Des McAnuff

Des McAnuff CM
Born	Desmond Steven McAnuff (1952-06-19)June 19, 1952 Princeton, Illinois,U.S.
Occupation(s)	Stage and musical theatre director
Spouses	Susan Berman ​ ​ (m.1984;div.2009)​ Bryna McCann ​ (m.2012)​
Children	1

Desmond Steven McAnuffCM(born June 19, 1952) is theAmerican-Canadianformer artistic director of Canada'sStratford Festivaland director of such Broadwaymusical theatreproductions asBig River,The Who's TommyandJersey Boys.

Biography

Born inPrinceton, Illinoisto John Nelson and Ellen Boyd, McAnuff is a citizen of the United States and Canada.He lived briefly inGuelph,Ontario,attending grade 4 at St. George's Public School. His family then moved toScarborough,Ontario,at the time a suburb ofToronto,and attended high school atWoburn Collegiate Institutewhere he made his first theatrical appearance in the school's production ofThe Sound of Music,playing the role of Kurt. Later, with the help of two friends, he wrote the music and lyrics to arock musicalcalledUrbania,which was performed by the high school drama club. He attendedRyerson Polytechnical Institute,but never completed his degree. In June 2011, he was awarded an honorary degree by theRyerson Theatre School.

McAnuff worked with the Toronto Free Theatre as a director, and after several plays that had limited success, he left the Canadian scene forNew York City,where he co-founded the Dodger Theatre Company in 1978, where he also directed the first production, entitledGimme Shelter.He is a former faculty member of theJuilliard School.

McAnuff wasartistic directorof theLa Jolla Playhouse,which he revived in 1983, during which time the theatre won more than 200 awards.For the Playhouse, he directedRomeo and Juliet,A Mad World,My Masters,Big River,As You Like It,The Sea Gull,The Matchmaker,A Walk in the Woods,Two Rooms,80 Days,Macbeth,A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum,Twelfth Night,Three Sisters,Elmer Gantry,Much Ado About Nothing,The Who's TommyandHow to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying.

He turned over his leadership of the playhouse in 2005 toMichael Greifin order to take a position of leadership at Canada'sStratford Shakespeare Festival.In 2008, after a year sharing power withDon ShipleyandMarti Maraden,McAnuff became the sole artistic director at Stratford.

McAnuff has directed two motion pictures,The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle(2000) andCousin Bette(1998), both of which failed critically and at the box-office. However, the animated version ofThe Iron Giant,which he served as producer, earned several awards.

In 2010 McAnuff was the subject of a documentary special entitledDes McAnuff: A Life In Stageswhich was a part of the broadcast schedule onBravo!in Canada for February 7, 2010.

During the 2011-12 Season at theMetropolitan Operahe directed a new production ofCharles Gounod'sFauststarring sopranoMarina Poplavskayaand tenorJonas Kaufmann.On Sunday, October 23, 2011, a tribute for McAnuff was given by staff and students from Ryerson's Theatre School.

Personal life

McAnuff married actressSusan Bermanin 1984; the couple has one daughter, Julia McAnuff, who played a young Karen Sympathy inThe Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle.The couple divorced in 2009. In 2012, McAnuff married Bryna McCann.

Stage productions

• Big River(1985)
• A Walk in the Woods(1988)
• Dangerous Games(1989)
• The Who's Tommy(1993)
• How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying(1995)
• Tartuffe(2002)
• Dracula, the Musical(2004)
• 700 Sundays(2004)
• Jersey Boys(2005)
• Romeo and Juliet(2008)
• Caesar and Cleopatra(2008)
• Guys and Dolls(2009)
• Macbeth(2009)
• A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum(2009)
• As You Like It(2010)
• The Tempest(2010)
• Jesus Christ Superstar(2011)
• Twelfth Night(2011)
• A Word or Two(2012)
• Henry V(2012)
• Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots(2012)
• The Who's Tommy(2013)
• 700 Sundays(2014)
• Summer: The Donna Summer Musical(2017) (book writer and director)
• Ain't Too Proud(2017)
• The Who's Tommy(2024 Revival)

Awards and nominations

McAnuff has won two Tony Awards: as Best Director (Musical) in 1985 forBig Riverand again in 1993 forThe Who's Tommy.He was nominated in 1993 for Best Book (Musical), withPete TownshendonThe Who's Tommy,and in 1995 as Best Director (Musical) forHow to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying.He was nominated again in 2006 for Best Direction of a Musical, forJersey Boys,based on the story of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. Although he did not win, the production won Best Musical that year.In 2019 he received another Tony nomination for Best Direction of a Musical forAin't Too Proud.

He was awarded theLaurence Olivier Theatre Awardfor Best Director of 1996 forThe Who's Tommyat the Shaftesbury Theatre. In May 2012, McAnuff received theNational Arts CentreAward, a companion award of theGovernor General's Performing Arts Awards,Canada's highest honour in the performing arts.He was invested as aMember of the Order of Canada(CM) in 2013.

Further reading

• Napoleon, Davi (1991).Chelsea on the Edge: The Adventures of an American Theater(First ed.). Ames: Iowa state university press.ISBN0-8138-1713-7.

External links

• Des McAnuffat theInternet Broadway Database
• Des McAnuffatIMDb
• Des McAnuffDownstage Centerinterview at AmericanTheatreWing.org
• Mise en Scène,a short film tribute for McNuff's National Arts Centre Award,National Film Board of Canadawebsite