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Dale Wasserman

DALE WASSERMAN  (1914 - 2008)

 Nationality:    USA
email:    Click here to contact     Website:    Click here

Literary Agent:    The Lantz Office  


Dale Wasserman has served the Theater for over 50 years. In earlier days he roamed America as a hobo, riding freight trains and thereby avoiding any formal education whatsoever. At nineteen, he gravitated into the Theater where he cut his teeth on every conceivable job -- stage manager, lighting designer, director and producer among them. At age 33, he walked off the Broadway musical he was directing, abruptly deciding to become a writer. Since then, he has produced a continuous body of work for the Theater, film and television. Never writing with a direct eye on commercial reward, his instincts have drawn him to a vast range of subjects, with serendipity often lending a hand. Visiting Spain in the late 1950s, the press incorrectly reported that he was researching Don Quixote. Intrigued, he did just that, becoming more interested in Miguel de Cervantes than in his famous protagonist. the result was I, Don Quixote, a TV Drama starring Lee J. Cobb, Eli Wallach, and Colleen Dewhurst, which in turn became Man of La Mancha, multiple Tony-winner and among the longest-running Broadway musicals of all time. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, also a multiple Tony-winner, was initially a flop on Broadway but later played to packed houses for 4 years in New York and 5 years in San Francisco -- leading, of course, to the famous film. Mr. Wasserman's many other credits include screenplays for the Vikings, Cleopatra, and A Walk with Love and Death. as well as countless TV Dramas. Recently his play about Haiti, An Enchanted Land, had its premiere in London. Currently he has no less than three new musicals: Western Star, a look at the shady side of American "pioneers"; A Walk In the Sky, about the power of art to reach the primitive heart; and a revised version of Duke Ellington's masterpiece, Beggar's Holiday. the Rubicon Theatre has presented an entire season of Mr. Wasserman's works, and Players In the Game, which Mr. Wasserman considers his most trenchant writing, has just been published. In addition he has a newly-finished comedy called Premiere!, slated for Off-Broadway. Mr. Wasserman holds Honorary Doctorates from several universities, and in terms of awards, guesses that he has "maybe a couple dozen," but since he avoids awards ceremonies, he is simply not sure. Reclusive by nature, he and his wife, Martha Nelly Garza, make their home in Arizona

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below is a list of Dale Wasserman's plays - click on a Play Title for more information

 Beggar's Holiday         Boy on Blacktop Road         Enchanted Land, An         How I Saved the Whole Damned World         I, Don Quixote         Kiki of Montparnasse         Livin' the Life         Man Of La Mancha         One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest         Players In the Game         Premiere!         Stallion Howl, The         Walk In the Sky, A         Western Star

Beggar's Holiday

Synopsis:
a spin on John Gay's "Beggar's Opera." It's hilarious, yet its view of the human condition is dark indeed. It boasts Duke Ellington's only Broadway score

Notes:
It debuted many years Ago, was successful, but not nearly As successful As the cognoscenti thought it should be. Dale rewrote it And it had A much praised run At the Marin theatre near San Franciscoin 2004.

1st Produced:
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Organisations:
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1st Published:
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Music:
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If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

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Genre:
Dark Musical Comedy

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Boy on Blacktop Road

Synopsis:
It's a gripping metaphysical Drama about the sudden appearance of a boy, the effects he has on people who cross his path, and how each reads his own needs into the boy. It's structured like a murder investigation.

Notes:
part of Open Secrets, was originally A TV play called the Stranger. It continued to be shown, by popular demand, All over the world, so Dale decided to rewrite it for the stage

1st Produced:
-    -

Organisations:
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1st Published:
Samuel French, NY, 2005   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

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Genre:
Short Play One Act

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
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Enchanted Land, An

Synopsis:
the title is ironic. the play is profound, gripping, powerful deeply disturbing Drama set in and about Haiti. It's both timely and timeless.

