Donald Loftus
BIOGRAPHY
Donald Loftus is an American playwright, librettist, and lyricist whose work has been presented on stages across The United States, The United Kingdom, Surathkal, India, Queensland, Australia, and Uppsala, Sweden. He was selected to participate in the William Inge Theatre Festival, won the W. Keith Hedrick National Playwriting Award and The Southeast Texas Festival of New Plays, and was named a finalist for the Robert J. Pickering / J.R. Colbeck Award for Playwriting Excellence.
Most recently, his full-length drama, "THE SPRINGVALE ARMADILLO," was chosen for The Cincinnati L.A.B. Theatre's 2023 New Works Festival, and his musical, "ILLUSION," was selected for the Colorado New Musical Festival and The Emerging Artist Spark Theatre Festival held in N.Y.C. in November 2023. His full-length psycho-drama, "PER," was produced by the Theatre Lab Theater Project in Tampa, Florida, in the fall of 2024. His many one-acts have been presented at over one hundred festivals nationwide.
Before focusing on playwriting full-time, Donald had a distinguished career in the luxury beauty industry. He served as the U.S. President of several companies, including Versace Profumi, Y.S.L. Beauté, Procter & Gamble Prestige, Wella's Cosmopolitan Cosmetics, and Sanofi Beauté. In these roles, he managed the fragrance and cosmetic brands of Yves Saint Laurent, Gucci, Dolce & Gabbana, Hugo Boss, Burberry, Christian Lacroix, and many more.
Donald served as the chairman of the boards of both The Fashion Group International and The Fragrance Foundation and was a member of the board of directors of The Women's Project Theatre. He has been honored by The American Cancer Society, The March of Dimes, B.R.A.G., The Fragrance Foundation, Fashion Group Int’l, and The Dramatist's Guild Foundation with a Patron of the Arts Award for his work in helping keep live theatre thriving.
He is proud to serve on the Board of Directors of The Dramatists Guild Foundation.
Donald lives in New York City with his loving wife, Holly.
THE PLAYS
"ILLUSION"
by
Donald Loftus & Steve Zackim
Decades before Ru Paul or Dame Edna, there was Julian Eltinge. He was not a "drag queen." At the turn of the 20th century, he was a highly respected stage and screen actor specializing in female roles. Before moving on to Hollywood, he conquered vaudeville, burlesque, Broadway, and legitimate theatres worldwide. He became one of the highest-paid entertainers in the world, at the level of Charlie Chaplin, Mae West, and Fanny Brice. He even had a Broadway theatre named after him. Yet today, nobody knows his name.
"ILLUSION" explores the life of Julian Eltinge, beginning as a young gay boy in Boston in 1890. The son of a drunken, homophobic, Irish immigrant father and an abused mother, he worked hard and eventually achieved the fame and fortune described above. Then, it all came crashing down in the 1920s when numerous notorious scandals rocked Hollywood. These scandals brought widespread condemnation from religious, civic, and political organizations and resulted in new restrictions for the film industry. It became illegal for a man to dress as a woman, which Mr. Eltinge had built his entire career on. His life had touched and enriched the lives of many, although he never fully realized the impact he had made. In the end, he died nearly penniless after achieving so much. Through it all, he just wanted someone to notice him. Cast: 7 Men & 6 Women
THE ARCHWAY
A Drama in Two Acts
by Donald Loftus
Jeffrey Morrison is a highly successful senior partner at a prominent and conservative Boston law firm. He is close to achieving his lifelong dream of being elected as the firm’s board chairman. Suddenly, this dream is threatened when, in the middle of the night, Jeffrey’s degenerate brother, Phillip, breaks into his Beacon Hill townhouse covered in blood. Phillip explains to his highly successful brother that he and his underage, illegal immigrant girlfriend have just murdered a man. He goes on to describe how he slit his throat and then carried the victim’s bloody, lifeless body into an alleyway, under an archway, and deposited it into a garbage dumpster. Jeffrey’s first concern is not for his brother’s welfare but that this crime may jeopardize his chances for the chairmanship. He cannot risk his chances of getting an appointment for anything, so he takes control of the situation. As the story untangles, we learn that nothing is how it first appeared to be. Jeffrey’s determination to win the Chairmanship… regardless of what may be required, is the one thing that remains unchanged.
The play has a cast of three (2M/1F) and runs approximately 90 minutes.
"DRIFTWOOD"
A Drama in Two Acts
by Donald Loftus
A DYING FATHER ASKS HIS SON TO PHOTOGRAPH HIS DEATH
Daniel Wood, a moderately successful photographer living in New York City, is forced to face the painful memories of his broken childhood when he returns to his Midwest childhood home at the request of his dying father…whom he never loved. After decades of relentless anger and largely unexpressed contempt, Daniel may finally find the courage to ask the questions that have plagued him since his boyhood. His father may finally be able to do something to help his son. They both may be able to mend some of the fences that were all but destroyed decades before.
