Playwright:

Howard Skora is a Los Angeles–based playwright, director, and screenwriter whose previous plays include Freud on Cocaine, Gaslight House, Damaged Furniture, and Miserable with an Ocean View. His newest play, Texas Sodomy – The Incredible True Story of Lawrence v. Texas, is based on the landmark 2003 U.S. Supreme Court case and is currently playing at the Whitefire Theatre, marking his fifth world premiere there. He has established himself as a prolific voice in the LA theatrical scene, with subsequent productions of his work reaching audiences beyond Los Angeles.

Freud on Cocaine, had sold-out runs in 2023 and 2024 and earned seven BroadwayWorld Los Angeles Award nominations. Based on the true story of young Sigmund Freud’s decade-long personal use of and experimentation with cocaine, the play incorporates Freud’s own words from The Cocaine Papers. It was produced in Portland in 2026 by Fuse Theatre Ensemble and begins a European tour in 2027.

Gaslight House (2022) received six Broadway World nominations, including Best Play and Best Direction, and earned rave reviews. Stage Raw praised it, saying, “Skora comes from a stand-up comedy background, and his mastery of humor shines in the show’s writing. ...This play is absolutely unpredictable from start to finish, in the best way, and the audience is consistently kept in suspense of what’s actually real. ...Gaslight House is an unforgettable experience...this writer cannot recommend it enough."

His 2018 play, Damaged Furniture, directed by Jim Fall, ran for six months and was the top-rated original comedy in Los Angeles on Better-Lemons for its entire run, earning a “100% sweet critic rating.” It later garnered an Ovation nomination for Featured Actress in a Play (Jessica Pohly), as well as Best Play and Best Writer nominations at the 2019 Valley Theater Awards, and returned in 2026 with a successful run at Boca Stage.

Skora’s first play, Miserable with an Ocean View, directed by Jim Fall, premiered in 2015, featured Oscar nominee Patty McCormack and Drew Droege, and ran for five sold-out months. It was named “Most Promising New Play” by Don Grigware in the BroadwayWorld Eddon Awards and earned multiple Valley Theatre Award nominations, including Best Play and Best Director.

Skora studied screenwriting at UCLA Extension, where he received the Diane Thomas Screenwriting Award for his first screenplay, The Trainer. He subsequently won first place in the fifth annual Scriptapalooza Screenwriting Competition for his screenplay Reckless Endangerment, which he later adapted into the stage play Gaslight House. He used Scriptapalooza’s $10,000 prize to complete his first feature-length documentary, Nick Name and The Normals, which premiered at London’s National Film Theatre. He develops most of his work with the members of The Actor’s Gym, run by his longtime mentor, Oscar winner Bobby Moresco, and is grateful to collaborate with the actors and artists who continue to shape his productions. He also serves as a board member of the Desert Playwrights Retreat.