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Biography
Five siblings. Born and raised in Coos Bay, Oregon. Moved to New York City sight unseen in 1993. Schooled at the University of Oregon (B.A. in English) and the NYU Graduate Acting Program. Divides time between New York City's East Village and upstate Napanoch, NY with longtime partner Steve Schmersal. |
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Writing
Wrote the book for the musical Avenue Q, which opened Off-Broadway in January 2003, moved to Broadway in July 2003 for a six-and-a-half year run, and to London's West End in September 2006, with national tours and dozens of international productions in nations as diverse as Israel, Brazil, Finland and Australia. Avenue Q won three Tony Awards, including Best Musical, Best Book, and Best Score (by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx). The night of its Broadway closing, in a surprise move, the show made an unprecedented leap to Off-Broadway, where it continues its run at New World Stages.
New work includes the libretto for a musical adaptation of Armistead Maupin's Tales of the City novels, with music by Jake Shears and John Garden of the pop ensemble Scissor Sisters, directed by Jason Moore, with musical direction by Stephen Oremus. It will premiere at ACT in San Francisco in the late Spring of 2011.
Simultaneously : the story and libretto for a "free adapatation" of the film series Bring It On, set in the world of competitive high-school cheerleading. The score is by Tom Kitt and Lin-Manuel Miranda, with lyrics by Amanda Green and Lin-Manuel Miranda. The production will be directed and choreographed by Andy Blankenbuehler with musical direction by Alex Lacamoire. It will premiere at the Alliance Theater in Atlanta, GA in early 2011.
Plays include the dark family comedy Suicide Weather, The Plank Project, Balls, The Hiding Place (premiered at the Atlantic Theater Company), and The Further Adventures of Hedda Gabler. Hedda premiered at South Coast Repertory under the direction of Bill Rauch, who also directed the play in the Oregon Shakespeare Festival's 2008 season. Theaters presenting his work include the Atlantic Theater Company, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, South Coast Repertory, and the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center.
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Views of The Further Adventures of Hedda Gabler:
Oregon Shakespeare Festival: Kate Mulligan and Robin Goodrin Nordli
South Coast Repertory: Christopher Liam Moore, Susannah Schulman, Preston Maybank, Dan Butler and Patrick Kerr
South Coast Repertory: Patrick Kerr, Kim Scott, Dan Butler, Christopher Liam Moore
Oregon Shakespeare Festival: Christopher DuVal, Kim Scott, Anthony Heald, Jonathan Haugen
Acting
Roles include The Beard of Avon by Amy Freed at New York Theater Workshop in New York City (dir. Doug Hughes) and at the Goodman Theater in Chicago (dir. David Petrarca), If Memory Serves with Elizabeth Ashley and Sam Trammell (Promenade Theater, NYC), Freedomland by Amy Freed (Playwrights Horizons, NYC), Gross Indecency (Philadelphia Theater Company), the films Lisa Picard is Famous, Garmento, and a brief cameo in sexy romp Shortbus. Many, many appearances in shows by Tweed Theaterworks in New York City.
With Mark Harelik in the New York Theater Workshop production of The Beard of Avon
Again with Mark in Chicago's Goodman Theater production of The Beard of Avon
Robin Strasser and Heather Goldenhersh give me a soothing massage in the stocks in Amy Freed's Freedomland at Playwrights Horizons
Click HERE to see Jeff's webpage in its full glory.
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Jeff Whitty
