Paul Roose-Evans Foster (October 15, 1931 – March 5, 2021) was an American

playwright A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes play (theatre), plays, which are a form of drama that primarily consists of dialogue between Character (arts), characters and is intended for Theatre, theatrical performance rather than just Readin ...

, theater director, and producer born in

Penns Grove, New Jersey Penns Grove is a borough in Salem County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 4,837, a decrease of 310 (−6.0%) from the 2010 census count of 5,147, which in turn reflected an i ...

. He was a founding member and the first president of

La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club (sometimes abbreviated as La MaMa E.T.C.) is an Off-Off-Broadway theater founded in 1961 by African-American theatre director, producer, and fashion designer Ellen Stewart. Located in the East Village neighborho ...

Early life

Foster studied journalism at

Rutgers University Rutgers University ( ), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a Public university, public land-grant research university consisting of three campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's C ...

then moved to Manhattan at the age of 21 to study law at

New York University School of Law The New York University School of Law (NYU Law) is the law school of New York University, a private research university in New York City. Established in 1835, it was the first law school established in New York City and is the oldest survivin ...

. After serving in the

Navy A navy, naval force, military maritime fleet, war navy, or maritime force is the military branch, branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral z ...

for two years, Foster developed an interest in theatre. While living in New York, he met

Ellen Stewart Ellen Stewart (November 7, 1919 – January 13, 2011) was an American theatre director and Theatrical producer, producer and the founder of La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club. During the 1950s, she worked as a fashion designer for Saks Fifth A ...

, a fashion designer planning to open her own boutique. In 1962, Foster agreed to help Stewart with her boutique in exchange for using the basement space as a theater in the evenings. "...Stewart's enthusiasm for the theater project quickly eclipsed her own initial idea for the boutique", and La MaMa was born. The theater moved around Manhattan's East Village multiple times before settling into its current space at 74A East Fourth Street in 1969.

Career

Foster has written eighteen plays, including ''Elizabeth I'' and ''Satyricon'' (1972), as well as the libretto and lyrics for the musical ''Silver Queen Saloon'' (1978). Fourteen books of his plays have been published. Foster has won numerous awards, including Rockefeller and

Guggenheim Fellowship Guggenheim Fellowships are Grant (money), grants that have been awarded annually since by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, endowed by the late Simon Guggenheim, Simon and Olga Hirsh Guggenheim. These awards are bestowed upon indiv ...

National Endowment for the Arts The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the feder ...

, and a British Arts Council Award.

Selected works and credits

* ''Before Breakfast'' (1962; La MaMa) * ''Hurrah for the Bridge'' (1963, 1965; La MaMa) * ''The Recluse'' (1964; La MaMa) * ''Que Viva El Puente'' (1964; La MaMa) * ''Balls'' (1964, 1966; La MaMa) * ''The Recluse'' (1965; La MaMa) * ''Balm in Gilead'' (1965; La MaMa; written by

Lanford Wilson Lanford Wilson (April 13, 1937March 24, 2011) was an American playwright. His work, as described by ''The New York Times'', was "earthy, realist, greatly admired ndwidely performed". Fox, Margalit"Lanford Wilson, Pulitzer Prize-Winning Playwrigh ...

and directed by

Marshall W. Mason Marshall W. Mason (born February 24, 1940) is an American theater director, educator, and writer. Mason founded the Circle Repertory Company in New York City and was artistic director of the company for 18 years (1969–1987). He received an Obie ...

; Foster on tech) * ''The Madonna in the Orchard'' (1965, 1966; La MaMa; written by Foster, directed by Tom O'Horgan) * ''The Hessian Corporal'' (1966; La MaMa; written by Foster, directed by Tom O'Horgan) * ''Tom Paine (Part 1)'' (1967; La MaMa; written by Foster, directed by Tom O'Horgan) * ''Dead And Buried'' (1967) * ''Heimskringla! or The Stoned Angels'' (1968;

National Educational Television National Educational Television (NET) was an American non-commercial educational, educational terrestrial television, broadcast television network owned by the Ford Foundation and later co-owned by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. It op ...

) * ''Four Noh Plays by Tom Eyen'' (1969; La MaMa; written and directed by Tom Eyen; presented as part of Ruth Yorck Golden Series) * ''Sprint Orgasmics'' (1969; La MaMa) * ''Caution: A Love Story'' (1969; La MaMa) * ''Heimskringla'' (1970; La MaMa) * ''La Reclusa'' (1970; La MaMa) * ''La MaMa Christmas Show'' (1971; La MaMa; directed by

Robert Patrick Robert Hammond Patrick (born November 5, 1958) is an American actor. Known for portraying villains and authority figures, Patrick is a Saturn Award winner with four other nominations. Patrick dropped out of college when drama class sparked his ...

) * ''Satyricon'' (1972; La MaMa; written by Foster, performed by John Vaccaro's Playhouse of the Ridiculous) * ''Thoughts'' (1972; La MaMa) * ''Elizabeth I'' (1972) * ''Play-by-Play'' (1972; Christmas show; La MaMa; directed by

) * ''Silver Queen'' (1973; La MaMa; written by Foster, directed by

) * ''Rags To Riches To Rags'' (1974; La MaMa) * ''Marcus Brutus'' (1975) * ''Zainamoh'' (1976; La MaMa) * ''Da Nutcracker In Da Bronx'' (1977; La MaMa) * ''Silver Queen Saloon'' (1978; La MaMa) * ''Elisabeta I'' (1979; La MaMa; written by Foster, directed by Liviu Cielei) * ''A Kiss Is Just A Kiss'' (1980) * ''Hurrah for the Bridge'' (1981; La MaMa; written by Foster, directed by Tom O'Horgan)La MaMa Archives Digital Collections
"Production: 'Hurrah for the Bridge' (1981)"
Retrieved March 20, 2018. * ''Tom Paine'' (1983; La MaMa) * ''The Dark And Mr. Stone; Part 2, Murder in the Magnolias'' (1985; La MaMa) * ''Faith, Hope and Charity'' (1986) * ''As Straight as a Corkscrew'' (1995) * ''Kisses, Bites and Scratches'' (2010) * ''The Kleenex Planet'' (date unknown)

References

External links

on doollee.com
Foster's page on La MaMa Archives Digital Collections

Video interview with Foster on Primary Stages Off-Broadway Oral History Project (2015)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Foster, Paul 1931 births 2021 deaths American theatre directors American theatre managers and producers People from Penns Grove, New Jersey 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights Grammy Award winners Members of the American Academy of Arts and Letters Writers from Salem County, New Jersey Writers from New York (state)