But the clock is running out… (3F/5M)
"PER"
A Drama in Two Acts
by Donald Loftus
A psychological drama based on a true story. Sweden 1889. A young man named Per Nilsson (pronounced PEAR) collaborated with his domineering mother in the gruesome murder of his young wife. Per was declared insane and institutionalized at The Konradsberg Lunatic Asylum in Stockholm, Sweden; his mother was found guilty of the murder and beheaded. Now, he must fight the ghosts who torment him each night in his asylum cell as he attempts by day to convince his captors, the psychiatrist, and his staff that he is sane and should be released. After months of therapy, the psychiatrist is convinced of Per’s sanity. The night before Per is to be released, the ghosts visit him one last time, and we learn that not everything he has revealed in his psychiatric sessions is true. The real villain is not who we thought. With the final blackout, we are unsure whether Per will be released. The 90-minute play is told in eight scenes and can be performed with a cast of five actors.
“THE SPRINGVALE ARMADILLO”
A Drama in Two Acts
by Donald Loftus
“The Springvale Armadillo” is a new play by Donald Loftus, inspired by a true story about a woman locked in an institution for 70 years, suspected of having a disease that never materialized. In 1927, in a small town near New Orleans, a beautiful 17-year-old debutante is diagnosed with a disease that threatens her life and the reputation of her wealthy family name. The family she loves sends her away, her name is changed, and she is forced to spend the rest of her life at a hospital called Springvale. The disease never materializes. Now, 70 years later, Matthew, a troubled, young Boston Globe reporter who has recently lost the love of his life to AIDS, has arrived at Springvale to interview Ruby for a human-interest story he is writing on the subject of survival. Although Matthew came to "get the story," he really hopes to get answers from a woman who ought to have them. Even today, after 70 years and hardships and heartbreak beyond imagination, Ruby still maintains the glow and charm of a young debutante; the beauty is still visible. During the interviews, a young Ruby appears almost ghost-like and assists in relaying the stories of Ruby's life. As the questions get more and more painful and closer to the bone, Ruby is forced to remember the tragic details of her life. In the end, Matthew gets what he came for. The play is told in ninety minutes and has a cast of four (1M/3W)
"POLLYANNA"
A NEW MUSICAL
By Donald Loftus and Andrew Sussman
“POLLYANNA” is a heart-warming musical, with a book and lyrics by Donald Loftus and music by Andrew Sussman. It is based on the classic novel Eleanor H. Porter (now in the Public Domain), which tells the story of a young orphan girl sent to live with her miserable aunt in a town filled with miserable people. Before long, the energetic young girl had transformed the community with her indomitable will to see the good side of even the worst situations and bring it out for the betterment of all. In the end, when Pollyanna faces her own tragic crisis, the town she worked so hard to save comes to her rescue. Cast:10 (5 Women/5 Men) plus a chorus.
The Ten-Minute Plays
"DARK MATTER"
by Donald Loftus
Marion & Palmer have been married a long time—maybe too long. They have recently been uprooted, and the marriage has gone sour. Marion is not happy. Palmer seems better adjusted, but he, too, wishes it all could be the way it was once. Of course, it can’t. “THEY” would never allow it. (1M/1F) https://pwcenter.org/plays/dark-matter/
“MAID TO MEASURE”
by Donald Loftus
When successful scientist/businessman DORIAN agrees to meet with his long-lost schoolmate, JAMISON, he has no idea what his old chum has on his mind. DORIAN soon learns that his former buddy, whose marriage has apparently soured, is looking for a new wife—but this time, he wants her to be “made to order.” He’s hoping his nerdy former science class buddy can help. (2M)
"AMUSING WILLIE"
by Donald Loftus
WILLIE, a British playwright, quickly learns that everybody is a critic as he tries to convince his three female muses that his new play about “star-crossed” lovers is terrific! The muses remind him of past works where he ignored their advice and of the unhappy outcomes each suffered as a result. (1M/3F) https://pwcenter.org/plays/amusing-willie/
"DRESS BLUES"
by Donald Loftus
An upper-class, extremely tough customer who is trying to stop her cheating husband’s roving eye from roving gets life-changing advice from what she was sure was a most unlikely source…a gay salesman at a Newbury Street boutique. Cast of 3 (2M/1F)
"EDDY & EDNA"
by Donald Loftus
A husband and wife in their late 70s struggle with issues of an aging mind. What is right and what is wrong...what is real and what is imagined...is entirely up to each member of the audience. Cast:3 (1F/2M)
"THE BROTHER'S GRIN"
by Donald Loftus
“THE BROTHER’S GRIN” is a two-character, ten-minute play about two middle-aged brothers. One brother is in serious trouble and comes, as he always does, to his sibling for help in the middle of the night. Throughout the first nine minutes, it appears to the audience that the troubled brother is an unscrupulous user with the moral fiber of an alley rat. In the end, the audience discovers it is, in fact, the “good” brother who has the darker soul. Cast:2M