 "2ST Uptown" was created in 2002 as a program to help develop and provide exposure for the voices of a new generation of theater artists.It has helped launch and advance the careers of several playwrights, including Lesyle Headland, Michael Mitnick, Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa, Adam Bock, Pulitzer Prize finalist Rajiv Joseph, and Dan O'Brien.Christopher Burney, Curator & Associate Artistic Director of Second Stage Theater, seeks to develop the skills of emerging playwrights, to provide early-career artists with the support of a major artistic institution, and to create new plays for the American Theater.