Lloyd Richards
Encyclopedia
Lloyd George Richards was a Canadian-American
theatre director, actor
, and dean of the Yale School of Drama
from 1979 to 1991, and Yale University professor emeritus.
. His father, a Jamaican carpenter turned auto-industry worker, died when Richards was nine years old. Soon after, his mother lost her eyesight, he and his brother Allan kept the family together. He later went on to study law at Wayne University
where instead he found his way in theatrical arts after a brief break during World War II while serving in the U.S. Army Air Force
.
Among Richards' accomplishments, include his staging the original production of Lorraine Hansberry
's A Raisin in the Sun
, debuting on Broadway to standing ovations on 11 March 1959, and in 1984 he introduced August Wilson
to Broadway in Ma Rainey's Black Bottom
.
As head of the National Playwrights Conference at the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center
, he helped develop the careers of Wendy Wasserstein
, Christopher Durang
, Lee Blessing
and David Henry Hwang
.
Richards died of heart failure on his eighty-seventh birthday in New York City
.
Mr. Richards also taught Moscow Art Theatre acting technique under Paul Mann at the Actor's Workshop in New York along side Morris Carnovsky.
Nominations
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
theatre director, actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
, and dean of the Yale School of Drama
Yale School of Drama
The Yale School of Drama is a graduate professional school of Yale University providing training in every discipline of the theatre: acting, design , directing, dramaturgy and dramatic criticism, playwriting, stage management, sound design, technical design and production, and theater...
from 1979 to 1991, and Yale University professor emeritus.
Biography
Richards was born in Toronto, Ontario, but was raised in Detroit, MichiganMichigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
. His father, a Jamaican carpenter turned auto-industry worker, died when Richards was nine years old. Soon after, his mother lost her eyesight, he and his brother Allan kept the family together. He later went on to study law at Wayne University
Wayne State University
Wayne State University is a public research university located in Detroit, Michigan, United States, in the city's Midtown Cultural Center Historic District. Founded in 1868, WSU consists of 13 schools and colleges offering more than 400 major subject areas to over 32,000 graduate and...
where instead he found his way in theatrical arts after a brief break during World War II while serving in the U.S. Army Air Force
United States Army Air Forces
The United States Army Air Forces was the military aviation arm of the United States of America during and immediately after World War II, and the direct predecessor of the United States Air Force....
.
Among Richards' accomplishments, include his staging the original production of Lorraine Hansberry
Lorraine Hansberry
Lorraine Hansberry was an African American playwright and author of political speeches, letters, and essays...
's A Raisin in the Sun
A Raisin in the Sun
A Raisin in the Sun is a play by Lorraine Hansberry that debuted on Broadway in 1959. The title comes from the poem "Harlem" by Langston Hughes...
, debuting on Broadway to standing ovations on 11 March 1959, and in 1984 he introduced August Wilson
August Wilson
August Wilson was an American playwright whose work included a series of ten plays, The Pittsburgh Cycle, for which he received two Pulitzer Prizes for Drama...
to Broadway in Ma Rainey's Black Bottom
Ma Rainey's Black Bottom
Ma Rainey's Black Bottom is a 1982 play - one of the ten-play Pittsburgh Cycle by August Wilson, a Pulitzer Prize-winning American playwright - that chronicles the twentieth century African American experience...
.
As head of the National Playwrights Conference at the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center
Eugene O'Neill Theater Center
The Eugene O'Neill Memorial Theater Center in Waterford, Connecticut is a 501 not-for-profit theater company founded in 1964 by George C. White. The O'Neill is the recipient of the . The O'Neill is home to the National Theater Institute , and several major theater conferences including the...
, he helped develop the careers of Wendy Wasserstein
Wendy Wasserstein
Wendy Wasserstein was an American playwright and an Andrew Dickson White Professor-at-Large at Cornell University...
, Christopher Durang
Christopher Durang
Christopher Ferdinand Durang is an American playwright known for works of outrageous and often absurd comedy. His work was especially popular in the 1980s.- Life :...
