Samuel D. Hunter

SAMUEL D. HUNTER (he/him) grew up in Moscow, Idaho and lives in New York City. He is the recipient of a 2014 MacArthur “Genius Grant” Fellowship for his work as a playwright. His full-length plays include The Whale (Drama Desk Award, Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Play, GLAAD Media Award, Drama League and Outer Critics Circle nominations for Best Play), A Bright New Boise (Obie Award, Drama Desk nomination for Best Play), Greater Clements (Drama Desk nomination for Best Play, Outer Critics Circle Honoree), Lewiston/Clarkston (Drama Desk nomination for Best Play), The Few, A Great Wilderness, Rest, Pocatello, The Healing and The Harvest, among others. A film version of The Whale, directed by Darren Aronofsky and starring Brendan Fraser, was released by A24 Films in 2022. Mr. Hunter is the recipient of a 2012 Whiting Writers Award and an honorary doctorate from the University of Idaho. His work has been produced off-Broadway in New York City by Lincoln Center Theatre, Playwrights Horizons, LCT3, Signature Theatre, Page 73 Productions, Clubbed Thumb and Rattlestick Playwrights Theatre, and has been seen in regional theaters across the country.  Mr. Hunter is a member of New Dramatists and a current Resident Playwright at the Signature Theatre in New York City. He holds degrees in playwriting from NYU, The Iowa Playwrights Workshop, and Juilliard.