Mary Zimmerman (born August 23, 1960) is an American theatre and opera director and playwright from

Nebraska Nebraska ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Ka ...

. She is an ensemble member of the

Lookingglass Theatre Company Lookingglass Theatre Company is a non-profit theater company located in Chicago, Illinois. History Lookingglass was founded in 1988 by David Schwimmer, David Catlin, Eva Barr, Thom Cox, Lawrence DiStasi, Joy Gregory, David Kersnar, and Andy Whit ...

, the Manilow Resident Director at the

Goodman Theatre Goodman Theatre is a professional theater company located in Chicago's Loop. A major part of the Chicago theatre scene, it is the city's oldest currently active nonprofit theater organization. Part of its present theater complex occupies the ...

in Chicago, Illinois, and also serves as the Jaharis Family Foundation Professor of Performance Studies at

Northwestern University Northwestern University (NU) is a Private university, private research university in Evanston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1851 to serve the historic Northwest Territory, it is the oldest University charter, chartered university in ...

. She is currently a faculty member in the Performance Studies department at Northwestern. She has earned national and international recognition in the form of numerous awards, including the prestigious John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Fellowship (1998). She has received more than 20

Joseph Jefferson Awards The Joseph Jefferson Award, more commonly known informally as the Jeff Award, is given for Theater in Chicago, theatre arts produced in the Chicago area. Founded in 1968, the awards are named in tribute to actor Joseph Jefferson, a 19th-century ...

for her creative work in the Chicago Area and won a 2002

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ce ...

for Best Direction for her adaptation of

Ovid Publius Ovidius Naso (; 20 March 43 BC – AD 17/18), known in English as Ovid ( ), was a Augustan literature (ancient Rome), Roman poet who lived during the reign of Augustus. He was a younger contemporary of Virgil and Horace, with whom he i ...

's ''

Metamorphoses The ''Metamorphoses'' (, , ) is a Latin Narrative poetry, narrative poem from 8 Common Era, CE by the Ancient Rome, Roman poet Ovid. It is considered his ''Masterpiece, magnum opus''. The poem chronicles the history of the world from its Cre ...

''. Other notable productions include ''Eleven Rooms of Proust'' and ''The Secret in the Wings''.

Early life and education

Although Zimmerman was born in

Lincoln, Nebraska Lincoln is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Nebraska. The city covers and had a population of 291,082 as of the 2020 census. It is the state's List of cities in Nebraska, second-most populous city a ...

, she spent much of her childhood in Europe, splitting time between her parents' home outside London in Hampstead Garden, England, and in Paris. Both of her parents were academics at the

University of Nebraska–Lincoln The University of Nebraska–Lincoln (Nebraska, NU, or UNL) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Lincoln, Nebraska, United States. Chartered in 1869 by the Nebraska Legislature as part of the M ...

, her father a physics professor and her mother a professor of comparative literature who studied the author

George Sand Amantine Lucile Aurore Dupin de Francueil (; 1 July 1804 – 8 June 1876), best known by her pen name George Sand (), was a French novelist, memoirist and journalist. Being more renowned than either Victor Hugo or Honoré de Balz ...

. Zimmerman studied theatre and performance studies at

, where she received a BS in theatre (1982) in addition to an MA (1985) and PhD (1994) in performance studies.

Director, librettist, and producer

Zimmerman's involvement in stage productions is difficult to categorize, since she may be billed as director, writer, or producer, but usually takes on several of these roles. She is well known for her revivals of old plays and re-adaptions of classical and pre-classical works, librettos for modern operas, and re-presenting modern film and novels as stage plays.

Play productions

Zimmerman has directed several theatrical adaptations of literary works in addition to ''Metamorphoses'', including ''

Journey to the West ''Journey to the West'' () is a Chinese novel published in the 16th century during the Ming dynasty and attributed to Wu Cheng'en. It is regarded as one of the Classic Chinese Novels, great Chinese novels, and has been described as arguably the ...

'', the ''

Odyssey The ''Odyssey'' (; ) is one of two major epics of ancient Greek literature attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest surviving works of literature and remains popular with modern audiences. Like the ''Iliad'', the ''Odyssey'' is divi ...

'', ''

Silk Silk is a natural fiber, natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be weaving, woven into textiles. The protein fiber of silk is composed mainly of fibroin and is most commonly produced by certain insect larvae to form cocoon (silk), c ...

'', '' Arabian Nights'' (1994), and ''The Notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci'' (2003). In 2004, she directed a production of '' Pericles, Prince of Tyre'' at the Shakespeare Theatre Company in Washington, D.C. Her production was re-staged in 2006 at the Shakespeare Theatre Company Free For All. The following year, Zimmerman directed another Shakespeare play, ''

Cymbeline ''Cymbeline'' (), also known as ''The Tragedie of Cymbeline'' or ''Cymbeline, King of Britain'', is a play by William Shakespeare set in British Iron Age, Ancient Britain () and based on legends that formed part of the Matter of Britain concer ...

'', at Northwestern University. In 2006, she directed a version of the Greek story of

Jason Jason ( ; ) was an ancient Greek mythological hero and leader of the Argonauts, whose quest for the Golden Fleece is featured in Greek literature. He was the son of Aeson, the rightful king of Iolcos. He was married to the sorceress Med ...

and the

Argonauts The Argonauts ( ; ) were a band of heroes in Greek mythology, who in the years before the Trojan War (around 1300 BC) accompanied Jason to Colchis in his quest to find the Golden Fleece. Their name comes from their ship, ''Argo'', named after it ...

