Charles Ludlam, actor, director, and playwright, was born April 12, 1943. He began his career in 1966 with the PlayHouse of the Ridiculous, both as a performer and playwright. Artistic differences caused Ludlam to leave and form his own company,...
more
Charles Ludlam, actor, director, and playwright, was born April 12, 1943. He began his career in 1966 with the PlayHouse of the Ridiculous, both as a performer and playwright. Artistic differences caused Ludlam to leave and form his own company, The Ridiculous Theatrical Company, which achieved international recognition. Ludlam's three most successful plays were BLUEBEARD, STAGE BLOOD, and CAMILLE. Although the company attracted grant funding, it was always on the edge of the avant-garde and finances were uncertain. The company made its final tour with Ludlam in the first months of 1980 and then disbanded. Ludlam died on May 28, 1987. The collection consists of diaries, notebooks, scripts, set and costume designs, clippings, transcripts of interviews, and manuscript pages from a published collection of Ludlam's plays. This material was collected as research material for The Complete Plays of Charles Ludlam. The material provides valuable insight into every stage of Ludlam's playwriting process from the development of an idea to its realization on stage. Since Ludlam relied so heavily on improvisation, the information contained in the notebooks and plot outlines in this collection cannot be found anywhere else.
less