James Lapine

JAMES LAPINE is a leading American theatrical director, librettist, and playwright. A native of Ohio, he majored in history at Franklin and Marshall College and earned an MFA in Design from the California Institute of the Arts. While working at the Yale School of Drama teaching design, he adapted and staged his first play Photograph, which went on to play off-Broadway and win Lapine an Obie Award. He later staged the work Twelve Dreams and garnered acclaim for his breakthrough stage comedy Table Settings. Among Lapine’s most notable works is Sunday in the Park with George, created in collaboration with Stephen Sondheim. It won two Tony Awards, numerous Drama Desk Awards, and the 1985 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. Lapine and Sondheim collaborated again on Into the Woods (Tony Awards for Best Book and Best Score), Passion (Tony Award for Best Musical), and Sondheim on Sondheim. He collaborated with William Finn on March of the Falsettos and Falsettoland (Tony Awards for Best Book and Best Score), which were later presented on Broadway as Falsettos; A New Brain, Muscle, and Little Miss Sunshine. In addition to his work in the musical theatre, Lapine is a noted director of dramatic works, including Shakespeare. On Broadway, he has directed David Henry Hwang’s Golden Child, The Diary of Anne Frank, Michel Legrand’s Amour, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, and the 2012 Broadway revival of Annie, as well as several productions off-Broadway. He co-produced and directed the HBO documentary Six By Sondheim. In 2011, he was inducted into the Theater Hall of Fame.