Sam Gold | |
---|---|
Born | New York City, U.S. |
Education | Cornell University (BA) Juilliard School (GrDip) |
Occupation |
|
Known for | Fun Home |
Spouse | Amy Herzog |
Sam Gold is an American theater director and actor. Having studied at Cornell University and Juilliard School he became known for directing both musicals and plays, on Broadway and Off-Broadway. He has received the Tony Award for Best Direction of a Musical, a Tony nomination for Best Director of a Play, and nominations for four Drama Desk Awards.
He made his Broadway debut directing the Theresa Rebeck play Seminar (2011). He followed up directing the revival of the William Inge play Picnic (2013), the Will Eno play The Realistic Joneses (2014), and the Tom Stoppard play The Real Thing (2015). For the musical Fun Home (2015) he received the Tony Award for Best Direction of a Musical. He has since directed the revival of Tennessee Williams' The Glass Menagerie (2017), Lucas Hnath's A Doll's House, Part 2 (2017), and revivals of William Shakespeare's King Lear (2019), and Macbeth (2022).
Gold was raised in Westchester and New York City. His father, Jeffrey, is an investment banker, and his mother, Lenore, is a painter. He graduated from Cornell University with a degree in English [1] and had internships at Playwrights Horizons and the Signature Theater, and attended the directing program at the Juilliard School. He spent three years as an assistant director and dramaturge at the Wooster Group. [2] He explained that "my career has been very focused on brand-new plays for a while. But, always, the reason I got into the theatre was because I was inspired by these classics. I was an English major and I loved the plays, so I think my work with new writers has always been based on my information from these old plays..." [3] Gold is the Resident Director at the Roundabout Theatre Company. [4]
His Off-Broadway directing work began with The Black Eyed at the New York Theatre Workshop in 2007. [5] He directed The Big Meal by Dan LeFranc in 2012 at Playwrights Horizons and won the 2012 Lucille Lortel Award, Outstanding Director. [6] Gold has directed five of the plays of Annie Baker: Circle Mirror Transformation in 2009, [5] The Aliens in 2010, [7] an adaption of Uncle Vanya in 2012, [8] The Flick in 2013, [9] and John in 2015. [10] According to an article in The New York Times , "Mr. Gold and Ms. Baker are reluctant to disclose much about themselves or their work together." [11] In 2010, he also directed a reading of her play Nocturama at the Manhattan Theatre Club. [12]
Gold won the 2010 Obie Award, Directing, for Circle Mirror Transformation [13] and the 2016 Special Citation Obie Award for Collaboration between Gold, Baker, and the design team. [14] The New York Times reviewer wrote that "Sam Gold has directed with an uncommonly observant eye and ear." [15] He was nominated for the 2016 Drama Desk Award, Outstanding Director of a Play for John. [16] He directed The Flick in its West End (and UK) premiere at the National Theatre 's Dorfman Theatre, which opened in April 2016. [17] [18] The CurtainUp reviewer wrote: "...as moved from page to stage by director Sam Gold and his ensemble, everything becomes remarkably and most effectively — enough so to make this a full-flavored theatrical meal.... LeFranc, like another Playwrights Horizon favorite, Annie Baker, has written exactly the kind of play that's director Sam Gold's forte. Like Baker's Circle Mirror Transformation, The Big Meal is a play in which nothing much happens, but everything does." [19]
He directed a revival of Look Back in Anger for the Roundabout Theatre Company in 2012. David Finkle, in his review for TheaterMania of Look Back in Anger, wrote: "...there's no question the challenge director Sam Gold faced in mounting this possibly-dated work was finding an approach to the fire-brand script that would infuse it with the shock value it had at its debut. Not only has he met the test, Gold deserves a chorus of huzzahs for unmitigated audacity." [20] He directed a staged concert presentation of The Cradle Will Rock for Encores! Off-Center in July 2013. David Finkle, reviewing for The Huffington Post , wrote: "The cast of the Encores! Off-Center concert production of Marc Blitzstein's once highly controversial first musical...are dressed in Clint Ramos's formal attire. The look, apparently chosen by the habitually iconoclastic director Sam Gold, is certainly nothing like what the original cast was intended to wear...is likely that he understands there's no point in expecting contemporary audiences to insert themselves fully into the context of the times.... That may be why Gold's presenting the work of art as simply as he does is so completely effective." [21] In regional theatre, he directed A Doll's House at the Williamstown Theatre Festival in 2011. [22]
On Broadway, he directed Seminar with Alan Rickman in 2011, a revival of Picnic with Reed Birney and Elizabeth Marvel in 2013 [23] The Realistic Joneses in 2014 starring Toni Collette, Tracy Letts and Marisa Tomei, and The Real Thing in 2014 starring Maggie Gyllenhaal and Ewan McGregor. [24] He gained attention for his direction of the musical Fun Home on Broadway in 2015, [24] in a Public Lab at The Public Theater in October 2012, [25] and Off-Broadway at The Public Theater in 2013. For Fun Home, he won the 2015 Tony Award, Best Direction of a Musical [24] and 2014 Obie Award, Musical Theater. [26]
