A director providing instruction

A theatre director or stage director is a practitioner in the theatre field who oversees and orchestrates the mounting of a theatre production (a play, an opera, a musical, or a devised piece of work) by unifying various endeavours and aspects of production. The director's function is to ensure the quality and completeness of theatre production and to lead the members of the creative team into realising their artistic vision for it. The director therefore collaborates with a team of creative individuals and other staff, coordinating research, stagecraft, costume design, props, lighting design, acting, set design, stage combat, and sound design for the production. If the production he or she is mounting is a new piece of writing or a (new) translation of a play, the director may also work with the playwright or translator. In contemporary theatre, after the playwright, the director is generally the primary visionary, making decisions on the artistic concept and interpretation of the play and its staging. Different directors occupy different places of authority and responsibility, depending on the structure and philosophy of individual theatre companies. Directors utilize a wide variety of techniques, philosophies, and levels of collaboration.

The director in theatre history[link]

In ancient Greece, the birthplace of European drama, the writer bore principal responsibility for the staging of his plays. Actors would generally be semi-professionals, and the playwright-director oversaw the mounting of plays from the writing process all the way through to their performances, often - as was the case for Aeschylus for instance - also acting in them. He would also train the chorus, sometimes compose the music and supervise every aspect of production. The term applied to him, didaskalos, the Greek word for "teacher," was indicative of how these early directors had to combine instruction of their performers with staging their work.^[1]

In Medieval times, the complexity of vernacular religious drama, with its large scale mystery plays that often included crowd scenes, processions and elaborate effects, gave the role of director (or stage manager or pageant master) considerable importance. A miniature by Jean Fouquet from 1460 (pictured) bares one of the earliest depictions of a director at work. Holding a prompt book, the central figure directs, with the aid of a long stick, the proceedings of the staging of a dramatization of the Martyrdom of Saint Appolonia. According to Fouquet, the director's tasks included overseeing the erecting of a stage and scenery (there were no permanent, purpose-built theatre structures at this time, and performances of vernacular drama mostly took place in the open air), casting and directing the actors (which included fining them for those that infringed rules), and addressing the audience at the beginning of each performance and after each intermission.^[2]

From Renaissance times up until the 19th century, the role of director was often carried by the so-called actor-manager. This would usually be a senior actor in a troupe who took the responsibility for choosing the repertoire of work, staging it and managing the company. This was the case for instance with Commedia dell'Arte companies and English actor-managers like Colley Cibber and David Garrick.

A portrait of Constantin Stanislavski by Valentin Serov

The modern theatre director can be said to have originated from the staging of elaborate spectacles of the Meininger Company, large scale theatre productions staged by Georg II, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen. The management of large numbers of extras and complex stagecraft matters necessitated an individual to take on the role of overall coordinator.^[3] This gave rise to the role of the director in modern theatre, and Germany would provide a platform for a generation of emerging visionary theatre directors, such as Erwin Piscator and Max Reinhardt. Simultaneously, Constantin Stanislavski, principally an actor-manager, would set up the Moscow Art Theatre in Russia and similarly emancipate the role of the director as artistic visionary.

The French regisseur is also sometimes used to mean a stage director. This is most common in ballet. A more common term for theatre director in French is metteur en scène.

Post World War II, the actor-manager slowly started to disappear, and directing become a fully fledged artistic activity within the theatre profession. The director originating artistic vision and concept, and realizing the staging of a production, became the norm rather than the exception. Great forces in the emancipation of theatre directing as a profession were notable 20th century theatre directors like Peter Brook, Peter Hall (Britain), Bertolt Brecht (Germany) and Giorgio Strehler (Italy).

A cautionary note was introduced by famed director Sir Tyrone Guthrie who said "the only way to learn how to direct a play, is ... to get a group of actors simple enough to allow you to let you direct them, and direct."^[Citation?]

A number of seminal works on directing and directors include Toby Cole and Helen Krich's 1972 "Directors on Directing:A Sourcebook of the Modern Theatre", Edward Braun's 1982 book "The Director and the Stage: From Naturalism to Growtowski" and Will's 1976 classic "The Director in a Changing Theatre".^[4]

Well-known theatre directors[link]

• (Derrick Goodwin) Britain/Canada/USA
• Simon Stone (Australia)
• John Caird (Great Britain)
• Constantin Stanislavski (Russia)
• Jophy Lane (Great Britain)

Directing education[link]

Because of the relatively late emergence of theatre directing as a performing arts profession when compared to for instance acting or musicianship, a rise of professional vocational training programmes in directing can be seen mostly in the second half of the 20th century. Most European countries nowadays know some form of professional directing training, usually at drama schools or conservatoires, or at universities. In Britain, the tradition that theatre directors emerge from degree courses (usually in English literature) at the Oxbridge universities has meant that for a long time, professional vocational training did not take place at drama schools or performing arts colleges, although an increase in training programmes for theatre directors can be witnessed since the 1970s and 1980s.