, Lee Blessing
Lee Blessing
-Biography:Blessing's best-known play is A Walk in the Woods, which depicts the developing relationship between two arms limitation negotiators, one Russian and one American, over years of negotiation...
and David Henry Hwang
David Henry Hwang
David Henry Hwang is an American playwright who has risen to prominence as the preeminent Asian American dramatist in the U.S.He was born in Los Angeles, California and was educated at the Yale School of Drama and Stanford University...
.
Richards died of heart failure on his eighty-seventh birthday 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...
.
Mr. Richards also taught Moscow Art Theatre acting technique under Paul Mann at the Actor's Workshop in New York along side Morris Carnovsky.
Awards and nominations
Awards- 1987: Drama Desk AwardDrama Desk AwardThe 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...
Outstanding New Play - Fences - 1987: Tony Award Best Direction of a Play - Fences
- 1987: Tony Award Best Play - Fences
- 1990: Drama Desk Award Outstanding New Play - The Piano LessonThe Piano LessonThe Piano Lesson is a 1990 play by American playwright August Wilson. The Piano Lesson is the fifth play in Wilson's The Pittsburgh Cycle. Wilson began writing this play by playing with the various answers regarding the possibility of "acquir[ing] a sense of self-worth by denying ones past"...
- 1991: Regional Theatre Tony AwardRegional Theatre Tony AwardThe Regional Theatre Tony Award is a special non-competitive Tony Award given annually to a regional theatre company in the United States. Initially presented in 1948 to Robert Porterfield of the Virginia Barter Theatre for their Contribution To Development Of Regional Theatre, the Regional Theatre...
- Yale Repertory TheatreYale Repertory TheatreThe Yale Repertory Theatre at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut was founded by Robert Brustein, dean of the Yale School of Drama in 1966, with the goal of facilitating a meaningful collaboration between theatre professionals and talented students. In the process it has become one of the... - 1993: National Medal of ArtsNational Medal of ArtsThe National Medal of Arts is an award and title created by the United States Congress in 1984, for the purpose of honoring artists and patrons of the arts. It is the highest honor conferred to an individual artist on behalf of the people. Honorees are selected by the National Endowment for the...
- 2002: The Dorothy and Lillian Gish PrizeThe Dorothy and Lillian Gish PrizeThe Dorothy and Lillian Gish Prize or Gish Prize is given annually to “a man or woman who has made an outstanding contribution to the beauty of the world and to mankind’s enjoyment and understanding of life.” It is one of the richest prizes in the American arts, for example the 2010 winner received...
Nominations
- 1960: Tony Award Best Direction of a Play - A Raisin in the Sun
- 1981: Tony Award Best Play - A Lesson From Aloes
- 1987: Drama Desk Award Outstanding Director of a Play - Fences
- 1988: Drama Desk Award Outstanding Director of a Play - Joe Turner's Come and Gone
- 1988: Drama Desk Award Outstanding New Play - Joe Turner's Come and Gone
- 1988: Tony Award Best Direction of a Play - Joe Turner's Come and Gone
- 1988: Tony Award Best Play - A Walk in the Woods
- 1988: Tony Award Best Play - Joe Turner's Come and Gone
- 1989: Drama Desk Award Outstanding Revival - Long Day's Journey Into Night
- 1989: Tony Award Best Revival - Ah, Wilderness!
- 1990: Drama Desk Award Outstanding Director of a Play - The Piano Lesson
- 1990: Tony Award Best Direction of a Play - The Piano Lesson
- 1990: Tony Award Best Play - The Piano Lesson
- 1996: Drama Desk Award Outstanding Director of a Play - Seven Guitars
- 1996: Tony Award Best Direction of a Play - Seven Guitars
External links
- Lloyd Richards Papers at Yale University Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library.
- Lloyd Richards' oral history video excerpts at The National Visionary Leadership Project