Oliver Mayer was born in Hollywood, California to Gloria and Alexander A. Mayer. His father, Alexander, was an American who worked as an Art Director with Universal Studios for more than 20 years before passing away, and his mother was a Mexican American who worked in nursing administration and had an influence over her son’s interest in theater as she wanted him to be an actor while he was a child. In 1978, at the age of 13, Mayer was taken to see the play Zoot Suit, which ultimately served to further inspire him to take up a career in play-writing. During his childhood, Mayer suffered from bullying and ultimately took up boxing as a means to cope with the pressure. He took weekly lessons between the ages of 13 and 17. He then went on to study English and vocal music at Cornell University, and spent his junior year abroad at the University of Oxford where he was inspired to receive a Master of Fine Artsin play writing from Columbia University. Mayer had his first work produced in 1985 at the age of 20 and returned to Los Angeles, California after college in 1989. He joined the faculty at the University of Southern California in 2003 and went on to spend seven years interviewing in order to become a professor with tenure.
Major works
''Yerma In The Desert''
Yerma in the Desert is one of Mayer’s more recent theatrical productions that premiered in Los Angeles, California at the Greenway Court Theatre and Urban Theatre Movement in mid-November, 2017. The piece focuses on a woman by the name of Yerma who is being denied romantic intimacy with and by her spouse, Juan, as she is tied to a loveless marriage by the prospect of having children. The play addresses gender equality in the professional sector, LGBTQ themes and deportations within the United States of America. Yerma in the Desert is an attempt to capture the message and subject of Federico Garcia Lorca’s play, Yerma, in a modern day setting as the production takes place within a university and is heavily focused on the custodial staff as opposed to the student body.
''Blade To The Heat'' and ''Members Only''
Among Mayer’s more notable works, Blade to the Heat, is a play that centers on two boxers respectively of Mexican American and Cuban heritage, Pedro Quinn and Mantequilla Decima. The work initially premiered in 1996 in Los Angeles, California directed by Ron Link and utilized music by Gloria Trevi. It addresses topics of drug trafficking and LGBTQ themes and is set in Sinaloa, Mexico. Additionally, Blade to the Heat was loosely inspired by Federico Garcia Lorca’s work, “Blood Wedding” and Mayer’s own experiences with boxing during his teenage years. The sequel to this piece, Members Only, is the most recent of Mayer’s theatrical productions and was a work in progress for over six years before performances began on October 25, 2018 at LATC 514 S. Spring Street Los Angeles, California.
