Allen, Ralph G.

Ralph G. Allen, playwright.

Ralph G. Allen (1934-2004), was born in Philadelphia and graduated summa cum laude from Amherst College in 1955. In 1960 he received the Doctor of Fine Arts degree from Yale University School of Drama where he held the MCA Fellowship in Playwriting and was a John Golden Fellow. In 1965 he was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship. His alma mater, Amherst College, awarded him a Doctor of Humane Letters degree in 1980. former University of Pittsburgh faculty member, Allen was a writer, director, teacher, historian , and theatrical advisor who served the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, UCLA, the University of Victoria, New York University School of the Arts, The University of Tennessee, and Queens College. While in residence at the University of Pittsburgh, Allen collaborated with Prof. John Ulrich with the aid of a Charles E. Merrill Faculty Fellowship, to compile Burlesque sketches from comedian Billy Hagan's personal collection and interviews from performers Billy Foster, Bert Carr , Maxie Furman, Irving Harman, Jack Coyle, and Billy "Cheese and Crackers" Hagan. Allen co-conceived the Tony awarding winning musical, Sugar Babies, and frequently published scholarly articles on the burlesque. His play, A Horse of a Different Color, premiered at the Three Rivers Shakespeare Festival in Pittsburgh, Pa.