Claudia Shear is an American actress and playwright. She was nominated for the Tony Award, Best Play and Best Actress for her play Dirty Blonde.
Early life Shear was born to Julian "Bud" Shear,"Julian D. Shear Obituary in the Sun Sentinel" sun-sentinel.com, accessed April 24, 2016 who left her mother and her older sister Diane, soon after she was born."Dirty Blonde Encyclopedia.com entry" encyclopedia.com, accessed April 24, 2016 She attended the City College of New York."Claudia Shear Overview" tcm.com, accessed May 3, 2015Mansnerus, Laura. "A Conversation With: Claudia Shear; Blown Sideways Through Lunch", The New York Times, April 6, 1994, Section C, Page 1, retrieved August 26, 2023
Career Shear came to prominence with her self-penned solo performance piece Blown Sideways Through Life (described by Frank Rich as an "autobiographical monologue"). The show premiered at the New York Theatre Workshop in September 1993.Rich, Frank. "Review/Theater: Blown Sideways Through Life; Fat and 64 Jobs Later, Misfit Finally Finds A Niche on the Stage" The New York Times, September 22, 1993 The show then opened at the Off-Broadway Cherry Lane Theatre on January 7, 1994, closing on July 17, 1994, after 221 performances." Blown Sideways Through Life Listing" lortel.org, accessed May 3, 2015 Shear won an Obie Award, Special Citation and a 1994 Drama Desk Award nomination for Outstanding Solo Performance."Awards, see 1994" dramadesk.org, accessed May 31, 2015"Claudia Shear Awards" playbillvault.com, accessed May 31, 2015 Shear's employment experiences as a member of the American work force - sixty-four jobs in all, including pastry chef, nude model, waitress, whorehouse receptionist, proofreader, and Italian translator - provided her a wealth of material for her piece. She adapted it for a 1995 presentation on the PBS series American Playhouse." Blown Sideways Through Life Listing" tcm.com, accessed May 2, 2015
Shear wrote the play Dirty Blonde, her exploration of the life and career of Mae West. The play premiered Off-Broadway at the New York Theatre Workshop, running from January 10, 2000, to February 13, 2000 " Dirty Blonde Listing" lortel.org, accessed May 2, 2015 and then opened on Broadway at the Helen Hayes Theatre on April 14, 2000 (previews); both productions were directed by James Lapine.McBride, Murdoch. "Shear's 'Dirty Blonde' Begins Bway Previews At Helen Hayes April 14" playbill.com, April 14, 2000 She earned Tony and Drama Desk Award nominations for both Best Play and Best Actress and won the Theatre World Award." Dirty Blonde Broadway Production and Awards" playbillvault.com, accessed May 2, 2015
Shear's acting credits include the films It Could Happen to You (1994) and Living Out Loud (1998)"Claudia Shear" tcm.com, accessed May 2, 2015 and a guest appearance as "fake Monica" on the NBC sitcom Friends in 1995. She has also written for such publications as The New York Times, Vogue, and Travel & Leisure, among others.
Restoration, a new play written by her, premiered in June 2009 at La Jolla Playhouse in La Jolla, California, commissioned by La Jolla Playhouse Artistic Director Christopher AshleyRaymond, Gerard. "Restoring Beauty: An Interview with Claudia Shear" slantmagazine.co, June 1, 2010Lipton, Brian Scott. Alan Mandell, Claudia Shear, Kate Shindle, et al. Set for La Jolla's "Restoration'" theatermania.com, May 29, 2009 after an idea by Shear. In Restoration, Shear plays "Giulia, a down-on-her-luck art restorer from Brooklyn who receives what could possibly be a career-reviving job of 'refreshing' Michelangelo’s David in time for its quincentennial celebration in Florence."Hernandez, Ernio. "Off-Broadway Cast Complete for Claudia Shear's 'Restoration' at NYTW" playbill.com, April 9, 2010 Christopher Ashley, who staged the world premiere of Restoration at La Jolla Playhouse, directed the work for its New York debut. The play premiered Off-Broadway at the New York Theatre Workshop on April 30, 2010 (previews) and officially on May 19, 2010, through June 13, 2010.Peter, Thomas. " 'Restoration': Claudia Shear Goes from 'Dirty Blonde' to Cleaning Up David" playbill.com, May 18, 2010" Restoration New York Theatre Workshop" nytw.org, accessed May 31, 2015
Shear appeared in the Broadway play by Michele Lowe, The Smell of the Kill, which had a brief run of 40 performances in 2002.Simonson, Robert. " 'Smell of the Kill' Closes on Broadway, April 28" playbill.com, April 28, 2002
Shear co-wrote the book for the new musical based on the book Tuck Everlasting, also titled Tuck Everlasting. The music and lyrics are written by Chris Miller and Nathan Tysen with direction by Casey Nicholaw. The musical premiered at the Alliance Theatre, Atlanta, from January 21, 2015, to February 22, 2015.Tuck Everlasting alliancetheatre.org, accessed May 31, 2015Isherwood, Charles. "Review: 'Tuck Everlasting' Swaps Out the Circle of Life for an Eternally Unspooling Ribbon" The New York Times, February 9, 2015 The musical opened on Broadway in previews on March 31, 2016, and officially in April 2016.Gioia, Michael." 'Tuck Everlasting' Will Spread Magic On Broadway in 2016" playbill.com, May 13, 2015"'Tuck Everlasting' Broadway Listing" ibdb.com, accessed October 10, 2015Viagas, Robert. " 'Tuck Everlasting' Opens on Broadway Tonight", playbill.com, April 26, 2016.
In 2017 she starred in EVENING AT THE TALKHOUSE, written by Wallace Shawn, with Matthew Broderick at The New Group at the Signature Theatre in New York City.
Stage YearTitleRoleVenueRef.1993Blown Sideways Through LifePerformer, PlaywrightOff-Broadway, New York Theatre Workshop1994Off-Broadway, Cherry Lane Theatre2000Dirty BlondeJo/Mae, PlaywrightOff-Broadway, New York Theatre WorkshopBroadway, Hayes Theatre2001The WomenPerformerBroadway, American Airlines Theatre2002The Smell of the KillDebraBroadway, Hayes Theatre2004Dirty BlondeJo/Mae, PlaywrightLondon, Duke of York's Theatre2010RestorationPlaywrightRegional, New York Theatre Workshop2015Tuck EverlastingBookwriterRegional, Alliance Theatre2016Broadway, Broadhurst Theatre2017Evening at the Talk HousePerformerOff-Broadway, The New Group2026The RecipePlaywrightSan Diego, La Jolla Playhouse
Awards and nominations YearAward CategoryWorkResult1994Drama Desk AwardOutstanding Solo PerformanceBlown Sideways Through LifeObie AwardSpecial Citation2000Tony AwardBest Actress in a PlayDirty BlondeBest PlayDrama Desk AwardOutstanding PlayOutstanding Actress in a PlayTheatre World AwardTheatre World Award2002Helen Hayes AwardOutstanding Lead Actress, Non-Resident Production
References
External links
Claudia Shear at Internet Off-Broadway Database
Salon.com interview BBC Radio 4 Woman's Hour interview