Spiro Veloudos Steps Down as Producing Artistic Director of the Lyric Stage Company of Boston

Spiro Veloudos, legendary theatre director and Boston theatre icon, announced today that he is retiring from his role as Producing Artistic Director of the Lyric Stage Company of Boston.

"Ever since I started in this role in 1998, I promised to make the Lyric Stage ever more vibrant and to continually push my limits, producing shows that would challenge, entertain, and inspire our audiences. When I concluded my Sondheim Initiative with the production of Pacific Overtures this past spring, I took the summer off to contemplate what might be next, and I realized that it is time for me to focus solely on my work as a director and to let others manage the daily operations of the theatre and to guide it into the future. I am greatly looking forward to my productions of Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express this fall and A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder in the spring. And I hope that moving into this new chapter of my life will allow me more time to relax, enjoy being with friends and family, and focus more exclusively on my true love: directing."

During Veloudos' tenure, the Lyric Stage has won 40 Elliot Norton Awards, 69 Independent Reviewers of New England awards, and Veloudos himself has been the recipient of the StageSource Theatre Hero Award, the Elliot Norton Award for Sustained Excellence, and he was named Best Artistic Director by Boston Magazine. In 2017, Veloudos suffered a diabetes-related infection that caused him to lose his left leg below the knee. Undaunted, Veloudos celebrated his 20th season as Producing Artistic Director and directed Camelot that spring. He is now energetically following his passion for directing, and will be at the helm of two productions at the Lyric Stage this season.

The Lyric Stage Board of Directors has also announced that former Managing Director Matt Chapuran returned to the company on October 1 in the newly created position of Executive Director. Associate Artistic Director Courtney O'Connor will be serving as Acting Artistic Director.

Jo-An Heileman, Lyric Stage Board president, said, "We thank Spiro for his years of dedication and artistic achievements with the Lyric Stage. Over the last two decades, he has made the Lyric Stage into one of the most important and vibrant artistic institutions in Boston, providing intimate world-class theatre to nearly 40,000 audience members each season. We wish Spiro the absolute best on his continuing artistic journey. During Matt Chapuran's five seasons as Managing Director, the Lyric Stage staff and board were energized with ambitious ideas and a desire to more deeply serve the city of Boston and to collaborate with other Boston artistic institutions. We believe in this new expanded role of Executive Director, Matt will take the Lyric Stage to the next level."

Chapuran said, "Back in the mid-90s, I was an intern for an improvisational after-school program that Ron Ritchell and Polly Hogan had running at the Lyric Stage. It was my pleasure to be in Boston for the entirety of Spiro's run at the Lyric Stage, where he really transformed the Boston theatre scene for the better. He staunched the flood of theatrical talent from Boston to New York, and took on impressive musicals that no one else would have had the daring or wit to stage in our intimate theatre. Working at the Lyric Stage was a joyful experience for me, and I'm so happy to be able to give back to a company that has given me so much."