Peter Duchan is an American playwright and screenwriter, best known for the film ''

Breaking Upwards ''Breaking Upwards'' is a 2009 American romantic comedy-drama film directed by Daryl Wein, starring Zoe Lister-Jones, Wein, Julie White, Peter Friedman, Andrea Martin, and Pablo Schreiber. It explores a 20-something, real-life New York couple bat ...

'' and the musical ''

Dogfight A dogfight, or dog fight, is an aerial battle between fighter aircraft conducted at close range. Dogfighting first occurred in Mexico in 1913, shortly after the invention of the airplane. Until at least 1992, it was a component in every majo ...

.'' He was also personal assistant to actor-director-producer

Bob Balaban Robert Elmer Balaban (born August 16, 1945) is an American actor, author, comedian, director and producer. He was one of the producers nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture for ''Gosford Park'' (2001), in which he also appeared. Balab ...

. He graduated from

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

, where he participated in the Creative Writing for Media Program.

''Breaking Upwards''

He was Associate Producer of ''

'', which he co-wrote with director

Daryl Wein Daryl Robert Wein (born December 23, 1983) is an American artist, filmmaker, producer and actor. Early life Born in Los Angeles, California to Jan Sparling and Mitchell Wein, he was raised in Westport, Connecticut. His father worked as a creative ...

and actress Zoe-Lister Jones. The film premiered at the

SXSW Film Festival South by Southwest, abbreviated as SXSW and colloquially referred to as South By, is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, Te ...

(March, 2009) and was released in theaters by

IFC Films IFC Films is an American film production and distribution company based in New York. It is an offshoot of IFC owned by AMC Networks. It distributes mainly independent films under its own name, select foreign films and documentaries under its S ...

on April 2, 2010. His short film Unlocked, also a collaboration with Wein, was an Official Selection of numerous festivals, including the Gijon International Film Festival in 2006 and the

Tribeca Film Festival The Tribeca Festival is an annual film festival organized by TriBeCa Productions, Tribeca Productions. It takes place each spring in New York City, showcasing a diverse selection of film, episodic, talks, music, games, art, and immersive progra ...

in 2007.

''Dogfight''

He wrote the book of the stage musical adaptation of ''

'',

Nancy Savoca Nancy Laura Savoca (born July 23, 1959) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. Early life and education Nancy Laura Savoca was born in 1959 in the Bronx, New York, to Argentine and Sicilian immigrants Maria Elvira and Carlos S ...

's 1991 film starring

River Phoenix River Jude Phoenix (; August 23, 1970 – October 31, 1993) was an American actor, musician and activist. Phoenix grew up in an itinerant family, as the older brother of Rain Phoenix, Joaquin Phoenix, Liberty Phoenix, and Summer Phoenix. He ha ...

and

Lili Taylor Lili Anne Taylor (born February 20, 1967) is an American actress. She came to prominence with supporting parts in the films '' Mystic Pizza'' (1988) and '' Say Anything...'' (1989), before establishing herself as one of the key figures of 1990s ...

. The musical, featuring a score by the team,

Pasek and Paul Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, known together as Pasek and Paul, are an American songwriting duo and composing team for musical theater, films and television. Their works include ''A Christmas Story'', ''Dogfight'', '' Edges'', ''Dear Evan Hanse ...

, 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 ...

Second Stage Theatre Second Stage Theater is a theater company founded in 1979 by Robyn Goodman and Carole Rothman and located in Manhattan, New York City. It produces both new plays and revivals of contemporary American plays by new playwrights and established wri ...

on July 16, 2012, after previews from June 27. It was directed by

Joe Mantello Joseph Mantello (born December 27, 1962) is an American actor and director known for his work on Broadway productions of ''Wicked'', '' Take Me Out'', and ''Assassins'', having gained notoriety in the 1993 cast of ''Angels in America''. Early li ...

and choreographed by

Christopher Gattelli Christopher Gattelli is an American choreographer, performer and theatre director. Early life and career Gattelli grew up in Bristol, Pennsylvania. He started dancing at the age of 11 and is a "Star Search" Grand champion.

. The production earned two 2013

Lucille Lortel Awards The Lucille Lortel Awards recognize excellence in New York Off-Broadway theatre. The Awards are named for Lucille Lortel, an actress and theater producer, and have been awarded since 1986. They are produced by the League of Off-Broadway Theatre ...

for Outstanding Musical and Outstanding Choreographer (

)."The Piano Lesson, The Whale & Dogfight Honored at 2013 Lucille Lortel Awards"
Broadway.com, May 6, 2011 It was nominated for five 2013

Outer Critics Circle Awards 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 ...

, including Outstanding New Off-Broadway Musical and Outstanding Book of a Musical. Additionally, the show was nominated for

Drama League Award The Drama League Awards, created in 1922, honor distinguished productions and performances both on Broadway and Off-Broadway, in addition to recognizing exemplary career achievements in theatre, musical theatre, and directing. Each May, the awards ...

s for Outstanding Production of a Broadway or Off-Broadway Musical and Distinguished Performance (

Lindsay Mendez Lindsay Michelle Mendez (born March 1, 1983) is an American actress and singer, best known for her work in American musical theatre. Mendez won the 2018 Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for her performance as Carrie Pipperidge i ...

), as well as the

Drama Desk Award 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 ...

for Outstanding Actress in a Musical (

). During its development, the musical was the recipient of the 2011

Richard Rodgers Award for Musical Theater The Richard Rodgers Award is an annual award presented by the American Academy of Arts and Letters, and was created and endowed by Richard Rodgers in 1978 for the development of new works in musical theatre. These awards provide financial support ...

given by the

American Academy of Arts and Letters The American Academy of Arts and Letters is a 300-member honor society whose goal is to "foster, assist, and sustain excellence" in American literature, music, and art. Its fixed number membership is elected for lifetime appointments. Its headqu ...

.Jones, Kenneth
"Musicals by Duchan, Pasek, Paul and Gerle Win 2011 Richard Rodgers Awards for Musical Theater"
''Playbill'', February 14, 2011

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Duchan, Peter Year of birth missing (living people) Living people American male screenwriters