The Stanley Drama Award was established in 1957 by Mrs. Alma Timolat Stanley in conjunction with the Stanley-Timolat Foundation, which supports aspiring playwrights. This national competition is administered by the Theatre Department of Wagner College, with past judges including such notables as playwrights Edward Albee and Paul Zindel, actresses Geraldine Page and Kim Stanley, and producer David Susskind. Past winners, which were chosen for this award before they were professionally produced, have included such groundbreaking works as Ceremonies in Dark Old Men by Lonnie Elder III and Rent by Jonathan Larson.