Matthew Lombardo
Script error: No such module "AfC submission catcheck".
Matthew Lombardo (born 1964) is an American playwright and producer. His work has been critically acclaimed and has earned him international recognition, having been translated into several languages and performed all over the world. Primarily known for writing strong roles for leading women, he has penned plays for Kate Mulgrew, Valerie Harper, Kathleen Turner, Stefanie Powers, Faye Dunaway, and others.[1][2]
Biography[edit]
Early life[edit]
Lombardo grew up in Wethersfield, Connecticut. The last-born son in an Italian-American family, his father owned a construction company in Hartford and his mother was a housewife who raised five children. In grade school, Lombardo’s parents pulled him out of the public education system due to his rebellious nature, and entered him in private school. There he met John Lampe, a drama teacher at South Catholic High School in Hartford, Conn., who encouraged him to get involved in the theatre program, which started his career.
Career[edit]
At age 15, Lombardo made his professional acting debut in the Hartford Stage Company production of “Damn Yankees,” which led to his playing several other roles in Connecticut productions the next few years, including The Artful Dodger in “Oliver” and Prince Chulalongkorn in “The King and I”. While still a teenager, he joined Actor’s Equity Association, but within a year of receiving his Equity card, he left his acting career in order to become a playwright.
Lombardo moved to New York City, where in 1991, his first Off-Broadway play, “Guilty Innocence,” was produced; it was performed at The Actors’ Playhouse.[3] The play was based on a true event in which a 16-year-old high school football team captain beat a gay teenager to death with a fireplace log. The tragedy occurred in Lombardo’s home town of Wethersfield and involved students from his private school alma mater.[4] It was during that production where a talent scout from Procter & Gamble saw the play and invited Lombardo into their writer development program. Within a few months, he had secured a staff writer position on the NBC daytime television series “Another World”, soon garnering him a Writer’s Guild Award Nomination for Outstanding Achievement.[5][6]
In 1994, Lombardo followed up his television work with “Mother and Child”, a play that focused on a maternal relationship with her dying son during the AIDS crisis.[7] The production, which played at Second Stage, starred Tony Award-winning actress Ann Wedgeworth.[8] He then directed “End Of The World Party,” in 1999, at the 47th Street Theatre.[9]
Lombardo’s first big break came in 2002, when he penned “Tea at Five,” a two act play which depicts Katharine Hepburn at two differing stages in her life. The play, which starred Kate Mulgrew, had its World Premiere at Hartford Stage where it broke all box office records and was the highest grossing play in the theatre’s 40-year history.[10][11] Lombardo won the IRNE Award for Best Solo Play.[11] The play went on to have a successful run at the Promenade Theatre in NYC before embarking on a two-year national tour, again starring Mulgrew. The role has subsequently been played by such names as Stephanie Zimbalist, Tovah Feldshuh and, most recently, Faye Dunaway.
He made his Broadway debut with the play “Looped” starring Valerie Harper as Tallulah Bankhead.[12] The production had its World Premiere at the Pasadena Playhouse before transferring to the Lyceum Theatre in New York City. Harper was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play.[13] The Broadway production was followed by national tour starring Stefanie Powers as Bankhead.
The following year, Lombardo was back on Broadway at the Booth Theatre with his play “High” starring Kathleen Turner.[14] The plot focused on a recovering alcoholic nun who is sent a crystal meth addicted hustler in an effort to help him find God and get sober. The play had its World Premiere at TheatreWorks in Hartford, Connecticut, where it broke box office records and became the highest grossing play in that venue’s 25-year history.[15] After the close of the Broadway production, Turner went on to perform the role during a subsequent national tour.[15]
“Who’s Holiday!” was Lombardo’s next play, about the adult life of Cindy Lou Who, a character from “The Grinch Who Stole Christmas”.[16][17] The production starred Lesli Margherita and played the Westside Theatre in NYC and Lombardo was nominated for a Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Solo Show. However, the production was not without challenges. One week prior to rehearsals, Dr. Suess’ estate sent a Cease-and-Desist letter to Lombardo and the producers, threatening to sue for infringement of copyright.
