Lloyd Richards
Lloyd Richards (June 29 1919 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada –June 29 2006 in New York City, New York) was an American actor and director best known for staging the original production of Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin in the Sun, which debuted on Broadway to standing ovations on March 11, 1959.
He also brought August Wilson to Broadway with Ma Rainey's Black Bottom in 1984. 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 was dean of the Yale School of Drama from 1979 to 1991.
Awards
- 1993 National Medal of Arts
- 2002 Dorothy and Lillian Gish Prize
References
- Robertson, Campbell (June 30, 2006). Lloyd Richards, Theater Director and Cultivator of Playwrights, Is Dead at 87. New York Times
Quotes
- "I've had to accept the fact: freedom is never won. You are always in the process of winning it. You have to do it again."
- "The theater was something that seemed to satsify my life need."
External links
- Academy of Achievement Profile http://www.achievement.org/autodoc/page/ric0pro-1
- Academy of Achievement Biography http://www.achievement.org/autodoc/page/ric0bio-1
- Academy of Achievement Interview http://www.achievement.org/autodoc/page/ric0int-1
- Academy of Achievement Photo Gallery http://www.achievement.org/autodoc/page/ric0gal-1