Meryl Streep to Speak at UMass Lowell

09/19/2013

Media contacts: Christine Gillette, 978-934-2209 or Christine_Gillette@uml.edu and Nancy Cicco, 978-934-4944 or Nancy_Cicco@uml.edu

LOWELL, Mass. – Meryl Streep, considered by many to be the greatest actress of this generation, will speak at UMass Lowell in the latest installment of the Chancellor’s Speaker Series.

Streep, an Academy Award winner whose acting career has spanned five decades and more than 100 roles, will take the stage at the Tsongas Center at UMass Lowell on Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2014. Details on the program and tickets, which will be available to the public as well as the university community, will be announced at a later date. Check www.uml.edu/streep for updates.

The UMass Lowell Chancellor’s Speaker Series was launched last December with “A Conversation with Stephen King,” which drew a capacity crowd of more than 3,000 people to see the author in a rare personal appearance. As with the King event, Streep’s program will be a benefit for student scholarships. It is co-sponsored by the UMass Lowell English Department’s Theatre Arts Program and the College of Fine Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences.

“We are grateful to have someone of Meryl Streep’s stature as the next participant in the UMass Lowell Chancellor’s Speaker Series, which brings people at the top of their fields to the university to speak to students and the community while helping to raise funds for scholarships,” said Chancellor Marty Meehan. 

Since her debut in a 1977 TV movie, Streep – who holds the record for the most Academy Award and Golden Globe Award acting nominations – has established herself as one of the most prolific actresses in history, appearing in more than 50 films, as well as numerous stage productions. One of her trademarks has been portraying real people, from British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in “Iron Lady” to French chef Julia Child in “Julie and Julia” to whistleblower Karen Silkwood in “Silkwood.” She is also known for her perfectionism in preparing for roles, learning to play the violin and mastering countless dialects and accents.

Her many other notable movies include “The Deer Hunter” and “Kramer vs. Kramer” in the 1970s, “The French Lieutenant’s Woman” and “Sophie’s Choice” in the 1980s, “Postcards from the Edge” and “The Bridges of Madison County in the 1990s and “Adaptation,” “The Devil Wears Prada” and “Mamma Mia!” in the 2000s. 

Streep continues to add to her credits, with three new films in production, including the screen adaptation of the Stephen Sondheim musical “Into the Woods,” and a fourth that will be in theaters later this year. 

Streep has been recognized with acting’s top honors, including three Oscars, eight Golden Globes (also a record), two Emmys, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, a Cannes Film Festival award, two British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) awards and five New York Film Critics Circle Awards. She has also been nominated for a Grammy five times and a Tony Award. She was the youngest actor in history to receive the American Film Institute’s AFI Life Achievement Award and a Kennedy Center Honor. In 2010, President Barack Obama presented her with the National Medal of Arts.