Branden Jacobs-Jenkins on Winning a Pulitzer for ‘Purpose'
The other finalists were Cole Escola's 'Oh, Mary!,' which is also running on Broadway, and 'The Ally,' by Itamar Moses, which had an Off Broadway run last year at the Public Theater.
Jacobs-Jenkins, 40, has been a Pulitzer finalist twice before, for 'Gloria' in 2016 and for 'Everybody' in 2018, and last year he won a Tony Award for 'Appropriate.' In 2016 he also won a so-called genius grant from the MacArthur Foundation.
He grew up in Washington, D.C., and now lives in Brooklyn. 'An Octoroon' and 'The Comeuppance' are among his other well-received works.
'Purpose,' directed by Phylicia Rashad, was first staged last year by Steppenwolf Theater Company in Chicago, which had commissioned the play; Jacobs-Jenkins wrote it for the company's actors. The Broadway production opened in March, and has been nominated for six Tonys, including best play. 'Purpose' is currently on Broadway at the Helen Hayes Theater in Manhattan. The cast includes, from left: LaTanya Richardson Jackson, Jon Michael Hill, Kara Young and Alana Arenas. Credit... Sara Krulwich/The New York Times
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