David Lindsay-Abaire ( Abaire; born November 14, 1969) is an American

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 ...

lyricist A lyricist is a songwriter who writes lyrics (the spoken words), as opposed to a composer, who writes the song's music which may include but not limited to the melody, harmony, arrangement and accompaniment. Royalties A lyricist's income ...

and

screenwriter A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based. ...

. He received the

Pulitzer Prize for Drama The Pulitzer Prize for Drama is one of the seven American Pulitzer Prizes that are annually awarded for Letters, Drama, and Music. It is one of the original Pulitzers, for the program was inaugurated in 1917 with seven prizes, four of which were a ...

in 2007 for his play '' Rabbit Hole'', which also earned several

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual cer ...

nominations.

Early life and education

David Lindsay-Abaire was born David Abaire in Boston, Massachusetts and grew up in

South Boston South Boston is a densely populated neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, located south and east of the Fort Point Channel and abutting Dorchester Bay. South Boston, colloquially known as Southie, has undergone several demographic transformati ...

. He attended

Milton Academy Milton Academy (also known as Milton) is a highly selective, coeducational, independent preparatory, boarding and day school in Milton, Massachusetts consisting of a grade 9–12 Upper School and a grade K–8 Lower School. Boarding is offered ...

and concentrated in theatre at

Sarah Lawrence College Sarah Lawrence College is a Private university, private liberal arts college in Yonkers, New York. The college models its approach to education after the Supervision system, Oxford/Cambridge system of one-on-one student-faculty tutorials. Sara ...

, from which he graduated in 1992. He was accepted into the

Lila Acheson Wallace Lila Bell Wallace (December 25, 1889 – May 8, 1984) was an American magazine publisher and philanthropist. She co-founded ''Reader's Digest'' with her husband Dewitt Wallace, publishing the first issue in 1922. Early life and education Born Li ...

American Playwrights Program at the

Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most el ...

, where he wrote under the tutelage of playwrights Marsha Norman and

Christopher Durang Christopher Ferdinand Durang (born January 2, 1949) is an American playwright known for works of outrageous and often absurd comedy. His work was especially popular in the 1980s, though his career seemed to get a second wind in the late 1990s. ...

from 1996 to 1998.

Career

Lindsay-Abaire had his first theatrical success with ''

Fuddy Meers ''Fuddy Meers'' is an American play by David Lindsay-Abaire. It tells the story of an amnesiac, Claire, who awakens each morning as a blank slate on which her husband and teenage son must imprint the facts of her life. One morning Claire is abduc ...

,'' which was workshopped as part of the National Playwrights Conference at the

Eugene O'Neill Theatre Center The Eugene O'Neill Theater Center in Waterford, Connecticut, is a 501(c)(3) non-profit theater company founded in 1964 by George C. White. It is commonly referred to as The O'Neill. The center has received two Tony Awards, the 1979 Special Awa ...

in 1998 under Artistic Director

Lloyd Richards Lloyd George Richards (June 29, 1919 – June 29, 2006) was a Canadian-American theatre director, actor, and dean of the Yale School of Drama from 1979 to 1991, and Yale University professor emeritus. Biography Richards was born in Toron ...

. The play premiered

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 ...

at the

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 g ...

, running from November 2, 1999 to January 2000 and transferred to the Minetta Lane Theatre on January 27, 2000, closing in April 2000 after 16 previews and 78 performances there. He returned to the Manhattan Theatre Club in 2001 with '' Wonder of the World'', starring

Sarah Jessica Parker Sarah Jessica Parker (born March 25, 1965) is an American actress and television producer. She is the recipient of numerous accolades, including six Golden Globe Awards and two Primetime Emmy Awards. ''Time'' magazine named her one of the 1 ...

, about a wife who suddenly leaves her husband and hops a bus to

Niagara Falls Niagara Falls () is a group of three waterfalls at the southern end of Niagara Gorge, spanning the border between the province of Ontario in Canada and the state of New York in the United States. The largest of the three is Horseshoe Falls, ...

in search of freedom, enlightenment, and the meaning of life. Lindsay-Abaire also wrote '' Kimberly Akimbo'' (2000), ''Dotting and Dashing'' (1999), ''

Snow Angel A snow angel is a design, made in fresh snow, by lying on one's back and moving one's arms up and down, and one's legs from side to side, to form the shape of an angel. Technique The creation of the snow angel is a simple process. The first s ...

'' (1999), and ''A Devil Inside'' (Off-Broadway, 1997). Among his early short plays, he wrote ''The Li'l Plays'' (1997-1999) which are five comedic plays, each 10–15 minutes in length. His play '' Rabbit Hole'' premiered in 2006 on Broadway with

Cynthia Nixon Cynthia Ellen Nixon (born April 9, 1966) is an American actress, activist, and theater director. For her portrayal of Miranda Hobbes in the HBO series ''Sex and the City'' (1998–2004), she won the 2004 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supp ...

