Wendy Wasserstein (October 18, 1950 – January 30, 2006) was 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 ...

. She was an Andrew Dickson White Professor-at-Large at

Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to tea ...

. She received the

Tony Award for Best Play The Tony Award for Best Play (formally, the Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre) is an annual award given to the best new (non-musical) play on Broadway, as determined by Tony Award voters. There was no award in the Tonys' first yea ...

and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1989 for her play '' The Heidi Chronicles''.

Biography

Early years

Wasserstein was born to a Jewish family in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

, the daughter of Morris Wasserstein, a wealthy textile executive, and his wife, Lola (née Liska) Schleifer, who moved to the United States from

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

when her father was accused of being a spy."Wendy Wasserstein"
jwa.org, accessed June 29, 2014 Wasserstein "once described her mother as being like '

Auntie Mame ''Auntie Mame: An Irreverent Escapade'' is a 1955 novel by American author Patrick Dennis chronicling the madcap adventures of a boy, Patrick, growing up as the ward of his Aunt Mame Dennis, the sister of his dead father. The book is often desc ...

'". Lola Wasserstein reportedly inspired some of her daughter's characters. Wendy was the youngest of five siblings, including brother

Bruce Wasserstein Bruce Jay Wasserstein (December 25, 1947 – October 14, 2009) was an American investment banker, businessman, and writer. He was a graduate of the McBurney School, University of Michigan, Harvard Business School, and Harvard Law School, and sp ...

, a well-known investment banker. Her maternal grandfather was Simon Schleifer, a

yeshiva A yeshiva (; he, ישיבה, , sitting; pl. , or ) is a traditional Jewish educational institution focused on the study of Rabbinic literature, primarily the Talmud and halacha (Jewish law), while Torah and Jewish philosophy a ...

teacher in

Włocławek Włocławek (Polish pronunciation: ; german: Leslau) is a city located in central Poland along the Vistula (Wisła) River and is bordered by the Gostynin-Włocławek Landscape Park. As of December 2021, the population of the city is 106,928. Lo ...

, Poland, who moved to

Paterson, New Jersey Paterson ( ) is the largest city in and the county seat of Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. A graduate of the Calhoun School (she attended from 1963 to 1967), Wasserstein earned a B.A. in history from

Mount Holyoke College Mount Holyoke College is a private liberal arts women's college in South Hadley, Massachusetts. It is the oldest member of the historic Seven Sisters colleges, a group of elite historically women's colleges in the Northeastern United States. ...

in 1971, an M.A. in creative writing from

City College of New York The City College of the City University of New York (also known as the City College of New York, or simply City College or CCNY) is a public university within the City University of New York (CUNY) system in New York City. Founded in 1847, Cit ...

in 1973, and an M.F.A. in fine arts from the Yale School of Drama in 1976. In 1990 she received an ''honoris causa'' Doctor of Humane Letters degree from

and in 2002 she received an ''honoris causa'' degree from Bates College.

Career

Wasserstein's first production of note was '' Uncommon Women and Others'' (her graduate thesis at

Yale Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wor ...

), a play which reflected her experiences as a student at, and an alumna of,

. The play was workshopped at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center in 1977, and a full version of the play was produced in 1977 Off-Broadway with Glenn Close, Jill Eikenberry, and Swoosie Kurtz playing the lead roles. The play was subsequently produced for PBS with Meryl Streep replacing Close. While at Yale, she co-wrote a musical with fellow student Christopher Durang, ''When Dinah Shore Ruled the Earth''. In 1989, she won the

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 ...

, the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize, and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama for her play '' The Heidi Chronicles''. Her plays, which explore topics ranging from feminism to family to ethnicity to pop culture, include '' The Sisters Rosensweig'', ''

Isn't It Romantic "Isn't It Romantic?" is a popular song and part of the Great American Songbook. The music was composed by Richard Rodgers, with lyrics by Lorenz Hart. It has a 32-bar chorus in A–B–A–C form. Alec Wilder, in his book ''American Popular Son ...

'', ''

An American Daughter ''An American Daughter'' is a play written by Wendy Wasserstein. The play takes place in a living room in Georgetown, Washington, D.C. Production history ''An American Daughter'' opened under the New Play Workshop Series at Seattle Repertory The ...

'', ''

Old Money Old money is "the inherited wealth of established upper-class families (i.e. gentry, patriciate)" or "a person, family, or lineage possessing inherited wealth". The term typically describes a social class of the rich who have been able t ...

