- David Leveaux
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David Leveaux Born 13 December 1957
Leicester, England, United KingdomDavid Leveaux (born 13 December 1957)[1] is a British theatre director who has been nominated for five Tony Awards as director of both plays and musicals.[2] He directs both in the UK, working at the Royal Shakespeare Company, the Almeida Theatre, and the Donmar Warehouse, and on Broadway, and also in Tokyo.
Contents
Early life
Leveaux was born in Leicester and raised in Derby in the Midlands, the son of a cardiologist.[1] He read English language and literature at Manchester University.[3]
Career
In his early 20s, Leveaux became assistant to Peter Gill at Riverside Studios.[3] When the Studios became bankrupt he was one of a group who occupied the building illegally to keep it running until it was reestablished legitimately.[3] While taking a break in New York City, he discovered Eugene O'Neill's play, A Moon for the Misbegotten, and revived it at Riverside, starring Frances de la Tour and Ian Bannen. The production transferred to the West End and Broadway (1984).[3]
Subsequently he directed Therese Raquin at Chichester, Anna Christie in London and on Broadway, and Romeo and Juliet for the Royal Shakespeare Company. At the Almeida Theatre he directed Harold Pinter's No Man's Land, Moonlight, Betrayal and Neil LaBute's The Distance From Here (2002).[3][4]
He was Artistic Director of Theatre Project Tokyo, directing productions in Tokyo, including Electra (1995), Lulu (1999), Modern Noh Plays, The Changeling, Hedda Gabler, and Two Headed Eagle.[1][5]
He was associate director of the Donmar Warehouse, under Sam Mendes' artistic directorship. His revival of the musical Nine at Donmar in 1996 transferred to Broadway in 2003 with Antonio Banderas, where he received a nomination for the Tony Award, Best Direction of a Musical and the musical itself won the Tony Award as Best Revival of a Musical. He directed Electra (1997), for which Zoë Wanamaker received an Olivier Award.[6] He received the Olivier Award nomination for Best Director for his 1999 revival of Tom Stoppard's The Real Thing.[3][7]
In 2003 he revived Tom Stoppard's Jumpers for the Royal National Theatre in London. This then toured the UK regions before eventually transferring to Broadway in 2004.[3]
He recently directed Cyrano de Bergerac (2007) on Broadway, starring Kevin Kline, with Ben Brantley writing in The New York Times:
"Mr. Leveaux, the British director of the exquisite-looking Broadway productions of “Nine” and “Jumpers,” does pretty better than most of his peers, which is his blessing and his curse. (Even “Fiddler on the Roof,” in his hands, suggested a Vogue layout on Shtetl Chic.) He also has a strong sentimental streak, tempered by his aesthetic sense. He is the perfect man to bring “Cyrano” into the 21st century, presenting the play’s flowery sensibility without making audiences feel they’ve been doused in perfume."[8]
He is directing the first West End revival of Tom Stoppard's play Arcadia, opening in May 2009.[9]
Work
- Broadway
- Cyrano de Bergerac (2007)
- The Glass Menagerie (2005)
- Jumpers (2004) – Tony Award nomination, Best Direction of a Play
- Fiddler on the Roof (2004)
- Nine (2003) – Tony Award nomination, Best Direction of a Musical and Drama Desk Award nomination, Outstanding Director of a Musical
- Betrayal (2000)
- The Real Thing (2000) – Tony Award nomination, Best Direction of a Play
- Electra (1998)
- Anna Christie (1993) – Tony Award nomination, Best Direction of a Play
- A Moon for the Misbegotten (1984) – Tony Award nomination, Best Direction of a Play
- Donmar Warehouse
- The Real Thing – 1999 (transferred to the Albery Theatre, January 2000)
- Electra – (1997)
- Nine – (1996)
- Almeida Theatre
- The Distance From Here – (2002)
- No Man's Land – 1992 (transferred to Comedy Theatre, 1993)
- Moonlight – (1993)
- Betrayal – (1991)
- Backbeat (2011)[10].
References
- ^ a b c this source shows 1958:Biography filmreference.com, accessed May 9, 2009
- ^ "Leveaux listing for Tony Awards", tonyawards.com, accessed May 9, 2009
- ^ a b c d e f g '20 Questions With...David Leveaux', WhatsOnStage.com, 16 June 2003
- ^ Listing of Pinter plays, with production details haroldpinter.org, accessed May 10, 2009
- ^ Leveaux creditsNational Theatre New York, accessed May 9, 2009
- ^ Olivier Awards, 1998 albemarle-london.com, accessed May 9, 2009
- ^ Olivier Awards, 2000 albemarle-london.com, accessed May 9, 2009
- ^ Brantley, Ben.Rapier Wit and a Nose for Poetry",The New York TimesNovember 2, 2007
- ^ Lipton, Brian S."David Leveaux to Direct West End Revival of Tom Stoppard's Arcadia", theatermania.com, April 20, 2009
- ^ "Official Duke of York's Theatre Website", Ambassador Theatre Group, accessed August 22, 2011.
External links
Categories: 1957 births | English theatre directors | Living people | People from Leicester
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