"The best book ever written about Southland theatre history.... If you think you know a lot about SCR, you'll almost certainly learn a lot more from this book"
Stepping Ahead, a new book that traces the turbulent-yet-triumphant 45-year history of South Coast Repertory (SCR), hits shelves Sept. 11.
Since SCR burst on the scene in 1964 with a $17 rag-tag production of Tartuffe, it has become one of the nation’s premier regional theaters, with an unmatched reputation for nurturing the best American playwrights. It’s won the regional Tony Award and developed two Pulitzer-Prize-winning plays and six Pulitzer nominees. With co-founders David Emmes and Martin Benson still at the helm, today SCR owns a three-theater complex and operates a 13-show, $9 million season.
But the journey from Tartuffe to Tony was far from smooth, and Stepping Ahead doesn’t skip over the rough patches. Alongside stories of glowing reviews and audience raves are tales of offstage infighting, less-than-stellar productions and poor decision-making. (One disastrous night in 1970, “Beverly Hillbillies” star Buddy Ebsen stormed out midway through a controversial show, pulling his financial support.)
Author Lawrence Christon, a former critic and staff writer for the L.A. Times, spent five years researching and writing Stepping Ahead. Its scope extends beyond SCR to the local and national historical events and industry trends that shaped the theater.
The 340-page book also features more than 150 color photographs from SCR’s 45 years of productions, including images of beloved founding artists Don Took, Hal Landon, Jr., Martha McFarland and Richard Doyle and before-they-were-stars Joe Pantoliano, Ed Harris, Elizabeth McGovern, Dennis Franz and Tom Hulce.
Stepping Ahead costs $25 and goes on sale Sept. 11 in the SCR theatre shop. SCR Subscribers receive a 20% discount.
Books my be purchased in person or ordered via e-mail and shipped for an additional $6 per book postage and handling fee.
Get a sneak peek at hot-off-the-press Stepping Ahead, South Coast Repertory’s new biography.
