Simon Levy (born May 12, 1949) is a theater director and playwright who has been the producing director and dramaturg with

The Fountain Theatre The Fountain Theatre is a theatre in Los Angeles. Along with its programming of live theatre, it's also the foremost producer of flamenco on the West Coast of the United States, West Coast. History The Fountain Theatre was founded in Los Ange ...

in Los Angeles since 1993.

Biography

Levy was born in

Surrey, England Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area ...

and grew up in

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

. He graduated from

City College of San Francisco City College of San Francisco (CCSF or City College) is a public community college in San Francisco, California. Founded as a junior college in 1935, the college plays an important local role, annually enrolling as many as one in nine San Franci ...

with an Associate in Arts and

San Francisco State University San Francisco State University (commonly referred to as San Francisco State, SF State and SFSU) is a public research university in San Francisco. As part of the 23-campus California State University system, the university offers 118 different ...

with a BA and MA in Theater, and began his theater career as an actor in San Francisco, primarily with the New Shakespeare Company and then

The Alley Theater The Alley Theatre is a Tony Award-winning theatre company in Houston, Texas. It is the oldest professional theatre company in Texas and the third oldest resident theatre in the United States. Alley Theatre productions have played on Broadway at L ...

in Houston, Texas. Prior to studying theater, he was a music major, played the saxophone, and was a jazz and rock-and-roll musician. He made his debut as a professional stage director in 1980 at the One Act Theatre Company in San Francisco, where he focused on the development of new work, directing many of the plays of Michael Lynch, among others, and at the

Magic Theatre The Magic Theatre is a theatre company founded in 1967, presently based at the historic Fort Mason Center on San Francisco's northern waterfront. The Magic Theatre is well known and respected for its singular focus on the development and product ...

, directing the plays of Lynne Kaufman, among others. He moved to Los Angeles in 1990 and joined the staff of

in 1993. He has taught playwriting at UCLA Writer's Extension and Chapman University, been a site evaluator for the

National Endowment for the Arts The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal ...

and the

California Arts Council The California Arts Council is a state agency based in Sacramento, United States. Its eight council members are appointed by the Governor and the state Legislature. The agency's mission is to advance California through arts, culture and creativit ...

, and is a member of numerous theater and humanitarian organizations, including the

Dramatists Guild The Dramatists Guild of America is a professional organization for playwrights, composers, and lyricists working in the U.S. theatre market. Membership as an Associate Member is open to any person having written at least one stage play. Active Mem ...

, Society for Directors and Choreographers, and Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of the Americas.

Selected works

* ''What I Heard About Iraq''—an anti-Iraq War play adapted from

Eliot Weinberger Eliot Weinberger (born 6 February 1949 in New York City) is a contemporary American writer, essayist, editor, and translator. He is primarily known for his literary writings (essays) and political articles, the former characterized by their wide-ra ...

's acclaimed prose poem and performed at the 2006 Edinburgh Fringe Festival, among many other venues (2006) * Levy's stage adaptation of ''

The Great Gatsby ''The Great Gatsby'' is a 1925 novel by American writer F. Scott Fitzgerald. Set in the Jazz Age on Long Island, near New York City, the novel depicts first-person narrator Nick Carraway's interactions with mysterious millionaire Jay Gatsby ...

'', published by

Dramatists Play Service Dramatists Play Service (also known as The Play Service) is a theatrical-publishing and licensing house, established in 1936 by members of the Dramatists Guild of America and the Society for Authors' Representatives. DPS publishes English-language ...

—authorized and granted exclusive rights by the Fitzgerald Estate—has had over 100 productions around the world and continues to be produced. The play inaugurated the Guthrie Theater's new theater complex, was subsequently produced at

Seattle Repertory Theatre Seattle Repertory Theatre (familiarly known as "The Rep") is a major regional theatre located in Seattle, Washington, at the Seattle Center. It is a member of Theatre Puget Sound PEN A pen is a common writing instrument that applies ink to a surface, usually paper, for writing or drawing. Early pens such as reed pens, quill pens, dip pens and ruling pens held a small amount of ink on a nib or in a small void or cavity wh ...

