American Conservatory Theater is an award-winning repertory company in San Francisco and constitutes an eminent part of the city's cultural scene. It has been a training ground for actors such as Rene Auberjonois and Annette Benning and presented new works by such acclaimed playwrights as August Wilson and Tom Stoppard. A.C.T. takes innovative approaches to its revivals of the classics. For example, a past, superb production of Tartuffe was updated to the American South, set in the 1950s, and featured a mostly African-American cast. Nearly all of their plays receive critical acclaim, such as the more recent The Quality of Life by Jane Anderson. Its annual musical version of A Christmas Carol is a San Francisco tradition.