Matthew Spangler: American Playwright Exploring the Immigrant Experience

Matthew Spangler is a playwright, director, and professor of performance studies at San José State University in the San Francisco Bay Area.   His adaptation of Khaled Hosseini’s novel The Kite Runner received five San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Critics’ Circle Awards: Best Original Script, Best Overall Production, as well as awards for Lighting Design, Scenic Design, and Sound Design (produced by the San Jose Repertory Theatre; directed by David Ira Goldstein).  Described as "a haunting tale of friendship which spans cultures and continents" The Kite Runner follows one man’s journey to confront his past and find redemption. "Afghanistan is a divided country on the verge of war and two childhood friends are about to be torn apart. It’s a beautiful afternoon in Kabul and the skies are full of the excitement and joy of a kite flying tournament. But neither Hassan or Amir can foresee the terrible incident which will shatter their lives forever." Hosseini’s original book has sold 31.5million copies worldwide and has been translated into 60 different languages. Now an A-Level set text, the show will appeal to students and those familiar with the story, as well as those discovering the powerful narrative for the first time. His other plays include Tortilla Curtain, adapted from the novel by T.C. Boyle, which received an Edgerton Foundation New American Play Award and was a finalist for the San Diego Theatre Critics’ Circle Award for Best New Play. The nominating committee wrote: “Matthew Spangler’s body of work is distinguished for the deep humanity and ethical sensibility he brings to life on stage and through his incisive scholarship. His work moves across boundaries of nationality, race, and culture to create narratives of compassion and empathy transcending difference.” Matthew Spangler receives the Leslie Irene Coger Award for Live Performance from the National Communication Association (2017)