Draft:Beatrice Manley

Beatrice Manley

Beatrice Manley (May 23, 1921 - September 13, 2002) was an American actress, performer, author, instructor, and co-founder of the San Francisco Actor’s Workshop. Manley embarked on a sixty-year career spanning theater and performing arts. Her journey began on Broadway and extended to the avant-garde scene in California.

Broadway Beginnings

Beatrice graduated from the Drama Department of New York University in 1941. That same year she made her Broadway debut appearing in Maxwell Anderson’s “Eve of Saint Mark” and Eva le Gallienne’s “Cherry Orchard.” She also acted alongside Beatrice Straight in “Eastward in Eden.” At the time, she was married to painter Albert Freedberg and expecting her first child.

California

Stanford University

Manley received an artist-in-residence fellowship at Stanford University leading her to California in 1949. There she met her future husband, director and author Herbert Blau who was pursuing a PhD in English. In 1952, Manley and Blau moved to San Francisco, where they co-founded the San Francisco Actor’s Workshop.

San Francisco Actor’s Workshop

Manley played significant roles in the Workshop’s groundbreaking productions of works by modernist playwrights like Brecht, Beckett, and Genet. Notably, she became the first American actress to perform the title role in Bertolt Brecht’s “Mother Courage” in Blau’s 1956 production.

Lincoln Center

In 1965, Blau and Jules Irving took charge of the Vivian Beaumont Theater at Lincoln Center, and Manley continued her stage career there. She performed in a wide range of dramas, from tragedy to comedy including Georg Buchner's Danton's Death, Brecht's “The Caucasian Chalk Circle,” and Frederico Garcia Lorca's “Yerma.”

As Performer

Film

Manley branched into motion pictures and acted in films such as The Baby (1973), Bang the Drum Slowly (1973), and Little Mo (1978).

Stage work

In 1983, Manley appeared in Andre Serban’s production of “Uncle Vanya.” She adapted and performed Poe's "A Predicament", Yeats "Crazy Jane series", Julio Cortazar's "Tales of Cronopios and Famas", and James Joyce's "Molly Bloom" soliloquy from Ulysses.

As Author

Manley wrote five plays, two librettos, and several scripts. Manley also wrote three books: My Breath in Art: Acting from Within (Applause Books, 1998); The Actor's Dickens(Applause Books, 2001); and the unpublished Theater Workshop for Seniors (2001).

Teaching and Influence

Manley was a founding member of the Theater School at the California Institute of the Arts. Among her students were notable actors like Paul Reubens, Bill Irwin, and Ed Harris. In recognition of her teaching contributions Manley was awarded an honorary degree of Doctor of Arts from the California Institute of the Arts in 1990.

Late Life

In 1999, she moved to Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Beatrice Manley died in Milwaukee on September 14, 2002. Manley is survived by three children and many grandchildren.