Ed Ballou

Ed Ballou is an American playwright whose writing career spans more than five decades. He began writing plays in 1970 while studying philosophy and later attended playwriting classes at San Jose State University. Alongside his writing, he worked in a variety of jobs and spent many years teaching.

Ballou has written approximately three dozen plays, ranging from comedy and historical drama to Gothic fantasy and works inspired by his own family history. Several have received productions in California and New York; The Glimmer, which Ballou considers one of his strongest works, was staged in San Francisco and Manhattan, including at the Roy Arias Spring Theatre Festival in New York. His work has been praised by actor Paul Loper for its “poetry” and rich layering of imagery and relationships.