George C. Wolfe
George C. Wolfe | |
---|---|
Born | George Costello Wolfe September 23, 1954 |
Education | Kentucky State University Pomona College (BA) New York University (MFA) |
Occupation(s) | playwright, director |
George Costello Wolfe (born September 23, 1954) is an American
Early life and education
Wolfe was born into an African-American family in
Wolfe attended
He moved to the East Coast and taught in New York City. In 1983, he earned an MFA in dramatic writing and musical theater at New York University.
Career
In 1977, Wolfe gave C. Bernard Jackson, the executive director of the Inner City Cultural Center in the Los Angeles, the first scene of a play he was working on. Rather than suggest that he finish writing it, Jackson said, "Here's some money, go do it." The name of the play was Tribal Rites, or The Coming of the Great God-bird Nabuku to the Age of Horace Lee Lizer. Wolfe stated in an article he wrote about Jackson for the Los Angeles Times that "this production was perhaps the most crucial to my evolution" as an artist.[2]
Among Wolfe's first major offerings—the musical Paradise (1985) and his play
Wolfe gained a national reputation with his 1991 musical
From 1993 to 2004, Wolfe served as artistic director and producer of the
In 2000, Wolfe co-wrote the book and directed the Broadway production of the musical The Wild Party.
In late 2004, Wolfe announced his intention to leave the theater for film direction, beginning with the well-received HBO film Lackawanna Blues.
Wolfe has also continued to direct plays, such as
.Wolfe directed the film Nights in Rodanthe, starring Richard Gere and Diane Lane, which opened in theaters in September 2008.
Wolfe is bringing his artistic talent to the design of the upcoming
In 2013, he was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame.[3]
In August 2017, Wolfe was the only one of the 17 private members of the President's Committee on the Arts and Humanities who did not sign on to a letter of mass resignation in the wake of Donald Trump's remarks on the Unite the Right rally incident in Charlottesville, Virginia. However, his representatives stated that he, too, would be resigning and would add his name to the letter.[4]
Wolfe directed a Broadway revival of Eugene O'Neill's The Iceman Cometh in 2018, with Denzel Washington starring as Hickey. The production played at the Jacobs Theatre for 14 weeks and began regular performances April 26.[5]
Wolfe is openly gay.[6] In 2022, he was featured in the book 50 Key Figures in Queer US Theatre, with a profile written by theatre scholar Charles I. Nero.[7]
Works
Theater
Year | Title | Credit | Venue |
---|---|---|---|
1986 | The Colored Museum | Writer | Crossroads Theatre |
1992 | Jelly's Last Jam | Director, writer (book) | Virginia Theatre
|
1993 | Angels in America: Millennium Approaches
|
Director, producer | Walter Kerr Theatre |
1993 | Angels in America: Perestroika
|
Director, producer | Walter Kerr Theatre |
1994 | Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992 | Director, producer | Cort Theatre
|
1995 | The Tempest | Director, producer | Broadhurst Theatre |
1996 | Bring in 'da Noise, Bring in 'da Funk | Director, producer, lyrics, concept | Ambassador Theatre
|
1998 | Golden Child | Producer | Longacre Theatre |
1998 | On the Town | Director, producer | George Gershwin Theatre
|
2000 | The Ride Down Mt. Morgan | Producer | Ambassador Theatre
|
2000 | The Wild Party | Director, producer, writer (book) | Virginia Theatre
|
2002 | Elaine Stritch At Liberty
|
Director, producer | Neil Simon Theatre |
2002 | Topdog / Underdog
|
Director, producer | Ambassador Theatre
|
2003 | Take Me Out | Producer | Walter Kerr Theatre |
2004 | Caroline, or Change | Director, producer | Eugene O'Neill Theatre |
2006 | Mother Courage and Her Children | Director | Delacorte Theatre in Central Park
|
2011 | The Normal Heart | Director | John Golden Theatre |
2013 | Lucky Guy | Director | Broadhurst Theatre |
2016 | Shuffle Along | Director, writer (book) | Music Box Theatre |
2018 | The Iceman Cometh | Director | Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre |
2019 | Gary: A Sequel to Titus Andronicus | Director | Booth Theatre |
Filmography
Year | Title | Credit | Role |
---|---|---|---|
1989 | Trying Times | Writer (1 episode) | — |
1993 | Fires in the Mirror | Director | — |
1994 | Fresh Kill | Actor | Othello Yellow |
2004 | Garden State | Actor | Restaurant Manager |
2005 | Lackawanna Blues | Director | — |
2006 | The Devil Wears Prada | Actor | Paul |
2008 | Nights in Rodanthe | Director | — |
2014 | You're Not You | Director | — |
2017 | The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks | Director, writer | — |
2019 | She's Gotta Have It | Actor | Himself |
2020 | Ma Rainey's Black Bottom | Director | — |
2023 | Rustin | Director, producer | — |
Awards and nominations
References
- ^ "George C. Wolfe Biography". filmreference. 2008. Retrieved 2008-05-28.
- ^ Wolfe, George C. (1996-07-22). "Recalling C. Bernard Jackson's Gift". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2010-12-10.
- ^ "Cherry Jones, Ellen Burstyn, Cameron Mackintosh and More Inducted Into Broadway's Theater Hall of Fame". www.theatermania.com. 27 January 2014.
- ^ "Citing Trump remarks, most of president's arts council quits". WJLA. AP. August 18, 2017. Retrieved August 18, 2017.
- ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2017-09-07.
- ^ Anne Stockwell (1 February 2005). "Wolfe's New Direction". The Advocate. Archived from the original on 2008-06-17. Retrieved 2008-05-28.
- ISBN 978-1032067964.
External links
- George C. Wolfe at the Internet Broadway Database
- George C. Wolfe at the Internet Off-Broadway Database
- George C. Wolfe at IMDb
- George C. Wolfe in the glbtq Encyclopedia
- George C. Wolfe images