Dave Osmundsen Autistic Playwright

EPISODE 63
The Journey of Dave Osmundsen, An Autistic Playwright

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Show Notes

As autistic individuals become increasingly involved in contributing to the performing arts, a relatively new role is that of autistic playwrights developing bodies of work admired for their creativity and impact. Dave Osmundsen, one such playwright, is experiencing success and recognition for his contributions. Dave discusses his development as a playwright, and the themes that he finds most exciting to explore in his plays.

Plays from Dave

Light Switch
(Un)Scripted
Making Friends Remotely

Featuring

Dave Osmundsen

DAVE OSMUNDSEN

Dave Osmundsen (He/Him/His) is an Autistic playwright based in New Jersey whose work has been seen and developed at Spectrum Theatre Ensemble, the Kennedy Center/NNPN MFA Playwrights Workshop, Premiere Stages, Phoenix Theatre Company, Clamour Theatre Company, and others. His play Light Switch was the 2021 Distinguished Achievement recipient of the Jean Kennedy Smith Playwriting Award, an Honorable Mention finalist for the 2021 Bay Area Playwrights Festival, a finalist for the 2020 Carlo Annoni Playwriting Prize, and a semi-finalist for the 2020 National Playwrights Conference. He was also a recipient of the inaugural Future of Playwriting Prize from the Blank Theatre and Ucross. He holds in MFA in Dramatic Writing.

Find Dave’s works on “New Play Exchange”

Follow him:

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…and Continue the Discussion

Do you have a book or podcast club? If so, you may use this discussion guide to facilitate a conversation about this episode.

1) What do you believe were the motivating factors that led to Dave to become a playwright? If you know of autistic individuals who love to write (non-fiction or fiction), do you see similar motivations? As a parent or educator, what do you do to motivate self-expression through writing?

2) What are Dave’s opinions about the range of themes that neurodivergent playwrights should address? Do you agree?

3) What do you see as the role of the performing arts in educating the public and increasing awareness of issues faced by autistic and neurodivergent individuals in a neurotypical society? Have you directly experienced positive impacts, and if so, give examples?

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Music

Matt Savage, courtesy of Savage Records

Matt Savage is an autistic jazz musician, composer, and bandleader. Matt has collaborated with jazz greats like Chick Corea, the Ellington All Stars, Chaka Khan, Wynton Marsalis, Bobby Watson, Clark Terry, Jimmy Heath, Jason Moran, Arturo O’Farrill, John Pizzarelli, Joshua Redman, Terri Lyne Carrington, Jon Faddis, Jerry Bergonzi. Donny McCaslin, and more. He has recorded more than a dozen records and graciously contributes the music for Uniquely Human.

Production and Sound Design

ELEVATEDSTUDIO

Uniquely Human: The Podcast is produced, engineered, and edited by Elevated Studio in Denver, Colorado. Owned and operated by co-host Dave Finch, Elevated Studio produces digital media assets and content strategies for the electronics, entertainment, and lifestyle industries.