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Susan Schulman

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Susan Schulman BIO

Intent on a career as an actress, Schulman studied drama at Hofstra University in Hempstead, Long Island, New York in the 1960s. She attended Yale University on a playwrighting fellowship, graduating with a Master's Degree. While performing at the Buffalo Studio Arena Theatre, she was presented with her first opportunity to mount a production when the director of an adaptation of Wind in the Willows abruptly left the project.

She was the resident director for the Pittsburgh Civic Light Opera from 1981 to 1989. She became involved with several productions at the off-off-Broadway Equity Library Theatre in New York City, including directing A Little Night Music in 1985.

She directed the York Theatre Company production of Stephen Sondheim's Sweeney Todd in 1989, which Sondheim happened to see. Impressed by her work, he recommended her for the upcoming Broadway revival. She directed the 1989 Broadway revival, earning a Tony Award nomination as Best Director of a Musical. She then directed the 1991 musical version of The Secret Garden on Broadway, which garnered her a Drama Desk Award nomination for Outstanding Director of a Musical.

In 1994, she returned to the York Theatre Company to direct a revised version of Sondheim's Merrily We Roll Along, which won her an Obie Award.

For the New York City Center Encores! staged concerts, she directed Allegro in 1994,The Boys From Syracuse in 1997 and A Connecticut Yankee in 2001.

At Playwrights Horizons she directed Jack's Holiday in 1995 and Violet in 1997. She was nominated for the 1997 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Director of a Musical for Violet.

In 1998, Schulman had directed a Broadway revival of The Sound of Music when she was contacted by Andrew Lloyd Webber, who asked her to adapt a scaled-down production of Sunset Boulevard for a US tour starring Petula Clark. (A first attempt had been aborted due to exorbitant costs involved in transporting and time spent erecting the massive set.) The critically acclaimed run started in November 1998 in Pittsburgh and lasted seventeen months.

In 2005, Schulman returned to Broadway to direct a musical adaptation of the Louisa May Alcott story Little Women, starring Sutton Foster as Jo and pop singer Maureen McGovern as Marmee. Although the production drew many mothers and daughters, mostly lackluster reviews prevented it from becoming a hit, and it closed after a five-month run. Following the Broadway closing, the production toured the US for a year.

Schulman directed a musical adaptation of Peter Pan, set in contemporary times, with Kurt Browning in the title role, at the Elgin Theatre in Toronto, beginning in November 2007.

Schulman's work for the Stratford Festival of Canada includes Fiddler on the Roof, Man of La Mancha, The King and I (2003), The Music Man (2008), Hello, Dolly!, and a stage adaptation of To Kill a Mockingbird (2007). In summer 2008, under the auspices of the Festival, she conducted a two-week workshop of Clara's Piano, a blend of classical music and dance with music and lyrics by Neil Bartram and book by Brian Hill, based on Schulman's original concept.

She directed the musical I Do! I Do! at the Westport Country Playhouse, starring Kate Baldwin and Lewis Cleale in August 2010.

Schulman had been set to direct the new musical Stardust Road, based on the songs of Hoagy Carmichael at the St. James Theatre in London beginning in October 2015. However, that production has been postponed.

Susan Schulman Productions

 
[New York, 2005]
Director
 
[Off-Off-Broadway, 1980]
Director

Susan Schulman Awards and Nominations


winner
Obie Awards - 1995 - Direction

Susan Schulman, Merrily We Roll Along

Susan Schulman News


Stephen Bogardus, Lana Gordon & More to Star in World Premiere Musical ON CEDAR STREET at Berkshire Theatre Group


Get ready for the world premiere musical 'ON CEDAR STREET' at Berkshire Theatre Group, starring Stephen Bogardus and Lana Gordon. Experience the magic and unforgettable performances in this spectacular new production. Don't miss out on this enchanting musical event!

FAT HAM, TITANIQUE & More Win 2023 Off Broadway Alliance Awards


The Off Broadway Alliance, an organization of Off-Broadway producers, theaters, general managers, press agents, and marketing professionals, just announced the winners of the 12th Annual Off-Broadway Alliance Awards

Cast and Creative Team Announced for STARDUST ROAD at York Theatre Company


The York Theatre Company has announced the full cast and creative team for will the New York premiere of Hoagy Carmichael’s Stardust Road, conceived by Susan H. Schulman, Michael Lichtefeld, and Lawrence Yurman, developed with Hoagy Bix Carmichael, and featuring music by the legendary Hoagy Carmichael. 

