Richard Greenberg (born February 22, 1958) 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 ...

and television writer known for his subversively humorous depictions of middle-class American life. He has had more than 25 plays premiere on and Off-Broadway in New York City and eight at the South Coast Repertory Theatre in Costa Mesa, California, including '' The Violet Hour'', ''Everett Beekin'', and ''Hurrah at Last.'' Greenberg is perhaps best known for his 2003

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 c ...

winning play, '' Take Me Out'', about the conflicts that arise after a Major League Baseball player nonchalantly announces to the media that he is gay. The play premiered in London and ran in New York as the first collaboration between England's

Donmar Warehouse The Donmar Warehouse is a 251-seat, not-for-profit theatre in Covent Garden, London, England. It first opened on 18 July 1977. Sam Mendes, Michael Grandage and Josie Rourke have all served as artistic director, a post held since 2019 by Mi ...

and New York's

Public Theater The Public Theater is a New York City arts organization founded as the Shakespeare Workshop in 1954 by Joseph Papp, with the intention of showcasing the works of up-and-coming playwrights and performers.Epstein, Helen. ''Joe Papp: An American L ...

. After it transferred to

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 ...

in early 2003, ''Take Me Out'' won widespread critical acclaim for Greenberg and many prestigious awards.

Background and education

Greenberg grew up in East Meadow, New York, a middle-class

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United States and the 18 ...

town in Nassau County, east of New York City. His father, Leon Greenberg, was an executive for New York's Century Theaters movie chain, and his mother Shirley was a homemaker. Greenberg graduated from

East Meadow High School East Meadow High School is a public high school in the East Meadow Union Free School District in East Meadow, New York. The school was founded in 1953 and serves students in grades 9−12. School As of the 2018–19 school year, the school ...

in 1976 and went on to attend

Princeton University Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ...

, where he graduated

magna cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sou ...

with an A.B. in English. As part of his degree, Greenberg completed a 438-page senior thesis titled "A Romantic Career - A Novel". At Princeton, Greenberg studied creative writing under

Joyce Carol Oates Joyce Carol Oates (born June 16, 1938) is an American writer. Oates published her first book in 1963, and has since published 58 novels, a number of plays and novellas, and many volumes of short stories, poetry, and non-fiction. Her novels '' Bla ...

and roomed with future

Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

economics Economics () is the social science that studies the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interactions of economic agents and how economies work. Microeconomics anal ...

professor

Greg Mankiw Nicholas Gregory Mankiw (; born February 3, 1958) is an American macroeconomist who is currently the Robert M. Beren Professor of Economics at Harvard University. Mankiw is best known in academia for his work on New Keynesian economics. Mankiw ...

. Later he attended Harvard for graduate work in English and American literature, but dropped out of the program when he was accepted to the Yale School of Drama's playwriting program in 1985.

Career

Along with '' Take Me Out'', Greenberg's plays include ''The Dazzle'', '' The American Plan'', '' Life Under Water'', and ''The Author's Voice''. His adaptation of

August Strindberg Johan August Strindberg (, ; 22 January 184914 May 1912) was a Swedish playwright, novelist, poet, essayist and painter.Lane (1998), 1040. A prolific writer who often drew directly on his personal experience, Strindberg wrote more than sixty p ...

's ''

Dance of Death The ''Danse Macabre'' (; ) (from the French language), also called the Dance of Death, is an artistic genre of allegory of the Late Middle Ages on the universality of death. The ''Danse Macabre'' consists of the dead, or a personification of ...

'' ran on

in 2002, starring

Ian McKellen Sir Ian Murray McKellen (born 25 May 1939) is an English actor. His career spans seven decades, having performed in genres ranging from Shakespearean and modern theatre to popular fantasy and science fiction. Regarded as a British cultural i ...

Helen Mirren Dame Helen Mirren (born Helen Lydia Mironoff; born 26 July 1945) is an English actor. The recipient of numerous accolades, she is the only performer to have achieved the Triple Crown of Acting in both the United States and the United Kingdom ...

, and David Strathairn. He received the George Oppenheimer Award presented by ''Newsday'' in 1985 for ''The Bloodletters'', produced

off-off-Broadway Off-off-Broadway theaters are smaller New York City theaters than Broadway and off-Broadway theaters, and usually have fewer than 100 seats. The off-off-Broadway movement began in 1958 as part of a response to perceived commercialism of the pro ...

while he was at Yale. In 1998 he was the first winner of the

PEN/Laura Pels Theater Award The PEN/Laura Pels International Foundation for Theater Award, commonly referred to as the PEN/Laura Pels Theater Award, is awarded by the PEN America (formerly PEN American Center). It annually recognizes two American playwrights. A medal is given ...

for a playwright in mid-career. In 2013, Greenberg worked on three shows: on Broadway, an adaptation of '' Breakfast at Tiffany's'' and ''

The Assembled Parties ''The Assembled Parties'' is a play written by Richard Greenberg. It relates the story of a Jewish family living on the Upper West Side of New York City over a twenty-year period, from 1980 to 2000. The play, which premiered on Broadway in 2013, re ...

