Friday, December 20, 2024

African Americans earn top honors for Pulitzer Prize in Fiction, Drama and Poetry categories

The 2017 Pulitzer Prize winners were announced on April 10. In journalism in this age of so-called fake news, The New York Times and the Washington Post took several of the top honors. But in what is perhaps one of the most diverse years for the Letters, Drama and Music section top honors were awarded to two African Americans – Colson Whitehead for The Underground Railroad (see NDG’s review here), Sweat by Lynn Nottage and for poetry Tyehimba Jess.

LETTERS, DRAMA & MUSIC

The Underground Railroad, by Colson Whitehead (Doubleday)

For a smart melding of realism and allegory that combines the violence of slavery and the drama of escape in a myth that speaks to contemporary America.

Drama

Sweat, by Lynn Nottage

For a nuanced yet powerful drama that reminds audiences of the stacked deck still facing workers searching for the American dream.

Poetry

Olio, by Tyehimba Jess (Wave Books)

For a distinctive work that melds performance art with the deeper art of poetry to explore collective memory and challenge contemporary notions of race and identity.

Angel’s Bone, by Du Yun

Premiered on January 6, 2016, at the Prototype Festival, 3LD Arts and Technology Center, New York City, a bold operatic work that integrates vocal and instrumental elements and a wide range of styles into a harrowing allegory for human trafficking in the modern world. Libretto by Royce Vavrek.

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