As with many other professions in the performing arts, theatre directors would often learn their skills "on the job"; to this purpose, theatres often employ trainee assistant directors or have in-house education schemes to train young theatre directors. Examples are the Royal National Theatre in London, that frequently organizes short directing courses, or the Orange Tree Theatre and the Donmar Warehouse on London's West End, which both employ resident assistant directors on a one-year basis for training purposes.

Styles of directing[link]

Directing is an artform that has grown with the development of theatre theory and theatre practice. With the emergence of new trends in theatre, so too have directors adopted new methodologies and engaged in new practices. Generally speaking, directors adopt a style of directing that falls into one or more of the following categories:^{[dubious – discuss]}

The dictator

In this style of directing, the director has a strongly assertive role and is very dominant in the process of creating a theatrical work. Rehearsals are more or less fully controlled and predictable, with the actors having little or no say.

The negotiator

'The negotiator' is a style of direction in which the director focuses on a more improvised and mediated form of rehearsal and creation, using the ideas of the production team and actors to shape a theatrical work in quite a democratic style.

The creative artist

The director sees himself or herself as a creative artist working with the 'materials' of dramatic creativity, be they the actors, designers and production team. The "creative artist" wants input from the actors but, as artist, has final say over what is included and how ideas are incorporated.

The confrontationalist

In this style of directing, the director is in constant dialogue and debate with the cast and the production team about creative decisions and interpretations. The director seeks out and actively engages in such exchanges. Out of these exchanges, which can sometimes be heated or risky, comes a final contested product.

Many contemporary directors use a creative amalgam of styles, depending on the genre of the theatrical work, the nature of the project and the type of cast.

Once a show has opened (premiered before a regular audience), theatre directors are generally considered to have fulfilled their function. From that point forward the stage manager is left in charge of all essential concerns.

See also[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

• INSTED: International Network for Students in Theatre Directing
• Working with amateurs
• Theatre directing, Chapter 11
• Stage Matrix
• Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers

David Cromer (born October 17, 1964) is an American theatre director and stage actor. He has received recognition for his work Off-Broadway and in his native Chicago. Cromer has won or been nominated for numerous awards, including winning the Lucille Lortel Award and Obie Award for his direction of Our Town.^[1] He was nominated for the Drama Desk Award and the Outer Critics Circle Award for his direction of The Adding Machine.^[2][3]

Biography[link]

Born the third of four sons to Richard and Louise Cromer, David was raised in Skokie, Illinois. He dropped out of high school his junior year (later acquiring a GED), and attended Columbia College Chicago.^[4]

He was nominated for or won the Joseph Jefferson Award for his work in Chicago productions, winning for Angels in America Parts I and II in 1998, The Price in 2002, and The Cider House Rules in 2003.^[5][6] In 2005, Cromer made his Off-Broadway debut directing Austin Pendleton's Orson's Shadow at the Barrow Street Theatre. The production originated at the Steppenwolf Theatre Company in Chicago.^[7] His 2008 production of a musical adaptation of The Adding Machine also moved to Off-Broadway from Chicago^[8] and received wide critical acclaim,^[9] receiving six Lucille Lortel Award nominations in the 2008 season, more than any other show.^[3] Cromer received a nomination for the 2008 Drama Desk Award, Outstanding Director of a Musical, for The Adding Machine.^[2] It is now being produced in regional theaters around the country.^[10]

In 2009, Cromer performed the role of the Stage Manager in an Off-Broadway revival of Our Town, which he also directed, at The Barrow Street Theatre.^[11] The production, which began in Chicago in 2008, has been acclaimed for its non-traditional elements.^[12] Cromer won the Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Director and the Obie Award, Directing for Our Town.^[13] In the wake of his Our Town success, The New York Times profiled Cromer, referring to "his suddenly thriving career [which] has etched him as a visionary wunderkind, a genius in a black cape with secrets up his billowing sleeves."^[4]

In October 2009, Cromer directed a short-lived Broadway revival of Brighton Beach Memoirs starring Noah Robbins, Santino Fontana, Laurie Metcalf, and Dennis Boutsikaris. (The planned production of Broadway Bound was cancelled.)^[14] He directed the Broadway revival of The House of Blue Leaves, which starred Ben Stiller and Edie Falco played a limited run in April 2011 to August 2011.^[15]

In Summer 2011, he directed A Streetcar Named Desire, with Jessica Hecht as Blanche, at the Williamstown Theater Festival.^[16]

