Playwright Profiles

Name: Willy Holtzman
City where you reside: Wilton, Connecticut

What was the first play you ever saw? My first Broadway play was “Play It Again Sam.” I assumed Woody Allen was still playing the lead but when the curtain went up there was Bob Denver (aka Gilligan). I half expect The Skipper to make an entrance.
At what age did you decide to become a playwright? When I was 26 I was bamboozled into writing book material for a doomed Off Broadway musical. One of the producers was the legendary (and legendarily tough) producer, Cheryl Crawford. She decided that I would become a playwright.
Who is your favorite playwright? David Rabe was probably most influential in my early days. “Streamers” was so profoundly primal and perverse that it was impossible to leave the theatre unchanged. Cheryl taught me that with good plays the characters change; with great plays the audience changes.
If you could host a dinner party with any three famous people (living or dead), who would you invite: The Marx Brothers.
When not writing, what do you do for fun? Kayaking, biking and drinking martinis.
How do you find inspiration as a writer? Inspiration is never further away than the morning paper or an unadapted book. Finding the craft to transform inspiration into a play is another matter.
If you were stranded on a desert island and could only have three books/plays with you, what would you choose? Aristotle’s “Poetics,” Joyce Cary’s “The Horse’s Mouth,” and the Bible.
What do you like best about working at Portland Stage Company? Feeling at home among a family of theatre artists. And the martinis at Katahdin.
Of all the lines of text you’ve written, what’s your favorite? “I will remove wood until all that’s left is a violin.” (Brian, “The Morini Strad”)
What would you most like to be remembered for? For being a working playwright whose plays continue to work long after the playwright is gone.