One to Watch: Paris Crayton III

Playwright and Artistic Director of Rising Sage Theatre

Thirty-year-old Crayton, who hails from St. Louis, has had plays commissioned in cities from Chicago to Orlando. He moved to Atlanta in 2010 and wrote "Brothers of Affliction," a success that led him to start Rising Sage Theatre, which focused on staging his own works its first season.

Accomplishments: "Starting Rising Sage, and the fact that in our first season we have been able to do successful three-week runs as a new theater company," Crayton says. "But I also need to say that I couldn't do anything without my managing director Kirk Henny by my side. You've got to have a business partner who you really connect with."