He will direct the Broadway-bound musical Yank! by Joseph and David Zellnik.^[17] In 2010, he said of Yank!, "I'm hungrier to work on this than anything in recent memory."^[18] He was announced to direct a Broadway revival of Tennessee Williams' Sweet Bird of Youth starring Nicole Kidman and James Franco and set for Fall 2011, but in August 2011 the production was delayed and Franco dropped out; Cromer says it is "still on the drawing board".^[19]

He was named a 2010 MacArthur Fellow.^[20]

Cromer is openly gay.^[4]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Internet Off-Broadway Listing
• David Cromer at the Internet Broadway Database

Juliano Mer-Khamis
Juliano Mer-Khamis, 2009
Born	Juliano Khamis (1958-05-29)29 May 1958 Nazareth, Israel
Died	4 April 2011(2011-04-04) (aged 52) Jenin, West Bank
Cause of death	Assassination
Resting place	Kibbutz Ramot Menashe, Israel[1]
Occupation	Actor, director, activist
Years active	1984–2011

Juliano Mer-Khamis (Hebrew: ג'וליאנו מֵר ח'מיס‎‎, Arabic: جوليانو مير خميس‎; ‎29 May 1958 – 4 April 2011^[2]) was an Israeli actor, director, filmmaker and political activist of Jewish and Christian Arab parentage.^[3] On 4 April 2011, he was assassinated by a masked gunman in the Palestinian city of Jenin, where he established the Freedom Theatre.

Biography[link]

Juliano Khamis (later Mer-Khamis) was born in Nazareth, the son of Arna Mer-Khamis, a Jewish communist, and Saliba Khamis, an Israeli Arab of Palestinian Christian descent who was an intellectual as well as one of the leaders of the Israeli Communist Party in the 1950s. He had two brothers, Spartacus and Abir.^[4] His grandfather was Gideon Mer, a scientist who pioneered the study of malaria during the British Mandate.^[5] In his youth, he adopted his maternal surname, Mer, and served in the Israeli Defense Forces as a combat soldier in the Paratroopers Brigade.^[6] In a 2009 interview with Israel Army Radio, Mer-Khamis said of his background: "I am 100 percent Palestinian and 100 percent Jewish."^[7]

Mer-Khamis was married to Jenny, a Finnish activist he met in Haifa. They had a son, Jay, and were expecting the birth of twins at the time of his death.^[8]

Film and acting career[link]

Mer-Khamis's first film, The Little Drummer Girl, was an American thriller from 1984 directed by George Roy Hill and starring Diane Keaton, which dealt with the Israeli-Arab conflict. He starred in Avi Nesher's film, Za'am V'Tehilah (1985). Later he appeared in such Israeli films as 51 Bar (1985), Wedding in Galilee (1987), Tel Aviv Stories (1992), Zohar (1993), Under the Domim Tree (1994), and Overture 1812 (1997). He appeared in several films by Amos Gitai: Kedma, Esther (1986) and Kippur (2000).^[9]

In 2002, Mer-Khamis was nominated for the Ophir award for Best Actor for his role in Kedma.^[10] One of the last films in which he appeared was the Palestinian film Salt of this Sea (2008), which was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.

He performed on stage with Beit Lessin Theater and Habima Theatre. In 2003, he produced and directed his first documentary film, Arna's Children, together with Danniel Danniel. The film is about his mother's work to establish a children's theatre group in Jenin during the 1980s. Seven years after the death of his mother, and following the battle in Jenin in 2002, Mer-Khamis returned to Jenin to meet and interview the children who participated in the theater, and found out that some became militants and were killed.^{[citation needed]}

In 2006, following a wave of international support which was followed by his film, Mer-Khamis opened a community theater for children and adults in Jenin, called The Freedom Theatre.

The Freedom Theatre[link]

Juliano Mer-Khamis lying in state at the al-Midan Theatre, Haifa. The Arabic script on his picture reads shaheed al-ḥuriya, which means "Martyr for Freedom."

In 2006, Mer-Khamis established the Freedom Theatre along with Zakaria Zubeidi, a former military leader of the Jenin Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, Jonatan Stanczak, a Swedish-Israeli activist, and Dror Feiler, a Swedish-Israeli artist. The Freedom Theatre is a community theatre that provides opportunities for the children and youth of the Jenin Refugee Camp by developing skills, self-knowledge and confidence and using the creative process as a model for social change.^[11]

Assassination[link]

Mer-Khamis was shot by masked gunmen in front of the theater he founded in Jenin.^[12] He was rushed to the Jenin Hospital, where he was pronounced dead after his arrival.^[13] PA Prime Minister Salam Fayyad condemned the killing saying that "We cannot stand silent in the face of this ugly crime, it constitutes a grave violation that goes beyond all principles and human values and it contravenes with the customs and ethics of co-existence."^[14]

