pronouns: she/her/they/them
'There aren’t many writers who conjure stories the way Isley Lynn can. Her innate instinct for achingly human characters in situations rarely – if ever – seen on stage sets her well apart from most young playwrights. These intimate stories leave a huge impact when set on stage, their echoes long reverberating with her audiences.'
- Laura Kressly, The Play's The Thing
Isley is a USA/UK dual citizen playwright. They write plays which place new narratives centre-stage, either by taking a fresh perspective on a story you thought you knew well, or by unearthing untold or mis-told stories.
They won the ‘Charles Wintour Most Promising Playwright Award’ at the Evening Standard Theatre Awards 2023 for their play The Swell, which opened to great acclaim as part of Tom Littler’s first season at the Orange Tree Theatre and was also nominated for Outstanding Achievement In An Affiliate Theatre at the 2024 Oliviers, as well as Best New Play, Best Director and Best Production at the 2023 Offies.
Isley was a finalist for the 2021-22 Women’s Prize for Playwriting with Furies. Isley's play Skin A Cat was awarded Pick Of The Year at Vault Festival 2016 and nominated for four Off West End Awards (Most Promising New Playwright - shortlist, Best New Play, Best Lead Female, Best Director) for its transfer as inaugural production at The Bunker, 2016, then touring nationally throughout 2018. Their contribution to 15 Heroines (The Desert: Canace - A Good Story) earned critical acclaim, and their adaptation of War Of The Worlds in collaboration with Rhum And Clay enjoyed a completely sold out five week run at New Diorama Theatre before touring nationally and internationally.
Isley was the 2014 Script6 winner at The Space with Bright Nights, they received Special Commendation from the 2012 Soho Young Writers Award for Lomography, and Isley's monologue What's So Special was performed as part of The Get Out at The Royal Court Jerwood Theatre Upstairs (2014). They were twice named Champion of Literary Death Match (Norfolk and Norwich Festival and The Book Club, London). Their European debut Sie Und Wir was performed in German at Werk X, Vienna. Their play Totty, written for Paines Plough and Tamasha's Come To Where I'm From: London, is available for free through the CTWIF app.
Isley is currently under commission to Empire Street Productions, Vicky Graham Productions and Chichester Festival Theatre. They are developing new projects for television with House Productions and Brock Media.
They are represented by Jonathan Kinnersley at The Agency: theagency.co.uk/the-clients/isley-lynn
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