Scope and Content Note
The Max Bush Collection contains materials documenting the playwriting career of Max Bush and the production of his plays by other producers. The bulk of this collection consists of typescripts of drafts of Bush's plays and production materials such as photographs, study guides, programs and season brochures. In addition, this collection provides articles written by Bush, information about awards won by Bush and correspondence.
Dates
- Creation: 1987-1998
Language of Materials
Material in English
Access Restrictions
To view this collection, make an appointment at least five business days prior to your visit by contacting Ask an Archivist or calling (480) 965-4932. Appointments in the Wurzburger Reading Room at Hayden Library (rm. 138) on the Tempe campus are available Monday through Friday. Check the ASU Library Hours page for current availability.
Copyright
Arizona State University does not own the copyright to this collection. We recognize that it is incumbent upon the researcher to procure permission to publish information from this collection from the owner of the copyright.
Biographical Note
Max Bush, playwright and director for young audiences, is a Michigan writer whose plays have been widely produced by professional, university and community theatres throughout the United States.
He graduated with a double major in English and Psychology and a minor in Theatre from Grand Valley State University in Allendale, Michigan. Following this, he taught for three years at a high school, where he developed a theatre and psychology program. He then attended graduate school and received his Master of Fine Arts in Directing from Michigan State University in 1985.
He has won numerous awards for his work. Ghost of the River House and 13 Bells of Boglewood are winners of the IUPUI (Indiana University-Purdue University, Indianapolis) National Youth Theatre Playwriting Competition. In addition, Bush has won the 1990 AATE (American Alliance for Theatre & Education) Distinguished Play Award for elementary and middle school age audiences for Aalmauria: The Voyage of the Dragonfly, the 1995 AATE Charlotte B. Chorpenning Playwright Award, the 2002 AATE Distinguished Play Award for Adaptation for Ezigbo, The Spirit Child and individual artist grants to develop new works from the Michigan Council for the Arts. Professional theatre companies, such as the Honolulu Theatre for Youth, the Omaha Children's Theatre and the Nashville Children's Theatre, have commissioned him to write new plays.
Bush also has guest directed for the following companies: the DePaul/Goodman Theatre; the Boarshead Theatre in Lansing, Michigan; Purdue University; and the Magic Circle Theatre in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
In 1995 Meriwether Publishing published an anthology of Bush's plays titled Plays for Young Audiences: Featuring The Emerald Circle and Other Plays. Following are Bush's published scripts, in alphabetical order:
The Adventure of Treasure Island (1985)
The Boy Who Left Home to Find Out About the Shivers (1995)
The Chest of Dreams (1981)
The Crystal (1995)
The Emerald Circle (1998)
Ezigbo, The Spirit Child: An Igbo Story (2001)
Ghost of the River House (1997)
Hansel and Gretel: The Little Brother and the Little Sister (1993)
Puss in Boots (1986)
Rapunzel (1987)
Rockway Café: A Play with Rock Music (1992)
Rockway Café II: A Play with Rock Music (1996)
Sarah (2000)
13 Bells of Boglewood (1987)
The Troll and the Elephant Prince (1985)
Voyage of the Dragonfly (1990)
Full extent
1 Box(es)
Full extent
0.5 Linear Feet
Abstract
The Max Bush Collection contains materials documenting the playwriting career of Max Bush and the production of his plays by other producers.
Arrangement
This collection consists of one box.
Provenance
The Max Bush Collection was received in 1994 and ongoing from Max Bush, accession numbers 2004-03477, 2004-03483 and 2004-03651.
Genre / Form
Occupation
- Title
- Max Bush Collection
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Processed by Katherine Krzys, Curator, Child Drama Collection, with assistance from Michelle Renee White, Library Aide, Special Collections and Master of Fine Arts graduate student in Theatre for Youth.
- Date
- 2011
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Language of description note
- Finding guide encoded in English.
Repository details
Part of the Theatre for Youth and Community Repository
Contact
Arizona State UniversityP.O. Box 871006
Tempe AZ 85287-1006 United States
(480) 965-4932
archives@asu.edu