Charles Smith papers
Scope and Contents
The Charles Smith papers contain drafts and typescripts of the playwright’s works.
Dates
- 1986-2004
Creator
- Smith, Charles, 1955- (Person)
Conditions Governing Access
This collection is open for research use.
Biographical / Historical
A member of the Victory Gardens Playwrights Ensemble, Charles Smith has seen his plays produced throughout Chicago and the United States by companies such as the Goodman Theatre, the Berkeley Repertory Theatre, the Seattle Repertory Theatre, and the St. Louis Black Repertory Theatre. Smith is also the author of two Emmy Award-winning teleplays, Fast Break to Glory and Pequito. Nine of Smith’s plays, including Takunda, Jelly Belly, Cane, and The Sutherland, all premiered at the Victory Gardens Theatre. His play, Denmark, was the inaugural production of the reopening of Victory Gardens Theater at the Biograph Theater in 2006 (www.csplays.com). Smith is an alumnus playwright of New Dramatists, a graduate of the University of Iowa Playwrights Workshop, and one of the founding members of the Playwrights Ensemble at Victory Gardens Theatre in Chicago. He has taught playwriting and creative writing extensively. He is currently head of the Professional Playwriting Program at Ohio University, Distinguished Professor of Playwriting, and Ohio University Presidential Research Scholar in the Arts and Humanities. Many of Smith’s plays address African American topics. Portraying Chicago’s historic South Side jazz scene, The Sutherland is the story of a young musician who experiences the destruction of the race riots during the 1960s. In 1995, Smith’s play Black Star Line, commissioned by the Goodman, was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize. The story chronicles the rise of Marcus Garvey and the Back to America movement of the 1920s.
Extent
0.75 Linear Feet (2 boxes)
Language of Materials
English
Arrangement
The Charles Smith papers are organized into two series: 1. Biographical; 2. Plays.
Physical Location
3/40/B
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Accession 2000.06
- African American dramatists--20th century--Archives Subject Source: Unspecified ingested source
- African American dramatists--21st century--Archives Subject Source: Unspecified ingested source
- American drama--Archival resources--20th century Subject Source: Unspecified ingested source
- American drama--Archival resources--21st century Subject Source: Unspecified ingested source
- Dramatists, American--20th century--Archives Subject Source: Unspecified ingested source
- Dramatists, American--21st century--Archives Subject Source: Unspecified ingested source
- Smith, Charles, 1955-
- Theater--Archival resources--Illinois--Chicago Subject Source: Unspecified ingested source
- Title
- Guide to Charles Smith papers
- Status
- Completed
- Date
- 2017
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Language of description note
- Finding aid written in English
Repository Details
Part of the DePaul Special Collections and Archives Repository
John T. Richardson Library
2350 N. Kenmore Ave.
Room 314
Chicago Illinois 60614
773-325-7864
spca@depaul.libanswers.com