Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding New Broadway Play

Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding New Broadway Play
Awarded for	Outstanding New Broadway Play
Location	New York City
Presented by	Outer Critics Circle
Currently held by	John Proctor Is the Villain by Kimberly Bellflower (2025)
Website	OuterCritics.org

The Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding New Broadway Play is an annual award given to the best new (non-musical) play on Broadway, as determined by Outer Critics Circle. The award has been given out since the 1949-50 season.

T.S. Eliot won the inaugural award for Outstanding New Broadway Play for The Cocktail Party in 1950.^[1] Neil Simon and Tom Stoppard have won the award three times each, the most of any playwright, while Stoppard and August Wilson have received the most nominations, with 6 each.

Award winners

Key

  and bold indicates the winner.

1950s

Year	Production	Author	Ref.
1950
	The Cocktail Party	T.S. Eliot
1951
	Billy Budd	Louis O. Coxe and Robert Chapman	[2]
1952
	Point of No Return	Paul Osborn	[3]
1953	No award given.
1954
	The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial	Herman Wouk	[4]
1955
	Inherit the Wind	Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee	[5]
1956
	The Diary of Anne Frank	Frances Goodrich, Albert Hackett	[6]
1957
	Long Day's Journey into Night	Eugene O'Neill	[7]
1958
	Look Homeward, Angel	Ketti Frings	[8]
1959
	The Visit	Friedrich Dürrenmatt	[9]

1960s

Year	Production	Author	Ref.
1960
	The Miracle Worker	William Gibson	[10]
1961	No award given.
1962	No award given.
1963
	Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?	Edward Albee	[11]
1964	No award given.
1965	No award given.
1966	No award given.
1967
	You Know I Can't Hear You When the Water's Running	Robert Anderson	[12]
	American Hurrah (Three Views of the U.S.A.)	Jean-Claude van Itallie
1968
	The Price	Arthur Miller	[13]
	Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead	Sam Shepard
1969	No award given.

1970s

Year	Production	Author	Ref.
1970
	Child's Play	Robert Marasco	[14]
1971	No award given
1972
	Sticks and Bones	David Rabe	[15]
	That Championship Season	Jason Miller
1973	No award given
1974
	A Moon for the Misbegotten	Eugene O'Neill	[16]
	Noël Coward in Two Key	Noël Coward
1975
	Equus	Peter Shaffer	[17]
1976	No award given
1977
	For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide / When the Rainbow Is Enuf	Ntozake Shange	[18]
1978
	Da	Hugh Leonard	[19]
1979
	The Elephant Man	Bernard Pomerance	[20]

1980s

Year	Production	Author	Ref.
1980
	Children of a Lesser God	Mark Medoff	[21]
1981
	Amadeus	Peter Shaffer	[22]
1982
	"Master Harold"...and the Boys	Athol Fugard	[23]
1983
	Brighton Beach Memoirs	Neil Simon	[24]
1984
	The Real Thing	Tom Stoppard	[25]
1985
	Biloxi Blues	Neil Simon	[26]
1986
	I'm Not Rappaport	Herb Gardner	[27]
1987
	Fences	August Wilson	[28]
1988
	M. Butterfly	David Henry Hwang	[29]
1989
	The Heidi Chronicles	Wendy Wasserstein	[30]

1990s

Year	Production	Author	Ref.
1990
	The Grapes of Wrath	Frank Galati	[31][32]
	The Piano Lesson	August Wilson
	Lettice and Lovage	Peter Shaffer
	A Few Good Men	Aaron Sorkin
1991
	Lost in Yonkers	Neil Simon	[33]
	Shadowlands	William Nicholson
	Six Degrees of Separation	John Guare
	The Speed of Darkness	Steve Tesich
1992
	Dancing at Lughnasa	Brian Friel	[34]
	Two Shakespearean Actors	Richard Nelson
	Two Trains Running	August Wilson
	Conversations with My Father	Herb Gardner
1993
	The Sisters Rosensweig	Wendy Wasserstein	[35][36]
	Someone Who'll Watch Over Me	Frank McGuiness
	Redwood Curtain	Lanford Wilson
1994
	Angels in America, Parts I and II: Millennium Approaches and Perestroika	Tony Kushner	[37]
1995
	Love! Valour! Compassion!	Terrence McNally	[38][39]
	Having Our Say	Annie Elizabeth Delany, Sarah Louise Delany, Amy Hill Hearth
	Arcadia	Tom Stoppard
1996
	Master Class	Terrence McNally	[40]
	Moon Over Buffalo	Ken Ludwig
	Racing Demon	David Hare
	Seven Guitars	August Wilson
1997
	The Last Night of Ballyhoo	Alfred Uhry	[41][42]
	Taking Sides	Ronald Harwood
	Stanley	Pam Gems
	An American Daughter	Wendy Wasserstein
1998
	The Beauty Queen of Leenane	Martin McDonagh	[43][44]
	Jackie: An American Life	Gip Hoppe
	Golden Child	David Henry Hwang
	Art	Yasmina Reza
1999
	Not About Nightingales	Tennessee Williams	[45][46]
	Closer	Patrick Marber
	Amy's View	David Hare
	The Weir	Conor McPherson

