Lyn Austin

LYN AUSTIN

AVANT-GARDE AVENGING ANGEL

1922-2000

Lyn Austin died near midnight on October 29th, just before All Hallow's Eve. She was accidentally struck by a taxi in New York City. Lyn was a brilliant producer of theater for 50 years, and the person who coined the term "music-theater." Her company, The Music-Theater Group, discovered and nurtured such celebrated artists as Martha Clarke, Julie Taymor and Bill Irwin (amidst many others). Her company received 20 Obie awards (one for sustained achievement over 30 years) and four of her artists received MacArthur "genius award" grants. She was the founder of the Lenox Arts Center in Stockbridge, MA and left a successful career as a Broadway producer to develop artists whose work was generally unclassifiable. I was the only artist she ever produced as a one-man show, and beyond that honor, it was the greatest experience of my career to have her champion my efforts. There will never be another like her.

Rest well my friend.

-Ben Robinson

(Above) Lyn Austin's note to Ben Robinson after he broke his nose and lacerated his face in rehearsal one week before opening in the Music-Theater Group's production of his first one-man show, Out Of Order, July 1988.

(Top & Bottom Right) Closing night photographs of Ms. Austin with Ben Robinson. The producer informs the artist of the future of the production.

Photographs by Jim Moore.