Oklahoma! is the first musical written by the duo of Rodgers and Hammerstein. The musical is based on Lynn Riggs' 1931 play, Green Grow the Lilacs. Set in farm country outside the town of Claremore, Indian Territory, in 1906, it tells the story of farm girl Laurey Williams and her courtship by two rival suitors, cowboy Curly McLain and the sinister and frightening farmhand Jud Fry. A secondary romance concerns cowboy Will Parker and his flirtatious fiancée, Ado Annie.
Oscar Hammerstein I was a German-born businessman, theater impresario, and composer in New York City. His passion for opera led him to open several opera houses, and he rekindled opera's popularity in America. He was the grandfather of American playwright/lyricist Oscar Hammerstein II and the father of theater manager William Hammerstein and American producer Arthur Hammerstein.
Me and Juliet is a musical with music by Richard Rodgers, and lyrics and book by Oscar Hammerstein II. The sixth stage collaboration by Rodgers & Hammerstein, it tells a story of romance backstage at a long-running musical: assistant stage manager Larry woos chorus girl Jeanie behind the back of her electrician boyfriend, Bob. Me and Juliet premiered in 1953 and was considered a modest success — it ran for much of a year on Broadway and had a limited run in Chicago, and returned a small profit to its backers.
Joseph Stein was an American playwright best known for writing the books for such musicals as Fiddler on the Roof and Zorba.
Janice Elaine Maxwell was an American stage and television actress. She was a five-time Tony Award nominee and two-time Drama Desk Award winner. In a career spanning over thirty years, Maxwell was one of the most celebrated and critically acclaimed stage actresses of her time.
Douglas Carter Beane is an American playwright and screenwriter.
Second Stage Theater is a theater company founded in 1979 by Robyn Goodman and Carole Rothman and located in Manhattan, New York City. It produces both new plays and revivals of contemporary American plays by new playwrights and established writers. The company has two off-Broadway theaters, their main stage, the Tony Kiser Theater at 305 West 43rd Street on the corner of Eighth Avenue near the Theater District, and the McGinn/Cazale Theater at 2162 Broadway and 76th Street, on the Upper West Side. In April 2015, the company expanded into Broadway theater productions when it bought the Helen Hayes Theater.
Classic Stage Company, or CSC, is a classical Off-Broadway theater company. Founded in 1967, Classic Stage Company is one of Off-Broadway's oldest theater companies.
George S. Irving was an American actor known primarily for his character roles on Broadway and as the voice of Heat Miser in the American Christmas television specials beginning with The Year Without a Santa Claus (1974).
Gerard Alessandrini is an American playwright, parodist, actor and theatre director best known for creating the award-winning off-Broadway musical theatre parody revue Forbidden Broadway. He is the recipient of Tony Honors for Excellence in Theatre, an Obie Award, four Drama Desk Awards, an Outer Critics Circle Award, and two Lucille Lortel Awards, as well as the Drama League Award for Lifetime Achievement in Musical Theatre.
James Blanchard Hammerstein was an American theatre director and producer.
Michael Presser, born in Philadelphia, USA, is the founder and executive director of Inside Broadway, a New York City educational theatre company for young audiences. In 2022 he celebrated 40 years of Inside Broadway and his participation in the Broadway theatre community.
David Saint is an American artistic director at the George Street Playhouse in New Brunswick, New Jersey, US.
Marla Schaffel is an American actress, especially in musical theatre, noted for her award winning performance in the title role in the musical adaptation of Jane Eyre.
Randy Skinner is an American dancer, director and choreographer, primarily for the stage. He has been nominated four times for Tony Awards, three times for Drama Desk Awards, and four times for Outer Critics Circle Awards for choreography.
The Actors Company Theatre (TACT) was an Off-Broadway theatre company founded in 1992 by a group of New York stage veterans. For several years, TACT produced many concert performances, a cross between a staged reading and a full production. In 2006, TACT began a residency at the Beckett Theatre on Theatre Row to produce two full plays a year. TACT focused on reviving lesser-known productions that have not been performed in New York for several years. According to their website, their mission statement was "to present neglected or rarely produced plays of literary merit, with a focus on creating theatre from its essence: the text and the actor's ability to bring it to life."
The Oscar Hammerstein Award for Outstanding Achievement in Musical Theatre is named in honor of American lyricist and librettist Oscar Hammerstein, who helped shape American theater music through his collaborations with a number of different composers and writers. The award was created in 1988 by Janet Hayes Walker, the Founding Artistic Director of The York Theatre Company, and is presented with the endorsement of the Rodgers & Hammerstein Organization and the Hammerstein family. The Oscar Hammerstein Award Gala is the major annual fundraising event of The York, a mainstay of the Off-Broadway scene for 50 years.
Jeffry Denman is an American actor, director, choreographer and author.
The Phoenix Theatre was a pioneering off-Broadway theatre in New York City, extant from 1953 to 1982. The Phoenix was founded by impresario Norris Houghton and T. Edward Hambleton. The project was a pioneering effort in the establishment of off-Broadway theatre. Houghton and Hambleton wanted a theatre away from Times Square, that would host a permanent company, abjure the star system, produce four or five plays a season for limited engagements, and with ticket prices much lower than on Broadway.
Ted Chapin is a producer, performer, presenter, and former president of the Rodgers & Hammerstein Organization. Chapin has led and encouraged many Broadway productions and revivals, some of the most well-known including: "Irving Berlin’s White Christmas,” “Rodgers + Hammerstein’s Cinderella,” “South Pacific” Broadway revival, “The King and I,” “Oklahoma!” and “Carousel.” He also approved many television productions such as “The Sound of Music Live!” on NBC and “Cinderella,” starring Whitney Houston and Brandy, on ABC. Chapin serves on several boards including: American Theatre Wing, Godspeed Musicals, New Music USA, New York City Center, Kurt Weill Foundation for Music, and the Tony Award Administration Committee. He is the co-founder of the Encores! series at New York City Center, and was the producer of the 92nd Street Y’s Lyrics and Lyricists series for two seasons with programs saluting Bobby Darin, Sammy Davis Jr., Irving Berlin, and others. In 2016, Chapin hosted NJTV’s American Songbook at NJPAC.