After being identified by the baby-sitter (who'd been in the car when the assassination occurred) in three separate line-ups, Palestinian police charged Mujahed Qaniri, from Jenin's refugee camp, with having carried out the murder. There are varying accounts of Qamiri's affiliation, some describe him as a former member of the al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades who defected to Hamas, but a Hamas spokesman has denied any involvement, describing this as a purely criminal incident.^[12][15]

On 19 April 2011, Adnan Dameery, spokesperson of the Palestinian Security Forces, reported DNA tests had exonerated a detained suspect and that the murderer was still at large.^[16]

Filmography[link]

Television and video[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Juliano Mer

• Juliano Mer-Khamis at the Internet Movie Database
• The Murder of an Actor/Activist – slideshow by Life magazine

Anne Bogart (born September 25, 1951) is a prolific and award-winning American theatre and opera director. She is currently one of the Artistic Directors of SITI Company, which she founded with Japanese director Tadashi Suzuki in 1992. She is a Professor at Columbia University where she runs the Graduate Directing Concentration and is the author of three books: A Director Prepares, The Viewpoints Book and And Then, You Act. Conversations with Anne, a collection of interviews she has conducted with various notable artists was published in March 2012.

Anne Bogart’s influence is felt throughout the contemporary theatre: through the widespread use of SITI’s training methods of Viewpoints and Suzuki, her oeuvre of groundbreaking productions, and her guidance at Columbia University of such diverse talents as Pavol Liska, Diane Paulus, Kim Weild, Jay Sheib, Darko Tresnjak and many others. In addition to her books and essays, she publishes a monthly essay for her blog on SITI Company’s website http://siti.groupsite.com/blog.

Life and Career[link]

Anne Bogart earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from Bard College in 1974, followed by a Master of Arts degree from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts in 1977. She served as Artistic Director of the Trinity Repertory Company for its 1989-90 season. From 1990-92 she was president of TCG (Theater Communications Group). In 1992 together with Tadashi Suzuki she founded SITI Company with a mission to create new work, to train young theatre artists and to encourage international collaboration. She has served as SITI Company’s Artistic Director since 1992 and since 2011 she shares the leadership with Company members Ellen Lauren and Leon Ingulsrud.

From 1987 - 1992 Anne Bogart served as the Artistic Director of Via Theater. Founded by Bogart and Brian Jucha, Via Theater created a number of highly regarded productions in New York City including Assimil, No Plays, No Poetry, and Cinderella/Cendrillion. The company led workshops and residencies around the United States.

Between 1980 and 1992, Anne Bogart taught at the Max Reinhart Academy, The Bern Conservatory, The University of Alaska, Bennington College, The American Center (Paris, France), Williams College, New York University, University of California at San Diego, and Playwrights Horizons Theater School. Since 1993 she has served as a Professor at Columbia University where she heads the Graduate Directing Program.

Since 1992 Anne Bogart has taught in residencies around the world and given workshops and master classes at institutions as diverse as La Mama, Umbria, the Abbey Theatre in Dublin, Ireland, many US universities and colleges, as well as theaters and conservatories on many continents. Her skills as a speaker and public intellectual have garnered her over 50 speaking engagements since 1988.

Anne Bogart has written A Director Prepares, And Then, You Act and co-authored The Viewpoints Book with Tina Landau, in which she outlines her theories of and approaches to making theatre. Shorter works have appeared in The Humana Festival – The Complete Plays (1996 and 1999), American Theater Magazine and The Drama Review.

In Anne Bogart: Viewpoints drama critic Mel Gussow refers to Bogart as “a director of the present moment and, one might add, the prescient moment. Relentlessly she searches for imaginative ways to renew the theatrical experience, to make it more relevant for herself and those who are receiving it.”

Anne Bogart is the granddaughter of Admiral Raymond Ames Spruance, Commander of Task Force 16 and later the overall commander of US Naval Forces at the pivotal Battle of Midway.

Anne Bogart is married to Rena Chelouche Fogel.

Viewpoints and Suzuki[link]

After working together with Mary Overlie at NYU in 1979, Bogart developed a version of an improvisational, ensemble-building technique called Viewpoints, based on Overlie's Six View Points of dance. Coupled with Suzuki, the intense physical acting training developed by Tadashi Suzuki and his Company, SCOT, SITI Company’s training methods have become widespread tools of theatre instruction with classes of various levels taught in Universities and colleges across the United States and in seasonal intensives led by SITI Company members in New York City, Saratoga Springs, NY and in cities around the world.

