Allan Havis
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Allan Havis (b. 1951) is a playwright with pronounced political themes and probes on colliding cultures. His works range from minimal language texts to ambiguous, ironic narratives that delineate the genesis, paradoxes, and seduction of evil. Several of his dramas involve Jewish identity, cultural alienation, and universal problems of racism. His literary influences come, in part, from August Strindberg [[1]] and Harold Pinter.[[2]] In addition to his plays, Havis wrote a novel for children, Albert the Astronomer (Harper & Row, 1979; ISBN 0-06-022242-5). He edited an anthology for University of Illinois Press- American Political Plays (2001; ISBN 0-252-07000-3). Thirteen Havis plays are published in editions by Broadway Play Publishing, Theatre Communications Group, Penguin/Mentor, and University of Illinois. His book Cult Films: Taboo and Transgression ( University Press of America, 2008; ISBN 0-7618-3967-4) covers ninety years of cinema.
He has an M.F.A. from Yale Drama School (1980), has headed for many years the MFA playwriting program at University of California, San Diego, and became Provost of Thurgood Marshall College, UC San Diego in 2006. His wife, Julia Fulton, is an actor and college professor. They have two children.
[edit] Works
- Restless Spirits (2006)
- The Haunting of Jim Crow (2005)
- Nuevo California (with Bernardo Solano 2002)
- A Jew on Ethiopia Street (2001)
- The Gift (1999)
- Sainte Simone (1996)
- A Vow of Silence (1994)
- Ladies of Fisher Cove (1993)
- A Daring Bride (1990)
- Lilith (1990)
- Hospitality (1988)
- Haut Gout (1987)
- Morocco (1986)
- Mink Sonata (1985)
[edit] Awards
- 2003 San Diego Theatre Critics Award
- McKnight Fellowship
- Kennedy Center Award for New Plays
- Guggenheim Fellowship
- Rockefeller Fellowship
- National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship
- California State Arts Fellowship
- New York State Arts Fellowship
- HBO’s Playwrights USA Award
- Foundation of the Dramatist Guild/CBS Award