Lally Katz
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Lally Katz (born ) is an American and Australian
dramatist A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes plays, which are a form of drama that primarily consists of dialogue between characters and is intended for theatrical performance rather than just reading. Ben Jonson coined the term "playwri ...
writing for theater, film, and television. She now resides in
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
.


Early life

Katz was born in
New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...
, United States. She moved with her family to
Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...
, and then to
Canberra Canberra ( ; ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the Federation of Australia, federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's list of cities in Australia, largest in ...
when she was eight and three-quarters. She moved to Melbourne when she was eighteen to attend university and pursue a career as a playwright. She graduated from the
University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne (colloquially known as Melbourne University) is a public university, public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in the state ...
’s School of Studies in Creative Arts. She trained with the
Australian Theatre for Young People Australian Theatre for Young People (ATYP) is the flagship youth theatre company located in the Walsh Bay Arts Precinct, New South Wales, Australia. It was founded in 1963 by Eleanor Witcombe. History The first committee was formed in 1963 and ...
in 2000. She studied playwriting at London’s
Royal Court Theatre The Royal Court Theatre, at different times known as the Court Theatre, the New Chelsea Theatre, and the Belgravia Theatre, is a West End theatre#London's non-commercial theatres, non-commercial theatre in Sloane Square, London, England, opene ...
.