Awards and Recognition[link]

Anne Bogart has won two Best Director Obie Awards, one for No Plays No Poetry But Philosophical Reflections Practical Instructions Provocative Opinions and Pointers From a Noted Critic and Playwright (1988) based on the theories of Bertolt Brecht and the other for Paula Vogel’s The Baltimore Waltz (1990). In 1984 she was also honored with the Bessie Award for Choreographer/Creator for her work with South Pacific. In 1995 Bogart received an ATHE Career achievement award and in 2005 was honored with and American Theatre Wing award. In 1998 Bogart received a grant from the Pew Charitable Trusts. In 2000 she received a Guggenheim Fellowship and in 2006 she was awarded a US Artists Fellowship. She has received University awards from institutions around the world the country including Trinity College, Emory University, Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, Bard College, City University of New York, and the Yale Dramatic Association. In 2011 she received an Honorary Doctorate from Skidmore College. In 2012 she was one of the recipients of the inaugural round of Doris Duke Performing Artist Awards.

Productions[link]

Café Variations - by Charles L. Mee Jr., music by George and Ira Gershwin, a co-production with SITI Company and ArtsEmerson, Boston. (April 2012)

Carmen – opera by Georges Bizet, Glimmerglass Opera, New York. (July 2011)

Trojan Women – adapted from Euripides by Jocelyn Clarke, The Getty Villa. (August 2011)

American Document, by Charles L. Mee Jr., premiered at the Joyce in New York City – a co-production with SITI Company and the Martha Graham Dance Company. (2010)

Antigone, by Jocelyn Clarke, premiered at the Getty Villa, Los Angeles. (2009)

Under Construction, by Charles L. Mee Jr. premiered at the Humana Festival and toured to Arizona and the Krannert Center in Illinois. (2009)

Freshwater, a Comedy, by Virginia Woolf, a co-production with SITI Company and the Women's Project, NYC (2009)

I Capuleti e i Montecchi, an opera by Vincenzo Bellini, Glimmerglass Opera, NY. (2008)

Who Do You Think You Are, devised with SITI Company, premiered at Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona. (2008)

Dead Man’s Cell Phone, by Sarah Ruhl premiered at Playwrights Horizons in New York City. (2008)

Radio Macbeth adapted from William Shakespeare, premiered at the Wexner Center for the Arts in Columbus, Ohio. Also performed at the Public Theatre, New York City, the International Festival of Arts and Ideas in Connecticut and the Dublin Theatre Festival. (2007)

Hotel Cassiopeia by Charles L. Mee Jr. with SITI Company premiered at the Actors Theatre of Louisville Humana Festival of New American Plays. Toured to Chicago, University of Arizona, SUNY Purchase and BAM (2006)

An Evening with Sarah Bernhardt performed at the Jewish Museum in New York City featuring Cherry Jones, Debra Winger, Lauren Flanigan, Lynn Cohen, Ellen Lauren and others. (2005)

For Saxophone by Sophie Treadwell premiered at Arena Stage in Washington, DC. (2005)

Death and the Ploughman written by Johannes von Seas in 1401, a co-production of the SITI Company and the Wexner Center premiered at the Wexner Center in Columbus, Ohio. (2004)

A Midsummer Night's Dream by William Shakespeare with the SITI Company, San Jose Repertory Company in San Jose, California. (2004)

Nicolas and Alexandra, a new opera by Deborah Drattell at the Los Angeles Opera, featuring Placido Domingo as Rasputin, the SITI Company, conducted by Rostropovich. (2003)

Marina, a Captive Spirit, a new opera by Deborah Drattell, American Opera Projects, premiere May 1 at the Daryl Roth 2 Theater in NYC. (2003)

La Dispute by Pierre Marivaux at the American Repertory Theater with SITI Company, February in Cambridge, MA. (2003)

Short Stories an original theater piece developed with the Kaleidosckop Theater Company in Copenhagen, Denmark. (2002)

Score by Jocelyn Clarke, a co-production with the SITI Company, the Wexner Center and the Humana Festival. (2002)

Hay Fever by Noël Coward, a co-production with the SITI Company and Actors Theatre of Louisville. January 3, 2002, in Louisville, Kentucky. (2002)

Lilith, a new opera by Deborah Drattell, New York City Opera, premiere. (2001)

bobrauchesnbergamerica, by Charles L. Mee Jr., at the Human Festival of New American Plays. Later toured to Stamford, CT. and Chicago, Ill., BAM Next Wave Festival and the Bonn Biennale (2001).

