Gabriel Barre

Gabriel Barre is an American director and actor. Best known for creating original musicals, his work has been seen on Broadway, throughout the United States, and across four continents internationally.

Gabriel directed the Broadway production of Amazing Grace, which also toured the country and was a sit-down production at the new Museum of the Bible in Washington, DC in 2019. In New York City, he is known for his off-Broadway work: he directed the original production of Andrew Lippa’s, The Wild Party at the Manhattan Theatre Club starring Idina Menzel, Taye Diggs, Brian Darcy James and Julia Murney. He was awarded the Calloway Award for Best Direction, and was nominated for five Outer Critics Circle Awards and thirteen Drama Desk Awards, both including Best Direction of a Musical. He directed the original production of John Cariani’s Almost, Maine at the Daryl Roth Theatre, which has become one of the most frequently produced plays in the United States with over 4000 productions to date. It has been translated into a dozen languages and recently unseated Shakespeare as the most produced play in North American high schools. Other Off-Broadway productions include a new adaptation of Cyrano De Bergerac at the St. Clement’s Theatre, using the Anthony Burgess translation, brought to life by a cast of only eight actors and featuring direction by Barre (who also appeared in the leading role), action direction by Rick Sordelet and an original musical score by Alexander Sovronsky, performed live, by the actor/musician cast. He also directed the original productions of Summer of ’42 at the Variety Arts Theatre, Honky Tonk Highway at Don’t Tell Mama (winner of a MAC Award and Bistro Award for Best Review), Stars in Your Eyes at the Cherry Lane Theatre, Andrew Lippa’s, john & jen at the Lamb’s Theatre and Son Of A Gun at the Samuel Beckett Theater.

Nationally, he directed the US national tour of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s, Cinderella, starring Eartha Kitt, which performed at NYC’s Madison Square Garden; it toured and played regionally in the US for three years. He also directed the national tour of Pippin, which originated at the Goodspeed Opera House in Connecticut and played throughout the US and Canada. In 2015 he created the widely acclaimed new Stephen Schwartz musical Magic to Do for Princess Cruise Lines which is still running on 3 international vessels, and plans are being launched to bring the show to land in the form of a US National Tour.

His concert work includes the American Songbook Series at Lincoln Center three years in a row, several Musical by the Year concerts at Town Hall, the concert version of Pippin for World Aids Day, and The Four Seasons at Lincoln Center. Most recently he directed a concert of The Scarlet Pimpernel at Lincoln Center in 2019 with Manhattan Concert Productions.

Regionally he directed A Sign of the Times, a jukebox musical of Petula Clark music, written by Bruce Villanch and starring Chilina Kennedy, which made its world premiere at the Delaware Theatre Company in Wilmington, Delaware. Other regional credits include the world premiere production of Memphis at the North Shore Music Theatre in Boston. It also played at Theatreworks in Palo Alto, CA where it was the winner of the San Francisco Bay Area Critics Association Award for Best Direction. At the Goodspeed Opera House, he recently directed a non replica production of Billy Elliot, the revivals of Sweeney Todd (winner of four Connecticut Critics Circle Awards including Best Musical and Best Direction of a Musical), Finian's Rainbow (nominated for five Connecticut Critics Circle Awards), King of Hearts, the new musical, Houdini, which he remounted at the Marriott-Lincolnshire Theatre in Chicago, as well as many other new musicals including Fanny Hill, Dorian and Frank Wildhorn's Camille Claudel, starring Linda Eder.

Other musicals include Little Shop of Horrors and Flower Drum Song at the American Musical Theatre of San Jose, Time After Time at the Pittsburgh Playhouse, Hair and The Who's Tommy at the Connecticut Repertory Theatre; Freaky Friday, Camelot, and the world premiere of Tom Jones (winner of Independent Reviewers of New England Award for Best Direction) at North Shore Music Theatre, Camelot and Sweeney Todd at Casa Mañana in Texas, West Side Story at Pioneer Theatre in Utah, Tick, Tick... Boom! at the Adirondack Theatre Festival, Stand By Your Man, which played at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville for two years and All About Us, written by Kander and Ebb based on the play "The Skin of Our Teeth", at the Westport Playhouse. He directed the critically acclaimed productions of Private Lives at the Seattle Repertory Theatre, Love's Labours Lost at CRT, as well as Hay Fever and Pericles at the Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey. He has also spent many summers with the O'Neill Theatre Center developing new pieces.

Internationally, Gabe directed the world premiere of Frank Wildhorn’s adaptation of Carmen, which just celebrated its 11th year anniversary of a sold-out run at the Karlin Theater in Prague, Czech Republic, starring Lucie Bila. It was also filmed in 3D and commercially released throughout the Czech Republic. Also, at the Karlin, he mounted large-scale non replica revivals of the musicals Jesus Christ Superstar and the Czech premiere of Elton John’s Aida. He most recently directed the world premiere of a new Czech musical about Sherlock Holmes: Holmes, The Legend, written by Ondrej Brzobohaty, in 2018.

In Asia, he directed the world premiere of the Frank Wildhorn musical Tears of Heaven (nominated for eight Musical Awards including Best Direction) at the National Theatre in Seoul, South Korea. In Japan, he directed the Umeda Art’s Theatre production of Frank Wildhorn’s The Scarlet Pimpernel, which was their coed premiere. The production went on to be revived the following year, after successfully touring Osaka and Tokyo. He also participated as a guest artist director with American Voices in Bangkok, Thailand. In China, Gabe has worked on numerous projects, including Monkey King at the Water Cube, and is currently developing three shows there - one about the Wulanmuqii Dance Troupe in Inner Mongolia, as well as a new musical about the Silk Road to be produced in Xi’an, China, set to open in 2020 at a theatre currently being built for the show. He is also currently working with Rupert Holmes on adapting Geling Yan's novel, Flowers of War, into a new musical, with the hopes of opening in China, followed by a Broadway run.

In Mexico, he directed the non-replica Mexican premiere production of Billy Elliot, which was nominated and won numerous awards, including Las Lunas Del Auditorio for Best Musical 2018. Lunas del Auditorio is an award given by the National Auditorioum to the best live shows in Mexico. His production of Billy Elliot also received 12 nominations, including Best Musical and Best Direction from Los Premios Metropolitanos de teatro, winning five awards, in 2018.

As an actor, Gabriel Barre was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical for his performance in Starmites. He won a Bistro Award as an original cast member in Forever Plaid. Other performing credits include Ragtime (final Toronto workshop), Ain't Broadway Grand, Rags, Anna Karenina (original Broadway companies), Barnum (first national tour); Off-Broadway: Return to the Forbidden Planet, The Petrified Prince at the Public Theatre, Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris, which he also provided the musical staging for, A Fine and Private Place, which he also directed, The Tempest, and The Mistress of the Inn (both at The Roundabout Theatre,) Marathon Dancing directed by Anne Bogart at En Garde Arts, El Greco with INTAR at Playhouse 91, as well as numerous productions at Mirror Repertory Company, Lamb's Theatre, Playwright's Horizons, Jewish Repertory Theatre, York Theatre and LaMama E.T.C.


His film credits include: The Amazing Floydini (Lead), The Gurneyman (Lead), Luggage of the Gods (Lead), Girl 6, Summer of Sam, Quiz Show, The Road to Wellville, Stardust Memories, Best Eaten Cold, The Dutch Master, Eat and Run and Can't Stop the Music.

On television, he’s appeared on Law & Order, Fame, Kate & Allie, Nickelodeon, and a number of programs on PBS, including the mockumentary making of a musical Traps! on EGG, the arts show.