Michael Hollinger

Michael Hollinger

Michael Hollinger’s plays include Opus, Red Herring, Ghost-Writer, Incorruptible, Under the Skin, Tooth and Claw, An Empty Plate in the Café Du Grand Boeuf, and the musical TouchTones (co-authored with composer Robert Maggio), all of which premiered at Philadelphia’s Arden Theatre Company and have variously been produced around the U.S., in New York City, and abroad (London, Paris, Tokyo, Athens, Poland and...
Michael Hollinger’s plays include Opus, Red Herring, Ghost-Writer, Incorruptible, Under the Skin, Tooth and Claw, An Empty Plate in the Café Du Grand Boeuf, and the musical TouchTones (co-authored with composer Robert Maggio), all of which premiered at Philadelphia’s Arden Theatre Company and have variously been produced around the U.S., in New York City, and abroad (London, Paris, Tokyo, Athens, Poland and Slovenia). Plays premiered elsewhere include: Mr. Dickens' Hat at Chicago's Northlight Theatre; Hope and Gravity at Pittsburgh’s City Theatre; Cyrano (translated, and co-adapted with Aaron Posner) at Washington’s Folger Theatre; Sing the Body Electric at Philadelphia’s Theatre Exile, and the musical A Wonderful Noise (co-authored with Vance Lehmkuhl) at Creede Rep. Awards include an ATCA/Steinberg New Play Citation, two Edgerton Foundation New Play Awards, a Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award, a Mid-Atlantic Emmy, four Barrymore Awards, nominations for Lucille Lortel and John Gassner awards, and multiple fellowships from the Independence Foundation and Pennsylvania Council on the Arts. Michael is a Professor of Theatre at Villanova University, Artistic Director of Villanova Theatre, and a proud alumnus of New Dramatists. He shares a life with actor/director Megan Bellwoar, and their children Benjamin and Willa.

Plays

  • A Wonderful Noise by Michael Hollinger
    Cast: 
    10–12
    ·
    Genre: comedy, musical + 1 more
    Genre: comedy, musical, period
    As World War II rages in Europe, a different kind of battle looms at home, as barbershop quartets from around the country converge to harmonize their way to victory at the national championships in St. Louis. But one group’s handlebar mustaches conceal an explosive secret: they’re actually four young women from Philly, determined to break the Barbershop Society’s gender barrier, and prove that the girls can do...
    As World War II rages in Europe, a different kind of battle looms at home, as barbershop quartets from around the country converge to harmonize their way to victory at the national championships in St. Louis. But one group’s handlebar mustaches conceal an explosive secret: they’re actually four young women from Philly, determined to break the Barbershop Society’s gender barrier, and prove that the girls can do it as well as (if not better than!) the boys. This heartfelt musical comedy celebrates the bonds of friendship and music-making, as well as the courage required to live and love in a precarious world. With its screwball storyline, witty lyrics, and tuneful Swing Era score, A WONDERFUL NOISE evokes the pleasures of a 1940s musical with a 21st-century spin.
  • The Virgin Queen Entertains Her Fool by Michael Hollinger
    Recommendations: 1
    ·
    Cast: 
    4
    ·
    Genre: dark comedy, period + 1 more
    Genre: dark comedy, period, tragedy
    Adalia -- Virgin Queen of the Realm and Mother of Us All -- is dying, and must name her successor before it’s too late. But she’d rather spend her final hours enjoying the company of her Fool, whose repertoire includes bloody French ballads, bawdy puppets and fart jokes. Meanwhile, her nephew and niece have both assembled armies to storm the castle, each hoping to grab the crown as it falls. Clearly, the...
    Adalia -- Virgin Queen of the Realm and Mother of Us All -- is dying, and must name her successor before it’s too late. But she’d rather spend her final hours enjoying the company of her Fool, whose repertoire includes bloody French ballads, bawdy puppets and fart jokes. Meanwhile, her nephew and niece have both assembled armies to storm the castle, each hoping to grab the crown as it falls. Clearly, the clock is ticking -- What’s a woman to do?
  • Mr. Dickens' Hat by Michael Hollinger
    Cast: 
    6–25
    ·
    Genre: adventure, comedy + 4 more
    ·
    Keyword: Dickens, christmas + 5 more
    Genre: adventure, comedy, holiday, melodrama, musical, period
    Keyword: Dickens, christmas, holiday, 19th century London, ensemble-driven, a play with music, double casting
    Set in London on December 22, 1865 ("the darkest night of the year"), this witty, heartfelt play-with-songs deftly weaves together Dickensian storytelling with a playful theatricality, featuring nine "original Victorian carols" and a diverse cast portraying an array of colorful characters.

    With its Victorian winter setting, MR. DICKENS' HAT is perfect for holiday...
    Set in London on December 22, 1865 ("the darkest night of the year"), this witty, heartfelt play-with-songs deftly weaves together Dickensian storytelling with a playful theatricality, featuring nine "original Victorian carols" and a diverse cast portraying an array of colorful characters.

    With its Victorian winter setting, MR. DICKENS' HAT is perfect for holiday programming, though not a Christmas show per se. Rather, it seeks to evoke those qualities audiences of all backgrounds perennially seek out each December: a suspenseful, heartfelt story well told, balancing gravity with levity, sentiment with spectacle, and generating plenty of warmth during a cold season.

  • TouchTones by Michael Hollinger
    Cast: 
    7
    ·
    Genre: comedy, musical
    ·
    Keyword: phone sex, love + 2 more
    Genre: comedy, musical
    Keyword: phone sex, love, intimacy, technology
    A new musical comedy about love, sex, and the fantasy at the other end of the line…

    It’s 1999, the cusp of a new millennium, and technology promises intimacy as well as anonymity. Christine and her fiancé Justin wander into this titillating world of role-play, secret delights, and shifting identities; but who will they be when they come out again? (And will they recognize themselves?)
  • Sing the Body Electric by Michael Hollinger
    Cast: 
    5
    ·
    Genre: drama
    ·
    Keyword: love, Sex + 4 more
    Genre: drama
    Keyword: love, Sex, physics, divorce, domestic violence, loss
    Jess is tanking in Physics, so her mom hires Lloyd to help her pass. But she’d rather study his son, the survivor of a lightning strike that killed his girlfriend a year ago, and tattooed his body with elegant scars. When Lloyd and Mom hit it off, these two broken families are bound ever closer, inexorably -- with explosive results. An intricate, atmospheric tale of love, sex, and the unseen forces that draw...
    Jess is tanking in Physics, so her mom hires Lloyd to help her pass. But she’d rather study his son, the survivor of a lightning strike that killed his girlfriend a year ago, and tattooed his body with elegant scars. When Lloyd and Mom hit it off, these two broken families are bound ever closer, inexorably -- with explosive results. An intricate, atmospheric tale of love, sex, and the unseen forces that draw us together and drive us apart.