2000s

Year	Production	Author	Ref.
2000
	Copenhagen	Michael Frayn	[47][48]
	Waiting in the Wings	Noël Coward
	True West	Sam Shepard
	The Green Bird	Carlo Gozzi
2001
	Judgment at Nuremberg	Michael Frayn	[49][50]
	Proof	David Auburn
	The Invention of Love	Tom Stoppard
	Stones in His Pockets	Marie Jones
2002
	The Goat, or Who Is Sylvia?	Edward Albee	[51][52]
	Metamorphoses	Mary Zimmerman
	Topdog/Underdog	Suzan-Lori Parks
	Fortune's Fool	Ivan Turgenev
2003
	Take Me Out	Richard Greenberg	[53][54]
	Enchanted April	Matthew Barber
	The Play What I Wrote	Hamish McColl, Sean Foley and Eddie Braben
	Vincent in Brixton	Nicholas Wright
2004
	I Am My Own Wife	Doug Wright	[55][56]
	Sixteen Wounded	Eliam Kraiem
	Anna in the Tropics	Nilo Cruz
	Match	Stephen Belber
2005
	Doubt: A Parable	John Patrick Shanley	[57][58]
	Gem of the Ocean	August Wilson
	The Pillowman	Martin McDonagh
	Democracy	Michael Frayn
	Brooklyn Boy	Donald Margulies
2006
	The History Boys	Alan Bennett	[59][60]
	The Lieutenant of Inishmore	Martin McDonagh
	Primo	Anthony Sher
	Festen	David Eldridge
2007
	The Coast of Utopia	Tom Stoppard	[61][62]
	Radio Golf	August Wilson
	Frost/Nixon	Peter Morgan
	Coram Boy	Helen Edmundson
2008
	August: Osage County	Tracy Letts	[63][64]
	The 39 Steps	Patrick Barlow
	The Seafarer	Conor McPherson
	Rock 'n' Roll	Tom Stoppard
2009
	God of Carnage	Yasmina Reza	[65][66]
	33 Variations	Moisés Kaufman
	Irena's Vow	Dan Gordon
	reasons to be pretty	Neil LaBute

2010s

Year	Production	Author	Ref.
2010
	Red	John Logan	[67][68]
	Superior Donuts	Tracy Letts
	Next Fall	Geoffrey Nauffts
	Time Stands Still	Donald Margulies
2011
	War Horse	Nick Stafford	[69][70]
	Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo	Rajiv Joseph
	Good People	David Lindsay-Abaire
	The Motherfucker with the Hat	Stephen Adly Guirgis
2012
	One Man, Two Guvnors	Richard Bean	[71][72]
	Seminar	Theresa Rebeck
	The Lyons	Nicky Silver
	Stick Fly	Lydia R. Diamond
2013
	Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike	Christopher Durang	[73][74]
	Grace	Mick Gordon, A. C. Grayling
	Lucky Guy	Nora Ephron
	The Nance	Douglas Carter Beane
	The Testament of Mary	Colm Tóibín
2014
	All the Way	Robert Schenkkan	[75][76]
	Act One	James Lapine
	Casa Valentina	Harvey Fierstein
	Outside Mullingar	John Patrick Shanley
	The Realistic Joneses	Will Eno
2015
	The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time	Simon Stephens	[77][78]
	The Audience	Peter Morgan
	Wolf Hall Parts One & Two	Mike Poulton
2016
	The Humans	Stephen Karam	[79][80][81]
	The Father	Florian Zeller
	King Charles III	Mike Bartlett
	Thérèse Raquin	Neal Bell
	Eclipsed	Danai Gurira
2017
	Oslo	J. T. Rogers	[82][83]
	A Doll's House, Part 2	Lucas Hnath
	Sweat	Lynn Nottage
	Indecent	Paula Vogel
2018
	Harry Potter and the Cursed Child	Jack Thorne	[84][85]
	Farinelli and the King	Claire van Kampen
	Junk	Ayad Akhtar
	The Children	Lucy Kirkwood
2019
	The Ferryman	Jez Butterworth	[86][87]
	What the Constitution Means to Me	Heidi Schreck
	Ink	James Graham
	Network	Lee Hall
	To Kill a Mockingbird	Aaron Sorkin

