Marcus Gardley facts for kids

Marcus Gardley is an American writer who creates plays, poems, and screenplays for movies and TV. He was born in 1977 or 1978 in West Oakland, California. Today, he is a professor at Brown University and works with the Victory Gardens Theater in Chicago.

Marcus Gardley's Early Life and Education

Marcus Gardley grew up in Oakland, California. His mom was a nurse and his dad was a minister. Their home was full of books, which made him love learning. At first, he wanted to be a doctor who helps people sleep during surgery.

He started college at San Francisco State University (SFSU) and studied poetry. But his teachers noticed something interesting. They said his poems sounded a lot like plays! Marcus didn't want to agree at first. Eventually, he realized they were right.

He discovered that he loved hearing his words performed by different people, like an orchestra. He felt that theater was where he truly belonged. In 2001, he earned an award for his achievements at SFSU. After that, he went to Yale School of Drama and earned another degree in playwriting in 2004. He then started teaching writing at Columbia University.

Marcus Gardley's Writing Career

Marcus Gardley is part of a new group of talented African-American playwrights. He gets ideas from the famous Harlem art scene and is especially inspired by writer James Baldwin.

In 2010, The New Yorker magazine called Gardley a unique writer. They said he was like famous playwrights such as Garcia Lorca and Tennessee Williams.

Famous Plays by Marcus Gardley

One of Gardley's well-known plays is ...And Jesus Moonwalks the Mississippi. This play is a poetic story about forgiveness. It mixes traditional storytelling, gospel music, and humor. Marcus Gardley shared that the play is based on a story his great-grandmother told. It was about her father, who escaped slavery and searched for his family. This play was very popular and was named one of the top ten plays in the Bay Area in 2010.

Another play, The House That Will Not Stand, was first shown in 2014. It was inspired by a play called The House of Bernarda Alba. This play was later performed in London and New York City.

From 2013 to 2019, Gardley was a special writer at Victory Gardens Theater. This program helps playwrights work closely with a theater for several years.

In 2017, his play black odyssey was updated for a new show. This version was set in Oakland and had new music. It won many awards, including Outstanding Production and Outstanding Ensemble. The play is Marcus Gardley's own version of Homer's ancient Greek story, Odyssey.

In 2013, Gardley wrote a short play called No More Monsters Here. It was part of a project about important topics like race and privilege.

Marcus Gardley's Work in TV and Film

Besides plays, Marcus Gardley has also written for television shows. He worked on the Amazon Prime series Z: The Beginning of Everything. He also wrote for The Chi on Showtime and The Exorcist TV series.

More recently, he signed a big deal with Amazon Studios. He wrote the screenplay for the 2023 movie The Color Purple.

Awards and Honors

Marcus Gardley has won many awards for his writing. Here are some of them:

• Helen Merrill Award (2008)
• Kesselring honor award
• His plays This World in a Woman's Hands (2009) and Love is a Dream House in Lorin (2007) were named best plays in the Bay Area.
• Glickman Award (2014) for The House That Will Not Stand.
• USA James Baldwin Fellow (2013)
• PEN Laura Pels award for Mid-Career Playwright (2011)
• Gerbode Emerging Playwright Award
• National Alliance for Musical Theatre Award
• Eugene O'Neill Memorial Scholarship
• ASCAP Cole Porter Prize

He is also a member of important groups for writers, like New Dramatists and The Dramatists Guild. Dramatists Magazine even named him one of 50 talented playwrights to watch!