Steve Silver, a playwright and actor whose star was rising at an amazing rate, passed away suddenly on March 16, 2018. His final work, WAITING FOR THE DON opens tonight, April 4, at the American Theatre of Actors.

Stage and film director, Laurie Rae Waugh will be helming this final work.  An artist who was ‘there” and wrote about it. Ms. Waugh directed much of the gritty play- and screen-writer’s canon.

“I enjoyed not only the wonderful working relationship we had but more importantly, the friendship we developed over the past 8 years” said the prolific director, celebrated for her subtle depth-of-the-character style of direction.

Ms. Waugh earned accolades for her and Mr. Silver. She received the 2016 Jean Dalrymple Award for Best Director for Silver’s play(s), Mirrors; the same honor the previous year for A Spanish Harlem Story. She also won in 2010 for Jerry J. Pollock’s Code Name Daniel. 

“Steve was not just a friend but became my theater brother,” Ms. Waugh said in an interview.

She and Silver had a long and joyous working relationship on Silver’s plays, Born in the USA and Waiting for THE DON, The Tiger of Greenwich Village, and The Prince of Hell’s Kitchen.

Ms. Waugh was part of Steve Silver’s magnum opus, The Watchtower, which began as a one-act; was rewritten as a full-length; and finally became a major motion picture winning numerous honors across the country.  DON was in negotiation to become another film after its run at the landmark American Theatre of Actors in NYC.

“Thank you Steve for giving me the distinct honor and pleasure to have brought your plays to life.  I would also like to thank James Jennings, my cast, family and friends for their support.”

Steve Silver remembered by the industry.

“We’ve lost a voice that gave us many enjoyable times in the theater.”
Stephanie Schwartz

“He was a quiet man with a loud message!
He was a reserved man, who had a talent for telling stories.
He will be missed; I will miss the plays that he would have written.”
Francesca Devito

“Steve wrote the truth and he gave it to the people.
That alone put him above so many.”
Jay Michaels 

“Steve wrote raw, gritty and compelling dramas about
life in New York City.
He will be sorely missed.”
Laurie Rae Waugh