Strasberg, Lee

Strasberg, Lee (1901–82), American theatre director, who had some acting experience with the Theatre Guild before, in 1931, he helped to found its offshoot the Group Theatre. With Cheryl Crawford he directed its first production, Paul Green's The House of Connelly, and later was responsible for a number of other productions, including Maxwell Anderson's Night over Taos (1932), Sidney Kingsley's Men in White (1933), and Paul Green's Johnny Johnson (1936). When the Group Theatre ceased production he directed such plays as Odets's Clash by Night (1941) and The Big Knife (1949) for other managements. A firm believer in the Method for the formation of actors, he became in 1950 a director of the Actor's Studio, where in 1965 he was responsible for the production of Chekhov's Three Sisters seen during the World Theatre Season in London. He also directed for the Studio the première of Odets's The Silent Partner (1972), Paul Zindel's The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds, and O'Neill's Long Day's Journey into Night (both 1973).