Kara Lee Corthron has been named this year’s winner of the Theodore Ward Prize for African-American Playwrights for her play Like a Cow or An Elephant. The Theatre School Showcase at DePaul University will present the show, which will be directed by Chuck Smith, to conclude its 2006-2007 season. Like a Cow or An Elephant is the story of Kreena, a woman around thirty years of age, who works a job as a janitor in an office building—a job she cherishes—and lives in a house with her eccentric, history-obsessed mother.  Kreena’s methodical, repetitive life is, in part, due to a mild developmental disability. Kreena also feels trapped by her mother’s controlling influence. Despite the obstacles she must confront, which also include a brother in narcotics rehabilitation, a new co-worker invading the private sanctuary of her job, and a mysterious stranger with secrets, Kreena can’t help but see the best in all people. In Like a Cow or An Elephant, Kreena must travel the difficult path from her safe shell to independence and self-actualization.The prestigious Theodore Ward Prize – named for the African-American author, playwright and Chicagoan (1902-1983) – recognizes the outstanding individual accomplishments of African-American playwrights, as well as their importance to the shape and direction of American drama in our time. Winners are nationally renowned for holding a mirror up to a myriad of subject matter.