Adam Bock (born November 4, 1961) is a Canadian
playwright
A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes plays.
Etymology
The word "play" is from Middle English pleye, from Old English plæġ, pleġa, plæġa ("play, exercise; sport, game; drama, applause"). The word "wright" is an archaic English ...
currently living in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
. He was born in
Montreal, Quebec
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple-pea ...
, Canada. In the fall of 1984, Bock studied at the
National Theater Institute at The Eugene O'Neill Theater Center. He is an artistic associate of the
Shotgun Players
The Shotgun Players is a California East Bay regional theatre group located in Berkeley, California. It runs 6 to 7 productions per season. Its main stage is the Ashby Stage located in the Lorin District near the Ashby BART station.
About
The ...
, an award-winning
San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...
theater group. His play ''Medea Eats'' was produced in 2000 by
Clubbed Thumb
Clubbed Thumb is a downtown theater company in New York City that commissions, develops, and produces "funny, strange, and provocative new plays by living American writers." Since its founding in 1996, the company has earned five OBIES (including t ...
, which subsequently premiered his play ''The Typographer's Dream'' in 2002. ''Five Flights'' was produced in New York City by the Rattlestick Playwrights Theater in 2004.
''The Thugs'' opened Off-Off-Broadway in a production by SoHo Rep in October 2006, directed by
Anne Kauffman
Anne Kauffman is an American director known primarily for her work on new plays, mainly in the New York area. She is a founding member of the theater group the Civilians.Grode, Eric"Meet the Directors"''New York Times'', January 31, 2013
Early lif ...
. He won a 2006-07
Obie
The Obie Awards or Off-Broadway Theater Awards are annual awards originally given by ''The Village Voice'' newspaper to theatre artists and groups in New York City. In September 2014, the awards were jointly presented and administered with the A ...
award, Playwriting, for ''The Thugs''.
During the 2007-2008 New York theatrical season, two plays by Bock were produced
Off Broadway
An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer tha ...
: ''The Receptionist'' at
Manhattan Theatre Club
Manhattan Theatre Club (MTC) is a theatre company located in New York City, affiliated with the League of Resident Theatres. Under the leadership of Artistic Director Lynne Meadow and Executive Producer Barry Grove, Manhattan Theatre Club has gr ...
in 2007 and ''The Drunken City'', originally commissioned by the
Kitchen Theatre Company in Ithaca, New York, at
Playwrights Horizons
Playwrights Horizons is a not-for-profit Off-Broadway theater located in New York City dedicated to the support and development of contemporary American playwrights, composers, and lyricists, and to the production of their new work.
Under the ...
.
Bock is openly gay and often writes about
homosexuality
Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" to peop ...
. He is quoted as saying "I'm a gay playwright. I like being called a gay playwright. It's who I am. It's how I write. I have a very specific take on the world because I'm gay."
Bock has been nominated for two 2007-2008
Outer Critics Circle Award
The Outer Critics Circle Awards are presented annually for theatrical achievements both on Broadway and Off-Broadway. They are presented by the Outer Critics Circle (OCC), the official organization of New York theater writers for out-of-town newspa ...
s. Both ''The Receptionist'' and ''The Drunken City'' were nominated for Outstanding Off-Broadway Play. In 2012, he won a
John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation
The John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation was founded in 1925 by Olga and Simon Guggenheim in memory of their son, who died on April 26, 1922. The organization awards Guggenheim Fellowship
Guggenheim Fellowships are grants that have been ...
Fellowship for his work.
Bock's play ''A Small Fire'' ran December 16, 2010 – January 23, 2011 Off-Broadway at
Playwrights Horizons
Playwrights Horizons is a not-for-profit Off-Broadway theater located in New York City dedicated to the support and development of contemporary American playwrights, composers, and lyricists, and to the production of their new work.
Under the ...
, under the direction of Trip Cullman. ''A Life'' premiered Off-Broadway at Playwrights Horizons on September 30, 2016 (previews), starring
David Hyde Pierce
David Hyde Pierce (born April 3, 1959) is an American actor and director of stage, film and television. He starred as psychiatrist Dr. Niles Crane on the NBC sitcom ''Frasier'' from 1993 to 2004, and won four Primetime Emmy Awards and a Screen ...
and directed by Anne Kauffman. ''A Life'' was nominated for the 2017
Drama Desk Awards
The Drama Desk Award is an annual prize recognizing excellence in New York theatre. First bestowed in 1955 as the Vernon Rice Award, the prize initially honored Off-Broadway productions, as well as Off-off-Broadway, and those in the vicinity. Fo ...
