Williamstown Theatre Festival
In 1996, Ritchie was appointed producer of the Williamstown Theatre Festival. New plays that began their lives in Williamstown and moved on to off-Broadway runs under his direction include Corners by David Rabe, Far East by A.R. Gurney, The Most Fabulous Story Ever Told by Paul Rudnick, Chaucer in Rome by John Guare, The Glimmer Brothers (Glimmer, Glimmer and Shine) by Warren Leight and The Waverly Gallery by Kenneth Lonergan.
American premieres during this time include The Late Middle Classes by Simon Gray, Misha's Party by Richard Nelson, Observe the Sons of Ulster Marching Towards the Somme by Frank McGuinness, Under the Blue Sky by David Eldridge and The Ride Down Mt. Morgan by Arthur Miller.
Rediscovered American classics include Dead End, Johnny on the Spot, Street Scene and, 50 years after it was first presented on Broadway -- The Man Who Had All the Luck by Arthur Miller, a production that moved to Broadway and was chosen by Time magazine as one of the year's 10 Best Productions in 2002.
Ritchie and the Festival also sent several other productions to Broadway, including Hedda Gabler, One Mo' Time, The Price and The Rainmaker.
Other major revivals during Ritchie's direction include The Royal Family with Blythe Danner, Victor Garber and Andrea Martin, The Film Society with Cherry Jones and Carole Shelley, Camino Real with Ethan Hawke, A Raisin in the Sun with Ruben Santiago-Hudson and Viola Davis, Hot L Baltimore with Sam Rockwell and As You Like It with Gwyneth Paltrow.
In 2002, the Williamstown Theatre Festival was the recipient of the Regional Theatre Tony Award.
Read more about this topic: Michael Ritchie (artistic Director), Career
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—William Shakespeare (1564–1616)