2005 Tony Awards Q&A: John Patrick Shanley
Doubt is author John Patrick Shanley's first play to be produced on Broadway, and is nominated for the Tony Award for Best Play. His other theatrical credits include Sailor's Song, Danny and the Deep Blue Sea, Cellini, Savage in Limbo, the dreamer examines his pillow, Beggars in the House of Plenty, Welcome to the Moon, Four Dogs and a Bone, Italian American Reconciliation, Missing/Kissing and The Big Funk. For film, Shanley's many credits include winning the 1988 Oscar for his screenplay of Moonstruck. Other film credits include Alive, January Man and Joe Versus the Volcano.
The past few months have been a whirlwind of accolades for Doubt, what's the center of that storm been like?
Well, I really enjoyed winning the Pulitzer. I won an Academy Award back in 88, and a Dramatists Guild Award, but in New York though, I've never won or been nominated in 25 years for the Tony (Primarily of course because it's the first one that we've brought to Broadway)! It's kind of exciting to suddenly have all this stuff be showered upon me for one show. It's almost funny in a way…
Better late than never though…
True, it is better later than never, but it's not that late. I wasn't tapping my foot or anything, because I enjoy what I do, it's just a bit anomalous, that we got as many nominations and awards for this one show.
Which I'm sure has made it a very satisfying experience?
The whole experience has been very satisfying, because I'm extremely interested in the subject matter, and the milieu, and in the time and place that I set the play in. I've reconnected to my own past in many ways as a result of doing the show. My first grade school teacher, Sister James, who still teaches, has come back and was my guest at my opening night, and that's kind of sweet and nice. I've gone up to Riverdale, and spoken to the Sisters of Charity at their invitation, which was also quite an experience. I've heard from a lot of nuns and clergy who have both liked the play, and these people have given a lot of their lives to other people – which makes them great people, so that's been a nice bonus.
How thrilled are you that the whole cast has been nominated as well?
It's really great that all four people were nominated, because otherwise, it'd be hell backstage! Somebody would be brave, and would probably kill everybody.
What else do you have in the pipeline at the moment?
At the moment, I've written a new play , and we're negotiating to do a movie of Doubt, so that's where things are at for me at the moment – happy to be here!
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 Robert Diamond founded BroadwayWorld.com in 2003, which has now become the largest theatre web site in the world. He also serves as the site's Editor-in-Chief, covering Broadway and beyond, with specific local coverage for 100 cities in the United States, 30 countries worldwide and 15 other related areas of entertainment - including dance, opera, fashion, concerts, comedy, films, television and more.The 2001 Syracuse University graduate (School of Information Studies) is also the owner of Wisdom Digital Media, an award-winning leading design company for entertainment and technology web sites. In his previous life, he held an executive position for the world's leading publisher of technology magazines, web sites and conferences and, as a result, was named among the "Top thirty magazine industry executives under the age of 30" by FOLIO Magazine. Diamond got his start in the entertainment field, accidentally, when he created the 'official web site' (while in college) for Michael Crawford, the popular actor and original Tony and Olivier Award-winning star of THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA. (He still blames Crawford - and credits him - for anything that goes particularly right or wrong during an average day.) As a respected member of the Broadway and theatre community, Diamond also served as Lead Producer for a series of sold-out shows using the BroadwayWorld.com 'brand' for a set of 'Standing Ovations' concerts, which also branched out into titles that included Holiday Shows and even more specific concerts like 'From Stage to Screen and Back Again' in tandem with publishers and movie studios. All proceeds were in turn donated to Broadway Cares / Equity Fights AIDS, the industry's leader in aid for performers in need. Robert lives in Manhattan with his wife and two dogs, growing the business and getting little sleep. In addition, you can usually find him in a theatre many nights a week. Robert's very popular blog, 'The Broadway Pulse' appears daily on BroadwayWorld.com and he also writes weekly about theatre for the USA Network's Character Approved blog. In December of last year, Diamond was one of 5 Syracuse University Alumni, all having achieved success in the world of start-ups, business growth and venture capital, participating on a panel addressing young alumni who are currently pursuing their dreams of running their own business and experiencing the day to day challenges of a startup. It is part of the university's new Student Accelerator Program, for which Rob was recommended by Syracuse University's i-School.
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