Playwright and performer Ryan J. Haddad has been named the 2020 recipient of the Rhimes Unsung Voices Playwriting Commission from Los Angeles’ IAMA Theatre Company. TV producer and writer Shonda Rhimes, who was named IAMA’s first Patron of the Arts in 2017, created the commission to support an emerging artist with emphasis on cultural inclusion and the goal to showcase fresh, creative, thought-provoking work.

“Ryan's voice is one of the most unique we've ever had the pleasure to get to know and we couldn't be more thrilled to help play a part in his creative journey," shared IAMA's co-artistic directors Stefanie Black and Katie Lowes. "His humor and strength come through in every word he writes. There isn't a more charismatic writer/performer at this moment. He embodies every aspect of why this commission was created in the first place.” Previous recipients of the Unsung Voices Playwriting Commission include Sanaz Toossi (English) and Geraldine Inoa (Scraps).

Read: BEFORE SHE WAS A SCANDAL STAR, KATIE LOWES SAVED HER ACTING CAREER BY FOUNDING IAMA

Haddad is an actor, playwright, and autobiographical performer who was recently named the second recipient of The Cornelia Street American Playwriting Award from Rising Phoenix Repertory. His acclaimed solo play Hi, Are You Single? was seen at The Public Theater's Under the Radar Festival and regionally at The Guthrie, Cleveland Playhouse, and Williamstown Theatre Festival. A member of The Public's Emerging Writers Group, his plays include Good Time Charlie, Dark Disabled Stories, and My Straighties.

As an actor, Haddad has been seen on stage in The Maids and Noor and Hadi Go to Hogwarts, and on TV in The Politician, Bull, Madam Secretary, and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt.

IAMA Theatre Company is one of L.A.’s leading independent companies, with a reputation for producing new plays and championing emerging artists. For more information visit IAMATheatre.com.