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Peter Ekstrom
Peter Ekstrom

Peter Ekstrom

Peter Ekstrom was born in Cleveland, Ohio and grew up in nearby Painesville. He received a B.A. from Antioch College in 1973. Five years later, he went down the Mississippi on a raft from St. Louis to New Orleans with the Otrabanda Troupe, stopping to do shows in 32 towns along the way.

For Actors Theatre of Louisville, he wrote the music and lyrics for Louisville Zoo, Matrimonium, Doctors and Diseases (all three in the Humana Festival) and Wild Nights. He also wrote The Gift of the Magi for Actors Theatre of Louisville, where it has been presented for the past 17 years. It has seen hundreds of productions at theatres across the country. Also for Actors Theatre of Louisville, Mr. Ekstrom has written musical scores for The Misanthrope, The Mystery of Irma Vep, The Tempest, As You Like It, King Lear, Romeo and Juliet, Anthony and Cleopatra and The Comedy of Errors.

His musical with Steve Hayes, Kiss Me Quick Before The Lava Reaches The Village, was presented by North Shore Music Theatre in Beverly, Massachusetts, by Musical Theatre Works at St. Peter’s Church, NYC, and was a smash hit in March 2000 at the Village Theatre in Issaquah, WA.

For the Barter Theater, he wrote The Last Leaf as a companion piece to Magi, and with Steve Hayes and David DeBoy, the musical romance Girl of My Dreams. With DeBoy, Mr. Ekstrom re-wrote Doctors and Diseases, which the Barter produced in 1996 in Virginia and off-Broadway in 1997 as Doctor! Doctor! (published by Samuel French, Inc.). It is in the process of being re-worked and re-titled Doctors and Diseases once again!

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