Learn All About Irving Berlin's ANNIE GET YOUR GUN and Celebrate Broadway's Return with #NoBusinessLikeShowBusiness


Live theatre is officially back and Concord Theatricals is celebrating! 'There's No Business Like Show Business' is a digital celebration that launched just last month, marking the return of live theater and all of the incredible people who help to make it happen. The celebration coincides with the 75th anniversary of Irving Berlin's Annie Get Your Gun and its iconic showstopper 'There's No Business Like Show Business,' a song that has more resonance than ever this year.

THE QUEEN'S GAMBIT Will Be Adapted Into a Broadway Musical


The Queen’s Gambit tells the story of Beth Harmon, an orphan turned chess prodigy. The novel, published in 1983, depicts Beth’s journey from Kentucky to Paris to Moscow and beyond. It is a chronicle of a young woman’s struggle to overcome a broken past and the demons of addiction, set against the practices and prejudices of a male-centered world. 

PORTRAITS IN BLACK Will Be Presented By Theatre Wesleyan This November


Portraits In Black, a collection of scenes and monologues on the Black experience by Gus Edwards, will conclude Theatre Wesleyan's 'Six Plays At Six Feet' semester of fall programming. 

Stage Directors and Choreographers Society Endorses Joe Biden for President; First Presidential Endorsement in Union's History


Stage Directors and Choreographers Society has announced that the Union is endorsing Joe Biden in his 2020 bid for the presidency. This is the first time in the Union's 60-year history that it has endorsed a presidential candidate.

Photo Coverage: Inside the 2019 Off Broadway Alliance Awards Reception


The Off Broadway Alliance, an organization of Off Broadway producers, theaters, general managers, press agents, and marketing professionals announced the winners of the 9th Annual Off Broadway Alliance Awards, honoring commercial and not-for-profit productions that opened Off Broadway during the 2018-2019 season.

BWW Review: More Empathy for a Barbaric Monarch in the Touring KING AND I


Leaning toward spectacle and theatricality, Bartlett Sher's production of THE KING AND I took me by surprise with its emotional power.

Welcome to Their Rock- Meet the Cast of COME FROM AWAY!


Come From Away, the new musical based on the stories of those left stranded on airplanes during 9/11, opens tonight at the Gerald Shoenfeld Theatre. Get to know the cast before they take their opening bows.

BWW Interview: BULLETS OVER BROADWAY's Emma Stratton


Emma Stratton is a Minnesota native who'd taking the stage as Helen Sinclair in BULLETS OVER BROADWAY, the Midwest premiere of the musical based on the Woody Allen film. She answers 6 Questions but keeps the plug a secret in this interview.

Jo Bonney, Rachel Chavkin, Ruben Santiago-Hudson and Kathleen Marshall Join SDC Executive Board


On November 16, 2015, at the Annual Membership Meeting in New York City, SDC announced the results of the 2015 Executive Board Elections.

Annie Chadwick & Susan Schulman to Launch 'The NYC Theatrical Sourcebook' at The Drama Book Shop


The Drama Book Shop will host author and career coach Annie Chadwick to celebrate the launch of her new book, On Stage: The NYC Theatrical Sourcebook on Monday, November 16th, 2015 at 5:00pm. She will be joined by long-time theatrical press agent Susan L. Schulman, author of Backstage Pass to Broadway, one of Amazon's 100 best selling books on theatre.

Tony Nominee Andrew Rannells to Host SDCF's 'Mr. Abbott' Award Gala Honoring James Lapine


DC Foundation is pleased to announce that Andrew Rannells will host the "Mr. Abbott" Award Gala honoring James Lapine on Monday, October 19, 2015. The event will include special performances by Bernadette Peters, Christine Ebersole, Christian Borle, and Marin Mazzie with appearances by Stephen Sondheim, William Finn, and others. Directed by Leigh Silverman, the "Mr. Abbott" Award Gala will take place at Stage 48 (605 West 48th Street). The event will begin at 6:30 p.m.