' search for the Golden Fleece, ''Argonautika'', at the

, and then toured it at the Berkeley Repertory Theatre in 2007, and at the Shakespeare Theatre Company in Washington, D.C. in 2008. Her monodrama, ''M. Proust'', was given its world premiere by the Steppenwolf Theatre Company in 2006 in a production directed by Eric Rosen and starring Mary Beth Peil as Celeste Albaret. In 2017, Zimmerman directed her adaption of

Homer Homer (; , ; possibly born ) was an Ancient Greece, Ancient Greek poet who is credited as the author of the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'', two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Despite doubts about his autho ...

's ''

'' at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. In 2018, Zimmerman adapted and directed

Hans Christian Andersen Hans Christian Andersen ( , ; 2 April 1805 – 4 August 1875) was a Danish author. Although a prolific writer of plays, travelogue (literature), travelogues, novels, and poems, he is best remembered for his literary fairy tales. Andersen's fai ...

's ''The Steadfast Tin Soldier'' at

. The production was remounted the following year. In July 2019
"Treasure Island: A Play"
-Zimmerman's adaptation of

Robert Louis Stevenson Robert Louis Stevenson (born Robert Lewis Balfour Stevenson; 13 November 1850 – 3 December 1894) was a Scottish novelist, essayist, poet and travel writer. He is best known for works such as ''Treasure Island'', ''Strange Case of Dr Jekyll ...

's " Treasure Island"--was published by

Northwestern University Press Northwestern University Press is an American publishing house affiliated with Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. It publishes 70 new titles each year in the areas of continental philosophy, poetry, Slavic and German literary criticis ...

Opera productions

She has also worked in

opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...

production. She is the director and co-

librettist A libretto (From the Italian word , ) is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major ...

of the 2002 opera ''

Galileo Galilei Galileo di Vincenzo Bonaiuti de' Galilei (15 February 1564 – 8 January 1642), commonly referred to as Galileo Galilei ( , , ) or mononymously as Galileo, was an Italian astronomer, physicist and engineer, sometimes described as a poly ...

'', music by

Philip Glass Philip Glass (born January 31, 1937) is an American composer and pianist. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential composers of the late 20th century. Glass's work has been associated with minimal music, minimalism, being built up fr ...

, commissioned by the Goodman Theatre. In 2007 Zimmerman directed the first of a series of new productions for the

Metropolitan Opera The Metropolitan Opera is an American opera company based in New York City, currently resident at the Metropolitan Opera House (Lincoln Center), Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Referred ...

: She was engaged to stage a new production of Donizetti's '' Lucia di Lammermoor'' starring Natalie Dessay, which opened the company's 2007–2008 season. The production received mixed reviews, but was a success at the box office. Zimmerman's '' Lucia'' was revived in 2008–2009 with Diana Damrau and Anna Netrebko as Lucia. It was broadcast worldwide in the Met's '' Live in HD'' series with Netrebko and tenor Piotr Beczała. In March 2009 the Met premiered Zimmerman's production of Vincenzo Bellini's '' La sonnambula'' (starring Dessay and Juan Diego Flórez). The production, which moved the opera's setting to a contemporary rehearsal hall, received mixed-to-negative reviews in the press. It was also presented in the ''Live in HD'' series. For the company's 2009–2010 season Zimmerman directed a new production of

Gioachino Rossini Gioachino Antonio Rossini (29 February 1792 – 13 November 1868) was an Italian composer of the late Classical period (music), Classical and early Romantic music, Romantic eras. He gained fame for his 39 operas, although he also wrote man ...

's opera '' Armida'' starring

Renée Fleming Renée Lynn Fleming (born February 14, 1959) is an American soprano and actress, known for performances in opera, concerts, recordings, theater, film, and at major public occasions. A recipient of the National Medal of Arts, Fleming has been nom ...

. Her fourth production for the Met was Dvořák's '' Rusalka'' in 2017, to positive reviews. In February 2020 she directed the world premiere of the opera ''Eurydice'', composed by Matthew Aucoin with a libretto by Sarah Ruhl, at the Los Angeles Opera. Zimmerman adapted the libretto of Mozart’s The Magic Flute and directed a premiere of The Matchbox Magic Flute, which she described as “a hybrid, a playful variation, more a creature of the theatre han ofopera," at the

in February-March 2024.

Musical productions

In 2013, Zimmerman adapted and directed a musical version of

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Di ...

's version of '' The Jungle Book'', premiering at the

in Chicago and the Huntington Theatre in Boston. The production featured Kevin Carolan as Baloo the Bear, André De Shields as King Louie, and Akash Chopra as Mowgli. In 2015 Zimmerman directed the musical '' Guys and Dolls'' at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival.

References

External links

*
Internet Off-Broadway Database listing, Mary Zimmerman
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Zimmerman, Mary 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights American theatre directors American women theatre directors American opera directors Female opera directors American opera librettists Drama Desk Award winners MacArthur Fellows Northwestern University School of Communication alumni Northwestern University faculty Tony Award winners Living people 1960 births American women dramatists and playwrights 20th-century American women writers American women academics