Steven Dietz

Steven Dietz (born June 23, 1958) is an American playwright, theatre director, and teacher. Called "the most ubiquitous American playwright whose name you may never have heard",^[1] Dietz has long been one of America's most prolific and widely produced playwrights.^[2] In 2024, Dietz was again named one of the 20 most-produced playwrights in America by American Theatre Magazine.^[3]

Though several of his plays have been seen Off-Broadway (including "Fiction", "Lonely Planet", "God's Country"), the vast majority of Dietz's plays are produced in American regional theaters.^[4] Seattle WA and Chicago IL are among the cities that have proved to be enduring homes for his work.^[5][2] Seattle's ACT Theatre has produced 12 plays by Dietz, including 7 world premieres. This includes a recent new variation on his own adaptation of "Dracula" (the most widely produced adaptation of that title in the U.S.) entitled "Dracula: Mina's Quest".^[6][7] Dietz's psychological thriller, "How a Boy Falls", premiered at Northlight Theatre, Chicago, in early 2020.^[8] It received a Joseph Jefferson Award nomination for Best New Work.^[9]

Productions of two new adaptations are scheduled for the 2022–2023 season: "Gaslight" (the first authorized stage adaptation of the Patrick Hamilton thriller, "Gas Light") and "Murder on the Links" (from the novel by Agatha Christie).^[10][11]

Dietz's widely produced play, "Shooting Star", has been adapted by Dietz, Kirk Lynn, and Meg Ryan for the film, "What Happens Later", directed by Ryan. The movie stars Ryan and David Duchovny.^[12]

Dietz's overview of the current new play field, and his long-standing place in it, was recently published as an article entitled "Why New Plays Now? A Case for Supporting the Unimaginable", American Theatre Magazine, December, 2022.^[13]

An excerpt from Dietz's forthcoming book ("Doom Eager: Notes on Making Plays") was recently published under the title "Some Hard and Beautiful Truths about Making Plays" by American Theatre Magazine, September, 2023.^[14]

Recent plays include the dark, two-character mystery "Mirror Lake";^[15] a ghost-like valentine to working in the theatre, "Haunted Play [A Tale of the Naive and Macabre]";^[16] and the "micro intimacy" thriller, "The Shimmering".

During the 2018–19 season, Dietz premiered two interlocking plays for adult and youth audiences, entitled "The Great Beyond" and "The Ghost of Splinter Cove."^[17]

During the 2015–16 season, Dietz premiered three new plays: "Bloomsday" (American Theatre Critics Association Steinberg New Play Award Citation),^[18] "This Random World" (Humana Festival of New American Plays),^[19][20] and the thriller "On Clover Road" (National New Play Network rolling world premiere).^{[21][22][23][24][25]}

Dietz's plays have been seen at Steppenwolf Theatre (Chicago IL), Old Globe Theatre (San Diego CA), Actor's Theatre of Louisville (KY), Seattle Repertory Theatre (WA), Berkeley Repertory Theatre (CA), Oregon Shakespeare Festival (Ashland), McCarter Theatre Center (Princeton, NJ), Alliance Theatre (Atlanta GA), Trinity Repertory Company (RI), the Dallas Theater Center (TX), and the Denver Center Theatre Company, among others. In 2010, Dietz was named one of the most produced playwrights in America (excluding Shakespeare), placing eighth on the list, tied with Tennessee Williams and Edward Albee for number of productions.^[26] Dietz's plays have been produced internationally in over twenty countries, and translated into a dozen languages.

Dietz's work as a director has been seen Off-Broadway (Westside Arts), at major regional theaters (Actor's Theatre of Louisville, Seattle Repertory Theatre, ACT Theatre - Seattle, Northlight Theater - Chicago, Denver Center Theatre Company, Los Angeles Theatre Center, Merrimack Repertory Theatre - Lowell MA, City Theatre - Pittsburgh), as well as at the Sundance Institute and the Playwrights' Center - Minneapolis.

Dietz taught in the MFA Playwriting and Directing programs at the University of Texas at Austin from 2006 to 2018,.^[27][28] At UT/Austin, Dietz created an annual new play showcase (UTNT - UT New Theatre),^[29] as well as a newly re-imagined MFA Directing program. Notable former students include playwrights George Brant, Frances Ya-Chu Cowhig, Jenny Connell Davis, Martin Zimmerman, Kimber Lee, Meghan Kennedy, Andrew Hinderaker, Abe Koogler, Diana Grisanti, Gabriel Jason Dean, Sarah Saltwick, Kimberly Belflower; and directors Halena Kays, Luke Leonard, Courtney Sale, Will Davis, Cara Phipps, and Hannah Wolf. Dietz continues to conduct master classes in playwriting, story-making and collaboration around the United States. He also teaches nationally as a Dramatists' Guild "Traveling Master."