Room, by Jocelyn Clarke created in collaboration with the SITI Company at the Wexner Center in Columbus, Ohio and City Theatre in Pittsburgh, Ohio. In 2001-2003 seasons toured to Seattle, Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York City’s Classic Stage Company, and Theater Emory in Atlanta, Georgia. (2000)

War of the Worlds, by Naomi Iizuka, at the Humana Festival of New American Plays and toured to Edinburgh, Scotland and opened the Brooklyn Academy of Music Next Wave Festival, Oct. 4-8th in New York. (2000)

Radio Play The Radio Play: War of the Worlds by Howard Koch, December 1999 at Joe's Pub and the West Bank, in New York City. Also the Kennedy Center in February 2000. (1999)

Gertrude and Alice, by Lola Pasholinski and Linda Chapman, May, 1999 at the Signature Theater in New York City. Also performed in Manchester, England.

Short Stories created and performed at the Mozarteum in Salzburg, Austria, May 1999. Also toured to Charlesville, France.

Songs and Stories from Moby Dick, (co-direction with Laurie Anderson) by Laurie Anderson. Opened the Brooklyn Academy of Music 1999-2000 season and toured nationally and internationally.

Cabin Pressure, created in collaboration with the SITI Company, opened March 18, 1999, at the Humana Festival of New American Plays in Louisville, Kentucky. Toured to the Columbus, Ohio; Chicago, Illinois; Miami, Florida; and Los Angeles, California.

Alice’s Adventures Underground, written by Jocelyn Clarke and created in collaboration with the SITI Company at the Wexner Center in Columbus, Ohio. Subsequent performances in New York City and Massachusetts (1998)

Bob written with Jocelyn Clarke, performed by the SITI Company at New York Theatre Workshop, New York City and The Wexner Center in Columbus, Ohio. Toured to Berlin, Paris, Tbilisi, Dublin, Minneapolis, Seattle, Chicago, Portland^{[disambiguation needed ]}, Amsterdam, London and upcoming, 2002, in San Francisco. (1998)

Private Lives, by Noël Coward, performed by the SITI Company at Actors’ Theatre of Louisville, Kentucky. (1998)

Culture of Desire created in collaboration with the SITI Company, performed at City Theatre in Pittsburgh, Portland Stage in Maine, the International Theater Festival in Bogota, Colombia and ran for one month at New York Theatre Workshop. (1997)

American Silents, original work performed at Raw Space in New York City, produced by Columbia University in May 1997.

The Seven Deadly Sins, by Kurt Weill and Bertolt Brecht, at New York City Opera. (1997) Reprised in New York in Sept and Oct 1998.

Miss Julie, by August Strindberg, Actors Theatre of Louisville and performed by the SITI Company. (1997)

Go, Go, Go by Juliana Francis at PS 122, New York City. (1996)=

Going, Going, Gone created in collaboration with the SITI Company, performed at the Humana Festival of New American Plays in Louisville, Saratoga Springs, NY, Toga, Japan, the Magic Theatre in San Francisco and the Miller Theatre, New York City. (1996)

The Adding Machine by Elmer Rice, Actors Theater of Louisville, KY. (1995)

Small Lives/Big Dreams created in collaboration with the SITI Company, based on the five major plays of Anton Chekhov, performed In Toga Japan, Saratoga Springs, NY, Louisville KY, P.S. 122 in New York City, the 1996 Olympic Arts Festival in Atlanta Georgia, and the Miller Theater, New York City. (1994)

Hot 'N Throbbing by Paula Vogel at the American Repertory Theater in Cambridge, MA. (1994)

Marathon Dancing by Anne Bogart, Laura Harrington and Christopher Drobney at En Garde Arts, New York City. (1994)

The Medium created in collaboration with the SITI Company, Toga, Japan, Saratoga Springs, NY, New York Theater Workshop, NY, Louisville KY, San Francisco, Dublin, Ireland (won best foreign production), City Theater in Pittsburgh, PA, The Wexner Center, Columbus, OH and the Miller Theater, New York City. (1993)

The Women by Claire Boothe Luce, Hartford Stage, Hartford, CT. (1993)

Picnic by William Inge, Actors Theater Of Louisville, Louisville, KY. (1993)

Orestes by Charles L. Mee Jr., The Saratoga International Theater Institute, Saratoga Springs, N.Y. and Toga-mura, Japan. (1993)

The Women by Claire Boothe Luce, San Diego Rep, San Diego, Ca. (1993)

American Vaudeville by Anne Bogart and Tina Landau, Alley Theatre, Houston, TX. (1993)

The Baltimore Waltz by Paula Vogel, Circle Rep, New York, N.Y. and the Alley Theater, Houston TX. (1993)

In the Jungle of Cities by Bertolt Brecht at the Public Theater, New York, N.Y. (1991)

Another Person is a Foreign Country by Charles L. Mee Jr., En Garde Arts, New York, N.Y. (1991)

In The Eye of the Hurricane by Eduardo Machado, Actors Theater of Louisville, Louisville, K.Y. (1991)