Notes:
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1st Produced:
London    -

Organisations:
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1st Published:
-   -

Music:
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To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

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Genre:
Profound Dark Play

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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How I Saved the Whole Damned World

Synopsis:
concerns the adventures of a sailor on a drunken spree. the theme is that people who are overwhelmed by new technologies no longer know what to believe, and hence will believe almost anything

Notes:
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1st Produced:
Renton Civic Theatre, Renton. Washington    1997

Organisations:
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1st Published:
-   -

Music:
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To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

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Genre:
Play/Drama

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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I, Don Quixote

Synopsis:
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Notes:
Based on the novel "Don Quixote" by Miguel Cervantes. This play became the basis for "Man of La Mancha"

1st Produced:
-    1959

Organisations:
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1st Published:
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Music:
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To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

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Genre:
Adaptation

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Kiki of Montparnasse

Synopsis:
is ostensibly about the most famous model of her time, and indeed she does have the last word, in a startling and deeply satisfying conclusion. It's set in Paris in a particularly rich artistic period. But the mechanism is an older man being confronted by his younger self. there have been several scores written for this musical Drama, the last one by Michel Legrand

Notes:
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1st Produced:
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To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Musical Drama Musical

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Livin' the Life

Synopsis:
Tom Sawyer, Huckleberry Finn, Injun Joe

Notes:
Bruce Geller did the lyrics, Jacques Urbont the music. Based on "Life on the Mississippi", "the Adventures of Tom Sawyer" And "the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" by Mark Twain

1st Produced:
Eden Theatre, Off Broadway, NY    1957

Organisations:
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1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

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Genre:
Musical Play Musical

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Man Of La Mancha

Man Of La Mancha
While Cervantes's "Man of La Mancha" is Don Quixote, Wasserman's "Man" is Cervantes himself. This deeply touching musical Drama, which was first a straight play, "I, Don Quixote," shows an episode in Cervantes' life reflected by his fictional creation. This, most emphatically is not, repeat, not an "adaptation" of "Don Quixote." the leading male role, usually considered a dual role (Cervantes/Don Quixote) is considerably more, because Don Quixote is also Alonzo Quijana, Don Quixote in his more normal life

Notes:
written by Mitch Leigh, Joe Darion, Dale Wasserman

1st Produced:
Washington Square Theater, New York    22 Nov 1965

Organisations:
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1st Published:
-   -

Music:
Original cast recording: MCA (31065) 1965

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

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Genre:
Musical Play Musical

Parts:
Male:  18            Female:  6            Other:  extras

Further Reference:
-

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One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

Synopsis:
A devil may care rogue chooses a short sentence in an airy mental institution rather than prison.

Notes:
novel by Ken Kesey

1st Produced:
New York    1963

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
Samuel French, London, 1974   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

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Genre:
Play/Drama

Parts:
Male:  17            Female:  5            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Players In the Game

Synopsis:
set in 14th century Prague. the Bishop of fourteenth century Prague is humane, witty and happily immoral, which suits his city just fine. However, it displeases the Pope who sends a clever young Inquisitor to force obedience from the Bishop, triggering a collision that ends shockingly. You'll recognize the game as that old, 'Who's Got the Power?' but you've never seen it played for such amazing stakes.

Notes:

1st Produced:
staged readings at the Phoenix theatre's New Words Festival    2005

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
Dramatists Play Service, NY,    -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

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Genre:
Play/Drama

Parts:
Male:  9            Female:  5            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Premiere!

Synopsis:
A famous comedic playwright decides to prove to the world that he can write more than fluff. But would it be possible to write a play that would be universally accepted as Shakespeare? A hilarious series of events leads to the discovery of a "new" play by the bard. Will the truth be uncovered or will the literary world be fooled forever. . .?

Notes:
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1st Produced:
the York Theatre Company (staged reading) (New York, NY, United States)    2007

Organisations:
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1st Published:
Playscripts, Inc - New York   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

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Genre:
100-120 min Comedy/Mystery

Parts:
Male:  4            Female:  2            Other:  4 males, 2 females (6 actors possible: 4-5 males, 1-2 females)

Further Reference:
-

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Stallion Howl, The

Synopsis:
a comedy based on retroactive sexual jealousy.

Notes:
the other half of Open Secrets. Aka the Bequest

1st Produced:
as yet unproduced    -

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
Samuel French, NY, 2005   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Short Comedy One Act

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Walk In the Sky, A

Synopsis:
a musical comedy-Drama, a fantasy, with a "soupcon" of Shakespeare

Notes:
Music by Allan Jay Friedman.

1st Produced:
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Organisations:
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1st Published:
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Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Musical Comedy-Drama Musical

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Western Star

Synopsis:
came into being as Dale taking refuge in a ghost town in the U.S. West, speculated about the people who had inhabited such places and why they had come. He calls it a "musical speculation."

Notes:
Music And lyrics by Bill Francoeur And Scott De Turk

1st Produced:
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Organisations:
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1st Published:
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Music:
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To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
musical speculation

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
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