The collective of critics will meet and select the winners for the awards, which will be presented at a cocktail reception on May 14 at the Algonquin Hotel. The venue is where the NYDCC was founded in 1935 by the likes of Brooks Atkinson and Walter Winchell.

The New York Drama Critics' Circle includes 21 drama critics from publications based in the New York area. The NYDCC has given out an award every year since 1936 to the best new play of the season, with optional awards for foreign or American plays, musicals and performers. The award touts itself as the nation's second oldest theatre award, after the Pulitzer Prize for drama.

The award for Best Play comes with a cash prize of $2,500. A cash award of $1,000 will go to the playwright who receives an award for best American or foreign play. The prizes are made possible by a grant from the Lucille Lortel Foundation.

Last year, The History Boys, by Alan Bennett, was named Best Play. The Best Musical award went to The Drowsy Chaperone (book by Bob Martin and Don McKellar, music and lyrics by Lisa Lambert and Greg Morrison).

Adam Feldman, theatre critic for Time Out New York, has served as president of the NYDCC since 2005. Frank Scheck of the New York Post serves as vice president; Michael Kuchwara of the Associated Press is treasurer. The other members of the New York Drama Critics' Circle are Clive Barnes (New York Post), Melissa Rose Bernardo (Entertainment Weekly), David Cote (Time Out New York), Joe Dziemianowicz (Daily News), Michael Feingold (Village Voice), Robert Feldberg (Bergen Record), Elysa Gardner (USA Today), Eric Grode (New York Sun), John Heilpern (New York Observer), Jacques le Sourd (Gannett Newspapers), Jeremy McCarter (New York Sun), David Rooney (Variety), David Sheward (Back Stage), John Simon (Bloomberg News), Michael Sommers (The Star Ledger/Newhouse Newspapers), Terry Teachout (The Wall Street Journal), Linda Winer (Newsday) and Richard Zoglin (Time).