LARA DUARTE
is the winner
OF THE 6TH EDITION
FROM THE NOVA AWARD
DRAMATURGY OF
FEMALE AUTHORSHIP
The jury for this edition, composed of Francesca Claire Rayner, Sara Carinhas, and Sandro William Junqueira, awarded the Prize to Lara Duarte for her work *Cry Baby From Hell* , highlighting "the strength, originality, and mastery of her dramatic writing." Regarding the work, the jury also emphasized how the author constructs her own language, using excess, violence, and humor as tools for a "sharp" social critique, in a piece that is simultaneously "gore, ferocious, biting, and profoundly funny."
ABOUT THE WINNER
Lara Duarte is a playwright, director, actress, and researcher. She is a member of the Cia Carniceira theater company. She holds a doctorate and a master's degree in Performing Arts from UNICAMP. Currently, she is developing the research project "How to make monsters with words?" She has a bachelor's degree in Performing Arts from UFBA, a degree in Dramaturgy from SP Escola de Teatro, and is the author of the book Gambiarras Sentimentais (Editora Patuá). Since 2018, she has maintained a continuous partnership with director Janaína Leite, working as a dramaturg and assistant director on works such as Stabat Mater, winner of the Shell Award for Dramaturgy, as well as História do Olho, Camming – 101 Noites, and Deeper. She is the director and playwright of the play Zona de Sacrifício, which premiered at the Quai de Scene in Strasbourg, France. She also directed the play Azimute, created in a student and university context. She is the playwright of the play Reset América Latina by the Estopô Balaio collective. Performer, playwright, and director of Vaginal Panic, which won awards at the São Paulo Short Film Week and the CRASH Fantastic Film Festival.
Created to recognize, value, and encourage dramatic writing by female authors in the Portuguese language, the New Playwriting Prize for Female Authors annually distinguishes an unpublished work. The prize is intended for authors with or without published or publicly presented work, promoting the emergence of new voices and contributing to the diversity of contemporary theatrical writing.
Between January 1st and March 31st, we received 178 applications for the 6th edition of the prize—the highest number of entries ever recorded. Faced with a particularly competitive edition, the jury selected three finalist works:
Constança Bourgard , with Mother's Love
Lara Duarte , with Cry Baby From Hell
Raquel Castro de Souza , with Sun on Her Head
Click on the links above to learn more about the finalist authors and their respective works.
The selection process was followed, between June and August, by individual mentoring with the jury members. Throughout this mentoring, the three authors had the opportunity to work on their texts, deepening their ideas, experimenting with new possibilities, and developing their works through dialogue with the different jury members.
The selection of the three finalists was unanimous and resulted from an assessment of the quality of the submitted proposals, the uniqueness of their languages, and the relevance of the issues raised by each work.
In addition to awarding the Prize , the jury decided to give Honorable Mentions to the works Amor de Mãe, by Constança Bourgard, and Sol na Cabeça, by Raquel Castro de Souza, recognizing the quality of the dramatic proposals and the uniqueness of the writing paths presented.
As the winner of the 6th edition, Lara Duarte receives a prize of €1,000. Cry Baby From Hell will be published as a book by Companhia Cepa Torta, in partnership with Douda Correria, and will have a public presentation as part of the 10th season of Festim Esta Noite Grita-se.
The premiere reading of the winning work will take place at the São Luiz Municipal Theatre in Lisbon on November 28th and 29th. The award ceremony for the author will take place on the first day. Following the reading, there will be a conversation with the winner, the jury members, and the audience, creating a space for discussion about the work and the process that led to its creation.
The previous edition was marked by the awarding of the Prize to Sabrina Marthendal for her work Pedral, with the award ceremony, book launch and public reading held at the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation in December 2025.
Over the past few years, the Prize has also recognized authors such as Luz Ribeiro (Lacuna, 2024), Sofia Perpétua (Tanque, 2023), Maria Giulia Pinheiro (Isso não é positivo, 2022) and Lara Mesquita (Sempre que acordo, 2021).
Meet our Jury
In this 6th edition of the New Playwriting Prize for Female Authors, we once again have an excellent panel of judges, made up of leading professionals in the field of drama. Find out more about each of them by exploring their biographies!
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Some relevant data
The New Playwriting Prize for Female Authors aims to promote, recognize and publicize female-authored dramaturgy in Portuguese and is aimed at all natural persons, of legal age, who identify with the female gender, whether cisgender or transgender.
This award aims to promote, recognize and disseminate drama written by women in Portuguese. The competition is open to all natural persons, of legal age, who identify as female, whether cisgender or transgender, and who want to propose a Unpublished and never performed dramaturgical work.
According to the International Center for Women Playwrights, an NGO dedicated to encouraging the work of women playwrights, 70% of the plays produced annually in the world are by men. When it comes to publishing works, the number drops even further - in Portugal we estimate that less than 15% of the texts edited are by women. This panorama in no way favors the diversity and richness of artistic production, hindering the innovation brought by the female gaze of female creators who, without adequate stimulus, continue to be far from the circuits necessary for the dissemination of their works. In the artistic direction of Esta Noite Scream, we have had difficulty balancing the authorial genre because the choice options are very limited when it comes to female playwrights. Only by encouraging creation will it be possible to change this reality and ensure that more women artists take risks and publish their work.
Here are some useful links for those who want to delve a little deeper into this topic:
https://www.womenarts.org/not-even/not-even-impact-of-playwrights-gender/
https://lafpi.com/the-facts/#10
https://www.womenplaywrights.org/The-Challenge
Consulting the Frequently Asked Questions does not replace careful reading of the Regulations.
PERGUNTAS FREQUENTES
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