The Department of Theatre, Film, and Media Arts is hosting the EMOS Ecodrama Playwrights' Festival and Symposium in March 2026. The winning play, Acute Exposure by August Hakvaag, will be produced as part of the department's mainstage season. The Plume by Maggie Kearnan, the second-place script, will receive a staged reading during the symposium.
Earth Matters on Stage (EMOS) was founded by Theresa May and Larry Fried in 2004. EMOS is a consortium of artists, educators, activists, and scholars who believe that theatre and the performing arts must respond to the environmental crisis. EMOS calls forth and fosters new dramatic work and performances that help us re-imagine our human place in a more-than-human world.
At the heart of EMOS is the Ecodrama New Play Contest, which calls playwrights and theatre makers to engage in the global and local ecological issues that face societies across cultures.
The concurrent EMOS Symposium fosters dialogue about the intersection of environment, culture, and performance.
The festival is co-chaired by graduate students Joshua Lewis and Paitton Lewis.
August Hakvaag (they/them) is a butch theatre artist currently based in Philadelphia. They received a BA in Theatre, and are currently pursuing a Graduate Certificate in Gender, Sexuality, and Women's Studies, from Temple University. They have worked internationally as an actor, director, and playwright. They are a Princess Grace Fellowship Award semi-finalist, a Susan Smith Blackburn Prize nominee, and a proud member of the Ring of Keys Collective. Highlights include working with Moxie Arts NY, The Palace Collective, Philadelphia Young Playwrights, The Twenty Sided Tavern, Impulse Control Freaks, Richmond Triangle Players, Tokyo International Players, and Aporia Artists Collective, of which they are a founding member. Most recently, their immersive piece A Seance for Mae West enjoyed a sold out run at the Hot Bed Art Studio in Philadelphia. Currently, they can be heard on the award-winning podcast Wing Women as Nino. They are finishing their second year of the PlayPenn Foundry program, where they are working on a play about superconductive electricity.
2018 Rain and Zoe Save the World by Crystal Skillman
2015 Thirst by MEH Lewis and Anita Chandwaney
2012 Sila by Chantal Bilodeau
2009 Song of Extinction by EM Lewis
2004 Odin's Horse by Rob Koon
The Short North Arts District, located south of Ohio State, is a great place for dining and shopping. This trendy neighborhood also has several hotels and art galleries.
If you're looking to stay on campus, you can do so at Ohio State's very own Blackwell Inn.
Another nearby option, Springhill Suites, has a complimentary shuttle to campus.
There are several restaurants and hotels near the Shops on Lane Avenue.
Symposium Schedule
Registration for the symposium is free and does not include tickets for the production of Acute Exposure. Tickets may be purchased through the Department of Theatre, Film, and Media Arts Box Office.
Seating at individual sessions and performances of The Plume is limited and is first come, first served.
All sessions held in the Theatre, Film, and Media Arts Building (1934 College Road) unless otherwise noted.
5:00 - 6:00pm
Reception
Location: Lobby
6:00 - 7:00pm
Keynote Address
Speaker: Bethany Hughes
Location: Proscenium Theatre
7:30pm
Acute Exposure
Location: Blackbox Theatre
Followed by post-performance discussion with the playwright.
11:00 - noon
Presentation
Presenter: Andrea Grottoli
Location: TBD
1:00 - 2:00pm
"The Show Can't Go on Like This: Understanding the Climate Crisis and Our Role in Its Solutions"
Presenter: Molly Braverman
Location: Virtual
The first half of this session will be an overview of the climate crisis and available solutions focusing on theatre. The second half will discuss resources and tools available for sustainable theatrical production.
2:30 - 4:30pm
"Lost Waters - Virtual Reality Event"
Presented by Emma Kline through The Living Art and Ecology Lab
Location: Virtual
Lost Waters is a creative research project investigating the disappearance of Neil Run, a stream which vanished from Ohio State campus maps in the 1890s when it was buried beneath the South Oval Lawn to make way for development--a common story for waterways in urban areas. See what the South Oval and Mirror Lake Hollow might have looked like 100 years ago through a virtual reconstruction of the space.
