Fritz Holt (October 9, 1940 – July 14, 1987) was an American
theatre producer
A theatrical producer is a person who oversees all aspects of mounting a theatre production. The producer is responsible for the overall financial and managerial functions of a production or venue, raises or provides financial backing, and hires ...
and
director
Director may refer to:
Literature
* ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine
* ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker
* ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty
Music
* Director (band), an Irish rock band
* ''Di ...
.
Born George William Holt III in
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 ...
, Holt was a graduate of the
University of Oregon
The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a public research university in Eugene, Oregon. Founded in 1876, the institution is well known for its strong ties to the sports apparel and marketing firm Nike, Inc, and its co-founder, billion ...
. He began his career as an assistant
stage manager
Stage management is a broad field that is generally defined as the practice of organization and coordination of an event or theatrical production. Stage management may encompass a variety of activities including the overseeing of the rehearsal p ...
at the Mineola Playhouse in
Mineola, New York
Mineola is a village in and the county seat of Nassau County, on Long Island, in New York, United States. The population was 18,799 at the 2010 census. The name is derived from an Algonquin Chief, Miniolagamika, which means "pleasant village".
...
, where he worked until
Harold Prince
Harold Smith Prince (born Harold Smith; January 30, 1928 – July 31, 2019), commonly known as Hal Prince, was an American theatre director and producer known for his work in musical theatre.
One of the foremost figures in 20th century America ...
hired him to assistant stage manage the national tour of ''
Cabaret
Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music, song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, a casino, a hotel, a restaurant, or a nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dining or d ...
.'' Holt and Prince later would collaborate on ''
Company
A company, abbreviated as co., is a Legal personality, legal entity representing an association of people, whether Natural person, natural, Legal person, legal or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members share a common p ...
'' and ''
Follies
''Follies'' is a Musical theater, musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and a book by James Goldman.
The plot takes place in a crumbling Broadway theater, now scheduled for demolition, previously home to a musical revue (based on t ...
''.
[''New York Times'' obituary, July 15, 1987]
/ref>
Holt's first Broadway
Broadway may refer to:
Theatre
* Broadway Theatre (disambiguation)
* Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S.
** Broadway (Manhattan), the street
**Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...
credit as a stage manager was the 1969 production of the Arthur Kopit
Arthur Lee Kopit (' Koenig; May 10, 1937 – April 2, 2021) was an American playwright. He was a two-time Pulitzer Prize finalist for '' Indians'' and ''Wings''. He was also nominated for three Tony Awards: Best Play for ''Indians'' (1970) an ...
play '' Indians''. His first producing credit was the short-lived 1974 revival of '' Gyspy'' starring Angela Lansbury
Dame Angela Brigid Lansbury (October 16, 1925 – October 11, 2022) was an Irish-British and American film, stage, and television actress. Her career spanned eight decades, much of it in the United States, and her work received a great deal ...
. He helped coordinate ''Bette Midler
Bette Midler (;''Inside the Actors Studio'', 2004 born December 1, 1945) is an American singer, actress, comedian and author. Throughout her career, which spans over five decades, Midler has received List of awards and nominations received by Be ...
's Clams on the Half Shell Revue'', but aside from this and a revival of ''The Royal Family
A royal family is the immediate family of kings/queens, emirs/emiras, sultans/ sultanas, or raja/ rani and sometimes their extended family. The term imperial family appropriately describes the family of an emperor or empress, and the term ...
'' (which won him the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Revival
The Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Revival is presented by the Drama Desk, a committee of New York City theatre critics, writers, and editors. It honors the Broadway theatre, Broadway, off-Broadway, off-off-Broadway, or legitimate not-for-profit ...
), he was plagued by a series of flops, including ''Summer Brave
''Summer Brave'' is a play by William Inge, a revision of his Pulitzer Prize-winning 1953 play '' Picnic''. Set in Independence, Kansas, a small town in Kansas in the early 1950s, it focuses on Hal Carter, an attractive young stranger who drifts ...
'', ''Platinum
Platinum is a chemical element with the symbol Pt and atomic number 78. It is a dense, malleable, ductile, highly unreactive, precious, silverish-white transition metal. Its name originates from Spanish , a diminutive of "silver".
Platinu ...
'', a revival of ''The Goodbye People
''The Goodbye People'' is a play by Herb Gardner. The play had a brief run on Broadway in 1968 and was made into a film which was released in 1986.
Plot
The dramedy focuses on elderly Max Silverman, who is determined to reopen the Coney Islan ...
'', Phyllis Newman
Phyllis Newman (March 19, 1933 – September 15, 2019) was an American actress and singer. She won the 1962 Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for her role as Martha Vail in the musical ''Subways Are for Sleeping'' on Broadway, ...
's one-woman show ''The Madwoman of Central Park West'', and the Frank Loesser
Frank Henry Loesser (; June 29, 1910 – July 28, 1969) was an American songwriter who wrote the music and lyrics for the Broadway musicals ''Guys and Dolls'' and ''How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying'', among others. He won a Tony ...
-inspired revue
A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance, and sketches. The revue has its roots in 19th century popular entertainment and melodrama but grew into a substantial cultural presence of its own duri ...
''Perfectly Frank'' (which he directed), until scoring a major hit with '' La Cage aux Folles'' in 1983. The production won him the Tony Award for Best Musical
The Tony Award for Best Musical is given annually to the best new Broadway musical play, musical, as determined by Tony Award voters. The award is one of the ceremony's longest-standing awards, having been presented each year since 1949. The awa ...
.
Activism
In 1983, Holt was a main contributor alongside Reverend Mead Miner Bailey to the New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
-based AIDS Resource Center for helping youth suffering from HIV
The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of ''Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the immune ...
/AIDS
Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual m ...
. The charity renamed Bailey House opened a major residence on Christopher Street to house endangered GLBT youth and families. The residence was renamed Bailey-Holt House in recognition of the two benefactors Reverend Bailey and producer Fritz Holt.
In addition to his Broadway projects, Holt staged the AIDS
Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual m ...
benefit ''Best of the Best'' at the Metropolitan Opera House in 1985.
Holt produced an Actors' Fund
The Entertainment Community Fund, formerly The Actors Fund, is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization that supports performers and behind-the-scenes workers in performing arts and entertainment, helping more than 17,000 people directly each year. S ...
benefit commemorating the 100th birthday of George Abbott
George Francis Abbott (June 25, 1887 – January 31, 1995) was an American theatre producer, director, playwright, screenwriter, film director and producer whose career spanned eight decades.
Early years
Abbott was born in Forestville, New Yo ...
a month prior to his death from complications from pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...
in Montclair, New Jersey
Montclair () is a township in Essex County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Situated on the cliffs of the Watchung Mountains, Montclair is a wealthy and diverse commuter town and suburb of New York City within the New York metropolitan area. As ...
at the age of 46.
References
External links
Fritz Holt at the Internet Broadway Database
{{DEFAULTSORT:Holt, Fritz
American theatre managers and producers
American theatre directors
Tony Award winners
Drama Desk Award winners
Businesspeople from San Francisco
University of Oregon alumni
1941 births
1987 deaths
20th-century American businesspeople