Frances Foster
Encyclopedia
Frances Foster was an American
film
, television
and stage
actress. She was also an award-winning stage
director.
, the daughter of George H., a postal worker and Helen E. Brown.
She studied acting at American Theater Wing in Manhattan
from 1949 to 1952.
In 1955, Ms. Foster made her stage debut as Dolly May in The Wisteria Trees at the City Center Theater in New York City
. She was a founding member of the Negro Ensemble Company
and between 1967 and 1986 appeared in over 25 of its productions.
Foster won an Obie Award
in 1985 for sustained excellence of performance. She was also a recipient of two AUDELCO
Awards, one as an actress and the other as a director for work at the New Federal Theatre in Manhattan
. In 1978, she received the best actress award for Do Lord Remember Me, and the best director award in 1983 for Hospice.
She also appeared in several films such as Malcolm X
, Crooklyn
, and Clockers, as well the soap opera Guiding Light
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
, television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
and stage
Theatre
Theatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
actress. She was also an award-winning stage
Theatre
Theatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
director.
Biography
Foster was born Frances Brown in Yonkers, New YorkYonkers, New York
Yonkers is the fourth most populous city in the state of New York , and the most populous city in Westchester County, with a population of 195,976...
, the daughter of George H., a postal worker and Helen E. Brown.
She studied acting at American Theater Wing in Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
from 1949 to 1952.
In 1955, Ms. Foster made her stage debut as Dolly May in The Wisteria Trees at the City Center Theater in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. She was a founding member of the Negro Ensemble Company
Negro Ensemble Company
The Negro Ensemble Company is a New York City-based theater company. Established in 1967 by playwright Douglas Turner Ward, producer/actor Robert Hooks, and theater manager Gerald S...
and between 1967 and 1986 appeared in over 25 of its productions.
Foster won an Obie Award
Obie Award
The Obie Awards or Off-Broadway Theater Awards are annual awards given by The Village Voice newspaper to theatre artists and groups in New York City...
in 1985 for sustained excellence of performance. She was also a recipient of two AUDELCO
AUDELCO
AUDELCO, the Audience Development Committee, Inc., was established in 1973 by the late Vivian Robinson to honor excellence in New York African American Theatre through presentation of Vivan Robinson/AUDELCO Recognition Awards...
Awards, one as an actress and the other as a director for work at the New Federal Theatre in Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
. In 1978, she received the best actress award for Do Lord Remember Me, and the best director award in 1983 for Hospice.
She also appeared in several films such as Malcolm X
Malcolm X (film)
Malcolm X is a 1992 biographical motion picture about the Muslim-American figure Malcolm X . It was co-written, co-produced, and directed by Spike Lee. It stars Denzel Washington as the titular character. It co-stars Angela Bassett, Albert Hall, Al Freeman, Jr., and Delroy Lindo...
, Crooklyn
Crooklyn
Crooklyn is a 1994 semi-autobiographical film co-written and directed by Spike Lee. The film takes place in Brooklyn, New York and the neighborhood of Bedford-Stuyvesant during the summer of 1973. Its primary focus is a young girl, Troy , and her family...
, and Clockers, as well the soap opera Guiding Light
Guiding Light
Guiding Light is an American daytime television drama that is credited by the Guinness Book of World Records as the longest running drama in television and radio history, running from 1937 until 2009...
.
