Jonathan Spector
| Jonathan Spector | |
|---|---|
| Born | |
| 🏫 Education | New College of Florida (BA) San Francisco State University (MFA) |
| 💼 Occupation |
|
| 🏅 Awards | Tony Award for Best Revival of a Play |
Jonathan Spector is an American playwright whose plays include Eureka Day, This Much I Know and Birthright, the former of which won him the 2025 Tony Award for Best Revival of a Play.
Early life
Spector was raised near Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and later received his Bachelor's of Arts in theatre and literature from the New College of Florida, during which he studied abroad at Trinity College Dublin.[1] He next received his Master of Fine Arts in playwriting from San Francisco State University.[2][3]
Career
Spector's first play produced was Good. Better. Best. Bested. at Custom Made Theatre Company in San Francisco, California, running from June 14 to July 14, 2018. The play depicts characters on a busy Las Vegas strip when a danger from half a world away threatens their fun.[4] Later that year, his most notable work, Eureka Day, premiered at Aurora Theatre Company in Berkeley, California.[5] The production followed the parents of students at the titular school arguing over vaccine mandates, and later transferred to both Off-Off-Broadway and Broadway.
The Broadway production of Eureka Day was produced by Manhattan Theatre Club at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre in 2024, directed by Anna D. Shapiro and starring Jessica Hecht, Thomas Middleditch, Bill Irwin, Amber Gray and Chelsea Yakura-Kurtz.[6] The play received critical acclaim, with The New York Times calling it a "hilarious poison-pen satire of educational wokeism"[7] and Variety praised it as "a cleverly staged social satire."[8] The production's run was extended twice due to high demand,[9] and ultimately awarded the 2025 Tony Award for Best Revival of a Play, as it was ineligible in the Best Play category due to its previous productions. It also received a Drama Desk Award and a Drama League Award, both for Outstanding Revival of a Play in 2025.[10][11][12]
Other plays by Spector include This Much I Know, which premiered in 2022 at Aurora Theatre Company,[13] Best Available, which premiered in 2024 at Shotgun Theatre Company,[14] and Siesta Key, which has received several readings in 2017 and 2019.[15][16]
In 2026, his newest play, Birthright, premiered at MCC Theatre after holding readings at Miami New Drama.[17][18] The play follows six friends who meet on a birthright trip to Israel and their evolving faiths and beliefs in Judaism. Directed by Teddy Bergman, the production received critical acclaim, with The New York Times lauding it as "a thrillingly constructed drama,"[19] and The Wrap calling it the "best new play of the year."[20] The show opened on June 29, 2026 and, due to high demand, the production was extended through August 23, 2026.[21]
Personal life
Spector is currently based in Oakland, California.[22]
Works
- Siesta Key (2017)
- Good. Better. Best. Bested. (2018)
- Eureka Day (2018)
- This Much I Know (2022)
- Best Available (2024)
- Birthright (2026)
Awards and nominations
| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Edgerton Foundation Award | New Play Award | This Much I Know | Honored | [23] |
| 2025 | Tony Award | Best Revival of a Play | Eureka Day | Won | [24] |
| Drama Desk Award | Outstanding Revival of a Play | Won | [25] | ||
| Drama League Award | Outstanding Revival of a Play | Won | [26] | ||
| Dorian Award | Outstanding Broadway Play Revival | Won | [27] |
References
- ↑ "An interview with Jonathan Spector" (PDF). Playwrights Foundation. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "New College Alumnus Takes Center Stage With Launch of Play at Sarasota's Asolo Rep". WUSF. May 13, 2022. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "Jonathan Spector – Playwright". Curious Theatre Company. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "Good. Better. Best. Bested". The Custom Made Theatre Co. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "Eureka Day – Aurora Theatre Company". Aurora Theatre Company. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "Eureka Day – Manhattan Theatre Club". Manhattan Theatre Club. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "'Eureka Day' Review: A Measles Outbreak, and Vaccine Wars, on Broadway". The New York Times. December 16, 2024. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "'Eureka Day' Review: Broadway Revival of Jonathan Spector's Vaccine Comedy". Variety. December 16, 2024. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "'Eureka Day' announces extension". Broadway News. December 18, 2024. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "Tony Awards 2025: Live Updating". Playbill. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "All the Winners at the 2025 Drama League Awards". Vogue. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ Desk-award-winners-2025-the-full-list "Drama Desk Award Winners 2025: The Full List" Check
|url=value (help). Playbill. Retrieved July 24, 2026. - ↑ "This Much I Know – Aurora Theatre Company". Aurora Theatre Company. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "'Best Available' gives the audience front-row seats to running a theater". Berkeleyside. April 24, 2024. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "Jonathan Spector". Concord Theatricals. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "Jonathan Spector – 2019 Bay Area Playwrights Festival". Playwrights Foundation. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "Abbi Jacobson, Zoë Winters, More Will Star in Jonathan Spector's Birthright Off-Broadway". Playbill. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "At Over 3 Hours and Spanning 18 Years, Jonathan Spector's Birthright Is a Modern Jewish Epic". Playbill. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "'Birthright' Review: Eighteen Years Later, Still Arguing Over the Trip". The New York Times. June 30, 2026. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "'Birthright' Off Broadway Review: The Year's Best New Play (So Far) Is a Jewish 'Big Chill'". TheWrap. June 29, 2026. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "Birthright – MCC Theater". MCC Theater. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "Jonathan Spector". Concord Theatricals. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "TCG Announces Second Round of 2021-22 Edgerton Foundation New Play Awards". Dramatists Guild. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ "Tony Awards 2025: Live Updating". Playbill. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ Desk-award-winners-2025-the-full-list "Drama Desk Award Winners 2025: The Full List" Check
|url=value (help). Playbill. Retrieved July 24, 2026. - ↑ "All the Winners at the 2025 Drama League Awards". Vogue. Retrieved July 24, 2026.
- ↑ Mandell, Jonathan (June 3, 2025). "2025 Dorian Theater Award Winners: Maybe Happy Ending. John Proctor. Cats. Audra, Sarah, Jak, Fina. André". New York Theater. Retrieved March 7, 2026.
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