Alexis Greene

Chronicles the rise of Washington, DC's premier nonprofit theatre through performances, founders, and its lasting impact. Shakespeare Theatre Company: The History of a Classical Theatre tells the engaging story of how this nonprofit theatre in Washington, DC, became one of America's foremost theatres. Illustrated with hundreds of dramatic, full color, photographs of productions and performers, Greene's history takes us from the early performances of Shakespeare in America through the founding of the enthralling Shakespeare Theatre Company (STC) and its current life as a theatre that embraces Shakespeare, other classical playwrights, and contemporary dramatists whose plays may be destined to become classics. This unique history was envisioned and initiated by longtime supporter of the theatre Lawrence Hough to commemorate the fortieth anniversary of the company.

Emily Mann: Rebel Artist in the American Theater is the story of a remarkable American playwright, director, and artistic director. It is the story of a woman who defied the American theater's sexism, a traumatic assault, and illness to create unique documentary plays and to lead the McCarter Theatre Center, for thirty seasons, to a place of national recognition. The book traces and describes Emily Mann's family life; her coming-of-age in Chicago during the exuberant, rebellious, and often violent 1960s; how sexual violence touched her personally; and how she fell in love with theater and began learning her craft at the Loeb Drama Center in Cambridge, Massachusetts, while a student at Radcliffe. Mann's evolution as a professional director and playwright is explored, first at the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis, where she received an MFA from the University of Minnesota, then in New York City, and again in the Midwest, where she became recognized internationally, married, had a child, and divorced her husband. Mann's leadership of the McCarter is examined, along with her battles to overcome multiple sclerosis, and conquer—personally and artistically—the memories of the violence she experienced when a teenager. Finally, the book discusses her retirement from the McCarter Theatre Center, while she continues as a playwright, amplifying her journey as a female artist of sensitivity and originality.

Angels in the American Theater: Patrons, Patronage, and Philanthropy examines the significant roles that theater patrons have played in shaping and developing theater in the United States. Because box office income rarely covers the cost of production, other sources are vital. Angels - financial investors and backers - have a tremendous impact on what happens on stage, often determining with the power and influence of their money what is conceived, produced, and performed. But in spite of their influence, very little has been written about these philanthropists. Composed of sixteen essays and fifteen illustrations, ""Angels in the American Theater"" explores not only how donors became angels, but also their backgrounds, motivations, policies, limitations, support, and successes and failures. Subjects range from millionaires Otto Kahn and the Lewisohn sisters to foundation giants Ford, Rockefeller, Disney, and Clear Channel. The first book to focus on theater philanthropy, ""Angels in the American Theater"" employs both a historical and a chronological format and focuses on individual patrons, foundations, and corporations.

Written under the auspices of The Lucille Lortel Foundation, this book is the first biography of the grande dame of avant garde theater. Lucille Lortel became a leader of a burgeoning Off Broadway movement during the 1950s and '60s and one of the few women of her generation to be a significant player in New York City theater.