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Actor's Workshop

American theatre company (active 1952-1966)1

The Actor's Workshop was a theatre company founded in San Francisco in 1952. It was the first professional theatre on the west coast to premiere many of the modern American classics such as Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman and The Crucible, and the world dramas of Samuel Beckett, Bertolt Brecht, Jean Genet and Harold Pinter.2 It was founded by Beatrice Manley, Priscilla Pointer, Herbert Blau and Jules Irving.1 Wikipedia text CC BY-SA 4.0

Last updated Oct 21, 2026.

Overview

1952Founded1

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The Actor's Workshop was a theatre company founded in San Francisco in 1952. It was the first professional theatre on the west coast to premiere many of the modern American classics such as Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman and The Crucible, and the world dramas of Samuel Beckett, Bertolt Brecht, Jean Genet and Harold Pinter. For the 1953–1954 season, the Workshop offered six plays: Lysistrata, by Aristophanes; Venus Observed, by Christopher Fry; Death of a Salesman, by Arthur Miller; a revival of Playboy; The Cherry Orchard, by Anton Chekhov; and Tonight at 8.30, by Noël Coward. On April 15, 1955, the Actor's Workshop signed the first Off-Broadway Equity contract to be awarded outside New York City.2

The story

Founded by Beatrice Manley, Herbert Blau, Jules Irving and Priscilla Pointer in 1952.1

Leadership

Who has led Actor's Workshop, and when. Pick a name to see everywhere that person has worked.

Timeline

  1. 1966Dissolved Dissolved1
  2. 1952Founded Founded1

Sources

The numbers on this page point here. Each one links to the record it came from.

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  2. 2