Alice Austen (playwright)
Alice Austen | |
|---|---|
| Born | Alice Lawton |
| Occupation(s) | playwright, screenwriter, producer |
Alice Austen is an American playwright, screenwriter, and producer known for writing and producing the critically acclaimed 2019 film Give Me Liberty.[1]
Biography
[edit]Austen grew up in the Pacific Northwest. She attended the University of Oregon in Eugene, where she ran on the women’s track team.[2]
While at Harvard Law School, Austen co-founded the Harvard Human Rights Journal. She represented the Ministry of Industry in Václav Havel’s nascent Czech government. Austen studied creative writing under Seamus Heaney.[3]
Austen is a past resident at the Royal Court Theatre. Her playwrighting credits include Water, La Musica, and Ninth Man Out at Goodman Theater.[4][5][6] Water was a 2006-07 season the Jeff Award Nominee.[7] Her credits with Steppenwolf Theatre include Next Stop[8] and George Orwell’s Animal Farm,[9] which was noted for “its removal of Orwell's dystopian story from its overtly British agrarian setting: The famous anthem "Beasts of England" is now rendered as "Beasts of Earth"”, – wrote Chris Jones of The Chicago Tribune.[10] “A remarkable script, solidifies why this novel and its impact reverberates throughout the world today“ (Newcity Stage).[11]
Girls in the Boat, premiered in 2018 at The First Stage Children's Theater, is a “fast-paced script, which mimics the intensity of an actual sporting event. Audiences dare not blink or they might lose track of a gesture or a thread of a conversation” (Shepherd Express).[12]
Austen won the John Cassavetes Award for Give Me Liberty at the 35th Independent Spirit Awards.[13]
She is a co-founder with Kirill Mikhanovsky of Give Me Liberty, Mfg., a Milwaukee-based film and TV production company.
Filmography
[edit]| Year | Title | Credit | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Give Me Liberty | Screenplay, Producer | |
| 2021 | Brighton 4th | Producer | |
| 2022 | Happy Birthday Charlie | Producer |
Awards and nominations
[edit]| Year | Association | Category | Nominated work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Jeff Awards | New Work – Play | Water, Chicago Dramatists | Nominated |
| 2020 | Independent Spirit Awards | John Cassavetes Award | Give Me Liberty | Won |
References
[edit]- ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (February 28, 2020). "'Give Me Liberty' Indie Spirit Winners Kirill Mikhanovsky & Alice Austen Sign With WME". Deadline Hollywood. Deadline Hollywood.
- ^ "Alice Austen". thewrap.com. TheWrap.
- ^ Wang, Lucy (May 25, 2019). "From Cannes: "Give Me Liberty" Team Reflects On A Number of Firsts". thecrimson.com. The Harvard Crimson.
- ^ Jones, Chris (April 30, 2007). "In 'Water,' a cultural battle for small-town America". chicagotribune.com. Chicago Tribune.
- ^ "Alice Austen". goodmantheatre.org. Goodman Theater. April 2013.
- ^ "La Musica at Salomee Speelt. Theater review". timeout.com. Time Out. April 24, 2012.
- ^ "Jeff Awards Committee Announces Equity Nominees for 2006-2007 Season". theatreinchicago.com. Theatre In Chicago.
- ^ "Route 66 Presents World Premiere of Diana Lawrence's NEXT STOP, Now thru 6/26". broadwayworld.com. BroadwayWorld. June 18, 2012.
- ^ "Alice Austen". timelinetheatre.com. TimeLine Theatre Company.
- ^ Jones, Chris (October 19, 2014). "REVIEW: 'Animal Farm' at Steppenwolf Theatre Company". chicagotribune.com. Chicago Tribune.
- ^ Webb, Loy (October 20, 2014). "Review: Animal Farm/Steppenwolf For Young Adults". newcitystage.com. Newcity Stage.
- ^ Siegel, Anne (December 10, 2018). "First Stage 'Girls in the Boat' Tracks the Rise in Women's College Sports". shepherdexpress.com. Shepherd Express.
- ^ Verhoeven, Beatrice (February 8, 2020). "Independent Spirit Awards 2020: The Complete List of Winners". thewrap.com. TheWrap.