Once in a Lifetime by Kaufman and Hart, ART, Cambridge, MA. (1990)

On the Town by Bernstein, Comden and Green, Trinity Repertory Company, Providence, RI. (1990)

Summerfolk by Maxim Gorky. Trinity Repertory Company, Providence, RI. (1989)

Life is a Dream by Calderón de la Barca, American Repertory Theater, Cambridge, MA. (1989)

Strindberg Sonata based on the works of August Strindberg. Developed and performed at UCSD at the Mandell Weiss Center for the Performing Arts, La Jolla, CA. (1989)

Once in a Lifetime by Kaufman and Hart. River Arts Repertory, Woodstock, NY. (1988)

Kaetchen von Heilbronn by Heinrich von Kleist, ART Institute, Cambridge, MA. (1988)

No Plays, No Poetry adapted from the theoretical writings of Bertolt Brecht. Produced by Via Theater, The Talking Band and Otrabanda Company. Ohio Theater. (1988)

Cinderella/Cendrillon adapted from the opera “Cendrillon” by Jules Massenet, text by Eve Ensler. Via Theater and Music-Theatre Group, St. Clement’s Church, NY. (1988)

Assimil original dance theater work produced by Via Theater and the Danspace Project at St. Mark’s Church, NY. (1987)

In His Eightieth Year by Gillian Richards. Produced by BACA Downtown and Cement Theater, Brooklyn, NY. (1987)

Where's Dick? An opera by Stuart Wallace and Michael Korie.Opera Omaha, Nebraska. (1987)

Babel, an original work performed by the Theater zum Westlischen Stadhirschen (Berlin), produced by West Berlin’s 750 year Festival in four locations in West Berlin. (1987)

The Dispute by Pierre Marivaux. UCSD at the Mandell Weiss Center for the Performing Arts, La Jolla, CA. (1987)

Danton's Death by Georg Büchner, NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, NY. (1986)

Cleveland by Mac Wellman. BACA Downtown, Brooklyn, NY. (1986)

Between Wind by Jessica Litwak. Music-Theatre Group, Stockbridge, MA. (1986)

1951 written with Mac Wellman. New York Theatre Workshop, NY. (1986)

1951 written with Mac Wellman. UCSD, La Jolla, CA. (1986)

1951, Les Traces American Center, Paris, France. (1986)

The Making of Americans based on the novel by Gertrude Stein, music by Al Carmines, libretto by Leon Katz. Music-Theatre Group, Stockbridge, MA and St. Clement’s Church, NY. (1985)

Four One Act Operas by new composers, Houston Grand Opera, Houston, Texas. (1985)

The Women by Claire Booth Luce. Bennington College, Bennington, Vermont. (1985)

Albanian Softshoe by Mac Wellman. River Arts Repertory, Woodstock, NY. (1985)

Spring Awakening by Frank Wedekind, with music by Lieber and Stoller. NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, NY. (1984)

South Pacific by Rodgers and Hammerstein. NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, NY. (1984)

Inge: How They Got There based on texts by William Inge, co-directed with John Bernd. Performance Space 122, NY. (1984)

History, an American Dream, an original dance theater piece. Danspace Project at St. Mark’s Church, NY. (1983)

Grid, an original theater piece. Werkhaus Mosach, Munich, West Germany. Toured to Italy, Germany and Austria. (1983)

Sommer Nachts Traum/Lost and Found, an original dance theater piece. Munich Theater Festival, West Germany. (1983)

At the Bottom, an adaptation of “The Lower Depths” by Maxim Gorky. New York University’s Experimental Theater Wing, NY. (1983)

Cordial Panic, three plays by Noël Coward, performed simultaneously. University of the Streets, NY. (1983)

Women and Men, A Big Dance, an original dance theater piece. P.S. 122, NY. (1982)

The Ground Floor and Other Stories, an original theater piece. University if the Streets, NY. (1982)

Small Town/Big Dreams, an original dance theater piece. Dance Gallery, Northampton, MA. (1982)

Sehnsucht, an adaptation of “A Streetcar Named Desire” by Tennessee Williams. Abia Theater, Northampton, MA. (1982)

Die Gier Nach Banalem, an original theater work. Theater am Montag, Bern, Switzerland. (1982)

Between the Delicate, an original theater work. Theater am Montag, Bern, Switzerland. (1982)

Leb Oder Tot, an original theater work. Hochschule de Kunste, Berlin, West Germany. (1981)

I’m Starting Over, I’m Starting Over Again, an original theater work. August Moon Arts Festival, Catskill, NY. (1981)

Exposed!, an original theater work based on the works of Alfred Hitchcock. New York University’s Experimental Theater Wing, NY. (1981)

Dance on the Volcano, an original theater work. New York University’s Experimental Theater Wing, NY. (1981)

The Emissions Project, an original conception involving a new piece each week performed as a soap opera in different locations in New York City. (1980)

Artourist, an original dance theater work, co-directed with Mary Overlie. New York University’s Experimental Theater Wing, NY. (1980)

Out of Sync, an adaptation of Anton Chekhov’s “The Seagull”. Self-produced in New York City.

