Steven Sater
Steven Sater is an American poet, playwright, lyricist, television writer, and screenwriter.
Life and career
Born in Evansville, Indiana, Sater attended Washington University in St. Louis as an undergraduate. Due to an apartment fire Sater was forced to jump from his balcony and damaged his spine, as well as several other limbs. The months spent recovering from his injuries and burns inspired Sater to teach himself Ancient Greek and seriously pursue the arts, and he went on to study English literature at Princeton University.
After completing his graduate program, Sater took a position with a New York literary agent, but continued to write plays on the side. It was during this time that he joined the Soka Gakkai International, a lay Nichiren Buddhist organization. His membership has proved important to his life beyond spirituality, as it brought Sater together with both his future wife, and his future creative partner, Duncan Sheik.
Soon after meeting, Sater collaborated with Sheik on his play Umbrage, with Sheik providing the music for Sater's lyrics. To produce Sheik's third studio album Phantom Moon, Sater gave Sheik lyrics and Sheik set them musically, cooperatively producing the album. They returned to stage to produce Nero at the Magic Theatre in San Francisco, California, with book and lyrics by Sater and music by Sheik. The project remains in active development, most recently workshopped with New York Stage and Film at the Powerhouse Theater at Vassar College in July 2008, starring Idina Menzel, Lea Michele, and Michael Arden, under the direction of Daniel Kramer.
