Thom Thomas
Encyclopedia
Thom Thomas is an American actor
, screenplay writer and playwright
.
. In 1966 he joined the faculty at Point Park College in Pittsburgh, where he led the theatre department from 1974 to 1977. He has been the author of a number of screenplays, including episodes for Hotel
and Hill Street Blues
. Thomas has been the recipient of a number of grants, including from the Ford Foundation
(1969) and the National Endowment for the Arts
(1978)
as director and actor at the Pittsburgh Playhouse
in 1976 and appeared Off-Broadway
in 1981.
A Moon To Dance By is a play that was first shown at the New Harmony Theatre, Evansville, Indiana
in 2004 and, after revision, in 2009 with Jane Alexander
at the Pittsburgh Playhouse and later at the George Street Playhouse
in New Brunswick, New Jersey
. Based on an actual meeting between Frieda Weekley and her estranged son Monty at the ranch
she shared with her lover after the death of her husband D. H. Lawrence
in 1939, the play examines the dynamics of a meeting between a mother who follows her own calling and the needs imposed on her by family and conventions.
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
, screenplay writer and playwright
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
.
Biography
Thomas Neil Thomas was born in Lawrence, Pennsylvania. He went to the Pittsburgh Playhouse School of Theatre from 1958 to 1960 before attending Carnegie Mellon UniversityCarnegie Mellon University
Carnegie Mellon University is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States....
. In 1966 he joined the faculty at Point Park College in Pittsburgh, where he led the theatre department from 1974 to 1977. He has been the author of a number of screenplays, including episodes for Hotel
Hotel (TV series)
Hotel is an American prime time drama series which aired on ABC from September 21, 1983 to May 5, 1988 in the timeslot following Dynasty....
and Hill Street Blues
Hill Street Blues
Hill Street Blues is an American serial police drama that was first aired on NBC in 1981 and ran for 146 episodes on primetime into 1987. Chronicling the lives of the staff of a single police precinct in an unnamed American city, the show received critical acclaim and its production innovations ...
. Thomas has been the recipient of a number of grants, including from the Ford Foundation
Ford Foundation
The Ford Foundation is a private foundation incorporated in Michigan and based in New York City created to fund programs that were chartered in 1936 by Edsel Ford and Henry Ford....
(1969) and the National Endowment for the Arts
National Endowment for the Arts
The National Endowment for the Arts is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created by an act of the U.S. Congress in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal government. Its current...
(1978)
Plays
The Interview, his first major play, was produced with Mel FerrerMel Ferrer
Mel Ferrer was an American actor, film director and film producer.-Early life:Ferrer was born Melchor Gastón Ferrer in Elberon, New Jersey, of Catalan and Irish descent. His father, Dr. José María Ferrer , was born in Cuba, was an authority on pneumonia and served as chief of staff of St....
as director and actor at the Pittsburgh Playhouse
Pittsburgh Playhouse
Pittsburgh Playhouse is Point Park University's performing arts center located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It houses three performance spaces and is home to The Rep, Point Park's resident professional theatre company, as well as three student companies—Conservatory Theatre Company, Conservatory...
in 1976 and appeared Off-Broadway
Off-Broadway
Off-Broadway theater is a term for a professional venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, and for a specific production of a play, musical or revue that appears in such a venue, and which adheres to related trade union and other contracts...
in 1981.
A Moon To Dance By is a play that was first shown at the New Harmony Theatre, Evansville, Indiana
Evansville, Indiana
Evansville is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Indiana and the largest city in Southern Indiana. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 117,429. It is the county seat of Vanderburgh County and the regional hub for both Southwestern Indiana and the...
in 2004 and, after revision, in 2009 with Jane Alexander
Jane Alexander
Jane Alexander is an American actress, author, and former director of the National Endowment for the Arts. Although perhaps best known for playing the female lead in The Great White Hope on both stage and screen, Alexander has played a wide array of roles in both theater and film and has committed...
at the Pittsburgh Playhouse and later at the George Street Playhouse
George Street Playhouse
George Street Playhouse is a theatre in New Brunswick, New Jersey, one of the state's preeminent professional theatres committed to the production of new and established plays....
in New Brunswick, New Jersey
New Brunswick, New Jersey
New Brunswick is a city in Middlesex County, New Jersey, USA. It is the county seat and the home of Rutgers University. The city is located on the Northeast Corridor rail line, southwest of Manhattan, on the southern bank of the Raritan River. At the 2010 United States Census, the population of...
. Based on an actual meeting between Frieda Weekley and her estranged son Monty at the ranch
D. H. Lawrence Ranch
The D. H. Lawrence Ranch, as it is now known, was the New Mexico home of the English novelist, D. H. Lawrence for about two years during the 1920s...
she shared with her lover after the death of her husband D. H. Lawrence
D. H. Lawrence
David Herbert Richards Lawrence was an English novelist, poet, playwright, essayist, literary critic and painter who published as D. H. Lawrence. His collected works represent an extended reflection upon the dehumanising effects of modernity and industrialisation...
in 1939, the play examines the dynamics of a meeting between a mother who follows her own calling and the needs imposed on her by family and conventions.