Goodman Theatre has announced the five playwrights newly named to the Playwrights Unit, a year-long residency in partnership with Chicago Dramatists.

The Chicago-based playwrights include Sam Collier, finalist for The Eugene O’Neill Theater Center’s 2017 National Playwright Conference for her play, DAISY VIOLET THE BITCH BEAST KING, Ricardo Gamboa, recipient of the MacArthur International Connections Award and Joyce Award; Isaac Gomez, the 2017 artistic curator for the Chicago Park District’s Theater on the Lake; Kristin Idaszak, recipient of the Kennedy Center’s Paula Vogel Playwriting Award and the Jean Kennedy Smith Playwriting Award for her play SECOND SKING, and Nigel O’Hearn, whose work has been presented as part of the Chicago Fringe Festival, International Ibsen Festival and more.

The Playwrights Unit meets bi-monthly to discuss their plays-in-progress with the Goodman’s artistic team. The residency culminates in a staged reading of each new play in summer 2018.

Pictured: Isaac Gomez, Kristin Idaszak, Sam Collier, Nigel O’Hearn, and Ricardo Gamboa,

“I’m thrilled to welcome this talented group of Chicago writers to the 2017/18 Playwrights Unit,” said Director of New Play Development Tanya Palmer. “Each playwright has a very distinctive voice and aesthetic, but they all share a passion for telling stories that are challenging, relevant and full of life. I know they will all benefit from the collaboration with their peers, and I look forward to sharing the results of their hard work with our audiences next summer.”

For more information on the Playwrights Unit or Goodman Theatre visit goodmantheatre.org.