Sharr White is an American playwright and screenwriter. He's known for his Broadway plays The Other Place (2011), The Snow Geese (2013), and Pictures From Home (2023). He's also known as a producer and writer for Showtime series The Affair (2015–2019), the Starz series Sweetbitter (2019), the HBO Max series Genera+ion (2021), and the Netflix limited series Halston (2021).
His plays have also been produced at several regional venues, including at South Coast Repertory, Actors Theatre of Louisville, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Lincoln Center Theatre's Directors Lab and Key West Theatre Festival.Rothstein, Mervyn. "PLAYBILL BRIEF ENCOUNTER With Sharr White, Playwright of Broadway's 'The Other Place'" playbill.com, January 19, 2013
Career Iris Fields was developed at the Lincoln Center Theatre Directors Lab and performed at the Key West Theatre Festival in 1996. The Sun-Sentinel reviewer wrote: "The best-directed and -acted show in the festival, Sharr White's drama is about the devastating effects of the Civil War on a Midwestern family... director Joan McGillis shepherds the actors past most of the cracks in White's still-nascent script. Style and structure need much work, but the exciting potential is undeniable.""Sharr White" doollee.com, accessed December 18, 2013Zink, Jack. "Theater, Conch Style" Sun-Sentinel, October 9, 1996
White's play Six Years received its world premiere at the Humana Festival of New American Plays at Actors Theatre of Louisville in March 2006. The curtainup.com reviewer wrote: "This serious, slice-of-life drama, extremely well written and superbly acted, may be considered old-fashioned by some who see it as soap opera. But it could have a long life in regional theatre if not in New York."Whaley, Charles. "CurtainUp Report. The 2006 Humana Festival of New American Plays Celebrates its 30th Anniversary" curtainup.com, accessed December 15, 2013
Sunlight premiered at the Marin Theatre Company, Mill Valley, California, in January–February 2010,Hurwitt, Robert. "Theater review: 'Sunlight' at Marin Theatre" sfgate.com, January 29, 2010 and in Seattle, Washington at ArtsWest in March–April 2010. The Seattle Times reviewer wrote: "Articulate and probing, if at times straining for effect, "Sunlight" (a National New Play Network selection) sheds some rays on the provocative matter of terrorism and torture."Berson, Misha. "Review: 'Sunlight' examines murky post-9/11 issues" Seattle Times, March 18, 2010 Sunlight received an Edgerton Foundation New American Play Awards, 2009."New Play Awards, 2009" tcg.org, accessed December 16, 2013
Annapurna premiered at the Magic Theatre, San Francisco, California, in November 2011, with direction by Loretta Greco and featuring Rod Gnapp and Denise Cormier.Hurwitt, Robert. "'Annapurna' review: A mountain of whys in breakup" sfgate.com, November 11, 2011" 'Annapurna' Listing, Magic Theatre" magictheatre.org, accessed December 16, 2013 The play next ran at The Odyssey Theatre, Los Angeles, California from April 2013 through June 2013, and starred Megan Mullally and Nick Offerman with direction by Bart DeLorenzo.Foley, F. Kathleen. "Review: 'Annapurna's' Megan Mullally, Nick Offerman a superb match" LA Times, April 24, 2013 The play opened Off-Broadway at the Acorn Theatre, in a production by The New Group on April 13, 2014 (previews) through June 1, 2014. Mullally and Offerman again star, with direction by Bart DeLorenzo.Hetrick, Adam. "Megan Mullally and Nick Offerman Co-Star in Sharr White's 'Annapurna', Opening Off-Broadway April 21" playbill.com, April 21, 2014
His Broadway debut was his play The Other Place, which was produced by the Manhattan Theatre Club, and opened at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre from December 2012 (in previews) through March 3, 2013. The play, directed by Joe Mantello, starred Laurie Metcalf and Daniel Stern. It was originally produced Off-Broadway by the MCC Theater in 2011.Jones, Kenneth. "Broadway Run of Sharr White's 'The Other Place' Ends March 3 playbill.com, March 3, 2013 The New York Times reviewer of the Off-Broadway production wrote:"A sense of disorientation unites audience and protagonist in 'The Other Place,' a new drama by Sharr White about a forceful businesswoman confronting the onset of an illness whose nature keeps eluding her grasp. The play... is dominated by a compelling, at times scarily intense performance from Laurie Metcalf."Isherwood, Charles. "Theater Review.'The Other Place'" The New York Times, March 28, 2011 The Other Place received two Outer Critics Circle Award nominations, for Outstanding New Off-Broadway Play and Outstanding Actress in a Play (Laurie Metcalf).Gans, Andrew. "Outer Critics Circle Nominees Include 'Sister Act', 'Anything Goes', 'Book of Mormon'" playbill.com, April 26, 2011
White's play The Snow Geese premiered on Broadway in a joint Manhattan Theatre Club MCC Theater production at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre. The play ran from October 24, 2013, through December 15, 2013 and starred Mary-Louise Parker, Danny Burstein, and Victoria Clark, and was directed by Daniel J. Sullivan."The Verdict: Critics Review The Snow Geese on Broadway Starring Mary-Louise Parker" playbill.com, October 25, 2003 The play takes place during WWI and, according to the USA Today reviewer, is "...a lovely, moving account of a clan's struggle to adapt to trying circumstances and a changing world."Gardner, Elysa. "Mary-Louise Parker stars in a graceful 'Snow Geese'" USA Today, October 24, 2013
White has also written for television, contributing episodes of The Affair (2015–2018), Halston (2021) and Generation (2021).
In 2023, White premiered his latest play Pictures From Home on Broadway at Studio 54. The memory play is adapted from the book of the same name by photographer Larry Sultan. The play stars Nathan Lane, Danny Burstein, and Zoë Wanamaker. The play revolves around a son photographing his parents in their Californian home in the 1980s.
Work Television Year Title Writer Producer Network Notes Ref. 2015–2018 The Affair Showtime series 32 episodes 2019 Sweetbitter Starz series 8 episodes 2021 Genera+ion HBO Max series 16 episodes Halston Netflix series 5 episodes 2024 Presumed Innocent Apple TV+ series 8 episodes 2024–2026 Palm Royale Apple TV+ series 20 episodes
Theatre Year Title Role Venue Ref. 2011 The Other Place Playwright Samuel J. Friedman Theatre, Broadway 2014 The Snow Geese Playwright Samuel J. Friedman Theatre, Broadway 2023 Pictures From Home Playwright Studio 54, Broadway
Accolades Organizations Year Category Work Result Ref. Primetime Emmy Award 2024 Outstanding Comedy Series Palm Royale Writers Guild of America Awards 2021 Long Form – Adapted Halston 2024 Limited Scenes Presumed Innocent
References
External links
Internet Off-Broadway Database Listing