'', and the book for the musical '' Far From Heaven'', which opened in June 2013 at

Playwrights Horizons Playwrights Horizons is a not-for-profit Off-Broadway theater located in New York City dedicated to the support and development of contemporary American playwrights, composers, and lyricists, and to the production of their new work. Under the ...

. His play ''Our Mother's Brief Affair'' premiered at the

South Coast Repertory South Coast Repertory (SCR) is a professional theatre company located in Costa Mesa, California. Tony Award-winning South Coast Repertory, founded in 1964 by David Emmes and Martin Benson, is led by Artistic Director David Ivers and Managing Direc ...

Theatre in Costa Mesa in April 2009. Directed by Pam MacKinnon, the cast featured Jenny O'Hara, Matthew Arkin,

Arye Gross Arye Gross (; born March 17, 1960) is an American actor, who has appeared on a variety of television shows in numerous roles, most notably Adam Greene in the ABC sitcom ''Ellen''. Personal life Gross was born on March 17, 1960, in Los Angeles ...

and Marin Hinkle. This was a commission from the SCRT. The play opened on Broadway at the

Samuel J. Friedman Theatre The Samuel J. Friedman Theatre, formerly the Biltmore Theatre, is a Broadway theater at 261 West 47th Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. Opened in 1925, it was designed by Herbert J. Krapp in the neo-Renais ...

, produced by 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 ...

, on December 28, 2015 (previews), and officially on January 20, 2016, starring Linda Lavin. His play ''The Babylon Line'' premiered Off-Broadway at Lincoln Center Theater's Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater on November 10, 2016, in previews, and officially on December 5. Directed by Terry Kinney, the cast features

Josh Radnor Joshua Thomas Radnor (born July 29, 1974) is an American actor, filmmaker, author, and musician. He is best known for portraying Ted Mosby on the popular and Emmy Award–winning CBS sitcom ''How I Met Your Mother''. He made his writing and dire ...

as a writing teacher and Elizabeth Reaser as his student. The play was first performed at New York Stage and Film &

Vassar College Vassar College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Poughkeepsie, New York, United States. Founded in 1861 by Matthew Vassar, it was the second degree-granting institution of higher education for women in the United States, closely foll ...

's Powerhouse Theater in June and July 2014, starring Radnor.

Style

''The Methuen Drama Guide to Contemporary American Playwrights'' describes Greenberg's "most prominent" interest as history "and (also) the past". He has a strong "tendency to draw on historical characters or events——the

Lost Generation The Lost Generation was the social generational cohort in the Western world that was in early adulthood during World War I. "Lost" in this context refers to the "disoriented, wandering, directionless" spirit of many of the war's survivors in th ...

, the Collyer Brothers, the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one ...

" as sources for his material. He is said to have a "witty use of language."

Awards and nominations

, Best Play :: ''The Assembled Parties'', 2013 - nominee :: ''Take Me Out'', 2003 - winner *

New York Drama Critics Circle Award The New York Drama Critics' Circle is made up of 22 drama critics from daily newspapers, magazines and wire services based in the New York City metropolitan area. The organization is best known for its annual awards for excellence in theater.Jone ...

, Best American Play :: ''Take Me Out'', 2003 :: ''Three Days of Rain'', 1998 - Runner up *

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. F ...

, Outstanding Play :: ''The Assembled Parties'', 2013 - nominee :: ''Take Me Out'', 2003 - winner *

Lucille Lortel Award 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 Theatres ...

, Outstanding Play :: ''Take Me Out'', 2003 - winner :: ''The Dazzle'', 2002 - nominee *

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 ...

, Best Play, ''Take Me Out'', 2003 *

Outer Critics Circle Award 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 newsp ...

:: ''The Dazzle'', 2002 Outstanding Off-Broadway Play - winner :: John Gassner Award, ''The Dazzle'', 2002 - nominee *

Oppenheimer Award The Oppenheimer Award (also known as the Newsday George Oppenheimer Award or the Oppy) was named after the late playwright and Newsday drama critic George Oppenheimer. It was awarded annually to the best New York debut production by an American pl ...