He directed Othello at the Off-Broadway New York Theatre Workshop, opening on November 22, 2016, in previews, officially on December 12, 2016, through January 18, 2017. [27] The play stars David Oyelowo, Daniel Craig, and Rachel Brosnahan. [28] He directed the latest Broadway revival of The Glass Menagerie at the Belasco Theatre, which started previews on February 7, 2017. The play stars Sally Field and Joe Mantello. [29] [30] He also directed the new play by Lucas Hnath, A Doll's House, Part 2 , which starred Laurie Metcalf and Chris Cooper and premiered on Broadway at the John Golden Theatre on April 1, 2017. It takes place 15 years after Henrik Ibsen's A Doll’s House concludes." [31]
Gold directed a new production of William Shakespeare’s King Lear (2019) at the Cort Theatre, starring Glenda Jackson. The limited engagement began previews in March 2019 and officially opened on April 4. He also directed Macbeth starring Daniel Craig and Ruth Negga at the Longacre Theatre in 2022. Gold was set to direct an adaptation of Anton Chekov's Three Sisters starring Greta Gerwig, Oscar Isaac, Chris Messina, and Steve Buscemi at the New York Theatre Workshop. [32] However due to the COVID-19 pandemic the production has been suspended indefinitely. [33] In May 2023 it was announced that Gold would return to Broadway with the Amy Herzog adaptation of the Henrik Ibsen play An Enemy of the People starring Jeremy Strong. [34]
He is currently directing and executive producing the half-hour comedy Compliance for FX from writer Sarah Burgess and produced by Scott Rudin. It stars Mary Louise Parker and Courtney B. Vance. [35]
On April 16, 2024, it was announced that Sam Gold will be directing a new adaptation of Romeo and Juliet , starring Rachel Zegler and Kit Connor, coming to Broadway in the fall of 2024. Jack Antonoff is providing the music. [36]
As a director
Patrick Pacheco, in an article in The Los Angeles Times, observed: "Critical reservations have been rare in Gold's rise as one of New York's hottest and busiest young directors, ever since the media hailed his subtle and effective production of Annie Baker's Circle Mirror Transformation at Playwrights Horizons in 2009... His restless energy is reflected in the sheer breadth and versatility of his career, from a puppet musical, Jollyship the Whizbang, to classics like Threepenny Opera and A Doll's House, to any number of new plays by Zoe Kazan (We Live Here), Dan LeFranc (The Big Meal, which he will direct at Playwrights Horizons in March) and Will Eno (The Realistic Joneses at Yale Rep in April)." [2]
Mark Kennedy noted that "Fun Home is Gold's first crack at directing a traditional musical, and it joins a list of credits that seem to have little in common.... What connects them is Gold's love of working with a group of actors, whether they're the unknowns in the cast of The Flick or A-listers .... 'Always I start with the ensemble and I try to put all of the pressure on them. I try to make these productions where the show succeeds or fails completely on their shoulders,' he says.'No net. No fancy set pieces. No directing flourishes. Nothing that can save the show if the subtlety of the performances isn't riveting.'" [1]
Gold is Jewish. [37] Gold has been married to playwright Amy Herzog [11] since 2011, and the couple have two children; their elder daughter, Frances, died in 2023. [38] [39] According to an article in The Washington Post , Herzog and Gold had previously chosen "not to work together professionally, which is an interesting line to draw, given that Herzog often blurs the boundaries between art and actual family history;" [40] they have since collaborated on an adaptation of the Henrik Ibsen's An Enemy of the People . [41]
Year | Associations | Category | Project | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2015 | Tony Award | Best Direction of a Musical | Fun Home | Won | [42] |
2017 | Best Direction of a Play | A Doll's House, Part 2 | Nominated | [43] | |
2010 | Drama Desk Award | Outstanding Director of a Play | Circle Mirror Transformation | Nominated | |
2013 | Outstanding Director of a Play | Uncle Vanya | Nominated | ||
2014 | Outstanding Director of a Musical | Fun Home | Nominated | ||
2016 | Outstanding Director of a Play | John | Nominated | ||
2012 | Lucille Lortel Award | Outstanding Director | The Big Meal | Won | [44] |
2012 | Outstanding Director | Look Back in Anger | Nominated | ||
2013 | Outstanding Director | The Flick | Nominated | ||
2010 | Obie Award | Direction | Circle Mirror Transformation | Won | |
2014 | Musical Theater | Fun Home | Won | ||
2024 | Drama League Awards | Outstanding Director of a Play | An Enemy of the People | Nominated | [45] |
Paula Vogel is an American playwright. She is known for her provocative explorations of complex social and political issues. Much of her work delves into themes of psychological trauma, abuse, and the complexities of human relationships. She has received the Pulitzer Prize as well as nominations for two Tony Awards. In 2013 she was inducted into the American Theatre Hall of Fame.
