''Working in the Theatre'' is the

American Theatre Wing The American Theatre Wing (the Wing for short) is a New York City–based non-profit organization "dedicated to supporting excellence and education in theatre", according to its mission statement. Originally known as the Stage Women's War Relief ...

’s

documentary A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction Film, motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". The American author and ...

series created to highlight the theatre industry's inner-workings. The series profiles notable members of the industry, and provides a closer look at unique stories and important work. ''Working in the Theatre'' aims to inform audiences about typically less well-known aspects of the theatre by sharing The Wing's extensive knowledge of the industry. The series has been running for more than four decades, and has featured extraordinary work from numerous members of the industry. ''Working in the Theatre'' receives leadership support from Doris Duke Charitable Foundation and The Dorothy Strelsin Foundation. The series is also supported, in part, by the

New York City Department of Cultural Affairs The New York City Department of Cultural Affairs (DCLA) is the department of the government of New York City dedicated to supporting New York City's cultural life. Among its primary missions is ensuring adequate public funding for non-profit cultu ...

in partnership with the

City Council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, borough counc ...

and the

New York State Council on the Arts The New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA) serves to foster and advance the arts, culture, and creativity throughout New York State, according to its website. The goal of the council is to allow all New Yorkers to benefit from the contribution ...

with the support of Governor

Andrew Cuomo Andrew Mark Cuomo ( , ; born December 6, 1957) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 56th governor of New York from 2011 until his resignation in 2021. A member of the Democratic Party and son of former governor Mario Cuomo, ...

and the

New York State Legislature The New York State Legislature consists of the Bicameralism, two houses that act as the State legislature (United States), state legislature of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York: the New York State Senate and the New York State Assem ...

History

''Working in the Theatre'' was initially broadcast from the

Graduate Center of the City University of New York The Graduate School and University Center of the City University of New York (CUNY Graduate Center) is a public research institution and postgraduate university in New York City. Formed in 1961 as Division of Graduate Studies at City University ...

, led by Wing chair at the time Isabelle Stevenson, and moderated by various board members. Until 2005, the series was only available for viewing on CUNY-TV, a local

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

television station, or at a few NYC libraries. In March 2005 it was announced that The Wing would be releasing Working in the Theatre episodes for free streaming online.

Current production

In July 2017, The Wing was $60,000 in

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 ...

(NEA) grants, $25,000 of which will directly support Working in the Theatre.

Episode list

Notable guests

* Actors/Actresses **

Nathan Lane Nathan Lane (born Joseph Lane; February 3, 1956) is an American actor. Since 1975, he has been Nathan Lane on screen and stage, on stage and screen in both comedic and dramatic roles. He has received List of awards and nominations received by Na ...

Cherry Jones Cherry Jones (born November 21, 1956) is an American actress. She started her career in theater as a founding member of the American Repertory Theater in 1980 before transitioning into film and television. Celebrated for her dynamic roles on st ...

Matthew Broderick Matthew Broderick (born March 21, 1962) is an American actor. He starred in ''WarGames'' (1983) as a teen government hacker, and ''Ladyhawke (film), Ladyhawke'' (1985), a medieval fantasy alongside Rutger Hauer and Michelle Pfeiffer. He play ...

Lea Salonga Maria Lea Carmen Imutan Salonga, ( ; born February 22, 1971) is a Filipino singer and actress. Known primarily for her work in theatre, she has starred in musicals on Broadway and in the West End. Her accolades include a Tony Award and a L ...

Phylicia Rashad Phylicia Rashad ( ) ( Ayers-Allen; born June 19, 1948) is an American actress. She was most recently dean of the College of Fine Arts at Howard University before her three-year contract ended in May 2024. Known for her roles on stage and scree ...

Natasha Richardson Natasha Jane Richardson (11 May 1963 – 18 March 2009) was a British actress. A part of the Redgrave family, Richardson was the daughter of actress Vanessa Redgrave and director/producer Tony Richardson and the granddaughter of Michael Redgr ...

Jessica Lange Jessica Phyllis Lange (; born April 20, 1949) is an American actress. With a career spanning over five decades, she is known for her roles Jessica Lange on screen and stage, on stage and screen. She has received List of awards and nominati ...

Brian Stokes Mitchell Brian Stokes Mitchell (born October 31, 1957) is an American actor and singer. A powerful baritone, he has been one of the central leading men of the Broadway theater since the 1990s. He has received numerous accolades including a Tony Award, a ...

Jennifer Ehle Jennifer Anne Ehle (; born December 29, 1969) is an American actress. She received the British Academy Television Award for Best Actress for her role as Elizabeth Bennet in the BBC miniseries ''Pride and Prejudice'' (1995). Ehle started her car ...

, Adam Pascal * Producers **

Emanuel Azenberg Emanuel "Manny" Azenberg (born January 22, 1934) is an American theatre producer and general manager whose professional relationship with playwright Neil Simon spans thirty-three years. Life and career Azenberg was born in The Bronx, the son of Ha ...

