Furthering the mission to promote and recognize Chicago theater excellence, The Jeff Awards has announced the newest recipients of its Jeff Impact Fellowships. The Fellowships, which began in 2023, come with a financial award of $10,000 each to help inspire two early career artists of color in the Greater Chicagoland area to support their work pursuing artistic excellence in Chicago theater. Theater artists Hershey Suri and Adisa Williams have been awarded the 2024 Jeff Impact Fellowships.
The Jeff Impact Fellowships are intended for the professional, academic, and/or personal development of candidates in the theater community. Eligible recipients include early career artists of color who reside in or are based in Chicago or a Chicago suburb, least 18 years of age, and have been involved in Chicago theater for at least one year as actors, directors, stage managers, designers, theater technicians, cabaret artists, playwrights, music directors, theater composers, theater musicians, dramaturgs and improvisational performers.
“Yet again, we were overwhelmed at the vibrancy of talent and vision in the Chicago theater community, particularly among emerging artists in our own backyard," said John Glover, Chair of The Jeff Awards. “To continue our mission of promoting theater excellence, these Jeff Impact Fellowships have already become a vital way to help artists continue to pursue their dreams and bring important voices and stories to life. Our first class of fellows are seeing their visions come to life with this support and we cannot wait to see how Hershey and Adisa will inspire audiences and other theater artists with their work."
The Jeff Impact Fellowship has been made possible by a generous anonymous donation gifted to the Jeff Awards to support a minimum of five consective classes of honorees (beginning in 2023). Details on applications for 2025 Fellowships will be announced this fall.
More on the Jeff Impact Fellowship Recipients
Hershey Suri is a theatrical storyteller passionate about exploring the intersection between sociology and the law. A first generation Sikh Indian woman, she began working at a civil rights law firm while pursuing her artistic career. Among many productions, she produced and directed the first South Asian version of the Pulitzer Prize-winning Next to Normal with the South Asia Institute and PopUp! Productions, a theatre company she founded that produces at different theater venues across cities in the United States, which attracted an audience of more than 700 in just two weekends and received glowing reviews. With the Jeff Impact Fellowship award funding, she plans to use theater as a vehicle to reimagine the criminal justice system. As a current student at the University of Chicago Law School, Hershey plans to “marry” her law experience with the creative endeavors of PopUp! Productions and other interested companies producing works that push for social change (based on the Columbia University Law School and Broadway Alliance collaboration model). A humble presence and repesentative of what is right, fair and true, she continues to pursue a vision and apply her energy to inspire people of color to see themselves represented onstage and behind the curtain. Learn more about Hershey at www.hersheysuri.com.
Adisa Williams is a Jamaican-American comedy writer and performer who captivated audiences as a cast member of The Second City Mainstage 112th Revue. As one of 13 featured performers in the CBS 2023 Showcase, her comedic short “Ashay” snagged nominations for two national film festivals. She draws comedic inspiration from her childhood in Jamaica, growing up as an eldest daughter in an immigrant family with queer neurodiversity. To bring more visibility for “out” autistic comedians and expand that to queer, immigrant people of color, Adisa's vision is to enrich the comedic landscape by promoting greater representation of neurodivergent artists of color. With the Jeff Imact Fellowship, she plans to record a comedy album of her recent show at the Annoyance Theatre, stage another production showcasing neurodivergent talent and take her show to the prestigious Edinburgh Fringe Festival, enabling her to reach diverse audiences globally, fostering cultural exchange and highlighting the talents of autistic, people of color and queer artists. Recognized as an electric and creative force, she brings a unique talent to delivering nuanced and not often explored work that carries a distinctive point of view. For more on Adisa visit www.adisawilliams.com.
Recipients of the 2023 Jeff Impact Awards were Satya Chávez, a Latine multi-disciplinary artist with a passion for social justice and writing music, and Terry Guest, who is a playwright, actor, director and teaching artist.
ABOUT THE JEFF AWARDS
The Jeff Awards is one of the most active and engaged theater awards organizations in the country evaluating hundreds of theatrical productions annually and holding two awards ceremonies highlighting work over the past Equity and Non-Equity seasons. Through our recommendations, awards, and honors we help foster the growth of companies, encourage artists, bring new appreciation for diverse storytelling, and cultivate civic pride in the achievements of the Chicago theater community. Originally chartered in 1968 to recognize Equity productions, the Jeff Awards Non-Equity Wing was established in 1973 to celebrate outstanding achievement in non-union theatre. For more information, visit www.jeffawards.org.