Anne Hamburger

Anne Hamburger
Bornc. 1954
NationalityAmerican
Occupation(s)theatre manager, producer, playwright
Known forFounder of En Garde Arts
Walt Disney Creative Entertainment Executive

Anne Hamburger (born c. 1954)[1] is an American theatre manager, producer and playwright. She founded En Garde Arts, was artistic director of La Jolla Playhouse and was also an executive at Walt Disney Creative Entertainment, producing musicals.

Life and career

Hamburger was born in Baltimore, Maryland. She began her career as a sculptor, photographer, and performance artist, and started acting with Saratoga International Theater Institute (SITI). She then studied at Yale School of Drama, where she started a site-specific theatre company as part of her Master's studies.[2]

Hamburger founded and led En Garde Arts from 1986 until 1999.[1] The company put on large site-specific performances across New York City at venues including Bow Bridge (Central Park) and Hotel Chelsea. Hamburger and the company won six Obie Awards.[3] She has also won two Drama Desk Awards.[2] In a 1994 article in The New York Times, Hamburger described the extensive process needed to obtain permission from property owners and the city to present performances at locations throughout the city.[4]

She was then named artistic director of La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego, California, and after one year moved on to become executive vice president for Walt Disney Creative Entertainment.[5] She produced spectacles and stage shows for the Disney parks and cruise ships, including Disney's Aladdin: A Musical Spectacular and Finding Nemo – The Musical.[1][6]

After eight years at Disney, Hamburger restarted En Garde Arts and returned to producing off-Broadway theatre.[7][8] In 2015, she presented a theater festival in Hudson River Park with nine separate pieces, including one by the Obie-winner Lee Sunday Evans.[9] In 2017, she produced and co-wrote the play Wilderness which explored the issues created by sending children on wilderness therapy camps.[10][11] While developing Wilderness, Hamburger spent time with youths in Utah at a wilderness therapy camp[12] and conducted interviews with parents who had to send their children to such camps.[13]

Hamburger curated a free performing arts festival in New York City in May 2021.[14]

References

  1. ^ a b c Boehm, Mike (5 January 2003). "Granting Disney's wish". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
  2. ^ a b Plass, Sally. "Anne Hamburger", Primary Stages Off-Broadway Oral History Project, June 21, 2018, accessed January 22, 2022
  3. ^ "Performing arts group En Garde Arts' past 30 years in photos". Time Out New York. 24 September 2015. Retrieved 2022-01-22.
  4. ^ Gussow, Mel (1994-01-23). "MAKING IT WORK; Location, Location". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-01-22.
  5. ^ Ehren, Christine (20 July 2000). "Artistic Director Hamburger Departs La Jolla For Disney in 2001". Playbill. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
  6. ^ Lampert-Greaux, Ellen (1 February 2007). "Taking The Plunge". Live Design Online. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
  7. ^ Seymour, Lee (20 June 2018). "Avant Garde Trailblazer Returns To Roots In Era Of Trump". Forbes. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
  8. ^ Tran, Diep (14 October 2014). "'BASETRACK Live' Marks Reboot of En Garde Arts". American Theatre. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
  9. ^ Collins-Hughes, Laura (2015-10-22). "For Big Outdoor Site Specific Stuff, Location, Location and Good Weather". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-01-22.
  10. ^ Bradshaw, Marshall (18 October 2017). "Wilderness explores Utah teen therapy program (review)". DC Theatre Scene. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
  11. ^ Heckel, Jodi (16 March 2017). "Stories of troubled youth and their families depicted in documentary-theater production "WILDERNESS"". news.illinois.edu. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
  12. ^ Collins-Hughes, Laura (2016-10-20). "Therapy Becomes Theater in 'Wilderness'". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-01-22.
  13. ^ "'Wilderness' sends teenagers into the wild to find themselves". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2022-01-22.
  14. ^ Karel, Daniel (3 May 2021). "'Downtown Live' Brings Free Outdoor Performances to an Altered Landscape". Bedford and Bowery. Retrieved 22 January 2022.