Rajiv Joseph has won the prestigious Steinberg Playwright Award for 2013.
The prize, which Joseph shares with fellow playwright Annie Baker, is for his most recent play, entitled “The Lake Effect.”
The play, which had its world premiere earlier this year in Chicago, is about two estranged Indian American siblings who are forced to reunite when their father passes away and a close friend of his begins revealing secrets about the father’s past that forever changes their perception of the man and their familiar relationships.
Joseph is the son of a French-German mother and Indian father. Born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, he attended the Oxford, Ohio campus of Miami University for his undergraduate studies, receiving his B.A. in Creative Writing in 1996. He then joined the Peace Corps., spending three years in Senegal, an experience that he credits with having a profound effect on him and preparing him invaluably for his career in writing.
In 2004, he earned his Master of Fine Arts degree from the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University. In 2010, his play “Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo” made him a finalist for that year’s Pulitzer Prize, arguably the highest literary honor in the world. His plays have been performed all around the US by such distinguished actors as Jennifer Carpenter (the TV show “Dexter”) and Academy Award-winning actor Robin Williams (Good Will Hunting, Aladdin).
The Steinberg Playwright Award is given out by the Harold and Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust. Now in its sixth year, the award carries with it a monetary prize of $50,000 to each winner. The award itself will be given to Joseph and Baker during a ceremony in New York City on November 18th.
Below is a scene from “The Lake Effect” as it was performed at Silk Road Rising in Chicago, where it premiered. Directed by Timothy Douglas, the play featured actors Adam Poss, Mark Smith, and Minita Gandhi.
To contact the author, email to deepakchitnis@americanbazaaronline.com