2020s

Year	Production	Author	Ref.
2020 (Honorees)	Grand Horizons	Bess Wohl	[88]
	The Height of the Storm	Florian Zeller
	The Inheritance	Matthew López
	Linda Vista	Tracy Letts
	The Sound Inside	Adam Rapp
2021	No awards: New York theatres shuttered, March 2020 to September 2021, due to the COVID-19 pandemic in New York City
2022
	The Lehman Trilogy	Stefano Massini	[89]
	The Minutes	Tracy Letts
	Birthday Candles	Noah Haidle
	Clyde's	Lynn Nottage
	Skeleton Crew	Dominique Morisseau
2023
	Leopoldstadt	Tom Stoppard	[90]
	Life of Pi	Lolita Chakrabart, Yann Martel
	Peter Pan Goes Wrong	Henry Lewis, Henry Shields, Jonathan Sayer
	Summer, 1976	David Auburn
	Good Night, Oscar	Doug Wright
2024
	Stereophonic	David Adjmi	[91]
	Mother Play	Paula Vogel
	Jaja's African Hair Braiding	Jocelyn Bioh
	Patriots	Peter Morgan
	The Shark Is Broken	Ian Shaw, Joseph Nixon
2025
	John Proctor is the Villain	Kimberly Bellflower	[92][93]
	Cult of Love	Leslye Headland
	The Hills of California	Jez Butterworth
	Purpose	Branden Jacobs-Jenkins
	Stranger Things: The First Shadow	Kate Trefry

Multiple wins

3 wins

• Neil Simon
• Tom Stoppard

2 wins

• Eugene O'Neill
• Edward Albee
• Wendy Wasserstein
• Terrence McNally
• Michael Frayn
• Peter Shaffer

Multiple nominations

6 nominations

• Tom Stoppard
• August Wilson

3 nominations

• Neil Simon
• Wendy Wasserstein
• Martin McDonagh
• Michael Frayn
• Peter Morgan
• Tracy Letts
• Peter Shaffer

2 nominations

• Eugene O'Neill
• Edward Albee
• Sam Shepard
• Noël Coward
• Herb Gardner
• David Henry Hwang
• Aaron Sorkin
• Terrence McNally
• David Hare
• Yasmina Reza
• Conor McPherson
• David Auburn
• Doug Wright
• John Patrick Shanley
• Donald Margulies
• Lynn Nottage
• Paula Vogel
• Jez Butterworth

See also

• Tony Award for Best Play
• Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Play