Lombardo fought back and took Suess to court where after a year-long battle, a United States District Court judge ruled in Lombardo’s favor, finding that “Who’s Holiday!” was indeed fair use of the character created by Seuss, ruling that the work “recontextualizes “Grinch’s” easily recognizable plot and rhyming style by placing Cindy Lou Who—a symbol of childhood innocence and naivete—in outlandish, profanity-laden, adult-themed scenarios involving topics such as poverty, teenage pregnancy, drug and alcohol abuse, prison culture, and murder.[18] In so doing, the play subverts the expectations of the Seussian genre, and lampoons the “Grinch” by making Cindy Lou’s naivete, Who-Ville’s endlessly-smiling, problem-free citizens, and Dr. Seuss’ rhyming innocence, all appear ridiculous.” The Seuss estate appealed the ruling and lost.
Lombardo’s latest play, “When Playwrights Kill” will be having its World Premiere at The Bushnell in Hartford, Connecticut this summer. The play stars Jeremy Jordan, Harriet Harris, and Andre DeShields.[19] A Broadway run has yet to be announced.
References[edit]
- ↑ "Matthew Lombardo | Broadway Play Publishing Inc". Retrieved 2022-05-05.
- ↑ BWW News Desk. "Zimbalist to Play Hepburn in National Tour of Tea at Five". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved 2022-05-18.
- ↑ Guernsey, Otis L.; Sweet, Jeffrey (1992-11-01). The Applause-Best Plays Theater Yearbook, 1990-1991: The Complete Broadway and Off-Broadway Sourcebook. Hal Leonard. ISBN 978-1-55783-107-1. Search this book on
- ↑ "Richard Reihl: The Hate Crime That Became a Turning Point for LGBTQ+ Civil Rights - Connecticut History | a CTHumanities Project". Connecticut History | a CTHumanities Project - Stories about the people, traditions, innovations, and events that make up Connecticut's rich history. 2022-02-17. Retrieved 2022-05-17.
- ↑ www.paleycenter.org https://www.paleycenter.org/collection/item/?q=stephen&p=90&item=T:49237. Retrieved 2022-05-05. Missing or empty
|title=(help) - ↑ "Writers Guild of America Award for Television: Daytime Serials", Wikipedia, 2022-02-09, retrieved 2022-05-05
- ↑ Martinez, Julio (1997-10-03). "Mother and Child". Variety. Retrieved 2022-05-05.
- ↑ 1. Simonson 2. Jones, 1. Robert 2. Kenneth (February 12, 2001). "End of the World Party Comes to an End OB, Feb. 25". Playbill. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ Dewitt, David (2000-11-29). "THEATER REVIEW; Yes, Room for Fellowship In the Realm of Tank Tops". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-05-17.
- ↑ "Coffee With: Kate Mulgrew". www.totallykate.com. Retrieved 2022-05-05.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Cristi, A. A. "Good Theater Presents WHO'S HOLIDAY!". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved 2022-05-05.
- ↑ Gans, Andrew (June 3, 2008). "Harper and Allen to Star in Lombardo's Looped at Pasadena Playhouse". Playbill. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ Vine, Hannah (August 22, 2017). "From Dancing on Broadway to Dancing With the Stars: Celebrating Valerie Harper on Her Birthday". Playbill. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ Fullerton, Krissie (July 8, 2010). "PHOTO CALL: High, with Kathleen Turner, at Hartford TheatreWorks". Playbill.
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 Hirschman, Bill (2012-02-23). "Lombardo Play "High" About Addiction Gets Resurrection Tour With Kathleen Turner | Florida Theater On Stage". Retrieved 2022-05-05.
- ↑ Hetrick, Adam (November 28, 2017). "Lesli Margherita Stars in Who's Holiday! Opening Off-Broadway November 28". Playbill.
- ↑ "2018 Lucille Lortel Awards Nominees & Recipients". The Lucille Lortel Awards. Retrieved 2022-05-17.
- ↑ Hetrick, Adam (September 20, 2017). "Who's Holiday! Playwright Matthew Lombardo Wins Case Against Dr. Seuss Enterprises". Playbill. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ "Jeremy Jordan, Harriet Harris, and André De Shields to Star in New Comedy, When Playwrights Kill | TheaterMania". www.theatermania.com. Retrieved 2022-05-05.
This article "Matthew Lombardo" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical and/or the page Edithistory:Matthew Lombardo. Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.
