After graduating from California Institute of the Arts, I spent three years as an assistant to director Steven Spielberg, on the films 1941; CLOSE ENCOUNTERS THE THIRD KIND: THE DIRECTOR’S CUT; USED CARS (as assistant to Bob Zemeckis) and the Academy-award winning classic, RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK. I then spent the next few years pursuing an acting career, appearing in numerous plays, TV movies and features films, including a leading role in Tobe Hooper and Mr. Spielberg’s POLTERGEIST, before I started writing for the theatre, television and feature films.
In film and television, I have written for, optioned or sold screenplays to Steven Spielberg, Lasse Hallstrom, Whoopi Goldberg, Rob Reiner, Dan Petrie Jr., John Milius, John Badham, Francis Ford Coppola, Herbert Ross, Bruce Cohen, Anthony Edwards, Kerry Washington, Disney, Universal, HBO, The Ladd Company and Paulist Productions. My original screenplay ONE NIGHT STAND was directed by Talia Shire and starred Ally Sheedy and Frederic Forrest. TV projects include the film BEHIND THE LENS for CBS, and DADDY’S GIRL, an HBO pilot, and a stint as a writer on ABC’s One Life to Live. I recently adapted David Johnson’s brilliant play BUSTED JESUS COMIX for the screen for director Leon Joosen. My current feature project is TOM’S DAD, for Emmy Award-winning producers Joni Levin and Keith Clarke, to be directed by Oscar-nominated director Lasse Hallstrom.
In the theatrical world, my plays have been seen at the Pasadena Playhouse, the Odyssey, Coast Playhouse, Coronet, Cast and Crossroads Theatres (Los Angeles); the Acorn Theater, the Soho Playhouse, TBG Theatre, Ernie Martin, Linhart and Access Theatres (New York); Village Theatre and Group Theatre (Seattle); Mosiac Theatre (Fort Lauderdale); Bailiwick, Theatre Building (Chicago); Attic Rep (San Antonio); Short North Stage (Columbus), Stage One (Wichita); Paper Mill (New Jersey); Theatreworks and Goodspeed (Connecticut); Walnut Street Theatre (Philadelphia); Ford’s Theatre (Washington); the Queen City Theater (Charlotte, N.C.); the Bunkamura Theatre (Tokyo); and in London, Edinburgh and Dublin.
My most well-known play, THE IRISH CURSE, opened Off-Broadway in March, 2010 to rave reviews. It premiered at the 2005 New York International Fringe Festival, where it won the overall excellence award for Outstanding Playwriting. It was also produced at the 2006 Edinburgh Theatre Festival and the Dublin Gay International Theatre Festival in May, 2007, where it was one of the five finalists for the Oscar Wilde Best New Writing for the Theatre Award. Since its critically acclaimed off-Broadway run, THE IRISH CURSE has played to sold-out houses in London, along with Portland, Columbus, Fort Lauderdale, San Antonio, Charlotte and all across America. It opened in the 2012 in Los Angeles at the Odyssey Theater, where it had a three-month sold-out run, and was nominated for a GLAAD Award for Outstanding LA Theatre Production.
It recently received its foreign-language premiere at the Arena Divaldo in Bratislava, Slovakia, and will join their repertory for the next two years.
The play is now available for licensing through Samuel French, Inc. www.samuelfrench.com
My theatrical adaptation of Jessica Francis Kane's magnificent novel, THE REPORT was premiered at the New York International Fringe Festival in 2015, where it won the Outstanding Playwriting Award. It concerns the worst civilian accident that took place during World War II in London, and the government cover-up that followed.
My play DIRECTIONS FOR RESTORING THE APPARENTLY DEAD (winner of the Pride Films and Plays Great Gay Play Award in 2013) had its World Premiere at the 773 Theatre in Chicago, produced by Pride Films and Plays, and directed by Jeff Award-winning director David Zak. I recently finished the play MISS MAUDE, about the real-life friendship that took place in 1950's South Carolina between Life Magazine photographer Eugene Smith and an African-American nurse/midwife named Maude Callen, who became the focus of one of the most popular photo-journal essays ever run by Life Magazine.
My musical SAINT HEAVEN (music and lyrics by Keith Gordon) was optioned by VanHill Entertainment and had its World Premiere in 2006 at the Stamford Center for the Arts in Connecticut. It had its second production at the Village Theatre in Seattle in the fall of 2008. I am currently working with Mr. Gordon on a new musical MARY MODERN, based on the novel by Camille DeAngelis.
I also wrote the libretto for the musical PLAY IT COOL, with a score by Mark Winkler and Phil Swann. In its NY premiere at NYMF in Fall 2008, PLAY IT COOL - which was directed by Sharon Rosen - played to sold-out houses, and was a GLAAD nominee for Best Off-Off Broadway Musical. It had a wonderful off-Broadway production at the Acorn Theater on Theater Row in NYC, and was nominated by the Outer Critics Circle for Best Off-Broadway musical of 2011.
Among my current theatrical project is on the jazz musical CLUB DANGEROUS, again with Mark Winkler and Phil Swan. And with Ms. Rosen, I am also working on a new contemporary musical which takes place in the music industry called POPSTAR. It's music and lyrics are by Jay Levin and Sophie Dupin. POPSTAR had three Equity staged readings in New York City.
My other plays include: SCITUATE (Best New Play, SCFTA); MATES (L.A. WEEKLY Award, Best New Play), PAYDIRT, DESERT FIRE (with Roger Holzberg), BEAUTIFUL DREAMER, GRAND JUNCTION and GEORGE BUSH GOES TO HELL. Books for the musicals: PAPER MOON, HAPPY HOLIDAYS, TAKING CARE OF MRS. CARROLL; and DOO-DAH!
