An unprecedented study of the craft and artistry of one of the most important American stage directors of late twentieth-century theater.

Garland Wright was one of the most important yet least well known directors and producers in the American theater between 1970 and 1998. An artist of great-albeit sometimes perplexing-vision and intellect Wright emerged as a leader of the first wave of directors who matured in the American "regional system."

During his fifteen-plus-year relationship with the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis Wright explored and delivered some of his most significant contributions to the regional landscape.

With The Tempest as his touchstone Wright promoted artistry and process not popularity or finance as the heart of his theater.

In Painting the Stage with People author Thomas Woldt has sewn together an extraordinary tapestry of facts intriguing opinions-and Wright's own compelling words-to yield an unprecedented study of an American director.

Thomas Woldt holds a bachelor's degree in Communications and Theatre from South Dakota State University an M.F.A. in Directing from Minnesota State University Mankato a Ph.D. in Theatre History/Literature from University of Nebraska-Lincoln and he interned in Stage Management and Directing at the Guthrie Theater. His vocational journey has included over twenty years of work in theatre education as a professor director and department chair at Doane College Simpson College and University of South Dakota.

Tom is a member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers society (SDC) has directed productions for college and professional theatre companies around the country and founded ACTION Talent Group a professional artists' talent agency. His research has been presented at the Association for Theatre in Higher Education (ATHE ) the Mid-American Theatre Conference (MATC ) and in Theatre Journal. He is a past regional and national officer for the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival (KCACTF) and in 2010 received the John F. Kennedy Center Gold Medallion for Excellence in Theater and Education.