Tyne Daly Ellen Tyne Daly (; born February 21, 1946) is an American actress. She has won six Emmy Awards for her television work, a Tony Award and is a 2011 American Theatre Hall of Fame inductee. Daly began her career on stage in summer stock in New York, ...

, and

John Slattery John M. Slattery Jr. (born August 13, 1962) is an American actor and director widely known for his role as Roger Sterling Jr. in the AMC drama series ''Mad Men'' (2007–15), for which he was nominated four times for the Primetime Emmy Award fo ...

, and won the 2007 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. It was nominated for a

for Best Play, as well as other Tony awards, and Cynthia Nixon won the 2006 Tony Award as Best Actress. He wrote the book for the

musical Musical is the adjective of music. Musical may also refer to: * Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance * Musical film and television, a genre of film and television that incorporates into the narr ...

'' High Fidelity'', which ran on Broadway in December 2006. He wrote the book and lyrics for the musical ''

Shrek the Musical ''Shrek The Musical'' is a musical with music by Jeanine Tesori and book and lyrics by David Lindsay-Abaire. It is based on the 2001 DreamWorks Animation film ''Shrek'', along with elements of its sequels: '' Shrek 2'', ''Shrek Forever After'' ...

'' which ran on Broadway from November 8, 2008 (previews) to January 3, 2010, with Lindsay-Abaire receiving a 2009

nomination for Book of a Musical and in the West End in May 2011. The musical ran for 441 performances on Broadway. '' Good People'' officially opened on Broadway on March 3, 2011, with

Frances McDormand Frances Louise McDormand (born Cynthia Ann Smith; June 23, 1957) is an American actress and producer. Throughout her career spanning over four decades, McDormand has received numerous accolades, including four Academy Awards, two Primetime Em ...

and

Tate Donovan Tate Buckley Donovan (born September 25, 1963) is an American actor, comedian and television director. He is known for portraying Tom Shayes in ''Damages'', Jimmy Cooper in '' The O.C.'', and the voice of the title character in the 1997 Disney ...

in the lead roles. The play was nominated for the 2011

, Best Play and won the 2011 Tony Award, Actress in a Play for McDormand. His play ''Ripcord'' opened Off-Broadway on October 20, 2015 at the Manhattan Theatre Club in a limited engagement. Directed by

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 Scree ...

, the cast features

Marylouise Burke use both this parameter and , birth_date to display the person's date of birth, date of death, and age at death) --> , death_place = , death_cause = , body_discovered = , resting_place = , resting_place_coordinates ...

Rachel Dratch Rachel Susan Dratch (born February 22, 1966) is an American actress, comedian, and writer. After she graduated from Dartmouth College she moved to Chicago to study improvisational theatre at The Second City and ImprovOlympic. Her breakthrough r ...

Glenn Fitzgerald Glenn Fitzgerald (born December 21, 1971) is an American actor of stage, film, and television. Career His film roles have included Homicide Detective Anderson in Kathryn Bigelow's ''Detroit''; Lonnie, the son of Alan Alda and Lily Tomlin's ch ...

, and

Holland Taylor Holland Virginia Taylor (born January 14, 1943) is an American actress. She won the 1999 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for her role as Judge Roberta Kittleson on ABC's ''The Practice'' (1998–2003). F ...

. The play focuses on two roommates in a retirement home, who according to ''Variety'' "devise dirty tricks...to torment one another." Among his influences, Lindsay-Abaire said: "I love Chris's urangwork. And I don't think there's been a piece written about me that hasn't mentioned the fact that he and I live in the same world. But I think I've also been influenced by

John Guare John Guare ( ;; born February 5, 1938) is an American playwright and screenwriter. He is best known as the author of '' The House of Blue Leaves'' and '' Six Degrees of Separation''. Early life He was raised in Jackson Heights, Queens.Druckman ...

and

Tina Howe Tina Howe (born November 21, 1937) is an American playwright. In a career that spans more than four decades, Howe's best-known works include ''Museum'', '' The Art of Dining'', '' Painting Churches'', ''Coastal Disturbances'', and ''Pride's Crossi ...

and older folks like Feydeau and Ionesco and

Joe Orton John Kingsley Orton (1 January 1933 – 9 August 1967), known by the pen name of Joe Orton, was an English playwright, author, and diarist. His public career, from 1964 until his death in 1967, was short but highly influential. During this brie ...

." Lindsay-Abaire has received commissions from

Dance Theater Workshop Dance Theater Workshop, colloquially known as DTW, was a New York City performance space and service organization for dance companies that operated from 1965 to 2011. After a merger it became known as New York Live Arts Located as 219 19th Street ...

and the Jerome Foundation. He has received awards from the Berilla Kerr Foundation, the

Lincoln Center Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (also simply known as Lincoln Center) is a complex of buildings in the Lincoln Square neighborhood on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. It has thirty indoor and outdoor facilities and is host to 5 millio ...