In addition to having taught playwriting at the Harvey Milk High School in New York City for eight years, I have taught playwriting at Cal Arts and Crossroads High School, both in Los Angeles. I am a member of The Dramatists Guild, the Writer’s Guild of America, Actors’ Equity Association and the Screen Actors Guild.
In film and television, I have written for, optioned or sold screenplays to Steven Spielberg, Lasse Hallstrom, Whoopi Goldberg, Rob Reiner, Dan Petrie Jr., John Milius, John Badham, Francis Ford Coppola, Herbert Ross, Bruce Cohen, Anthony Edwards, Kerry Washington, Disney, Universal, HBO, The Ladd Company and Paulist Productions. My original screenplay ONE NIGHT STAND was directed by Talia Shire and starred Ally Sheedy and Frederic Forrest. TV projects include the film BEHIND THE LENS for CBS, and DADDY’S GIRL, an HBO pilot, and a stint as a writer on ABC’s One Life to Live. I recently adapted David Johnson’s brilliant play BUSTED JESUS COMIX for the screen for director Leon Joosen. My current feature project is TOM’S DAD, for Emmy Award-winning producers Joni Levin and Keith Clarke, to be directed by Oscar-nominated director Lasse Hallstrom.
In the theatrical world, my plays have been seen at the Pasadena Playhouse, the Odyssey, Coast Playhouse, Coronet, Cast and Crossroads Theatres (Los Angeles); the Acorn Theater, the Soho Playhouse, TBG Theatre, Ernie Martin, Linhart and Access Theatres (New York); Village Theatre and Group Theatre (Seattle); Mosiac Theatre (Fort Lauderdale); Bailiwick, Theatre Building (Chicago); Attic Rep (San Antonio); Short North Stage (Columbus), Stage One (Wichita); Paper Mill (New Jersey); Theatreworks and Goodspeed (Connecticut); Walnut Street Theatre (Philadelphia); Ford’s Theatre (Washington); the Queen City Theater (Charlotte, N.C.); the Bunkamura Theatre (Tokyo); and in London, Edinburgh and Dublin.
My most well-known play, THE IRISH CURSE, opened Off-Broadway in March, 2010 to rave reviews. It premiered at the 2005 New York International Fringe Festival, where it won the overall excellence award for Outstanding Playwriting. It was also produced at the 2006 Edinburgh Theatre Festival and the Dublin Gay International Theatre Festival in May, 2007, where it was one of the five finalists for the Oscar Wilde Best New Writing for the Theatre Award. Since its critically acclaimed off-Broadway run, THE IRISH CURSE has played to sold-out houses in London, along with Portland, Columbus, Fort Lauderdale, San Antonio, Charlotte and all across America. It opened in the 2012 in Los Angeles at the Odyssey Theater, where it had a three-month sold-out run, and was nominated for a GLAAD Award for Outstanding LA Theatre Production.
It recently received its foreign-language premiere at the Arena Divaldo in Bratislava, Slovakia, and will join their repertory for the next two years.
The play is now available for licensing through Samuel French, Inc. www.samuelfrench.com
My theatrical adaptation of Jessica Francis Kane's magnificent novel, THE REPORT was premiered at the New York International Fringe Festival in 2015, where it won the Outstanding Playwriting Award. It concerns the worst civilian accident that took place during World War II in London, and the government cover-up that followed.
My play DIRECTIONS FOR RESTORING THE APPARENTLY DEAD (winner of the Pride Films and Plays Great Gay Play Award in 2013) had its World Premiere at the 773 Theatre in Chicago, produced by Pride Films and Plays, and directed by Jeff Award-winning director David Zak. I recently finished the play MISS MAUDE, about the real-life friendship that took place in 1950's South Carolina between Life Magazine photographer Eugene Smith and an African-American nurse/midwife named Maude Callen, who became the focus of one of the most popular photo-journal essays ever run by Life Magazine.
My musical SAINT HEAVEN (music and lyrics by Keith Gordon) was optioned by VanHill Entertainment and had its World Premiere in 2006 at the Stamford Center for the Arts in Connecticut. It had its second production at the Village Theatre in Seattle in the fall of 2008. I am currently working with Mr. Gordon on a new musical MARY MODERN, based on the novel by Camille DeAngelis.
I also wrote the libretto for the musical PLAY IT COOL, with a score by Mark Winkler and Phil Swann. In its NY premiere at NYMF in Fall 2008, PLAY IT COOL - which was directed by Sharon Rosen - played to sold-out houses, and was a GLAAD nominee for Best Off-Off Broadway Musical. It had a wonderful off-Broadway production at the Acorn Theater on Theater Row in NYC, and was nominated by the Outer Critics Circle for Best Off-Broadway musical of 2011.
Among my current theatrical project is on the jazz musical CLUB DANGEROUS, again with Mark Winkler and Phil Swan. And with Ms. Rosen, I am also working on a new contemporary musical which takes place in the music industry called POPSTAR. It's music and lyrics are by Jay Levin and Sophie Dupin. POPSTAR had three Equity staged readings in New York City.
My other plays include: SCITUATE (Best New Play, SCFTA); MATES (L.A. WEEKLY Award, Best New Play), PAYDIRT, DESERT FIRE (with Roger Holzberg), BEAUTIFUL DREAMER, GRAND JUNCTION and GEORGE BUSH GOES TO HELL. Books for the musicals: PAPER MOON, HAPPY HOLIDAYS, TAKING CARE OF MRS. CARROLL; and DOO-DAH!
In addition to having taught playwriting at the Harvey Milk High School in New York City for eight years, I have taught playwriting at Cal Arts and Crossroads High School, both in Los Angeles. I am a member of The Dramatists Guild, the Writer’s Guild of America, Actors’ Equity Association and the Screen Actors Guild.
