Else Went (born 1989 or 1990)[1] is an American playwright whose works An Oxford Man and Initiative have been nominated for the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize in 2025 and 2026 respectively. The former is a play based on the life of Laurence Michael Dillon, the first transgender man to undergo phalloplasty. The latter, a five-hour-long production set in the early 2000s and based on Dungeons & Dragons, was praised for its recreation of instant messaging and was described by The Guardian as "emotionally immersive".
Else Went | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1989 or 1990 (age 35–36) |
| Education | Sarah Lawrence College |
| Occupation | Playwright |
| Notable work | An Oxford Man Initiative |
| Spouse | Emma Rosa Went |
Career
editWent grew up in Cambria, California and went to a public school before attending Sarah Lawrence College, graduating in 2013.[1][2] In 2020, Went was a MacDowell Fellow,[3] during which time they conceived and wrote the play An Oxford Man, based on the life of Laurence Michael Dillon,[4] the first transgender man to undergo phalloplasty.[5] An Oxford Man was a finalist for the Carlo Annoni Playwrighting Prize in 2023,[6] and was also shortlisted for the 2025 Susan Smith Blackburn Prize, receiving a Special Commendation.[4][7][8] The same year their play Degenerates was published in the The Methuen Drama Book of Trans Plays Volume 2.[9] This play focuses on the experiences that transgender people may have when they engage with online incel communities.[10]
In November 2025, Went's play Initiative premiered off-Broadway at The Public Theater.[11] The play is set in the early 2000s and follows a group of young people who play Dungeons & Dragons.[11] At five hours long, the play has three 90-minute acts, a deliberate choice by Went with the intention of creating "a new type of commitment" for audience members.[11] Went first developed the concept for the what would become Initiative in 2011 in a class at Sarah Lawrence taught by Lucy Thurber, completing the first draft of the play in 2016.[1] Went developed and expanded the play in 2018–19 during a fellowship at Playwrights Realm.[12] It was reviewed by The Guardian as a "coming-of-age epic of sorts" which "flies right by, as emotionally immersive as the Dungeons & Dragons games that enrapture most of its seven teenage characters".[11] Time Out noted in its review that the play was loosely autobiographical, praised its use of instant messaging from the era and described it as "a mesmerizing portrait of adolescents".[13] The New York Stage Review was also positive, describing it as "the dramatic equivalent of a group bildungsroman".[14] The New York Times review was mixed, also praising its use of instant messaging, but less positive about the use of Dungeons & Dragons; the reviewer Elisabeth Vincentelli compared the work less favourably to similar use in 2011's She Kills Monsters by Qui Nguyen.[15] Initiative has been nominated for the 2026 Susan Smith Blackburn Prize.[16]
Selected plays
editPersonal life
editReferences
edit- 1 2 3 Corzine, Douglas (18 November 2025). "In This Show, Four Years of High School Unfold Over Five Hours". The New York Times. Retrieved 25 April 2026.
- ↑ "Else Went '13 Traces Roots of Off-Broadway Debut "Initiative" to Her Time at Sarah Lawrence | Sarah Lawrence College". www.sarahlawrence.edu. 2025-11-20. Retrieved 2026-04-06.
- ↑ "Else Went - MacDowell Fellow in Theatre Arts". MacDowell. Retrieved 2026-04-06.
- 1 2 3 "The Susan Smith Blackburn Prize 2025 finalists announced | West End Theatre". www.westendtheatre.com. 2025-02-05. Retrieved 2026-04-06.
- ↑ "Michael Dillon: Aristocrat, Scholar, Physician, Monk and Man – Humanities & Heritage". history.lincoln.ac.uk. Retrieved 2026-04-07.
- ↑ "Carlo Annoni Prize – per testi teatrali a tematica gay e sulle diversità nella sfera dell'amore". Retrieved 2026-04-06.
- ↑ Wiegand, Chris (2025-02-04). "Plays from RSC, National and Almeida theatres in running for Susan Smith Blackburn prize". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2026-04-07.
- ↑ "The Susan Smith Blackburn Prize : An Oxford Man". The Susan Smith Blackburn Prize. Retrieved 2026-04-06.
- 1 2 "The Methuen Drama Book of Trans Plays Volume II Virtual Launch Party". HowlRound Theatre Commons. Retrieved 2026-04-06.
- ↑ Keyes, Leanna; Mantoan, Lindsey; Schiller, Angela Farr (2025-08-21). The Methuen Drama Book of Trans Plays Volume 2. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 978-1-350-45811-6.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Hassenger, Jesse (2025-11-25). "'A nucleus of a community': the five-hour stage play about Dungeons & Dragons". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2026-04-06.
- ↑ Maas, Jennifer (2025-11-11). "Five-Hour 'Dungeons & Dragons'-Themed Play 'Initiative' Rolls Into NYC's Public Theater Amid Showbiz's Growing Embrace of Role-Playing Fandom". Variety. Retrieved 2026-04-06.
- ↑ Snook, Raven. "Review: Initiative (★★★★) is an epic look at teenage angst". Time Out New York. Archived from the original on 2026-04-06. Retrieved 2026-04-06.
- ↑ Verini, Bob (2025-11-21). "Initiative: Dungeons & Dragons And Sex, Oh My". New York Stage Review. Retrieved 2026-04-06.
- ↑ Vincentelli, Elisabeth (2025-11-21). "'Initiative' Review: High School as an Epic Struggle". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2026-04-07.
- ↑ "The Susan Smith Blackburn Prize : Initiative". The Susan Smith Blackburn Prize. Retrieved 2026-04-07.
External links
edit- INITIATIVE | The Present Stage (podcast episode)