Two Turns Theatre Company Presents I AM MY OWN WIFE, Now thru 10/4


Two Turns Theatre Company will present an intimate and freshly interpreted production of Doug Wright's Pulitzer and Tony Award-winning play, I Am My Own Wife, about the infamous German transvestite Charlotte von Mahlsdorf. Directed by Amy Corcoran and starring Drama Desk nominee Vince Gatton, the play will be performed in and among the furniture, art, clothing and taxidermy of RePOP (143 Roebling St., Brooklyn, NY 11211), Williamsburg's noted vintage shop. Performances begin tonight, September 23 and will run through October 4. I Am My Own Wife will perform Todays through Sundays at 7:30 p.m.

Two Turns Theatre Company to Present I AM MY OWN WIFE, 9/23-10/4


Two Turns Theatre Company will present an intimate and freshly interpreted production of Doug Wright's Pulitzer and Tony Award-winning play, I Am My Own Wife, about the infamous German transvestite Charlotte von Mahlsdorf. Directed by Amy Corcoran and starring Drama Desk nominee Vince Gatton, the play will be performed in and among the furniture, art, clothing and taxidermy of RePOP (143 Roebling St., Brooklyn, NY 11211), Williamsburg's noted vintage shop. Performances begin September 23 and will run through October 4. I Am My Own Wife will perform Wednesdays through Sundays at 7:30 p.m.

BWW Exclusive: Hugh Panaro Remembers Roger Rees, as Broadway Dims Its Lights Tonight in His Memory


Broadway recently lost one of its brightest in Roger Rees, the astonishing actor who landed on our shores at the beginning of the '80s with THE LIFE AND ADVENTURES OF NICHOLAS NICKELBY.

Walter Tevis Novels Now Available as eBooks


Iconic American author ?Walter Tevis (1928-1984) continues to endear new readers with the release his classic novels in eBook editions. In a deal brokered by Susan Schulman of Susan Schulman Literary Agency on behalf of The Walter Tevis Copyright Trust, and with the assistance of Associate Publisher Roger Cooper, RosettaBooks acquired the North American rights of Tevis' six novels and short story collection, led by The Man Who Fell to Earth and The Queen's Gambit.

Walter Tevis Announces Novels in eBook Format


NEW YORK, NY - Iconic American author Walter Tevis (1928-1984) continues to endear new readers with the release his classic novels in eBook editions. In a deal brokered by Susan Schulman of Susan Schulman Literary Agency on behalf of The Walter Tevis Copyright Trust, and with the assistance of Associate Publisher Roger Cooper, RosettaBooks acquired the North American rights of Tevis' six novels and short story collection, led by The Man Who Fell to Earth and The Queen's Gambit.

BWW Interview: Victoria Clark Returns to Her PIAZZA Past at Pace University, Preps for GIGI at the Kennedy Center and More!


Before Victoria Clark returns to Broadway next season as 'Mamita Alvarez' in Gigi, she heads back to school as the artist in residence at Pace University. Clark directs The Light in the Piazza, the show for which she picked up a Tony Award in 2005, running through November 8 at the Loretto Theatre at The Sheen Center. The Light in the Piazza, by Adam Guettel and Craig Lucas, is based on the novella of the same name by Elizabeth Spencer. Taking place in Italy in the late summer of 1953, it is the story of an American woman Margaret Johnson, who travels to Florence with her daughter Clara, who falls in love with a young Florentine man. As details emerge about Clara's past, their trip turns out to be very much a romantic and psychological journey as Margaret must decide what is best for her daughter, her family, and for herself. The winner of six Tony Awards in 2005, The Light in the Piazza has become one of the great classics of the American Musical Theater, with its lush score and cliff-hanger story. Clark took the time out of her busy schedule to update BroadwayWorld on her adventures in directing, revisiting PIAZZA, preparing for GIGI and more. Check out the full interview below!

Susan Schulman FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

What awards has Susan Schulman been nominated for?

Susan Schulman has been nominated for Direction at the Obie Awards for "Merrily We Roll Along."

What awards has Susan Schulman won?

Susan Schulman has won the Direction award at the Obie Awards for "Merrily We Roll Along."

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