'', and her last work, which opened in 2005, ''

Third Third or 3rd may refer to: Numbers * 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3 * , a fraction of one third * 1⁄60 of a ''second'', or 1⁄3600 of a ''minute'' Places * 3rd Street (disambiguation) * Third Avenue (disambiguation) * Hi ...

''. During her career, which spanned nearly four decades, Wasserstein wrote eleven plays, winning a Tony Award, a Pulitzer Prize, a New York Drama Critics Circle Award, a Drama Desk Award, and an Outer Critics Circle Award. In addition, she wrote the screenplay for the 1998 film ''

The Object of My Affection ''The Object of My Affection'' is a 1998 American romantic comedy-drama film directed by Nicholas Hytner and starring Jennifer Aniston and Paul Rudd. The film was adapted from the novel of the same name by Stephen McCauley and the screenplay was ...

'', which starred

Jennifer Aniston Jennifer Joanna Aniston (born February 11, 1969) is an American actress and film producer. She is the recipient of various accolades, including a Primetime Emmy Award, a Golden Globe Award and two Screen Actors Guild Awards. Since her career ...

and

Paul Rudd Paul Stephen Rudd (born April 6, 1969) is an American actor. He studied theater at the University of Kansas and the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, before making his acting debut in 1991. He received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame i ...

. Wasserstein is described as an author of women's identity crises. "Her heroines—intelligent and successful but also riddled with self-doubt—sought enduring love a little ambivalently, but they did not always find it, and their hard-earned sense of self-worth was often shadowed by the frustrating knowledge that American women's lives continued to be measured by their success at capturing the right man." In a conversation with novelist

A. M. Homes Amy M. Homes (pen name A. M. Homes; born December 18, 1961) is an American writer best known for her controversial novels and unusual short stories, which feature extreme situations and characters. Notably, her novel '' The End of Alice'' (1996) ...

, Wasserstein said that these heroines are the starting points for her plays: "I write from character, so it begins with people talking, which is why I like writing plays." Wasserstein commented that her parents allowed her to go to Yale only because they were certain she would meet an eligible lawyer there, get married, and lead a conventional life as a wife and mother. Although appreciative of the critical acclaim for her comedic streak, she described her work as "a political act", wherein sassy dialogue and farcical situations mask deep, resonant truths about intelligent, independent women living in a world still ingrained with traditional roles and expectations. In 2007 she was featured in the film ''Making Trouble'', a tribute to female Jewish comedians, produced by the

Jewish Women's Archive The Jewish Women's Archive (JWA) is a national non-profit organization whose mission is to document "Jewish women's stories, elevate their voices, and inspire them to be agents of change." JWA was founded by Gail Twersky Reimer in 1995 in Brookli ...

. Wasserstein also wrote the books to two musicals. ''Miami'', written in collaboration with Jack Feldman and Bruce Sussman, was presented at Playwrights Horizons in 1985–1986, and starred among others,

Marcia Lewis Marcia Lewis (August 18, 1938 – December 21, 2010) was an American character actress and singer. She was nominated twice for the Tony Award as Best Featured Actress in a Musical (''Chicago'' and '' Grease'') and twice for the Drama Desk Award ...

, Phyllis Newman, Jane Krakowski, and Fisher Stevens.''Playbill: Playwrights Horizons: Miami'', Playbill Inc. New York, December 1985 ''Pamela's First Musical'', written with

Cy Coleman Cy Coleman (born Seymour Kaufman; June 14, 1929 – November 18, 2004) was an American composer, songwriter, and jazz pianist. Life and career Coleman was born Seymour Kaufman in New York City, United States, to Eastern European Jewish parents ...

and David Zippel, based on Wasserstein's children's book, received its world premiere in a concert staging at Town Hall in New York City on May 18, 2008. She wrote the libretto for the opera ''Best Friends'', based on

Clare Boothe Luce Clare Boothe Luce ( Ann Clare Boothe; March 10, 1903 – October 9, 1987) was an American writer, politician, U.S. ambassador, and public conservative figure. A versatile author, she is best known for her 1936 hit play '' The Women'', which ha ...

's play '' The Women'', but it was uncompleted when she died. It was subsequently completed by Christopher Durang, set by

Deborah Drattell Deborah Drattell (born 1954) is an American composer. She was born in Brooklyn, New York, and started her career in music as a violinist. Her compositions have been performed by the New York Philharmonic, Orchestra of St. Luke's, the Tanglewood ...

, and is in development with

Lauren Flanigan Lauren Flanigan (born May 18, 1958) is an American operatic soprano who has had an active international career since the 1980s. She enjoyed a particularly fruitful partnership with the New York City Opera, appearing with the company almost every ...