Theatre
| Year | Production | Role | Theatre(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Having Our Say | Miss Sadie Delany (standby) | Booth Theatre Booth Theatre The Booth Theatre is a Broadway theatre located at 222 West 45th Street in midtown-Manhattan, New York City.Architect Henry B. Herts designed the Booth and its companion Shubert Theatre as a back-to-back pair sharing a Venetian Renaissance-style façade... |
|
| The Young Man from Atlanta | Clara | Signature Theatre | 1992 Malcolm X the lady outside the theatre |
|
| 1990 | Ground People | Viola | America Place Theatre | |
| 1986 | House of Shadows | Cassie | America Place Theatre | |
| 1982 | Do Lord Remember Me | American Place Theatre | ||
| 1980 | Zooman and the Sign | Ash Boswell | Theatre Four | |
| 1978 | Nevis Mountain Dew Nevis Mountain Dew Nevis Mountain Dew is a 1978 play by American playwright steve carter . Set in the 1950s, it is the second of Carter's Caribbean trilogy. Nevis Mountain Dew explores the subject of euthanasia involving the patriarch of an affluent family who is confined to an iron lung.-Characters:Jared Philibert:... |
Everelda Philibert Griffin | St. Mark's Playhouse | 1979 Drama Desk Award Drama Desk Award The Drama Desk Awards, which are given annually in a number of categories, are the only major New York theater honors for which productions on Broadway, Off-Broadway, Off-Off-Broadway compete against each other in the same category... nomination, Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play |
| 1975 | The First Breeze of Summer | Gremmer | Palace Theatre | |
| 1972 | The River Niger The River Niger The River Niger is a play by American playwright, Joseph A. Walker, first performed by New York City's Negro Ensemble Company off-Broadway in 1972. The production made its Broadway debut with a transfer to the Brooks Atkinson Theatre on 27 March 1973 for a run of 162 performances.-Characters :*... |
Grandma Wilhelmina Brown | St. Mark's Playhouse Brooks Atkinson Theatre Brooks Atkinson Theatre The Brooks Atkinson Theatre is a Broadway theater located at 256 West 47th Street in Manhattan.Designed by architect Herbert J. Krapp, it was constructed as the Mansfield Theatre by the Chanin brothers in 1926. After 1933, the theatre fell into relative disuse until 1945, when Michael Myerberg... |
Originally an Off-Broadway production that was transferred to Broadway. |
| 1971 | Rosalee Pritchett | Rosalee (Rose) Pritchett | St. Mark's Playhouse | |
| 1970 | The Good Woman of Setzuan | Mrs. Mi Tzu | Vivian Beaumont Theatre Vivian Beaumont Theatre The Vivian Beaumont Theater is a theatre located in the Lincoln Center complex at 150 West 65th Street on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The structure was designed by Finnish American architect Eero Saarinen, and Jo Mielziner was responsible for the design of the stage and interior.The Vivian... |
|
| 1968 | Kongi's Harvest Kongi's Harvest Kongi's Harvest is a 1965 play written Wole Soyinka. It premiered in Dakar at the Negro Arts Festival. It was later made into a film of the same name film of the same name, directed by Ossie Davis.-Plot:... |
Ogbo Aweri Segi |
St. Mark's Playhouse | |
| 1965 | Day of Absence | Supervisor Aide |
St. Mark's Playhouse | Program of two one-act plays by Douglas Turner Ward. |
| Happy Ending | Vi | St. Mark's Playhouse | Program of two one-act plays by Douglas Turner Ward. | |
| 1963 | The Last Minstrel | Mrs. Ash | Pocket Theatre | |
| 1959 | A Raisin in the Sun | Ruth Younger (understudy) Beneatha Younger (understudy) |
Ethel Barrymore Theatre Ethel Barrymore Theatre The Ethel Barrymore Theatre is a legitimate Broadway theatre located at 243 West 47th Street in midtown-Manhattan, named for actress Ethel Barrymore.... Belasco Theatre Belasco Theatre The Belasco Theatre is a legitimate Broadway theatre located at 111 West 44th Street in midtown-Manhattan.-History:Designed by architect George Keister for impresario David Belasco, the interior featured Tiffany lighting and ceiling panels, rich woodwork and expansive murals by American artist... |
|
| 1956 | Take a Giant Step | Violet | Jan Hus Playhouse | |
| 1955 | The Wisteria Trees | Dolly May | City Center Theater |
External links
- Biography at filmreference.com