LeComte du Nuoy Fund, Mixed Blood Theater,

Primary Stages Primary Stages was founded in 1984 by Casey Childs as an Off-Broadway not-for-profit theater company. In 2004, Primary Stages moved from its 99-seat home of 17 years at 354 West 45th Street to the 199-seat theater at 59E59 Theaters. In 2014, the ...

, the

Tennessee Williams/ New Orleans Literary Festival The Tennessee Williams & New Orleans Literary Festival is an annual five-day literary festival in the city of New Orleans. The festival is dedicated to American playwright Tennessee Williams, who lived and worked in the city, and later won the Pu ...

, and the South Carolina Playwrights Festival.

Film

Lindsay-Abaire wrote the screenplay of the 2010

film adaptation A film adaptation is the transfer of a work or story, in whole or in part, to a feature film. Although often considered a type of derivative work, film adaptation has been conceptualized recently by academic scholars such as Robert Stam as a dial ...

of his play ''Rabbit Hole'', which starred

Nicole Kidman Nicole Mary Kidman (born 20 June 1967) is an American and Australian actress and producer. Known for her work across various film and television productions from several genres, she has consistently ranked among the world's highest-paid act ...

. His other screenplays have tended to be in the children's fantasy and science fiction genres, including the animated film ''

Robots "\n\n\n\n\nThe robots exclusion standard, also known as the robots exclusion protocol or simply robots.txt, is a standard used by websites to indicate to visiting web crawlers and other web robots which portions of the site they are allowed to visi ...

'' (2005), written with

Lowell Ganz Lowell Ganz (born August 31, 1948 in New York City) is an American screenwriter, television writer, and television producer. He is the long-time writing partner of Babaloo Mandel. Ganz grew up in Queens, New York, attending Martin Van Buren Hi ...

and

Babaloo Mandel Marc "Babaloo" Mandel (born October 13, 1949) is an American screenwriter. He first wrote episodic television comedy, then later began writing feature films. He and long-time writing partner Lowell Ganz penned numerous high-profile films includ ...

, ''

Inkheart ''Inkheart'' (german: Tintenherz) is a 2003 young adult fantasy novel by Cornelia Funke, and the first book of the ''Inkheart'' series, which was continued with ''Inkspell'' (2005) and ''Inkdeath'' (2007). The novel won the 2004 BookSense Boo ...

'' (2008), based on the novel of the same name, the animated film ''

Rise of the Guardians ''Rise of the Guardians'' is a 2012 American 3D computer-animated fantasy action-adventure film produced by DreamWorks Animation and distributed by Paramount Pictures. The film was directed by Peter Ramsey (in his feature directorial debut ...

'' (2012), based on a story by co-director

William Joyce William Brooke Joyce (24 April 1906 – 3 January 1946), nicknamed Lord Haw-Haw, was an American-born fascist and Nazi propaganda broadcaster during the Second World War. After moving from New York to Ireland and subsequently to England, J ...

, and ''

Oz the Great and Powerful ''Oz the Great and Powerful'' is a 2013 American fantasy adventure film directed by Sam Raimi and written by David Lindsay-Abaire and Mitchell Kapner from a story by Kapner. Based on L. Frank Baum's early 20th century ''Oz'' novels and set 20 y ...

'' (2013), written with Mitchell Kapner. He also wrote the screenplay for the 2015 horror remake '' Poltergeist.''

Personal life

Lindsay-Abaire and his wife,

Christine Christine may refer to: People * Christine (name), a female given name Film * ''Christine'' (1958 film), based on Schnitzler's play ''Liebelei'' * ''Christine'' (1983 film), based on King's novel of the same name * ''Christine'' (1987 fil ...

, live in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

, New York. In 2016, Lindsay-Abaire was named co-director of Juilliard's

American Playwrights Program.

Theatre works (selected)

* ''A Devil Inside'' – 1997, Off-Broadway * ''

'' – 1999, Off-Broadway * ''

'' – 1999, Regional * '' Kimberly Akimbo'' – 2000, Off-Broadway * '' Wonder of the World'' – 2001, Off-Broadway * '' Rabbit Hole'' – 2006, Broadway * '' High Fidelity'' (musical) – 2006, Broadway * ''

'' (musical) – 2008, Broadway * '' Good People'' – 2011, Broadway * ''Ripcord'' – 2015, Off-Broadway * '' Kimberly Akimbo'' (musical) – 2021, Off-Broadway

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lindsay-Abaire, David 1969 births 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights Living people Milton Academy alumni Writers from Boston Pulitzer Prize for Drama winners Sarah Lawrence College alumni Juilliard School alumni American male screenwriters American male dramatists and playwrights Animation screenwriters People from South Boston 20th-century American male writers Screenwriters from Massachusetts People from Brooklyn