In Memoriam
Allen Davis III, Playwright
Allen Davis III served as Director of the Puerto Rican Traveling
Theatre's Playwright Unit for over 31 years. As a playwright, had
previously won The TADA! Youth Theater Award for his play Mrs. Morton
Puget Conducts An Interview. Prior to his passing, Allen was
presented with a Life Time Achievement Award by The Hispanic
Organization of Latin Actors (HOLA) for his writing and teaching.
Allen's produced plays include The Butcher Of Palm Beach, Where The
Green Bananas Grow, The Rag Doll, and The Head Of Hair, among others.
They have been produced in New York, and regionally. His quartet of
plays about Jewish life in Cincinnati, Ohio, is entitled The Golden
Ghetto. Allen, a cum laude graduate of Syracuse University, with an
MFA in directing from Yale Drama School, was also an alumnus of New
Dramatists and a co-founder and first treasurer of The Literary
Managers and Dramaturgs of the Americas. Allen was a grant recipient
from the NEA, and of a CAPS grant (New York State). He was a
co-founder of the theater company, Around the Block. Allen Davis was
a former U.S. Marine, who saw service during the Korean War. As a
playwright, Allen held many fellowships at art colonies including
Yaddo, The MacDowell Colony, and Virginia Center for the Creative
Arts. His earlier career included work as a general manager of
theaters and administrator of art centers. Allen Davis III was born
and raised in Cincinnati, and Cleveland, Ohio. Allen joined
Stageplays' Board of Advisors in 2006, and served as an Advisor until
his death in 2019.
