Attend A Conversation With Playwright John Guare 12/13

American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) continues its 2008-09 season Koret Visiting Artist Series with a conversation with leading American playwright John Guare, author of Six Degrees of Separation, The House of Blue Leaves and A.C.T.'s upcoming Rich & Famous. Guare will talk about four decades in the American theater and his new version of Rich and Famous that includes significant rewrites in preparation for the show's first revival since 1976. A.C.T. Dramaturg and Director of Humanities Michael Paller moderates. The conversation will be followed by a Q&A session with the audience. The event is free and open to the public and takes place on the A.C.T. stage on Saturday, December 13, 2009, at 10 a.m. Reservations are required and can be made by visiting www.act-sf.org/koret or by calling 415.749.2ACT.

"One of my long-standing artistic dreams at A.C.T. has been to bring the extraordinary and delightful American master John Guare to meet our audience and to work on a play," says Artistic Director Carey Perloff. "Both things are happening this December, when Guare will be in residence at A.C.T. to complete rewrites on his hilarious Rich and Famous, and to engage in a lively dialogue with our dramaturg Michael Paller as part of our Koret Visiting Artist series. We look forward to welcoming him to San Francisco!" Rich and Famous is directed by John Rando (Urinetown and Wedding Singer on Broadway) and plays at A.C.T. January 8 through February 8, 2009. Tickets are available by calling A.C.T. Ticket Services at 415.749.2228, or at www.act-sf.org.

John Guare was born in 1938 and educated at Georgetown and Yale universities. His plays include To Wally Pantoni, We Leave a Credenza (1964), his off-off-Broadway debut; Muzeeka (1968, OBIE Award), his breakthrough play; Cop-Out (1968); The House of Blue Leaves (1971, New York Drama Critics' Circle Award for Best American Play; 1986 revival, four Tony Awards); Two Gentlemen of Verona (1971); Marco Polo Sings a Solo (1973); Rich and Famous (1974); Landscape of the Body (1977); Bosoms and Neglect (1979); Moon Over Miami (1988); Six Degrees of Separation (1990, OBIE Award, New York Drama Critics' Circle Award, Olivier Award for Best Play), which became a film in 1993; Four Baboons Adoring the Sun (1992, Tony nom. Best Play); Lake Hollywood (1999); Chaucer in Rome (2001); A Few Stout Individuals (2002); and an adaptation of His Girl Friday, which premiered to great acclaim at London's National Theatre in 2003. Guare's series of plays on 19th-century America-Gardenia (1982), Lydie Breeze (1982), and Women and Water (1984)-have been performed in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Washington, DC, London, and Australia. His libretto (written with Mel Shapiro) for Two Gentlemen of Verona (1971) won a Tony Award; the musical itself won the Tony and New York Drama Critics' Circle awards for best musical in 1972. He collaborated with Czech director Milos Forman on the screenplay Taking Off (1971), which won the Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival. His screenplay Atlantic City (1981), directed by Louis Malle, won the New York, Los Angeles, and National Film Critics' Circle awards for best screenplay and was nominated for an Academy Award. His narration for Psyche, a tone poem by César Franck, premiered at Avery Fisher Hall in 1997, conducted by Kurt Masur with the New York Philharmonic. Guare was a founding member in 1965 of the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center's National Playwrights Conference and in 1976 was resident playwright at the New York Shakespeare Festival. He was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Letters in 1989 and to the Theater Hall of Fame in 1993. He received the New York State Governor's Arts Award in 1996 and the Gold Medal in Drama from the American Academy of Arts and Letters in 2004. The Signature Theatre Company in New York City honored Guare by devoting its 1998-99 season to his plays. He has served as a trustee of the PEN American Center, co-edits the Lincoln Center Theater Review, teaches playwriting at Yale School of Drama, and is a council member of the Dramatists Guild of America. He lives in New York City with his wife, Adele Chatfield-Taylor. Guare's new play, A Free Man of Color, will premiere at The Public Theater/Shakespeare in the Park in 2009.

As part of a generous partnership with A.C.T., the Koret Foundation has made a three-year commitment to support A.C.T.'s audience programs, including artist panel discussions and A.C.T.'s regularly scheduled Audience Exchange and Prologue discussions. The Koret Visiting Artist Series, in its third season, features exciting talks with acclaimed artists from the American theatrical community, moderated by A.C.T. artistic staff. Held at the American Conservatory Theater before and after select performances throughout the season, the discussions are designed to illuminate the ways in which a theater affects and strengthens a community, the responsibilities of the artist in modern society, and the challenges of the creative process.

About the Koret Foundation: An entrepreneurial spirit guides Koret in addressing societal challenges and strengthening Bay Area life. Investing in strategic, local solutions, Koret helps to inspire a multiplier effect-encouraging collaborative funding and developing model initiatives. In the San Francisco Bay Area, Koret adds to the region's vitality by promoting educational opportunity, contributing to a diverse cultural landscape, and bolstering organizations that are innovative in their approaches to meeting community needs. With roots in the Jewish community, Koret embraces the community of Israel, especially through Koret Israel Economic Development Funds (KIEDF). Koret believes that economic stability and free market expansion offer the best hope for a prosperous future. At Koret, we understand our responsibility to make an impact-to honor the legacy of our founders, and to find long-lasting solutions that improve people's lives. Koret Visiting Artist Series will continue with three more panel discussions in association with A.C.T.'s 2008-09 season. Visit www.-act-sf.org/koret for more information.

 

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