Daniel J. Sullivan | |
|---|---|
| Born | Daniel John Sullivan (1940-06-11)June 11, 1940 (age 85) Wray, Colorado, U.S. |
| Occupations | Theatre director,playwright |
| Spouse | Mimi Lieber |
| Children | 3 |
Daniel John Sullivan (born June 11, 1940) is an Americantheatre andfilm director andplaywright.
Sullivan was born inWray, Colorado, the son of Mary Catherine (née Hutton) and John Martin Sullivan.[1] He was raised inSan Francisco, where he graduated fromSan Francisco State University. In 1963, he began his professional career as an actor at the city'sActor's Workshop, where he remained for two years.
Sullivan worked as both an actor and director with theLincoln Center Repertory Company in the late 1960s and 1970s. His directorial debut there wasA. R. Gurney'sScenes from American Life in 1971.[2] for which he won aDrama Desk Award.
Following two years as Resident Director of theSeattle Repertory Theatre, he assumed the position of Artistic Director in 1981, serving until 1997. It was there that he directed the first production of his own play,Inspecting Carol.[3]
Sullivan has forged successful working relationships with many prominent American playwrights. He directedHerb Gardner's Tony winningI'm Not Rappaport at Seattle Rep before staging it off-Broadway, on Broadway, in London's West End, and the United States national tour. He reteamed with Gardner to stageConversations with My Father in Seattle, New York City, and Los Angeles. His first association withWendy Wasserstein was the Pulitzer Prize and Tony-winningThe Heidi Chronicles, which he directed off Broadway, on Broadway and its National Tour. The duo later collaborated onThe Sisters Rosensweig on Broadway and the National Tour,An American Daughter, and Ms. Wasserstein's final play,Third. He directed both the off-Broadway and screen version ofJon Robin Baitz'sThe Substance of Fire, as well as the original productions ofA Fair Country andTen Unknowns in New York, and Baitz's translation ofHedda Gabler in Los Angeles. His collaborations withDonald Margulies include the Pulitzer-Prize-winningDinner with Friends in New York and Los Angeles, the Broadway revival ofSight Unseen, and the Broadway productions ofBrooklyn Boy and the 2010 Broadway production ofTime Stands Still.
Sullivan has directed most ofCharlayne Woodard's plays:Pretty Fire (Seattle Rep, 1994-95),Neat (Seattle Rep, 1996–97),Stories (Seattle Rep, May 1999),[4]In Real Life (Mark Taper Forum, July 2001 and Manhattan Theatre Club, October 2002)[5] andThe Nightwatcher.
Other Broadway credits includeRetreat From Moscow,Morning's at Seven,Proof,Major Barbara,A Moon for the Misbegotten,Accent on Youth,The Homecoming,Rabbit Hole,Prelude to a Kiss,After The Night And The Music,Julius Caesar, andAh, Wilderness!.[6] For Shakespeare in the Park at the Delacorte, Sullivan directedThe Merry Wives of Windsor,A Midsummer Night’s Dream (2007)[7] andTwelfth Night (2009).[8]
Other Off-Broadway credits includeStuff Happens,Intimate Apparel,Ancestral Voices,Spinning into Butter,Far East,London Suite,Psychopathia Sexualis,The American Clock, andGood People.
At TheOld Globe Theatre, Sullivan directedJulius Caesar,Cymbeline (1999),[9]Romeo and Juliet (1998),[10]Merry Wives of Windsor andOthello, and atSouth Coast Repertory he directedHamlet,A Midsummer Night's Dream,Taming of the Shrew andVolpone.
Sullivan's Broadway acting credits include the 1973 revival ofA Streetcar Named Desire,The Merchant of Venice (1973),The Playboy of the Western World (1971),[6]The Good Person of Szechwan, andCamino Real.
In addition to his directing, Sullivan currently holds the Swanlund Chair at theUniversity of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.
Sullivan has a son and two daughters. His wife Mimi Lieber is an actress, choreographer and noted acting teacher.
