Jonathan Spector (playwright)
Jonathan Spector | |
|---|---|
| Education | New College of Florida (BA) San Francisco State University (MFA) |
| Occupation |
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| Awards | Tony Award for Best Revival of a Play |
Jonathan Spector is an American playwright whose plays include Eureka Day and This Much I Know the former of which won him the 2025 Tony Award for Best Revival of a Play.
Career
[edit]Spector received his Master of Fine Arts in playwriting from San Francisco State University.[1][2] Prior to becoming a playwright, he worked as the Literary Manager and Associate Artistic Director at Playwrights Foundation in San Francisco from 2006 to 2010.[3]
Spector's first play produced was In From The Cold at Just Theater in Berkeley, California, in November, 2014[4]. In June 2018 Good. Better. Best. Bested. premiered at Custom Made Theatre Company in San Francisco, California.[5]
Later that year, his most notable work, Eureka Day, premiered at Aurora Theatre Company in Berkeley, California.[6] The production followed the parents of students at the titular school arguing over vaccine mandates. The Broadway production of Eureka Day premiered in 2024[7] and received critical acclaim, with The New York Times calling it a "hilarious poison-pen satire of educational wokeism"[8] and Variety praising it as "a cleverly staged social satire."[9] It won the 2025 Tony Award for Best Revival of a Play. It also received a Drama Desk Award and a Drama League Award, both for Outstanding Revival of a Play in 2025.[10][11][12]
Other plays by Spector include This Much I Know, which premiered in 2022 at Aurora Theatre Company,[13] and was later produced at The Hampstead Theater in London in 2023[14], and Off Broadway at 59E59 Theater in 2025[15], Best Available, which premiered in 2024 at Shotgun Theatre Company.[16]
In 2026, his play Birthright premiered at MCC Theatre.[17][18] The play follows six friends who meet on a birthright trip to Israel and their evolving faiths and beliefs in Judaism. Directed by Teddy Bergman, the production received critical acclaim, with The New York Times lauding it as "a thrillingly constructed drama,"[19] and The Wrap calling it the "best new play of the year."[20] The show opened on June 29, 2026 and extended through August 23, 2026.[21]
Personal life
[edit]Spector is currently based in Oakland, California.[22]
Works
[edit]- Siesta Key (2017)
- Good. Better. Best. Bested. (2018)
- Eureka Day (2018)
- This Much I Know (2022)
- Best Available (2024)
- Birthright (2026)
Awards and nominations
[edit]| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Edgerton Foundation Award | New Play Award | This Much I Know | Honored | [23] |
| 2025 | Tony Award | Best Revival of a Play | Eureka Day | Won | [24] |
| Drama Desk Award | Outstanding Revival of a Play | Won | [12] | ||
| Drama League Award | Outstanding Revival of a Play | Won | [25] | ||
| Dorian Award | Outstanding Broadway Play Revival | Won | [26] |
References
[edit]- ↑ "New College Alumnus Takes Center Stage With Launch of Play at Sarasota's Asolo Rep". WUSF. May 13, 2022. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "Jonathan Spector – Playwright". Curious Theatre Company. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ Polak, Brian James (2023-05-25). "The Subtext: Jonathan Spector's Eureka Moments". Retrieved 2026-08-26.
- ↑ Kruger, Charles (2014-11-07). "Review: 'In From The Cold' at Just Theater in Berkeley (***)". TheatreStorm. Retrieved 2026-08-26.
- ↑ "Good. Better. Best. Bested". The Custom Made Theatre Co. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "Eureka Day – Aurora Theatre Company". Aurora Theatre Company. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "Eureka Day – Manhattan Theatre Club". Manhattan Theatre Club. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "'Eureka Day' Review: A Measles Outbreak, and Vaccine Wars, on Broadway". The New York Times. December 16, 2024. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "'Eureka Day' Review: Broadway Revival of Jonathan Spector's Vaccine Comedy". Variety. December 16, 2024. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "Tony Awards 2025: Live Updating". Playbill. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "All the Winners at the 2025 Drama League Awards". Vogue. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- 1 2 "Drama Desk Award Winners 2025: The Full List". Playbill. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "This Much I Know – Aurora Theatre Company". Aurora Theatre Company. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ Akbar, Arifa (2023-12-20). "This Much I Know review – an invigorating theatrical brainteaser". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2026-08-26.
- ↑ Ramírez, Juan A. (2025-10-02). "'This Much I Know' Review: 'Eureka Day' Playwright Still Has Questions". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2026-08-26.
- ↑ "'Best Available' gives the audience front-row seats to running a theater". Berkeleyside. April 24, 2024. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "Abbi Jacobson, Zoë Winters, More Will Star in Jonathan Spector's Birthright Off-Broadway". Playbill. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "At Over 3 Hours and Spanning 18 Years, Jonathan Spector's Birthright Is a Modern Jewish Epic". Playbill. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "'Birthright' Review: Eighteen Years Later, Still Arguing Over the Trip". The New York Times. June 30, 2026. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "'Birthright' Off Broadway Review: The Year's Best New Play (So Far) Is a Jewish 'Big Chill'". TheWrap. June 29, 2026. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "Birthright – MCC Theater". MCC Theater. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "Jonathan Spector". Concord Theatricals. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "TCG Announces Second Round of 2021-22 Edgerton Foundation New Play Awards". Dramatists Guild. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "Tony Awards 2025: Live Updating". Playbill. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "All the Winners at the 2025 Drama League Awards". Vogue. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ Mandell, Jonathan (June 3, 2025). "2025 Dorian Theater Award Winners: Maybe Happy Ending. John Proctor. Cats. Audra, Sarah, Jak, Fina. André". New York Theater. Retrieved March 7, 2026.