Eric Samuelsen

Eric Samuelsen
Born Eric Roy Samuelsen
(1956-04-10) April 10, 1956
Provo, Utah
Nationality American
Alma mater Brigham Young University (B.A.)
Indiana University (Ph.D.)
Spouse Annette Mason (1980-present)
Child(ren) 4
Information
Genre Drama
Awards AML playwright award (1994, 1997, 1999)
Smith Pettit Award (2012)
Website MormonIconoclast.com

Eric Roy Samuelsen (born April 10, 1956)[1] is a Mormon playwright and emeritus professor of theatre at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah. He is considered one of the most important Mormon playwrights,[2] and has been called a Mormon Charles Dickens or Henrik Ibsen.[3][4] He won the Association for Mormon Letters (AML) drama award in 1994,[5] 1997,[6] and 1999,[7] and was AML president from 2007 to 2009. In 2012 he received the Smith Pettit Award for lifetime work.[8]

Biography

Eric Samuelsen was born in Provo, Utah, but spent most of his early life in Bloomington, Indiana. His father Roy was an opera singer, which introduced young Samuelsen to a love for theater productions.[9] As a young man he served in Norway as a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon or LDS Church).[10][3] He received a bachelor's degree in theatre from BYU in 1983 and returned to Bloomington and earned a Ph.D. from Indiana University in 1991. He taught at Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio before joining the faculty at BYU in 1992.

From 1999-2011 Samuelsen ran BYU's playwrighting program. Throughout his career, at least 24 of Samuelsen's plays were produced professionally throughout the United States, including California, Indiana, Louisiana, New York, and Utah.[4]

Most of Samuelsen's early plays were produced at BYU, but around 2003 he began a relationship with Plan-B Theatre Company.[11] Since 2006, Plan-B premiered a Samuelsen play every year. He became its playwright in residence in 2012, and many of his newer plays were produced there.[4][12] This may be due to a more controversial bent in later plays; Borderlands has a character who is an openly gay Mormon youth.

Following illness and a diagnosis of polymyositis, a degenerative muscular disease, Samuelsen retired from BYU in 2012, where he had taught for 20 years.[13] The next year, Plan-B Theatre Company dedicated 2013 as the "Season of Eric", presenting four of Samuelsen's plays.[14]

Works

1970s

1980s

1990s

2000s

2010s

Upcoming plays

References

  1. Janine Michelle Sobeck (March 2–19, 2005). Study Guide: Family: A new play by Eric Samuelsen (PDF). Brigham Young University College of Fine Arts and Communications, Department of Theatre and Media Arts. Retrieved 2015-04-22.
  2. James Michael Hunter, ed. (2012). Mormons and Popular Culture: The Global Influence of an American Phenomenon. ABC-CLIO. p. 259. ISBN 031339167X. Retrieved 2015-04-22.
  3. 1 2 Mahonri Stewart (May 14, 2012). "The Mormon Ibsen: A Tribute to Eric Samuelsen". Dawning of a Brighter Day. Association for Mormon Letters. Retrieved 2015-04-22.
  4. 1 2 3 "Class Notes..." (PDF). Stages (Indiana University Department of Theatre, Drame, + Contemporary Dance): 10-11. Fall 2013. Retrieved 2015-04-22.
  5. "AML Awards for 1994". Mormonletters.org. Retrieved 2012-06-25.
  6. "AML Awards for 1997". Mormonletters.org. Retrieved 2012-06-25.
  7. "AML Awards for 1999". Mormonletters.org. Retrieved 2012-06-25.
  8. "Report on AML Conference 2013 and List of Awards". Dawning of a Brighter Day. Association for Mormon Letters. March 31, 2013. Retrieved 2015-04-22.
  9. Ellen Fagg (September 3, 2006). "A meaty look at modern life". Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved 2015-04-22.
  10. "Eric Samuelsen". College of Fine Arts and Communications. Brigham Young University. January 14, 2015. Retrieved 2015-04-22.
  11. Mahonri Stewart (February 2011). "Eric Samuelsen". Mormon Artist. Retrieved 2015-04-22.
  12. "Eric Samuelsen". Zion Theatricals. May 31, 2013. Retrieved 2015-04-22.
  13. Dale Thompson (February 2014). "Eric Samuelsen in Three Acts". 15 bytes: Utah's Art Magazine (Artists of Utah). Retrieved 2015-04-22.
  14. Barbara Bannon (August 18, 2013). "'Ghosts' kicks off Plan-B's season dedicated to Utah playwright". Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved 2015-04-22.
  15. Samuelson, Eric. "Mormon Literature Database - Accommodations". Mormonlit.lib.byu.edu. Retrieved 2012-06-25.
  16. "Display Review". Mormonletters.org. 2001-09-14. Retrieved 2012-06-25.
  17. Christi C. Babbitt (June 5, 1996). "'Seating of Senator Smoot' A Smooth Bit of Utah History". Deseret News. Retrieved 2015-04-22.
  18. "Lots of Christmas productions to choose from this week". Deseret News. November 16, 1997. Retrieved 2015-04-22.
  19. "'Three Women' plays touch on sensitive subjects". Deseret News. February 20, 2001. Retrieved 2015-04-22.
  20. Andrew Hall (December 9, 2011) [January 2002]. "2001 Mormon Literature Year in Review". Dawning of a Brighter Day. Association for Mormon Letters. Retrieved 2015-04-22.
  21. Keri Stevens (March 31, 2011). "Perfect Date: 'The Plan' for a date". Daily Herald. Retrieved 2015-04-22.

External links

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