Playwrights Horizons is a not-for-profit American Off-Broadway theater located in New York City dedicated to the support and development of contemporary American playwrights, composers, and lyricists, and to the production of their new work.
Lewis Jefferson Mays is an American actor. He is the recipient of numerous accolades, including a Tony Award, a Helen Hayes Award, a Lucille Lortel Award, two Drama Desk Awards, two Outer Critics Circle Awards and three Obie Awards.
John Guare is an American playwright and screenwriter. He is best known as the author of The House of Blue Leaves and Six Degrees of Separation.
Marshall W. Mason is an American theater director, educator, and writer. Mason founded the Circle Repertory Company in New York City and was artistic director of the company for 18 years (1969–1987). He received an Obie Award for Sustained Achievement in 1983. In 2016, he received the Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theater.
The Lucille Lortel Awards recognize excellence in New York Off-Broadway theatre. The Awards are named for Lucille Lortel, an actress and theater producer, and have been awarded since 1986. They are produced by the League of Off-Broadway Theatres and Producers by special arrangement with the Lucille Lortel Foundation, with additional support from the Theatre Development Fund.
The Irish Repertory Theatre is an Off-Broadway theatre company founded in 1988.
Matthew Maher is an American actor. He is best known for his roles in Bringing Out The Dead (1999), Dogma (1999), Jersey Girl (2004), Gone Baby Gone (2007), It's Kind of a Funny Story (2010), Captain Marvel (2019), Air (2023), and Our Flag Means Death (2022-2023).
Annie Baker is an American playwright and teacher who won the 2014 Pulitzer Prize for her play The Flick. Among her works are the Shirley, Vermont plays, which take place in the fictional town of Shirley: Circle Mirror Transformation, Nocturama, Body Awareness, and The Aliens. She was named a MacArthur Fellow in 2017.
Pam MacKinnon is an American theatre director. She has directed for the stage Off-Broadway, on Broadway and in regional theatre. She won the Obie Award for Directing and received a Tony Award nomination, Best Director, for her work on Clybourne Park. In 2013 she received the Tony Award for Best Direction of a Play for a revival of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? She was named artistic director of American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco, California on January 23, 2018.
Amy Herzog is an American playwright. She is known for her poignant and character-driven plays that explore themes of family dynamics, personal relationships, and the complexities of human experience. She has received a Drama Desk Award as well as a nomination for a Tony Award.
Circle Mirror Transformation is a play by Annie Baker, centered on drama classes at a community center in Vermont. The play opened Off-Broadway in 2009 and received the Obie Award for Best New American Play.
Fun Home is a musical theatre adaptation of Alison Bechdel's 2006 graphic memoir of the same name, with music by Jeanine Tesori, and book and lyrics by Lisa Kron. The story concerns Bechdel's discovery of her own lesbian sexuality, her relationship with her closeted gay father, and her attempts to unlock the mysteries surrounding his life. It is told in a series of non-linear vignettes connected by narration provided by the adult Alison character.
The Flick is a play by Annie Baker that received the 2014 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and won the 2013 Obie Award for Playwriting. The Flick premiered Off-Broadway at Playwrights Horizons in 2013.
Leigh Silverman is an American director for the stage, both off-Broadway and on Broadway. She was nominated for the 2014 and 2024 Tony Award for Best Direction of a Musical for the musicals Violet and Suffs, and the 2008 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Director of a Play for the play From Up Here.
Michael Louis Chernus is an American actor. He has acted on film, television, and the stage. He is perhaps best known for his role as Cal Chapman on the Netflix original comedy-drama series Orange Is the New Black (2013–2019). Chernus played Phineas Mason / Tinkerer in the Marvel Cinematic Universe film Spider-Man: Homecoming, which was released on July 7, 2017.
Lucas Hnath is an American playwright. He won the 2016 Obie Award for excellence in playwriting for his plays Red Speedo and The Christians. He also won a Whiting Award.
Heidi Schreck is an American playwright, screenwriter, and actress from Wenatchee, Washington. Her play What the Constitution Means to Me, which she also performs in, was a finalist for the 2019 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and Tony Awards for 2019 Best Play and Best Actress in a Play.
John is a play from Pulitzer Prize winning American playwright Annie Baker. The show premiered off-Broadway at New York's Signature Theatre Company in 2015, and was directed by Sam Gold. Time ranked John as one of its top 10 plays and musicals of 2015, where it took the number four spot. The play also reached number eight on the Hollywood Reporter's list of the "Best New York Theatre of 2015."
Mary Jane is a two-act dramatic stage play written by American playwright Amy Herzog. The play had its World Premiere at Yale Repertory Theatre in 2017 and officially premiered on Broadway on April 23, 2024. The Broadway cast is led by Rachel McAdams in the titular role. The play won the New York Drama Critics' Circle Award for Best Play in 2018. The play is semi-autobiographical and based on Herzog's daughter Frances, who was born with nemaline myopathy and died at age 11 in 2023.