Hauptstadt, an original theater work. NYU’s Experimental Theater Wing, NY. (1979)

Inhabitat, an original theater work self produced in New York City. (1978)

RD1, The Waves, an adaptation of Virginia Wolf’s “The Waves”. Co-produced by Theater for the New City and The Iowa Theater Lab. Performed in New York, Canada, California, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania. (1977)

Two Portraits by Deirdre O'Connell. New York and San Francisco. (1976)

Macbeth, a deconstruction of Shakespeare’s play. The Brook, New York. (1976)

Publications[link]

Conversations with Anne – Published by TCG Publications, New York, 2012

And Then You Act; Making Art in an Unpredictable World – Published by Routledge, London, 2007

The Viewpoints Book; A Practical Guidebook to Viewpoints and Composition – co-written with Tina Landau, published by TCG Publications, New York, 2005

A Director Prepares; seven essays on art and theater - Published by Routledge, London, 2001.

Notes on Cabin Pressure – in The Humana Festival – The Complete Plays, Smith and Kraus, 1999

American Theater in the Twenties, in 500 Years of Theater History from the Brown-Forman Classics in Context Festival at Actors Theatre of Louisville, Smith and Kraus, 1999.

Going, Going Gone: An Article – in The Humana Festival – The Complete Plays, Smith and Kraus 1996.

Terror, Disorientation and Difficulty, Anne Bogart, Viewpoints, Smith and Kraus, 1995

American Theater Magazine - several frontispiece articles.

The Drama Review - A theater manifesto published in1980.

References[link]

• Bogart, Anne. 2001. A Director Prepares: Seven Essays on Art and Theatre. London: Routledge. ISBN 0-415-23832-3.

• Bogart, Anne. 2007. And Then, You Act: Making Art in an Unpredictable World. London: Routledge. ISBN 0-415-41142-4.

• Bogart, Anne and Tina Landau. 2005. The Viewpoints Book: A Practical Guide to Viewpoints and Composition. New York: Theatre Communications Group.ISBN 1-55936-241-3.

• Dixon, Michael Bigelow and Joel A. Smith, eds. 1995. Anne Bogart: Viewpoints. Career Development Ser. Lyme, NH: Smith and Kraus. ISBN 1-880399-94-6.

• Lampe, Eelka. 2001. "SITI - A Site of Stillness and Surprise: Ann [sic] Bogart's Viewpoints Training Meets Tadashi Suzuki's Method of Actor Training." InPerformer Training: Developments Across Cultures. Ed. Ian Watson. Contemporary Theatre Studies Ser. London: Harwood Academic Publishers. ISBN 90-5755-151-9. p. 171-189.

Casey Nicholaw (born 1962) is an American theatre director, choreographer and performer. He has been nominated for Tony Awards for directing and choreographing The Drowsy Chaperone (2006), for choreographing Monty Python's Spamalot (2005), and choreographing The Book of Mormon (2011), as well as winning for his co-direction the latter with Trey Parker. He also was nominated for the Drama Desk Awards for Outstanding Direction and Choreography for The Drowsy Chaperone (2006), and for Outstanding Choreography for Spamalot (2005).^[1]

Biography[link]

The oldest of three children, Nicholaw grew up in San Diego, California and performed in community theatre there as a teenager.^[2] He graduated from Clairemont High School in 1980 and attended the University of California, Los Angeles.

Career[link]

On Broadway, Nicholaw has directed and choreographed The Drowsy Chaperone (2006), choreographed Spamalot (2005) and directed To Be or Not to Be, which opened October 2, 2008, for the Manhattan Theatre Club.^[3] He has been nominated for both Tony Awards and Drama Desk Awards for his Broadway work.^[1] As a performer, he played the role of Junior and other roles in Crazy For You (1992–94); played Wall Street Wolf and other roles in The Best Little Whorehouse Goes Public (1994); played Gregor, Juke and other roles in Victor/Victoria (1995–97), played Corky, Luke and other roles in Steel Pier (1997); understudied and performed as Neville in The Scarlet Pimpernel (1999); played the role of Frank Manero in Saturday Night Fever (1999–2000); understudied the role of Horton and other roles in Seussical (2000–01); and played the role of Dexter, among other roles, in Thoroughly Modern Millie (2002–04). He can be heard on the cast album of most of these musicals.^[4]