From NKAA, Notable Kentucky African Americans Database (main entry)

Wolfe, George C.

(born: September 23, 1954) 

George C. Wolfe was born in Frankfort, KY. A director, writer, and producer, he has received numerous awards, including the Obie Award in 1990 for direction Spunk, a play based on three Zora Neale Hurston  stories, and the Tony Award for best director in 1993 for the first part of Angels in America, Millennium Approaches (part 1 of Angels in America): Wolfe was the first person of color to win the award for directing a "white" play. He also produced Paradise in 1985 (his first professionally produced play); see more in The New York Times, September 27, 1985,Section C, p. 24). He also wrote the books for the play The Colored Museum (1986) and the musical  Jelly's Last Jam. He has completed many other works.

Beginning in 1993, he was the producer and artistic director of the New York Shakespeare Festival (often called Shakespeare in the Park) and the Joseph Papp Public Theater.

In 2004, Wolfe moved from theater to film and produced Lakawanna Blues, based on a play written by Ruben Santiago-Hudson that debuted off broadway in 2001; Wolfe directed the 2005 award-winning motion picture version. His work and education have taken him to many locations, and he has lived in California and New York. He is the son of Costello and Anna M. Lindsey Swain Wolfe.

For more see The African American Almanac, 9th ed.; and Contemporary Theatre, Film, and Television. A biographical guide featuring performers... in the United States, Canada, Great Britain and the world, vol. 38. See photo images of George C. Wolfe on his facebook page. A more complete biography of George C. Wolfe is available at The History Makers and information on his works can be found in IMDb.

Kentucky County & Region

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Read about Frankfort, Kentucky in Wikipedia.

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Cite This NKAA Entry:

“Wolfe, George C.,” Notable Kentucky African Americans Database, accessed October 11, 2026, https://nkaa.uky.edu/nkaa/items/show/99.

Last modified: 2026-05-11 21:03:51