Career

Katz began her career self-producing her own plays in Melbourne, Australia when she was eighteen. From there she began to get commissions to write for Youth Theatre Companies such as St Martins Youth Theatre and PACT Youth Theatre. When she was 23, she joined Stuck Pigs Squealing Theatre Company. Stuck Pigs Squealing Theatre produced a series of Katz's early plays: ''The Black Swan of Trespass'' which played at Malthouse, Belvoir, and the
New York International Fringe Festival The New York International Fringe Festival, or FringeNYC, was a fringe theater festival and one of the largest multi-arts events in North America. It took place over the course of a few weeks in October, spread on more than 20 stages across se ...
where it won the Producer’s Choice Award after winning several
Green Room Awards The Green Room Awards are Australian peer awards which recognise excellence in cabaret, dance, theatre companies, independent theatre, musical theatre, contemporary and experimental performance, and opera. The awards, which were established in ...
in Melbourne; ''Eisteddfod'' premiered in Melbourne at the Storeroom Theatre and transferred to
Malthouse Theatre Malthouse Theatre is the resident theatre company of The Malthouse building in Southbank, part of the Melbourne Arts Precinct. In the 1980s it was known as the Playbox Theatre Company and was housed in the Playbox Theatre in Melbourne's CBD ...
, Belvoir and
PS 122 Performance Space New York, formerly known as Performance Space 122 or P.S. 122, is a non-profit arts organization founded in 1980 in the East Village of Manhattan in an abandoned public school building. Origin The former elementary school, Pu ...
and Richard Foreman’s Ontological-Hysteric Theatre in New York City. After several successful shows with Stuck Pigs Squealing, Katz began to receive commissions from Australia's main-stage theatre companies. In 2007 Katz co-wrote ''Criminology'' with Australian playwright Tom Wright, which was produced by Malthouse Theatre and
Arena Theatre Arena Theatre () is one of the oldest theatres in Bratislava. It was established in 1828 on the right bank of Danube. In the beginning it served as an open summer amphitheatre, hence the name Arena. The current building was built in 1898. ...
, and two short plays ''Waikiki Palace'' and ''Hip Hip Hooray'' formed a double bill premiering at
Sydney Theatre Company Sydney Theatre Company (STC) is an Australian theatre company based in Sydney, New South Wales. The company performs in the Wharf Theatre at Dawes Point in The Rocks area of Sydney as well as the Roslyn Packer Theatre (formerly Sydney Theatre ...
that same year. Katz’s adaptation of ''Frankenstein'' was directed by
Ralph Myers Ralph Myers is an Australian theatre designer and director, and the former artistic director of Sydney's Belvoir St Theatre, Belvoir. In 2005 and 2006 Myers was the resident designer at the Sydney Theatre Company; he was later an associate arti ...
at Sydney Theatre Company in 2008. ''Goodbye New York, Goodbye Heart'' opened in New York in late 2010. ''The Apocalypse Bear Trilogy'' played at the Melbourne Theatre Company as part of the
Melbourne International Arts Festival Melbourne International Arts Festival, formerly Spoleto Festival Melbourne – Festival of the Three Worlds, then Melbourne International Festival of the Arts, becoming commonly known as Melbourne Festival, was a major international arts festi ...
in 2009. Katz adapted stories from the bible for ''The Mysteries: Genesis'' at Sydney Theatre Company in 2008. ''When the Hunter Returns'' was commissioned and produced by The
Gaiety School of Acting The Gaiety School of Acting (GSA) is a drama school located on Essex Street West in Temple Bar, Dublin, Temple Bar, Dublin, Ireland. It was founded by theatre director Joe Dowling in 1986. Patrick Sutton, theatre director, was director of the ...
in Ireland and had a return season at the
Dublin Theatre Festival The Dublin Theatre Festival is Europe's oldest specialised theatre festival. It was founded by theatre impresario Brendan Smith in 1957 and has, with the exception of two years, produced a season of international and Irish theatre each autumn. ...
. Her play ''Goodbye Vaudeville Charle Mudd'' premiered at Malthouse Theatre (co-produced by Arena Theatre). In 2011 she had three premieres on the main stages of Australia: ''A Golem Story'' at Malthouse Theatre, ''Neighbourhood Watch'' at Belvoir, and ''Return to Earth'' at Melbourne Theatre Company. ''Starchaser'', a play for children, was produced by Arena Theatre in 2012 and performed at the Arts Centre Melbourne. In 2013 Katz’s one-woman show, ''Stories I Want to Tell You in Person,'' played to packed audiences at Belvoir and
Malthouse Theatre Malthouse Theatre is the resident theatre company of The Malthouse building in Southbank, part of the Melbourne Arts Precinct. In the 1980s it was known as the Playbox Theatre Company and was housed in the Playbox Theatre in Melbourne's CBD ...
. It later toured to Joe's Pub in New York, Mexico City and other cities in Australia before being adapted into a two-part television series for the ABC starring Katz and
Robyn Nevin Robyn Anne Nevin (25 September 1942) is an Australian actress recognised with the Sidney Myer Performing Arts Awards and the JC Williamson Award at the Helpmann Awards for her outstanding contributions to Australian theatre performance art. F ...
. In 2014 Katz adapted
Henrik Ibsen Henrik Johan Ibsen (; ; 20 March 1828 – 23 May 1906) was a Norwegian playwright, poet and actor. Ibsen is considered the world's pre-eminent dramatist of the 19th century and is often referred to as "the father of modern drama." He pioneered ...
's ''A Doll's House'' for La Boite Theatre Company and Brisbane Festival, directed by Steven Mitchell Wright. In 2015 Katz's play ''The Cat'' was part of a sold-out double bill with
Brendan Cowell Brendan Cowell is an Australian actor and writer. He is known for his lead role in 2024 television series ''Plum'' that he created, based on his 2021 novel of the same name. Early life and education Brendan Cowell was born in Sydney and grew u ...
's "The Dog" at Belvoir in Sydney. She also wrote the
libretto A libretto (From the Italian word , ) is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to th ...
for ''The Rabbits'', composed by Kate Miller Heidke, which premiered at Perth Festival and then had sold out season in Melbourne and Sydney festivals, going on to win several Helpmann Awards, including the award for Best New Australian Work. It also won the Australian Writer's Guild Award for best libretto. In 2017 ''The Cat/The Dog'' was remounted for another sold-out season at Belvoir. That year Katz had a premiere of her play ''Minnie & Liraz'' at Melbourne Theatre Company". Katz participated in the attachment programme at the Studio at the National Theatre in London in 2009 and won a British Council Realise Your Dreams grant for 2010. She was a Churchill Fellow in 2010 and was appointed a Writer In Residence at Melbourne University in 2011. In 2012 Katz won '' InStyle Magazine's'' Women Of Style Award in the arts category and in 2013 she was the inaugural recipient of an Australian Writers’ Foundation Playwriting Grant. Katz’s work for television includes adult one-hour dramas '' Wonderland'', '' Wentworth'' , and '' Spirited'' and children’s series ''
The Elephant Princess ''The Elephant Princess'' is an Australian children's television series that first screened on Network Ten in 2008. The series is produced by Jonathan M. Shiff Productions. A second season began screening in 2011. The series revolves around a ...
''. ''Stories I Want to Tell You in Person'' was adapted as a two-part television series by the
ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...
in 2017, starring Katz and Robyn Nevin. She has also written for ''
Squinters ''Squinters'' is an Australian television comedy series which first screened on the ABC on Wednesday 7 February 2018. All six episodes were also loaded on the ABC's iView catch up service on the same date. A second series went to air in 2019. ...
'' seasons one and two and for '' Hit The Road'' starring
Jason Alexander Jay Scott Greenspan (born September 23, 1959), known professionally as Jason Alexander, is an American actor and comedian. Over the course of his career he has received an Emmy Award and a Tony Award as well as nominations for four Golden Globe ...
. In 2024, Katz was named as part of the writing team for Stan series ''Sunny Nights.''


Awards

''The Eisteddfod'' won the Excellence in Direction and Producer's Choice awards at the 2004 New York International
Fringe Festival Fringe theatre is theatre that is produced outside of the main theatre institutions, and that is often small-scale and non-traditional in style or subject matter. The term comes from the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.Kemp, Robert, ''More that is Fr ...
. Her 2009 play, ''Goodbye Vaudeville, Charlie Mudd'', was performed in the Beckett Theatre at the Malthouse and received the State Library of Victoria's Louis Esson Prize for Drama."Winners and Shortlist: 2009 Premier's Literary Awards
, State Library of Victoria. Accessed April 5, 2010


Works


Plays


Screenplays


TV Scripts


References


External links




Space to see things
Interview {{DEFAULTSORT:Katz, Lally 1978 births Australian dramatists and playwrights Living people Helpmann Award winners