Michael Hollinger (born January 13, 1962 in Lancaster,

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

) 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 ...

who is currently an associate professor of theatre at

Villanova University Villanova University is a Private university, private Catholic church, Roman Catholic research university in Villanova, Pennsylvania. It was founded by the Order of Saint Augustine, Augustinians in 1842 and named after Thomas of Villanova, Sa ...

and an alumnus of

New Dramatists New Dramatists is an organization of playwrights founded in 1949 and located at 424 West 44th Street between Ninth and Tenth Avenues in the Hell's Kitchen (Clinton) neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. The members of New Dramatists parti ...

.New Dramatists
/ref> He received a Bachelor of Music in

viola The viola ( , also , ) is a string instrument that is bow (music), bowed, plucked, or played with varying techniques. Slightly larger than a violin, it has a lower and deeper sound. Since the 18th century, it has been the middle or alto voice of ...

performance from

Oberlin Conservatory The Oberlin Conservatory of Music is a private music conservatory in Oberlin College in Oberlin, Ohio. It was founded in 1865 and is the second oldest conservatory and oldest continually operating conservatory in the United States. It is one of ...

in 1984 and a Master of Arts in theatre from Villanova in 1989. He has been married to Megan Bellwoar since 1990. Because of his background as a musician, Hollinger considers his plays compositions. He is quoted as saying, "Plays are music to me; characters are instruments, scenes are movements; tempo, rhythm and dynamics are critical; and melody and counterpoint are always set in relief by rests—beats, pauses, the spaces in between." Hollinger has written three short films for

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcasting, public broadcaster and Non-commercial activity, non-commercial, Terrestrial television, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly fu ...

and co-authored the feature-length ''Philadelphia Diary''. His awards include the Roger L. Stevens Award from the Fund for New American Plays, three Barrymore Awards for Outstanding New Play, a Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award, the F. Otto Haas Award for an Emerging Theatre Artist, a Mid-Atlantic Emmy Award, a commission from The Ensemble Studio Theatre/Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Science and Technology Project, and fellowships from the Independence Foundation, Mid-Atlantic Arts Foundation, and Pennsylvania Council on the Arts.

Works

Full-length plays: *''Under the Skin' (2015) *''Hope and Gravity'' (2014) *''Cyrano'', translated, and co-adapted with

Aaron Posner Aaron Posner is an American playwright and theater director. He was co-founder of the Arden Theatre Company in Philadelphia and was the artistic director of Two River Theatre from 2006 to 2010. He has directed over 100 productions at major regiona ...

(2011) *''Ghost-Writer'' (2010) *''A Wonderful Noise'' (musical), co-authored with Vance Lehmkuhl (2009) *''

Opus ''Opus'' (pl. ''opera'') is a Latin word meaning "work". Italian equivalents are ''opera'' (singular) and ''opere'' (pl.). Opus or OPUS may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Opus number, (abbr. Op.) specifying order of (usually) publicatio ...

'' (2006) *''Tooth and Claw'' (2004) *''Red Herring'' (2000) *''Tiny Island'' (1997) *''Incorruptible'' (1996) *''An Empty Plate in the Cafe du Grand Boeuf'' (1994) Plays for young audiences: *''Eureka!'' *''Hot Air'' *''Boxheads'' *''Clean Getaway'' (musical), co-authored with Beth Dannenfelser Ten-minute plays: *''Battle of the Backyard'' *''Senior Moment'' *''Truth Decay'' *''Naked Lunch'' *''Serviette'' *''Two-Part Invention'' Screenplays: *''Opus'' *''Incorruptible'' *''Pipe''

References

Sources *

External links

*
Alumni

Playscripts, Inc.
Michael Hollinger discusses his plays

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hollinger, Michael 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights Oberlin Conservatory of Music alumni Villanova University alumni Villanova University faculty Living people 1962 births