'Purpose' wins Pulitzer Prize for Drama, received world premiere at Steppenwolf Theatre
Branden Jacobs-Jenkins' “Purpose,” a family drama that received its world premiere at Chicago's Steppenwolf Theatre in 2024, has won the 2025 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, it was announced Monday.
The play, which was commissioned by Steppenwolf, bowed in Chicago in March 2024. It moved to Broadway earlier this year where it is currently running and where it recently received six Tony Award nominations, including best play. The show, loosely based on the family of civil rights icon Jesse Jackson, was directed by Phylicia Rashad in Chicago and on Broadway.
When reached by phone Monday afternoon, a spokesperson for the theater company issued a statement from co-artistic directors Glenn Davis and Audrey Francis: “Congratulations to the brilliant playwright Branden Jacobs-Jenkins on today’s 2025 Pulitzer Prize for Drama in recognition of 'Purpose,' a play commissioned, developed and premiered at Steppenwolf Theatre. As we prepare to launch Steppenwolf’s 50th anniversary season, this honor underscores our company’s time-honored commitment to developing ensemble-driven, new works."
Steppenwolf previously won a Pulitzer Prize in 2008 for Tracy Letts' "August: Osage County."