, Best New Playwright (''The Bloodletters'', 1985) * Molly Kazan Playwriting Award *

for an American Playwright in Mid-Career (1998) * Pulitzer Prize for Drama :: ''Three Days of Rain'', 1998 - Finalist :: ''Take Me Out'', 2003 - Finalist

Works

Theatre

* 1984: '' The Bloodletters'', Ensemble Studio Theatre, New York, NY, 1984. * 1985: '' Life Under Water'', Marathon '85 Series. Ensemble Studio Theatre, New York, NY, 1985. * 1986: '' Vanishing Act'', Marathon '86 Series. Ensemble Studio Theatre, New York, NY, 1986. * 1987: ''The Author's Voice & Imagining Brad'', Greenwich House, New York, NY, 1999. * 1987: ''The Hunger Artist'' (based on stories and letters by Franz Kafka), St. Clement's, New York, NY * 1987: ''The Maderati'',

, February 19, 1987. * 1987: '' Eastern Standard'', John Golden Theatre, Broadway, January 5, 1989. * 1988: ''Neptune's Hips'', Marathon '88 Series. Ensemble Studio Theatre, New York, NY, 1988. * 1990: '' The American Plan'',

. New York City Center-Stage I. December 4, 1990. * 1992: ''The Extra Man'', Manhattan Theatre Club. New York City Center-Stage II. April 28, 1992. * 1992: '' Jenny Keeps Talking'', Manhattan Theatre Club. New York City Center-Stage II, New York, NY. March 22, 1993. * 1992: '' Pal Joey'' (based on the musical by John O'Hara, revised book), Huntington Theatre Company, Boston, MA, 1992-1993. * 1994: ''Night And Her Stars'', Manhattan Theatre Club. New York City Center-Stage II, March 29, 1995; South Coast Repertory, March 1994 * 1998: '' Three Days of Rain'', Manhattan Theatre Club. New York City Center-Stage II, November 12, 1997. * 1998: '' Hurrah at Last'', Roundabout Theatre Company. Gramercy Theater, New York, NY, June 3, 1999. * 2000: ''Everett Beekin'',

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 milli ...

, Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater, November 14, 2001 South Coast Repertory, September 2000 * 2001: ''

The Dance of Death The ''Danse Macabre'' (; ) (from the French language), also called the Dance of Death, is an artistic genre of allegory of the Late Middle Ages on the universality of death. The ''Danse Macabre'' consists of the dead, or a personification ...

'', Broadway * 2002: ''The Dazzle'', Gramercy Theater, New York, NY, March 5, 2002. * 2002: '' Take Me Out'', Joseph Papp Public Theater, New York, NY, September 5, 2002. * 2003: '' The Violet Hour'', Steppenwolf Theater Company, Chicago, IL, 2003; Manhattan Theatre Club. Biltmore Theatre, New York, NY, 2003. * 2005: ''

A Naked Girl on the Appian Way ''A Naked Girl on the Appian Way'' is a play by Richard Greenberg, initially produced by South Coast Repertory, Costa Mesa, California in 2005. Production history It was commissioned by South Coast Repertory and premiered there from April 1, 2 ...

'' * 2006: ''Bal Masque'', Theatre J, Washington, D.C. * 2006: ''The Well-Appointed Room'', Steppenwolf Theater Company, ChicagoColumbus,Curt; Murray, Thomas; Nedved, William
"Richard Greenberg: The Mind Lighting 'The Well-Appointed Room'"
steppenwolf.org, 2005-2006, Vol. 2 * 2006: ''The House in Town'',

, Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater * 2008: ''The Injured Party'', South Coast Repertory Theater, Costa Mesa, CA. * 2009: '' The American Plan'', revival, Broadway * 2009: ''Our Mother's Brief Affair'', South Coast Repertory Theater, Costa Mesa, CA. *2013: ''Breakfast at Tiffany's'', Broadway, Cort Theatre''Breakfast at Tiffany's''
ibdb.com, accessed December 15, 2016 * 2013: ''

'', Broadway, Manhattan Theatre Club * 2015: ''Our Mother's Brief Affair'', Broadway, Manhattan Theatre Club * 2016: ''The Babylon Line'', Off-Broadway, Lincoln Center * 2022: ''Take Me Out'', revival, Broadway, 2nd Stage Theater

Television

* 1989: "Ask Me Again" (based on "An Old-Fashioned Story" by Laurie Colwin), American Playhouse, PBS. * 1989: "Life under Water" (based on his one-act play), PBS. * 1989: "The Sad Professor," '' Trying Times'', PBS. * 1990: "The Sacrifice," ''Tales from the Crypt.'' * 1991: "Georgie through the Looking Glass," ''Sisters,'' NBC. * 1999: "The Time the Millennium Approached," ''Time of Your Life,'' Fox.

References

External links

Richard Greenberg
- ''Downstage Center'' interview at

American Theatre Wing The American Theatre Wing (the Wing for short) is a New York City–based non-profit organization "dedicated to supporting excellence and education in theatre", according to its mission statement. Originally known as the Stage Women's War Relief ...

''Everett Beekin''
at

Playbill.com on The Violet Hour

The Old Globe, San Diego

review of ''Take Me Out'' * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Greenberg, Richard 1958 births Living people Princeton University alumni Harvard Graduate School of Arts and Sciences alumni 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights People from East Meadow, New York Writers from New York (state) Yale School of Drama alumni LGBT Jews East Meadow High School alumni