Blue Light Theater Company


The Blue Light Theater Company was an off-Broadway theater company located in New York City primarily active in the late 1990s through 2001 and notable for the many celebrated actors associated with the company, including Joanne Woodward, Paul Newman, Frances McDormand, Billy Crudup, Marisa Tomei, and Marsha Mason, as well as many who have since gone on to have notable careers including Josh Radnor, T.R. Knight, Chris Messina, and Matthew Saldivar. Actor/ Artistic-Director Greg Naughton, and Darice O'Mara, Assistant to Paul Newman, founded Blue Light in 1995 with the stated mission of producing challenging, primarily larger-cast plays that would bring up-and-coming actors together with veteran artists in a spirit of apprenticeship. They began as an itinerant theater troupe, renting theaters from such venues as Primary Stages, HERE Arts Center, the Classic Stage Company, and Atlantic Theatre Company, before settling in for two seasons at the 55th Street Theatre and their final two seasons in the McGinn-Cazale Theatre. Mandy Greenfield joined as Blue Light’s producing manager in 1998. She and Peter Manning are credited with the artistic direction and selection of Blue Light’s final season, when Mr. Naughton took a sabbatical.

History

The Blue Light Theater Company initially gained attention from revivals of Clifford Odets's Golden Boy and Waiting for Lefty, both directed by Joanne Woodward. Other revivals included Eduardo De Filippo's Filumena and Anton Chekhov's The Seagull. The troupe transitioned to performing works by contemporary playwrights, such as the Michael Cristofer drama Amazing Grace, as well as the 1999 New York premiere of Philip Ridley's The Pitchfork Disney. Other productions include Jessica Goldberg's The Hologram Theory, the New York premiere of Daniel Goldfarb's Adam Baum and the Jew Movie, a revival of Philip Barry's Hotel Universe, and Darko Tresnjak's Princess Turandot. Blue Light produced six seasons and 16 main productions under an Equity Off Broadway Letter of Agreement contract before suspending its operations in 2001.

Awards

In 1998, the Blue Light Theater Co. staged playwright and director Dare Clubb's modern adaptation of Oedipus, which won an Obie Award for playwrighting.

Productions