Allen Barton
Encyclopedia
Allen Barton is an American writer/director, acting teacher, classical pianist, and political host/commentator. He is known primarily for his longtime association with the Beverly Hills Playhouse
, the renowned Los Angeles-based acting school, and for his work on the Pajamas Media
online political channel PJTV, where he is host of The Front Page. His older brother is Fred Barton
, the New York-based pianist, composer, orchestrator, and co-creator of Forbidden Broadway.
and has a B.A. from Harvard University
, where he studied Russian & Soviet Studies, and was a VP for the Hasty Pudding Theatricals. After graduation, he relocated to Los Angeles and began his studies as an actor at the Beverly Hills Playhouse
. Over the next 20 years, he served exhaustive apprenticeships as a director and teacher under Milton Katselas
, the famous teacher and BHP's founder. Simultaneously with his artistic training, he began working part time for the BHP in 1993, rapidly ascending to become CFO in 1997 and then the school's youngest ever CEO in 2003. He began teaching for BHP in 2002, had a class under his own name in 2005, and taught alongside Katselas in the Advanced program starting in 2007 up until Katselas' death in October 2008. Katselas bequeathed majority ownership to Barton, who still teaches the Advanced classes at the school. He has overseen the BHP's expansion to both New York and San Francisco.
As a director, he has helmed the following Los Angeles stage productions: About Faith (2001), Pink Dot (2005), Burn This (2006), The Last Five Years (2007), Baja Fresh (2008), Rabbit Hole (2008), The Real Thing (2009), and the world premiere of his own script Engagement (2010).
As a classical pianist, Barton studied with Seth Kimmelman at New England Conservatory, and in Los Angeles with Bernardo Segall, Deborah Aitken and Mario Feninger. He was a prize-winner in the 2002 Los Angeles Liszt Society Competition, and has performed annual recitals in Los Angeles, New York, Boston and the New England area. He has recorded five compact discs, Debut Recital, 2, 3, 4, and 5, all available at cdbaby.com, the iTunes store, and various other online distribution outlets. In 2010 he was made a Steinway Artist..
Finally, in 2008 he was hired by the upstart online political channel PJTV, Pajamas Media's high definition, subscription-based Internet television service. The Internet TV "channel" debuted at the 2008 Republican convention, where PJTV had a broadcasting booth inside of Minneapolis’s Xcel Energy Center, which housed the convention. Since then, the online TV service has featured interviews with former GOP senator Fred Thompson, former Australian Prime Minister John Howard, and numerous pundits and authors.
PJTV has several satellite studios including a facility inside the Washington DC offices of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies
. The satellite facilities transmit high definition video via broadband to main PJTV studio in Los Angeles. There, several Pajamas Media affiliated bloggers do double-duty as show hosts and on-air pundits. Barton hosts The Front Page, a weekly collection of interviews with commentators from Investors Business Daily, the Ayn Rand Institute
, as well as experts on politics, polling, economics and culture. In 2010 he interviewed Congressman Tom McClintock
regarding the upcoming 2010 midterm elections and the state of the Obama presidency.
Barton married Tiffany Yu in 2003, and they have two children.
In the mid-late 1990s, Barton was associated with Scientology
, and acted in many of their in-house films under the Golden Era Productions banner. His last course completion was in 2000, and he appears to have had no activity with the group since then .
Beverly Hills Playhouse
The Beverly Hills Playhouse is one of the oldest acting schools and theatres in Los Angeles. Located at 254 South Robertson Boulevard in Beverly Hills, California, United States.-The early years:...
, the renowned Los Angeles-based acting school, and for his work on the Pajamas Media
Pajamas Media
PJ Media is a media company that uses the Internet to present and comment on the news.Founded in 2004 by a network primarily, but not exclusively, made up of conservatives and libertarians led by mystery writer, screenwriter, and blogger Roger L...
online political channel PJTV, where he is host of The Front Page. His older brother is Fred Barton
Fred Barton
Fred Barton is an American composer, lyricist, director, actor, singer, arranger, conductor, and pianist who made his New York debut in 1982 as co-creator-arranger-performer-pianist in the original company of the internationally acclaimed revue Forbidden Broadway, appearing in the New York, L.A...
, the New York-based pianist, composer, orchestrator, and co-creator of Forbidden Broadway.
