Biography
Derek Ahonen is an internationally acclaimed playwright, director, and the founder of The Amoralists in New York, whose mission is to produce work of "no moral judgment" while representing an "honest expression of the American condition." Notable works include The Pied Pipers of The Lower East Side, Happy in the Poorhouse, The Bad and The Better, and The Qualification of Douglas Evans. His work has been lauded by The New York Times, The New Yorker and Variety amongst many others. The New York Times has said that "Mr. Ahonen, The Amoralists' leader, has a showman's sensibility. He brings the populist instincts of a born entertainer." While The New York Post calls Ahonen's shows "like no other. A distinctive mix of hyper realism, satire, brash violence, and unexpected tenderness." Time Out New York says that "nobody else weds old-fashioned realist structure and working-class-hero lunacy quite this way." The Village Voice describes his work as "scathing and frequently hilarious portraits of the American dream gone wrong." The New Yorker says "Ahonen is very funny, original and refreshing." And New York Press calls his work "carefully stylized mayhem. A complex symphony that should be marveled at."