References

1. "Outer Critics Circle Awards 1949–1950". AboutTheArtists.com.
2. "1950–1951 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
3. "1951–1952 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
4. "1953–1954 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
5. "1954–1955 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
6. "1955–1956 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
7. "1956–1957 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
8. "1957–1958 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
9. "1958–1959 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
10. "1959–1960 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
11. "1962–1963 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
12. "1966–1967 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
13. "1967–1968 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
14. "1969–1970 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
15. "1971–1972 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
16. "1973–1974 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
17. "1974–1975 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
18. "1976–1977 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
19. "1977–1978 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
20. "1978–1979 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
21. "1979–1980 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
22. "1980–1981 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
23. "1981–1982 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
24. "1982–1983 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
25. "1983-1984 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
26. "1984–1985 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
27. "1985–1986 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
28. "1986–1987 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
29. "1987–1988 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
30. "1988–1989 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
31. Rich, Frank (May 1, 1990). "Outer Critics Awards to Grapes and Angels". The New York Times. Retrieved September 3, 2025.
32. "1989–1990 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
33. "1990–1991 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
34. "1991–1992 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
35. Rich, Frank (April 27, 1993). "Outer Critics Circle Names Award Winners". The New York Times. Retrieved September 3, 2025.
36. "1992–1993 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
37. "1993–1994 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
38. "Outer Critics Float Show Boat". Variety. April 1995. Retrieved September 3, 2025.
39. "1994–1995 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
40. "1995–1996 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
41. Lefkowitz, David (May 5, 1997). "Outer Critics Circle Award Winners Announced". Playbill. Retrieved September 3, 2025.
42. "1996–1997 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
43. Viagas & Lefkowitz (April 27, 1998). "Lion King Roars With Six Outer Critics Circle Awards". Playbill. Retrieved September 3, 2025.
44. "1997–1998 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
45. "Nightingales, Wit, Iceman & Fosse Win Outer Critics Awards; Ceremony May 28". Playbill. April 26, 1999. Retrieved September 3, 2025.
46. "1998–1999 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
47. "Contact and Kiss Me, Kate Big Winners of 2000 Outer Critics Awards". Playbill. April 30, 2000. Retrieved September 3, 2025.
48. "1999–2000 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
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51. "The 2001–2002 Outer Critics Circle Award Winners". TheaterMania. April 29, 2002. Retrieved September 3, 2025.
52. "2001–2002 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
53. Gans, Andrew (May 5, 2003). "Outer Critics Circle Award Winners Announced; Hairspray Leads the Pack". Playbill. Retrieved September 3, 2025.
54. "2002–2003 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
55. "Wicked, Wonderful Town, I Am My Own Wife Top 2004 Outer Critics Circle Awards". Playbill. May 2, 2004. Retrieved September 3, 2025.
56. "2003–2004 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
57. "2005 Outer Critics Circle Award Winners Announced". New York Theatre Guide. May 9, 2005. Retrieved September 3, 2025.
58. "2004–2005 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
59. Hernandez, Ernio (May 14, 2006). "The Drowsy Chaperone and The History Boys Top Outer Critics Awards". Playbill. Retrieved September 3, 2025.
60. "2005–2006 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
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62. "2006–2007 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
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65. "Outer Critics Circle 2008–09 Award Winners". New York Theatre Guide. May 11, 2009. Retrieved September 3, 2025.
66. "2008–2009 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
67. "MEMPHIS & LA CAGE Top Outer Critics Circle Winners". BroadwayWorld. May 17, 2010. Retrieved September 3, 2025.
68. "2009–2010 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
69. "The Book of Mormon, War Horse and Anything Goes Top 2011 Outer Critics Circle Awards". Broadway.com. May 16, 2011. Retrieved September 3, 2025.
70. "2010–2011 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
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72. "2011–2012 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
73. "Outer Critics Circle 2013 Award Winners". New York Theatre Guide. May 13, 2013. Retrieved September 3, 2025.
74. "2012–2013 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
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76. "2013–2014 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
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78. "2014–2015 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
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80. Viagas, Robert (May 9, 2016). "Bright Star and The Humans Win Top 2016 NY Outer Critics Circle Awards". Playbill. Retrieved September 3, 2025.
81. "2015–2016 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
82. Lefkowitz, Andy (May 8, 2017). "2017 Outer Critics Circle Awards: Come From Away & More Win Top Prizes". Broadway.com. Retrieved September 3, 2025.
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84. McPhee, Ryan (May 7, 2018). "Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, My Fair Lady Win Big at 2018 Outer Critics Circle Awards". Playbill. Retrieved September 3, 2025.
85. "2017–2018 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
86. Lefkowitz, Andy (May 13, 2019). "Hadestown Leads Winners of 2019 Outer Critics Circle Awards". Broadway.com. Retrieved September 3, 2025.
87. "2018–2019 Awards". Outer Critics Circle. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
88. Clement, Olivia (May 11, 2020). "Moulin Rouge! Leads 2020 Outer Critics Circle Award Honorees". Playbill. Retrieved September 3, 2025.
89. Culwell-Block, Logan (May 17, 2022). "The Lehman Trilogy Leads 2022 Outer Critics Circle Awards, Six Wins Best Musical; See the Complete List of Winners". Playbill. Retrieved September 3, 2025.
90. Culwell-Block, Logan (May 16, 2023). "Some Like It Hot Dominates 2023 Outer Critics Circle Awards; See the Full List of Winners". Playbill. Retrieved September 1, 2025.
91. "Stereophonic Leads 2024 Outer Critics Circle Awards, Wins Best Play; See the Full List of Winners". Playbill. Archived from the original on 2025-08-19. Retrieved 2025-09-01.
92. Culwell-Block, Logan (May 12, 2025). "Maybe Happy Ending Leads 2025 Outer Critics Circle Awards; See the Full List of Winners". Playbill. Retrieved September 1, 2025.
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