5:00 - 7:00pm
Eco-Film Screening
Location: Screening Room (Room 380)
7:30pm
Acute Exposure
Location: Blackbox Theatre
7:30pm
The Plume
Location: Multipurpose Theatre Lab (Room 435)
10:00 - 11:00am
"Sustainability in Design"
Presenter: Ian Garrett
Location: Room 280
11:00 - noon
"Vanishing Horizons Presentation"
Presenter: Sanyam Bajaj
Location: Room 210
11:00 - noon
"When Water and Oil Mix: A Thirst for the EcoGothic as Ecodramaturgy"
Presenter: Kelly Richmond
Location: TBD
A tale of corruption, contamination, and even-later stage capitalism, Terry Guest's Thirst: An American Fable (2024) imagines the what-if of oil contamination in the Great Lakes. A disturbing yet delicious drama that plays with conventions of gothic and cli-fi narratives to craft a compelling case for protecting our Great Lakes before it's too late. Richmond will use Thirst to make the case that the ecoG0thic is necessary and compelling mode of ecodramaturgy for tackling the existential dread of climate crisis.
12:30 - 2:00pm
"Using Climate Change Theatre Action Plays in the Classroom and Beyond
Presenter: Chantal Bilodeau
Location: TBD
How can plays with climate issues be used in higher education? Five panelists discuss their experiences working with students and communities to create joyful, empowering events.
2:00 - 3:30pm
"Ecodramaturgy in Practice: A Roundtable on Developing and Performing Climate Stories"
Presenter: Arden Thomas
Location: Room 215
This roundtable gathers theatre makers, dramaturgs, and scholars exploring how eco-dramaturgy shapes new plays, devised performances, and teaching practices. Participants share approaches that link theatre-making with environmental justice, scientific collaboration, and sustainable design to imagine more responsive and resilient artistic futures.
3:30 - 5:30pm
"Playwriting Workshop"
Presenter: August Hakvaag
Location: Room 210
Like a plant growing in a garden, the environment helps shape the people in it. As the ground beneath our feet seems more unsteady than ever, theatre artists are turning more and more towards exploring stories and characters impacted by the modern climate crisis. Join Acute Exposure playwright August Hakvaag for an hour of writing and discussion, focusing on how to bring environmentalism and the climate crisis to the stage. Participants will be given a few prompts to discuss and write about, followed by a Q & A.
7:30pm
Acute Exposure
Location: Blackbox Theatre
7:30pm
The Plume
Location: Multipurpose Theatre Lab (Room 435)
11:00 - 12:30pm
"Kinship Dramaturgies: Site, Spirit, and Sensation in Eco-Theatre Creation
Presenter: Lydia Fort
Location: TBD
This workshop introduces kinship dramaturgy, an eco-theatrical methodology that integrates forest-bathing principles, embodied research, and site-responsive exploration. The session includes guided attention exercises and micro-site explorations to investigate how performance emerges through relational engagement with space, community, and the more-than-human world.
1:00 - 2:00pm
"Creating with Care: Practices for an Earth-Guided Life
Presenter: Natalia Martinez-Sagan
Location: TBD
This program offers a gentle space to pause, breathe, and reconnect with the Earth, and with the deeper purpose behind our creative work. Blending mindfulness and expressive arts therapy tools with sustainability and artistic reflection, Sagan will guide participants in exploring how to create with care, for ourselves, our communities, and the planet.
2:30 - 4:00pm
"Staging Climate Emotions: Drama Therapy Approaches in a World in Crisis"
Presenter: Julia Levin
Location: TBD
This workshop is for students and educators; activists and artists; and community members--anyone with concern for the state of our world. Through drama therapy techniques and climate psychology practices, participants will identify, express, and connect their climate emotions as part of the larger movement for ecological justice. The workshop draws upon gratitude, mindful movement, and playful interactions to bridge individual healing and collective action, equipping participants with concepts and tools they can bring back to their own settings.
3:00pm
Acute Exposure
Location: Blackbox Theatre
7:30pm
The Plume
Multipurpose Theatre Lab (Room 435)
Co-Sponsors
Office of the Vice Provost for the Arts