Peggy Shaw (born July 27, 1944) is an actor, writer, and producer living in New York City. She is a founding member of the

Split Britches Split Britches is an American performance troupe, which has been producing work internationally since 1980. Academic Sue Ellen Case says "their work has defined the issues and terms of academic writing on lesbian theater, butch-femme role playing, ...

and WOW Cafe Theatre, and is a recipient of several Obie Awards, including two for Best Actress for her performances in ''

Dress Suits to Hire ''Dress Suits to Hire'' is a play written by Holly Hughes and originally performed by the Lesbian and Feminist performance group, Split Britches. It premiered in 1987 at Performance Space 122 in Manhattan's East Village. The play is essentially ...

'' in 1988 and ''Menopausal Gentleman'' in 1999.

Early life and education

Born Margaret A. Shaw in

Belmont, Massachusetts Belmont is a New England town, town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts. It is a western suburb of Boston, Boston, Massachusetts, United States; and is part of the Greater Boston metropolitan area. At the time of the 2020 U.S. Census, the town's p ...

, she was raised in a working class Irish Congregationalist family with six siblings. When she was thirteen, she was a missionary in Costa Rica. Shaw moved to New York in 1967. She had a child and was a social worker for the New York City Agency for Child Development. In 1967, Shaw earned her

Bachelor of Fine Arts A Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) is a standard undergraduate degree for students for pursuing a professional education in the visual, fine or performing arts. It is also called Bachelor of Visual Arts (BVA) in some cases. Background The Bachelor ...

in Painting and Printmaking at the Massachusetts College of Art.

Career

At the age of 31 after seeing Hot Peaches (a theater group in New York that consisted mostly of

drag queen A drag queen is a person, usually male, who uses drag clothing and makeup to imitate and often exaggerate female gender signifiers and gender roles for entertainment purposes. Historically, drag queens have usually been gay men, and part o ...

s) perform in Sheridan Square, Shaw became involved with the company. Shaw began by painting sets for Hot Peaches and constructing paper mâché heads for a parade performance. Her first experience on stage was in 1975 on a gay tour of Europe. During this time, she saw

Spiderwoman Theater Spiderwoman Theater is an American, Indigenous women's performance troupe that blends traditional art forms with Western theater. Their mission was to present exceptional theater performance, and to provide theatrical training and education in a ...

in Amsterdam and met

Lois Weaver Lois Weaver (born 1949, Roanoke, Virginia) is a Guggenheim-winning artist, activist, writer, director, and Professor of Contemporary Performance at Queen Mary University of London. She is currently a Wellcome Trust Fellow in Engaging Science. ...

. Shaw and Hot Peaches lived in London for 3 years, where they met

Bette Bourne Bette Bourne (born Peter Bourne, 22 September 1939) is a British actor, drag queen, campaigner, and activist. His theatrical career has spanned six decades. He came to prominence in the mid-1970s onwards after joining the New York-based alterna ...

, who would go on to found the Bloolips after his experiences with Hot Peaches. Shaw founded the troupe

with Deb Margolin and

in 1980. She also co-founded WOW Cafe Theater, an ongoing performance festival and venue. Shaw suffered a stroke in 2011. Her show, ''RUFF'', directed by longtime collaborator Lois Weaver, explores her experiences as a survivor. The University of Michigan published ''A Menopausal Gentleman'', a book that includes many of the scripts from Shaw's solo performances.

Shows

* ''The Slow Drag'' * ''You're Just Like My Father'' * ''To My Chagrin'' * ''MUST: The Inside Story'' * ''Dress Suits To Hire'' * ''Belle Reprieve'' * ''Menopausal Gentleman'' * ''RUFF''

Awards and grants

Shaw has received Obie Awards for her performances in ''Dress Suits To Hire'', and ''Menopausal Gentleman'', and an ensemble award for her work in ''Belle Reprieve''. * 1987: Village Voice OBIE Award for performance in ''Dress Suits to Hire'' * 1990: Village Voice OBIE for the ensemble in ''Belle Reprieve'' * 1994: Nominee for Cal/Arts Herb Alpert Award * 1995: Anderson Foundation Stonewall Award for Sustained Excellence, Jane Chambers Award for the Best Play, Villager Award to Split Britches Company for Best Ensemble, Nominee for Cal/Arts Herb Alpert Award * 1998: Out on the Edge Theatre Award for Sustained Achievement * 1999: Village Voice OBIE for the production ''Menopausal Gentlemen'', Nominee for Cal/Arts Herb Alpert Award * 2004: The Foundation for Contemporary Arts Grants to Artists award. * 2005: The Foundation for Contemporary Performance, Theatre Performer of the Year * 2006: Otto Award for Excellence in Political Theatre * 2014: Doris Duke Artist Award for Theater

References

External links