RITCHIE, Rebecca (T.) 1949-

PERSONAL: Born January 29, 1949, in Baltimore, MD; daughter of Morris (a mechanical engineer) and Anna (a social worker; maiden name, Himmelfarb) Thompson; married Stafford Duff Ritchie II (an attorney), June 27, 1975; children: Stafford Duff III, Thompson Cavage, Glynis Ann. Education: Goucher College, B.A., 1970; University of Pennsylvania, J.D., 1974. Politics: Democrat. Religion: Jewish.

ADDRESSES: Offıce—c/o Studio Arena Theater, 710 Main St., Buffalo, NY 14202-1990. E-mail—rtritchie@ att.net.

CAREER: Attorney at law, 1975—. Studio Arena Theater, Buffalo, NY, member of board of trustees; affiliated with Western New York Playwrights Workshop.

MEMBER: International Centre for Women Playwrights, Dramatists Guild, Association for Jewish Theater.

AWARDS, HONORS: Artie Awards, outstanding new play, ArtVoice, 1996, for An Unorthodox Arrangement, and 1999, for The Crustacean Waltz; Helen Mintz Award, Buffalo Ensemble Theater, 1999; winner of Dorothy Silver Playwriting Competition, Jewish Community Center of Greater Cleveland, for An Unorthodox Arrangement.

WRITINGS:

PLAYS

An Unorthodox Arrangement (full-length comedy/drama), produced in Buffalo, NY, by Buffalo Ensemble Theater, 1995.

A Personal Exchange (one-act comedy), produced by Jewish Ensemble Theater, 1997.

The Shiva Queen (one-act comedy), produced by Jewish Ensemble Theater, 1997.

The Crustacean Waltz (full-length drama), produced in Buffalo, NY, by Buffalo Ensemble Theater, 1998.

Buying a Brassiere (one-act drama), produced by Polaris North, 2000.

Also author of the one-act comedy In the Beginning, produced by Alleyway Theater, and of several other plays.

Contributor of feature articles to Buffalo News.

SIDELIGHTS: Rebecca Ritchie told CA: "After twenty-five years of writing freelance feature stories for magazines and newspapers, I joined the Western New York Playwrights Workshop under the direction of Emanuel Fried. I've written ten plays, many with content related to cancer and contemporary Jewish social issues. I look for an unusual setting and try to place the central character in the setting, facing a decision that will require choosing between two mutually exclusive paths. I spend much of my time rewriting to clarify the central character's ambivalence—exploring the forces pulling the character in two directions until she finally must make a choice."