Eugene O’Neill Theater Center now accepting applications for 2025 National Critics Institute

The Eugene O’Neill Theater Center’s National Critics Institute is now accepting applications from arts writers and critics seeking an intensive professional development opportunity. Applications will be accepted until Tuesday, February 25, 2025, at 11:59pm PST.

One of the O'Neill's oldest programs, the National Critics Institute is an intensive program designed for arts writers and critics to strengthen their skills in an increasingly competitive and fast-paced industry. Led by Director Chris Jones of the Chicago Tribune and Associate Director Naveen Kumar, contributor for publications including The New York Times and Variety, the program offers a broad course of study for writers with varying levels of experience.

From June 25th-July 6th, accepted applicants will participate in workshops led by a faculty composed of leading arts and cultural writers; recent members have included Tejal Rao, Sarah Kaufman, Peter Marks, Wesley Morris and Sam Sifton. Over the two weeks, participants will write about performances viewed both on and off the O’Neill’s campus, restaurants, and more, and will receive in-depth writing critiques and individualized feedback on their work.

Recent National Critics Institute alumni include prominent cultural writers: Marina Fang (NCI '20), Emily McClanathan (NCI '20), Soraya Nadia McDonald (NCI ‘18), Ashley Lee (NCI ‘18), Naveen Kumar (NCI '18), Diep Tran (NCI ‘15), Jose Solis (NCI ‘16), Suzy Evans (NCI ‘14), Wei-Huan Chen (NCI ‘16), Christine Cauterruci (NCI ‘15), Jay Vanasco (NCI ‘16) and Erin Keane (NCI ‘14), among many others.

“Each year, our alums from the National Critics Institute stun us with their career achievements," Jones said. "We are proud of them and we hope we can do the same for our 2025 class of cultural writers and critics.”

The O'Neill strives to fully support all attendees at the 2025 National Critics Institute, for which there is no charge for accommodation, meals, tickets, internal travel during the institute and workshops. Participants are responsible for their own travel to and from campus at the start and end of the program.

Applications can be submitted here. More information about the National Critics Institute is available at www.theoneill.org/nci.

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About the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center:

The Launchpad of the American Theater, the O’Neill is the country’s preeminent organization dedicated to the development of new works and new voices for the American theater. Founded in 1964, and named in honor of Eugene O’Neill, four-time Pulitzer Prize-winner and America’s only playwright to win the Nobel Prize in Literature, the O’Neill has been home to more than 1,000 new works for the stage and thousands more emerging artists. Scores of projects developed at the O’Neill have gone on to full production at theaters around the world. O’Neill programs include the National Playwrights Conference, National Music Theater Conference, National Critics Institute, National Puppetry Conference, Cabaret & Performance Conference, and National Theater Institute – which offers six credit-earning undergraduate training programs. In addition, the O’Neill owns and operates the Monte Cristo Cottage as a museum open to the public. The O’Neill is the recipient of two Tony Awards and the National Medal of Arts. www.theoneill.org.