JON LAWRENCE RIVERA
Playwrights’ Arena
Jon Lawrence Rivera (he/him) is the recipient of the first Career Achievement Award from Stage Raw. Most recently, Rivera directed the following critically-acclaimed world premieres for Playwrights’ Arena: Apartment Living by Boni B. Alvarez, A Hit Dog Will Holler by Inda Craig-Galván, Southernmost by Mary Lyon Kamitaki, Baby Eyes by Donald Jolly, Little Women by Velina Hasu Houston, Billy Boy by Nick Salamone, The Hotel Play (performed in an actual hotel), @TheSpeedOfJake by Jennifer Maisel, and The Anatomy of Gazellas by Janine Salinas Schoenberg.
Other recent works include: KIM’S CONVENIENCE by Ins Choi, BINGO HALL by Dillon Chitto, FAIRLY TRACEABLE by Mary Kathryn Nagle, CRIERS FOR HIRE by Giovanni Ortega, STAND-OFF AT HWY #37 by Vicky Ramirez, FLIPZOIDS by Ralph B. Peña (also in Manila).
Rivera is the recipient of a NY Fringe Festival Award, an LA Weekly Award, and five-time Ovation Award nominations.
Founded in 1992, Playwrights’ Arena is dedicated to discovering, nurturing and producing bold new works for the stage written exclusively by Los Angeles playwrights. Playwrights’ Arena develops new materials through several series of readings, workshops and round table discussions. Local playwrights are encouraged to create original, adventurous, daring materials with the intent of challenging the mind, touching the heart and provoking the spirit.
Playwrights’ Arena will be an incubator for a re-imagined, more inclusive theatrical canon by generating and presenting new works for the stage, and by serving as a catalyst for the next generation of theatre supporters and creators through our artistic education programs.