. In 1996 she appeared as the guest caller "Linda" on the ''Frasier'' episode "Head Game". Wasserstein was named the President's Council of Cornell Women Andrew D. White Professor-at-Large in 2005.

Personal life and death

Wasserstein gave birth to a daughter in 1999 when she was 48 years old.Smith, Dinita
"The Newest Wasserstein Creation Comes Home"
''The New York Times'', December 23, 1999 The baby was three months premature and is recorded in Wasserstein's collection of essays, '' Shiksa Goddess''. Wasserstein, who was not married, never publicly identified her daughter's father. Wasserstein was hospitalized with

lymphoma Lymphoma is a group of blood and lymph tumors that develop from lymphocytes (a type of white blood cell). In current usage the name usually refers to just the cancerous versions rather than all such tumours. Signs and symptoms may include en ...

in December 2005 and died at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center on January 30, 2006 at age 55. News of her death was unexpected because her illness had not been widely publicized outside the theater community. The night after she died, Broadway's lights were dimmed in her honor. In addition to her daughter, Wasserstein was survived by her mother and three siblings, Abner Wasserstein, businessman

(who died in 2009), and Wilburton Inn owner Georgette Wasserstein Levis (who died in 2014).

Bibliography

Plays

* ''

'' (2004, Washington, DC; 2005 Off-Broadway) * ''Welcome to My Rash'' (2004)Jones, Kenneth
"Wasserstein World Premieres, 'Welcome to My Rash' and 'Third', Play DC Through Feb. 15"
playbill.com, February 3, 2004 * ''Psyche In Love'' (2004) - Tribeca Theater FestivalIsherwood, Charles

''The New York Times'', October 26, 2004 * ''

'' (2000) * ''

'' (1997) * '' The Sisters Rosensweig'' (1992) * '' The Heidi Chronicles'' (1988) * The Man in a Case (1985) * ''

Tender Offer In corporate finance, a tender offer is a type of public takeover bid. The tender offer is a public, open offer or invitation (usually announced in a newspaper advertisement) by a prospective acquirer to all stockholders of a publicly traded corp ...

'' (1983) * ''Isn't It Romantic'' (1981) * '' Uncommon Women and Others'' (1977) * '' Any Woman Can't (1973)

Screenplays

* ''

'' (1998) * ''Tender Offer'' (1977)

Books

* * * * *

Essays

Papers

The Wendy Wasserstein Papers, 1954–2006, are available to researchers at th
Mount Holyoke College Archives and Special Collections
The finding aid for this collection is available online at http://asteria.fivecolleges.edu/findaids/mountholyoke/mshm325_main.html .

Awards

* 1983: John Simon

Guggenheim Fellowship Guggenheim Fellowships are grants that have been awarded annually since by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those "who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the art ...

* 1989: Pulitzer Prize for Drama – '' The Heidi Chronicles'' * 1989:

– '' The Heidi Chronicles'' * 1989:

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 Heidi Chronicles'' * 1989:

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 ...

– '' The Heidi Chronicles'' * 1989: Susan Smith Blackburn Prize – '' The Heidi Chronicles'' * 1993:

– '' The Sisters Rosensweig'' * 1993:

William Inge William Motter Inge (; May 3, 1913 – June 10, 1973) was an American playwright and novelist, whose works typically feature solitary protagonists encumbered with strained sexual relations. In the early 1950s he had a string of memorable Broad ...

Award for Distinguished Achievement in American Theatre * 2006:

American Theater Hall of Fame The American Theater Hall of Fame in New York City was founded in 1972. Earl Blackwell was the first head of the organization's Executive Committee. In an announcement in 1972, he said that the new ''Theater Hall of Fame'' would be located in the ...

References

External links

The Year of Wendy Wasserstein
2011–2012, a year-long retrospective celebration at Mount Holyoke College
Audio: Wendy Wasserstein at the Key West Literary Seminar, 2005
* * * * Jan Balakian
Wasserstein biography at Jewish Women Encyclopedia
*
2001 ''BOMB Magazine'' interview of Wendy Wasserstein by A.M. Homes
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wasserstein, Wendy 1950 births 2006 deaths 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights 20th-century American women writers 21st-century American dramatists and playwrights 21st-century American women writers American feminists American people of Polish-Jewish descent American women dramatists and playwrights City College of New York alumni Cornell University faculty Deaths from cancer in New York (state) Deaths from lymphoma Jewish American dramatists and playwrights Jewish feminists Jewish women writers Mount Holyoke College alumni Pulitzer Prize for Drama winners Tony Award winners Writers from Brooklyn Yale School of Drama alumni American women academics 20th-century American Jews 21st-century American Jews