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| Wynn Handman | |
|---|---|
| Name | Wynn Handman |
| Birth date | 1922-12-19 |
| Death date | 2020-11-11 |
| Occupation | Theatre director; teacher; actor; co-founder |
| Years active | 1940s–2019 |
| Notable works | The American Place Theatre; productions of Harold Pinter; Sam Shepard; Tennessee Williams |
| Awards | Obie Awards; various honors |
Wynn Handman Wynn Handman was an American theatre director, teacher, producer, and actor best known for co-founding The American Place Theatre and for decades of work shaping American actors and playwrights. His career connected him to major figures in American theatre, Off-Broadway movements, and the careers of notable performers and playwrights across the twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. Handman’s influence extended through directing, producing, teaching at conservatories, and mentorships that intersected with institutions such as the New School (New York City), Columbia University, and companies in New York City theatre circles.
Handman was born in New York City in 1922 and grew up amid the cultural life of boroughs that included Manhattan and Brooklyn. He attended local public schools before serving in World War II-era activities that connected him to broader postwar arts developments in United States. After military-era service he pursued theatrical training that brought him into contact with conservatories and programs influenced by figures from the Group Theatre legacy and the emerging American Conservatory Theater scene. His formative years placed him in networks alongside contemporaries from institutions such as Yale School of Drama, Juilliard School, and practitioners associated with directors like Lee Strasberg and Stella Adler.
Handman’s professional trajectory began in the postwar Off-Broadway revival and experimental scenes, overlapping with companies such as Actors Studio and movements linked to Method acting proponents. He worked as a director, actor, and producer, staging new plays and reviving works by playwrights like Eugene O'Neill, Arthur Miller, Tennessee Williams, and contemporary dramatists including Harold Pinter and Sam Shepard. Handman collaborated with theatre artists connected to institutions like Lincoln Center and producers associated with Joseph Papp and the Public Theater. His programs often intersected with festivals, workshops, and readings affiliated with organizations such as Theatre Communications Group and national arts initiatives.
In 1963 Handman co-founded The American Place Theatre in New York City with the mission of developing new American drama and presenting translated works and neglected plays. The company became a center for premieres and development, presenting works by Jean Genet, Samuel Beckett, and American voices including Saul Bellow-associated projects. The theatre gave early exposure to writers like Adrienne Kennedy, Tennessee Williams revivals, and premieres of plays by Sam Shepard, and mounted productions that involved artists linked to Lincoln Center Theater and Off-Off-Broadway circuits. The American Place fostered partnerships with literary figures such as John Cheever, Grace Paley, Kurt Vonnegut Jr., and others who participated in staged readings, benefit events, and adaptations.
As a director Handman staged new and classic plays with actors who later became prominent in film and theatre, working with performers who would join ensembles at Steppenwolf Theatre Company, Roundabout Theatre Company, and Circle in the Square Theatre. His directing credits included premieres and revivals that drew writers and actors from circles around Joseph Heller and Norman Mailer readings. Handman also acted in stage productions and had screen appearances that linked him to directors in American film and television such as collaborators who worked with Martin Scorsese, Woody Allen, and television producers associated with Public Broadcasting Service programming. He directed works by playwrights from the Black Mountain College-influenced avant-garde to mainstream dramatists on stages across Manhattan.
Handman was a prominent teacher and mentor whose students included actors who achieved fame on Broadway, in Hollywood, and in international theatre festivals. He taught master classes and workshops connected to schools like The New School for Social Research, Columbia University School of the Arts, and conservatory programs influenced by Stella Adler Studio of Acting and the Actors Studio Drama School. His pedagogical approach emphasized text work, voice, and character study in ways that appealed to students headed for companies such as American Conservatory Theater, The Guthrie Theater, and touring ensembles. Over decades he mentored performers and writers who later received Tony Awards, Pulitzer Prize for Drama, Obie Awards, and recognition from institutions like the National Endowment for the Arts.
Handman’s personal life intersected with New York literary and theatrical circles; he maintained friendships and working relationships with playwrights, novelists, directors, and producers including figures associated with The New Yorker and literary salons at venues such as The Algonquin Hotel. He lived much of his life in New York City and participated in cultural events tied to institutions like The Library of Congress reading series, benefit galas for Pen America, and panels at festivals including Spoleto Festival USA and Brooklyn Academy of Music programs. Handman’s private life reflected long associations with colleagues active in unions like Actors' Equity Association and organizations such as Dramatists Guild of America.
Handman died in 2020, leaving a legacy preserved through the archive of The American Place Theatre, recordings of staged readings, and the accomplishments of students and colleagues who became prominent in institutions like Broadway, Hollywood, and international theatres. His influence is acknowledged in histories of Off-Broadway theatre, in oral histories collected by cultural archives, and in the continued work of alumni who received awards from bodies such as the Tony Awards Administration Committee and scholarly attention from universities including Yale University and New York University. Handman’s contributions endure in programs that support new playwrights and in the institutions that trace their lineage to The American Place Theatre.
Category:American theatre directors Category:1922 births Category:2020 deaths