Jeffrey Seller Jeffrey Seller (born 1964) is an American theatrical producer. He is known for his work on ''Rent'' (1996), '' Avenue Q'' (2003), '' In the Heights'' (2008), and ''Hamilton'' (2015), as well as inventing Broadway's first rush ticket and lotte ...

Harold Prince Harold Smith Prince (born Harold Smith; January 30, 1928 – July 31, 2019), commonly known as Hal Prince, was an American theatre director and producer known for his work in musical theatre. One of the foremost figures in 20th-century theat ...

* Playwrights **

Edward Albee Edward Franklin Albee III ( ; March 12, 1928 – September 16, 2016) was an American playwright known for works such as ''The Zoo Story'' (1958), ''The Sandbox (play), The Sandbox'' (1959), ''Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?'' (1962), ''A Delicat ...

Tony Kushner Anthony Robert Kushner (born July 16, 1956) is an American author, playwright, and screenwriter. Among his stage work, he is most known for ''Angels in America'', which earned a Pulitzer Prize and a Tony Award, as well as its subsequent acclaime ...

David Henry Hwang David Henry Hwang (born August 11, 1957) is an American playwright, librettist, screenwriter, and theater professor at Columbia University in New York City. He has won three Obie Awards for his plays '' FOB'', '' Golden Child'', and '' Yellow ...

* Composers/Lyricists **

Mary Rodgers Mary Rodgers (January 11, 1931 – June 26, 2014) was an American composer, screenwriter, and author. She wrote the novel ''Freaky Friday'', which served as the basis of a Freaky Friday (1976 film), 1976 film starring Jodie Foster, for which sh ...

David Yazbek David Norman Yazbek (born 1961) is an American writer, musician, composer, and lyricist. He wrote the music and lyrics for the Broadway musicals ''The Full Monty'' (2000), '' Dirty Rotten Scoundrels'' (2004), '' Women on the Verge of a Nervous B ...

* Directors/Choreographers ** David Esbjornson,

Julie Taymor Julie Taymor (born December 15, 1952) is an American director and writer of theater, opera, and film. Her stage adaptation of ''The Lion King (musical), The Lion King'' debuted in 1997 and received eleven Tony Awards, Tony Award nominations, with ...

, Moises Kaufman * Lighting/Sound/Set/Costume Designers ** Lighting: Beverly Emmons,

Jules Fisher Jules Fisher (born November 12, 1937) is an American lighting designer and producer. He is credited with lighting designs for more than 300 productions over the course of his 50-year career of Broadway and off-Broadway shows, as well extensiv ...

, Natasha Katz,

Howell Binkley Howell Bagby Binkley (July 25, 1956 – August 14, 2020) was an American lighting designer in modern dance and musical theatre. He received the Tony Award for Best Lighting Design in a Musical for ''Jersey Boys'' in 2006, and again in 2016 for ' ...

** Sound: David Meschter,

Abe Jacob Abe John Jacob (born October 7, 1944) is an American sound designer and audio engineer. Called the "Godfather of Sound", Jacob greatly influenced the design of sound reinforcement in modern musical theatre, and was one of the first persons credi ...

** Scenic:

David Rockwell David Rockwell (born July 21, 1956) is an American architect and designer. He is the founder and president of Rockwell Group, a 250-person cross-disciplinary architecture and design practice based in New York City with satellite offices in Madrid ...

, Eugene Lee ** Costume: Mary Peterson,

Ann Roth Ann Bishop Roth (born October 30, 1931) is an American costume designer. In a career spanning over six decades, she is recognized for her prolific work across stage and screen. She has received various accolades, including two Academy Awards, tw ...

Awards and recognition

* 2024 -Daytime Emmy: Arts and Popular Culture Program (nomination) * 2023- Daytime Emmy: Arts and Popular Culture Program (nomination) * 2022- Anthem Awards: Awareness Categories (Not-For-Profit), subcategory Education, Art, & Culture - Special Projects (win) * 2020 - Daytime Emmy: Outstanding Directing Special Class (nomination) * 2019 - Daytime Emmy: Outstanding Special Class Series (nomination) * 2019 - Daytime Emmy: Outstanding Directing Special Class (nomination) * 2018 - Webby Award: Online Film & Video: Documentary, Series (nomination) * 2017 -

Daytime Emmy The Daytime Emmy Awards, or Daytime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the New York-based National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NA ...

: Outstanding Special Class Series (nomination) * 2017 - Telly Award: Documentary (win - bronze telly) * 2017 - Brooklyn Webfest (nomination) * 2016 - Telly Award: Documentary (win - silver telly) * 2016 - Brooklyn Webfest (win) * 2016 -

Webby Award The Webby Awards (colloquially referred to as the Webbys) are awards for excellence on the Internet presented annually by the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences, a judging body composed of over three thousand industry experts a ...

: Online Film & Video: Documentary, Series (nomination) * 2015 - W3 Awards: Online Video - Documentary (win - silver award)

References

External links

*{{official website, https://americantheatrewing.org/working-in-the-theatre/ 1976 American television series debuts 1980s American documentary television series 1990s American documentary television series 2000s American documentary television series 2010s American documentary television series Theatre in the United States