Florida Studio Theatre, The Recovery Project and The Terrence McNally Foundation have announced that Jake Brasch has been selected as the recipient of the Terrence McNally Recovery Commission, which is inspired by the personal journey of the late Terrence McNally. McNally began his own recovery through a chance encounter with the actress Angela Lansbury, and his commitment to sobriety and his belief in the power of storytelling to inspire and support others serve as the driving forces behind this commission.

The commission is part of FST’s goal to foster new talent and promote compelling storytelling. It includes a $10,000 stipend and the mentorship of established playwright Craig Lucas, who is known for work including the Broadway musical Days of Wine and Roses and the Obie Award-winning play Small Tragedy. 

Commission winner Brasch is a queer, sober Jewish clown from Colorado and a graduating playwriting fellow at The Juilliard School in New York City. The world premiere of their play The Reservoir will be presented in 2025 as a co-production between the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, Alliance Theatre and Geffen Playhouse.

Brasch is the winner of the Kennedy Center's 2024 Paula Vogel Playwriting Award, a member of the 2024 Page 73 Writers Group and a 2023-2024 Alliance/Kendeda Finalist. They are a proud recent graduate of Ensemble Studio Theatre's Youngblood and hold commissions from the EST/Sloan Project and The Farm Theater’s College Collaboration Project. With playwright Nadja Leonhard-Hooper, Jake is a co-Founder of American Sing-Song, a collective that writes and performs filthy hour-long comedic musicals. They have also written music and lyrics for several films, musicals, plays, and podcasts. Brasch has long worked as a birthday party clown throughout the New York area. 

Brasch will develop a new work with the support and guidance of Lucas, who will serve as an artistic mentor and who is a fellow artist in recovery.

“By being able to commission artists in recovery, not only do we continue to let people know that recovery is possible, but we also get to uplift and demonstrate that many artists in recovery are thriving,” says Sean Daniels, the director of the Recovery Project. “In 2015, one-tenth of all U.S. overdose deaths occurred in Florida. Personally, as an artist in recovery, I'm grateful to The Terrence McNally Foundation and FST for being real leaders in how we not only create more art but also keep our artists alive.”

Brasch's commission will culminate in a "Works-in-Progress" showing at FST, where the community can engage with selected scenes from their play and participate in an on-stage discussion with Brasch and Lucas. 

“Florida Studio Theatre has been collaborating with emerging playwrights for the entirety of its 50-year existence,” producing artistic director Richard Hopkins said in a statement. “What makes this collaboration particularly special is the opportunity to connect one of my favorite American playwrights, Craig Lucas, with an emerging playwright as a mentor. The commission of a play by Craig is a significant bonus for the theater and our audience.” 

In addition to Brasch, Recovery Commission finalists include Brendan Borque-Sheil, Adam Esquenazi Douglas, Alex Lin, Colin Murphy, Terry Tocantins, Garrett Zuercher, Sarah Galante and Gabrielle Lennon.