: Outstanding Play; David Hyde Pierce as Outstanding Actor in a Play; Anne Kauffman for Outstanding Director of a Play; Laura Jellinek for Outstanding Set Design for a Play; and
Mikhail Fiksel
Mikhail Fiksel (born March 21, 1980) is a Russian-American composer and sound designer. He won a Tony Award in the category Best Sound Design of a Play for the play ''Dana H
Dana may refer to:
People Given name
* Dana (given name)
Sur ...
for Outstanding Sound Design in a Play.
Plays
* ''The Shaker Chair''
* ''Five Flights'' (Produced in New York City, 2004)
* ''Swimming in the Shallows'' (Produced by Second Stage Theatre Off-Broadway, 2005; produced by Whim Productions, 2019)
* ''Three Guys and a Brenda'' (Produced at the Humana Festival of New American Plays, 2006)
[Lawson Hansel, Adrien-Alice & Felise Dubiner, Julie (ed.]
''Three Guys and a Brenda''
Humana Festival 2006: The Complete Plays, Playscripts, Inc., 2007, , pp.13-16ff.
* ''The Typographer's Dream'' - (Produced by
Clubbed Thumb
Clubbed Thumb is a downtown theater company in New York City that commissions, develops, and produces "funny, strange, and provocative new plays by living American writers." Since its founding in 1996, the company has earned five OBIES (including t ...
in New York, 2002)
* ''The Thugs'' (Produced by SoHo Rep Off-Off-Broadway, 2006; produced by
Portland Center Stage
Portland Center Stage at The Armory is a theater company based in Portland, Oregon, United States. Theater productions are presented at The Armory in Portland's Pearl District. Portland Center Stage at The Armory was founded in 1988 as the nort ...
, Portland, OR, 2007)
* ''A Roadside Garden''
* ''Medea Eats'' - (Produced by
Clubbed Thumb
Clubbed Thumb is a downtown theater company in New York City that commissions, develops, and produces "funny, strange, and provocative new plays by living American writers." Since its founding in 1996, the company has earned five OBIES (including t ...
in New York, 2000)
* ''Percy Stripped Down''
* ''The Gayboy Nutcracker''
* ''Thursday''
* ''The Drunken City'' (Produced by
Playwrights Horizons
Playwrights Horizons is a not-for-profit Off-Broadway theater located in New York City dedicated to the support and development of contemporary American playwrights, composers, and lyricists, and to the production of their new work.
Under the ...
in New York, 2008)
* ''The Receptionist'' - (Premiered Off-Broadway 2007; Produced by
Portland Center Stage
Portland Center Stage at The Armory is a theater company based in Portland, Oregon, United States. Theater productions are presented at The Armory in Portland's Pearl District. Portland Center Stage at The Armory was founded in 1988 as the nort ...
in Portland, OR, 2010 and Cygnet Theatre Company in San Diego, CA, 2010)
* ''The Flowers'' - (Premiered at About Face Theatre in Chicago, October 2009)
* ''A Small Fire'' (Produced Off-Broadway by
Playwrights Horizons
Playwrights Horizons is a not-for-profit Off-Broadway theater located in New York City dedicated to the support and development of contemporary American playwrights, composers, and lyricists, and to the production of their new work.
Under the ...
, 2011; produced by
Philadelphia Theatre Company
The Philadelphia Theatre Company (PTC) is a theater company located Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1974 as The Philadelphia Company by Robert Hedley and Jean Harrison. Since October 2007, PTC's home has been the new Suzanne Rober ...
at the
Suzanne Robert Theatre, 2019)
* ''A Life'' (Produced by Playwrights Horizons Off-Broadway, 2016)
* ''Before The Meeting'' (Produced by
Williamstown Theater Festival, 2019)
*''The Canadians'' (Produced by
South Coast Repertory
South Coast Repertory (SCR) is a professional theatre company located in Costa Mesa, California.
Tony Award-winning South Coast Repertory, founded in 1964 by David Emmes and Martin Benson, is led by Artistic Director David Ivers and Managing Direc ...
, 2019)
References
External links
*
Playscripts, Inc. - Adam BockShotgun Players Alumni PageInterview with Outzonetv.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bock, Adam
21st-century Canadian dramatists and playwrights
Living people
Canadian LGBT dramatists and playwrights
Canadian gay writers
Writers from Montreal
Canadian male dramatists and playwrights
21st-century Canadian male writers
1961 births
21st-century Canadian LGBT people
Gay dramatists and playwrights