Life and career
Allen Barton grew up in Lexington, MassachusettsLexington, Massachusetts
Lexington is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 31,399 at the 2010 census. This town is famous for being the site of the first shot of the American Revolution, in the Battle of Lexington on April 19, 1775.- History :...
and has a B.A. from Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
, where he studied Russian & Soviet Studies, and was a VP for the Hasty Pudding Theatricals. After graduation, he relocated to Los Angeles and began his studies as an actor at the Beverly Hills Playhouse
Beverly Hills Playhouse
The Beverly Hills Playhouse is one of the oldest acting schools and theatres in Los Angeles. Located at 254 South Robertson Boulevard in Beverly Hills, California, United States.-The early years:...
. Over the next 20 years, he served exhaustive apprenticeships as a director and teacher under Milton Katselas
Milton Katselas
Milton Katselas was an American film director and famous Hollywood coach for The Beverly Hills Playhouse...
, the famous teacher and BHP's founder. Simultaneously with his artistic training, he began working part time for the BHP in 1993, rapidly ascending to become CFO in 1997 and then the school's youngest ever CEO in 2003. He began teaching for BHP in 2002, had a class under his own name in 2005, and taught alongside Katselas in the Advanced program starting in 2007 up until Katselas' death in October 2008. Katselas bequeathed majority ownership to Barton, who still teaches the Advanced classes at the school. He has overseen the BHP's expansion to both New York and San Francisco.
As a director, he has helmed the following Los Angeles stage productions: About Faith (2001), Pink Dot (2005), Burn This (2006), The Last Five Years (2007), Baja Fresh (2008), Rabbit Hole (2008), The Real Thing (2009), and the world premiere of his own script Engagement (2010).
As a classical pianist, Barton studied with Seth Kimmelman at New England Conservatory, and in Los Angeles with Bernardo Segall, Deborah Aitken and Mario Feninger. He was a prize-winner in the 2002 Los Angeles Liszt Society Competition, and has performed annual recitals in Los Angeles, New York, Boston and the New England area. He has recorded five compact discs, Debut Recital, 2, 3, 4, and 5, all available at cdbaby.com, the iTunes store, and various other online distribution outlets. In 2010 he was made a Steinway Artist..
Finally, in 2008 he was hired by the upstart online political channel PJTV, Pajamas Media's high definition, subscription-based Internet television service. The Internet TV "channel" debuted at the 2008 Republican convention, where PJTV had a broadcasting booth inside of Minneapolis’s Xcel Energy Center, which housed the convention. Since then, the online TV service has featured interviews with former GOP senator Fred Thompson, former Australian Prime Minister John Howard, and numerous pundits and authors.
PJTV has several satellite studios including a facility inside the Washington DC offices of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies
Foundation for Defense of Democracies
The Foundation for Defense of Democracies describes itself as a non-profit, non-partisan policy institute "working to defend free nations against their enemies". It was founded shortly after the September 11, 2001, attacks to address what it regards as the "threat facing America, Israel and the...
. The satellite facilities transmit high definition video via broadband to main PJTV studio in Los Angeles. There, several Pajamas Media affiliated bloggers do double-duty as show hosts and on-air pundits. Barton hosts The Front Page, a weekly collection of interviews with commentators from Investors Business Daily, the Ayn Rand Institute
Ayn Rand Institute
The Ayn Rand Institute: The Center for the Advancement of Objectivism is a 501 nonprofit think tank in Irvine, California that promotes Ayn Rand's philosophy, called Objectivism. It was established in 1985, three years after Rand's death, by Leonard Peikoff, Rand's legal heir...
, as well as experts on politics, polling, economics and culture. In 2010 he interviewed Congressman Tom McClintock
Tom McClintock
Thomas Miller McClintock II is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2009. He is a member of the Republican Party. He is a former Assemblyman and state Senator...
regarding the upcoming 2010 midterm elections and the state of the Obama presidency.
Barton married Tiffany Yu in 2003, and they have two children.
In the mid-late 1990s, Barton was associated with Scientology
Scientology
Scientology is a body of beliefs and related practices created by science fiction and fantasy author L. Ron Hubbard , starting in 1952, as a successor to his earlier self-help system, Dianetics...
, and acted in many of their in-house films under the Golden Era Productions banner. His last course completion was in 2000, and he appears to have had no activity with the group since then .