Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Women Behind Broadway

 


In honor of Women’s History Month, the Fairfield Museum presented a lecture on Thursday, March 15 at noon with Alexis Greene, author of “Lucille Lortel: The Queen of Off- Broadway” and Helen Sheehy, author of “Eva Le Gallienne. A Biography.”

Friends Lucille Lortel and Eva Le Gallienne forged exceptional careers in the world of theatre. Both women played challenging roles on stage and both kept a commitment to theatre education and avant garde theatre. Galienne (1899 – 1991) became an accomplished performer, educator and a master at building nonprofit repertory theater companies. Lortel (1900 – 1999) began her theatre career as an actress, appearing on Broadway in 1925 and later played roles on the stage and screen. She settled into married life and began producing theatre in 1947 with the creation of the White Barn Theatre in Westport. She was a stalwart promoter and producer of new and original plays and was pivotal in establishing Off-Broadway as an alternative to the commercial theatres in New York.

Both women were ahead of their times and gave themselves wholeheartedly to promote the theater, an artistic endeavor they cherished dearly.

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