Wendy Smith is a contributing editor of the Scholar and the author of Real Life Drama: The Group Theatre and America, 1931–1940.
Wendy Smith
A Century at the Muny
The open-air St. Louis theater, set to undergo a renovation this fall, is a beloved summertime institution
by Wendy Smith | Monday, June 04, 2018
The Price Isn’t Right
Premium ticket costs mean that Broadway shows are increasingly the province of tourists with deep pockets
by Wendy Smith | Tuesday, September 05, 2017
Encounters Of f the Page
After conducting 250 author interviews over four decades, I’m still engaged but a lot less awestruck
by Wendy Smith | Monday, December 02, 2019
All in the Family
Gazing into the soul of a lauded play and seeing glimpses of one’s past
by Wendy Smith | Tuesday, September 06, 2016
Cold Truths
The Iceman Cometh and the destructiveness of dreams
by Wendy Smith | Monday, June 08, 2015
As the Bard Turns
The international appeal of the man from Stratford-upon-Avon
by Wendy Smith | Monday, February 29, 2016
Cut, Cut, Cut
by Wendy Smith | Monday, August 11, 2014
Shakespeare in Bloom
by Wendy Smith | Thursday, August 25, 2011
Happily Ever After
The folk tales gathered by the Brothers Grimm not only enchant us; they record the hardships European families endured for centuries
by Wendy Smith | Friday, December 07, 2012
The Novels Don’t Change, But We Do
Rereading those works that matter to us proves that books read us even as we read them
by Wendy Smith | Friday, December 06, 2013
The Director Who Named Names
Reconsidering the legacy of Elia Kazan
by Wendy Smith | Wednesday, December 10, 2014
Rock of Ages
Forty years after their deaths, Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin now seem part of the mainstream culture they rebelled against
by Wendy Smith | Wednesday, September 01, 2010
From Oppressed to Oppressors
The Battle of Algiers took a pitiless look at the war for Algerian independence, but the filmmakers could not foresee the failures that would result
by Wendy Smith | Monday, September 01, 2008
Good Thing Going
Stephen Sondheim only looks better with time
by Wendy Smith | Saturday, September 01, 2007
Offbeat at the Apollo
Elvis Costello’s cable TV show, Spectacle, ranges across musical genres and centuries
by Wendy Smith | Tuesday, December 01, 2009
The Meaning Behind the Lines
How Ibsen's toughness and Chekhov's tenderness transformed American playwriting and acting
by Wendy Smith | Friday, June 05, 2009
The Man Who Got His Way
John Hammond, scion of white privilege, helped integrate popular music
by Wendy Smith | Thursday, June 01, 2006
War Weary
If Iraq is not another Vietnam, why do I find myself rereading Dispatches?