Eric Simonson

Eric Simonson (born June 27, 1960 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin) is an American writer and director in theatre, film and opera. He is a member of Steppenwolf Theatre in Chicago, and the author of plays Lombardi, Fake, Honest, Magic/Bird and Bronx Bombers. He won the 2005 Academy Award for his short documentary A Note of Triumph: The Golden Age of Norman Corwin, and was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Direction of a Musical in 1993 for The Song of Jacob Zulu.[1]

For the American mountain guide, see Eric Simonson (mountaineer).

Eric Simonson
Born
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
OccupationAmerican playwright and stage director
Notable work
Work Song: Three Views of Frank Lloyd Wright
A Note of Triumph: The Golden Age of Norman Corwin

Personal life

Simonson was born in Milwaukee but grew up on a farm in the small town of Eagle. After graduating with a B.A. in Theatre from Lawrence University, he moved to Madison, Wisconsin for a short period, where he worked with the then fledgling Ark Repertory Theatre. He moved to Chicago in 1983, where he helped found Lifeline Theatre, and eventually worked with the Steppenwolf Theatre Company. He became a member of the theatre's ensemble in 1993.

He holds the distinction of being one of only a handful of directors who has received Tony, Emmy and Oscar nominations.

Simonson now lives in Los Angeles, but often works throughout the United States. In 2004 he married theatre producer Susan Raab; she died of breast cancer in 2006, aged 37. They had one child.[2] In 2013, Simonson married actress Sue Cremin.

Career

Simonson is the writer (with Jeffrey Hatcher) of Work Song: Three Views of Frank Lloyd Wright, which was commissioned by Steppenwolf Theatre Company and Milwaukee Repertory Theater, and was subsequently produced across the United States. His film A Note of Triumph: The Golden Age of Norman Corwin won the 2005 Academy Award for Short Subject Documentary.[3] That film also received a nomination from the International Documentary Association (IDA) for Distinguished Achievement. Other recent films include the documentary Studs Terkel: Listening to America (Emmy nomination) and On Tiptoe: Gentle Steps to Freedom (Oscar nomination, IDA Award, Emmy nomination). All three films subsequently aired on HBO/CINEMAX. Other films include Hamlet (co-directed with Campbell Scott) for Hallmark Entertainment, and the independent feature, Topa Topa Bluffs. Simonson has also written and developed multiple television series for HBO, FX, USA, TNT and STARZ networks.

In 2007 he was invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

He also directed the premiere of Ricky Ian Gordon and Michael Korie's opera The Grapes of Wrath at Minnesota Opera in 2007, and, in 2011, the premiere of Kevin Puts and Mark Campbell's "Silent Night", which won the Pulitzer Prize in music. Other opera directing credits include the North American premiere of "The Handmaid's Tale."

His recent plays, Lombardi/The Only Thing (Madison Repertory Theatre), Carter's Way (Steppenwolf Theatre)[4] and Slaughterhouse-Five (Godlight Theatre of New York) received premieres in 2008. Honest premiered at Carthage College in 2009 and was then part of Steppenwolf Theatre Company's 5th Annual First Look Repertory of New Work. The Carthage production traveled to the 2010 Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival (Region 3). Simonson's play Lombardi ran on Broadway from October 2010 to May 2011.[5]

Simonson's Louder Faster, co-authored with Jeffrey Hatcher, premiered at City Theatre in Pittsburgh in May 2011. His play, Magic/Bird, premiered on Broadway in March 2012.[6]

His play, Bronx Bombers, about the New York Yankees, opened Off-Broadway on September 20, 2013 and closed on October 19 in a Primary Stages production.[7][8] The play opened on Broadway on January 19, 2014 (previews), officially on February 6 at the Circle in the Square Theatre, starring Peter Scolari and Tracy Shayne.[9]

Work

Plays
  • Bang the Drum Slowly (adaptation) - 1992
  • Nomathemba (w/ Ntozake Shange and Joseph Shabalala) - 1995
  • Work Song: Three Views of Frank Lloyd Wright (with Jeffrey Hatcher) - 2000
  • Moby Dick (adaptation) - 2006
  • The Only Thing - 2007
  • Carter’s Way - 2008
  • Speak English - 2008
  • Fake - 2009
  • Honest - 2009
  • Lombardi (based on the book When Pride Still Mattered by David Maramiss) - 2010
  • Louder Faster (w/ Jeffrey Hatcher) - 2012
  • Magic/Bird - 2012
  • Bronx Bombers - 2014
  • The Incredible Season of Ronnie Rabinovitz - 2014

Films
  • Hamlet (TV Movie) - 2000
  • Ladies Room L.A. (Short) - 2000
  • On Tiptoe: Gentle Steps to Freedom (Short documentary) - 2000
  • On Tiptoe: The Music of Ladysmith Black Mambazo (Documentary) - 2000
  • Topa Topa Bluffs - 2002
  • A Note of Triumph: The Golden Age of Norman Corwin (Documentary short) - 2005
  • Studs Terkel: Listening to America (TV Movie documentary short) - 2014
  • Killing Reagan (TV Movie) - 2016

Operas

References
  1. Internet Broadway Database
  2. Lynne Heffley, "Susan Raab Simonson...was a producer for nationally known L.A. Theatre Works", Los Angeles Times, December 1, 2006
  3. "2005 Academy Awards". oscars.org. Archived from the original on July 1, 2012. Retrieved October 24, 2008.
  4. Review on broadwayworld.com
  5. "Lombardi, IBDb profile". The Broadway League. Retrieved December 11, 2010.
  6. "Magic/Bird, Basketball-Themed Play by Eric Simonson, Aiming for Broadway in 2012" Archived February 20, 2011, at the Wayback Machine playbill.com
  7. Hetrick, Adam. "Primary Stages' 'Bronx Bombers', Starring Christopher Jackson, Richard Topol and Wendy Makkena, Begins Off-Broadway Sept. 20" Archived January 10, 2014, at the Wayback Machine playbill.com, September 20, 2013
  8. "Upcoming season". primarystages.org. Retrieved March 8, 2013.
  9. Hetrick, Adam. "Yankees Drama 'Bronx Bombers', Starring Peter Scolari and Tracy Shayne, Begins Broadway Performances Jan. 10" Archived January 10, 2014, at the Wayback Machine playbill.com, January 19, 2014
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