Synopsis

The plays and playwrights represented in the 2007 annuals include:

All This Intimacy, Rajiv Joseph
Andromeda's Galaxy, Alan Haehnel
Baby's Blues (2), Tammy Ryan
BFF, Anna Ziegler
Blaster, Victoria Stewart
Blood Orange, David Wiener
The Blowin' of Baile Gall, Ronan Noone
Carol Mulroney (2), Stephen Belber
Convergence, Bryn Manion
The Dead Guy, Eric Coble
Dedication; or, The Stuff of Dreams, Terrence McNally
El Paso Blues, Octavio Solis
First Baptist of Ivy Gap, Ron Osborne
Going to the Chapel, Donald Steele
Home Front, Greg Owens
How His Bride Came to Abraham, Karen Sunde
Intellectuals (2), Scott C. Sickles
The Intelligent Design of Jenny Chow, Rolin Jones
The Lady with All the Answers (2), David Rambo
Larry and the Werewolf (3), Jeff Goode
La Tempestad, Larry Loebell
Looking (2), Norm Foster
Madagascar (2), J. T. Rogers
Maiden's Progeny, Le Wilhelm
Make Me a Match, Lawrence Roman
A Mother, a Daughter and a Gun, Barra Grant
A Mother's Love, Craig Pospisil
My Deah (3), John Epperson
'Nami, Chad Beckim
Office Sonata, Andy Chmelko
Over the Tavern, Tom Dudzick
A Plague of Angels, Mark St. Germain
Post Mortem, A. R. Gurney
Post-Oedipus, Steven Gridley
Principia, Michael Maiello
Relativity, Cassandra Medley
Restoring the Sun (2), Joe Sutton
Shout! (2), Phillip George and Peter Charles Morris
Somebody's Somebody, Gary Richards
They're Just Like Us (3), Boo Killebrew
Trout Stanley, Claudia Dey
Uncle Jack, Jeff Cohen
Victoria Martin: Math Team Queen (2), Kathryn Walat
The Water's Edge (2), Theresa Rebeck
Wishing Well (2), Jon Klein
Woman Before a Glass,Lanie Robertson

Stage Directions - Off The Shelf

Also gender-specific are The Best Men's Stage Monologues of 2007, and The Best Women's Stage Monologues of 2007, both edited by Lawrence Harbison. Some of the playwrights represented are familiar (Theresa Rebeck, A.R. Gurney, Terrence McNally), but much of the material is from new and emerging authors - once again giving the performer access to well crafted, but not overexposed works.

Biography

For over thirty years Lawrence Harbison was in charge of new play acquisition for Samuel French, Inc., during which time he was responsible for the first publication of such luminaries as Jane Martin, Don Nigro, Tina Howe, Theresa Rebeck, José Rivera, William Mastrosimone, Charles Fuller, and Ken Ludwig, among many others; and the acquisition of musicals such as SMOKE ON THE MOUNTAIN, PUMP BOYS AND DINETTES, A . . . MY NAME IS ALICE, and THREE GUYS NAKED FROM THE WAIST DOWN. He is currently Senior Editor for Smith & Kraus, Inc., the nation's largest theatrical trade publisher, for whom he edits annual anthologies of best plays by new playwrights, best ten-minute plays, best monologues for men and for women and best stage scenes. He has for many years written a weekly column on his adventures in the theater for two Manhattan Newspapers, the Chelsea News and The Westsider, which will be posted on Smith & Kraus' website (smithandkraus.com) starting in September of 2008. He has also served as literary manager or literary consults for several theatres, such as Urban Stages and American Jewish Theatre. He is a member of the NYC press corps and is an Outer Critics Circle member. He has served many times over the years as a judge and commentator for various national play contests and lectures regularly at colleges and universities.