Award in Drama."Literary awards season"
LAObserved.com July 31, 2007 (2007) * Produced the premiere of Stephen Sachs' '' Bakersfield Mist'' (2011) * Directed the award-winning and critically acclaimed premiere of Stephen Sachs' '' Cyrano'', a co-production of

and

Deaf West Theatre Deaf West Theatre is a non-profit arts organization based in Los Angeles, California, USA. It is most well known for its Tony Award-nominated productions of '' Big River'' and '' Spring Awakening''. Deaf West Theatre is led by Artistic Director, ...

(2012) * Produced the West Coast premiere of

Ken LaZebnik Ken LaZebnik (original Czech surname Lazebník) (born November 11, 1954) is an American writer, best known for his work in television, film, and theatre. His work has appeared in films such as '' A Prairie Home Companion'' and in television shows ...

's '' On the Spectrum'' at

(2013) * Directed the Los Angeles revival of ''

The Normal Heart ''The Normal Heart'' is a largely autobiographical play by Larry Kramer. It focuses on the rise of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in New York City between 1981 and 1984, as seen through the eyes of writer/activist Ned Weeks, the gay founder of a pro ...

'' for

, winner of the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Awards Best Production (Revival), among numerous other awards (2013) * Produced the Los Angeles premiere of

Tarell Alvin McCraney Tarell Alvin McCraney (born October 17, 1980) is an American playwright, screenwriter, and actor. He is the chair of playwriting at the Yale School of Drama and a member of the Steppenwolf Theatre Ensemble. He co-wrote the 2016 film ''Moonlight ...

's '' The Brothers Size'' for

(2014) * Produced the West Coast premiere of John Biguenet's ''

Broomstick A broom (also known in some forms as a broomstick) is a cleaning tool consisting of usually stiff fibers (often made of materials such as plastic, hair, or corn husks) attached to, and roughly parallel to, a cylindrical handle, the broomstick. I ...

'' for

(2014) * Directed the Los Angeles premiere of Zayd Dorhn's '' Reborning'' for

(2015) * Produced the premiere of Stephen Sachs' stage adaptation of

Claudia Rankine Claudia Rankine (; born September 4, 1963) is an American poet, essayist, playwright and the editor of several anthologies. She is the author of five volumes of poetry, two plays and various essays. Her book of poetry, '' Citizen: An American L ...

's '' Citizen: An American Lyric'' for

(2015) * Directed the West Coast premiere of Athol Fugard's '' The Painted Rocks at Revolver Creek'' for

(2015) * Directed the West Coast premiere of

Tennessee Williams Thomas Lanier Williams III (March 26, 1911 – February 25, 1983), known by his pen name Tennessee Williams, was an American playwright and screenwriter. Along with contemporaries Eugene O'Neill and Arthur Miller, he is considered among the thr ...

' ''

Baby Doll ''Baby Doll'' is a 1956 American dramatic black comedy film directed by Elia Kazan, and starring Carroll Baker, Karl Malden, and Eli Wallach. It was produced by Kazan and Tennessee Williams, and adapted by Williams from his own one-act play '' ...

'' for

(2016) * Produced the premiere of

Robert Schenkkan Robert Frederic Schenkkan Jr. (born March 19, 1953) is an American playwright, screenwriter, and actor. He received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1992 for his play '' The Kentucky Cycle'' and his play '' All the Way'' earned the 2014 Tony Awar ...

's '' Building the Wall'' for

(2017) * Directed the West Coast premiere of

Aaron Posner Aaron Posner is an American playwright and theater director. He was co-founder of the Arden Theatre Company in Philadelphia and was the artistic director of Two River Theatre from 2006 to 2010. He has directed over 100 productions at major region ...

's revised adaptation of Chaim Potok's ''

The Chosen Chosen or The Chosen may refer to: The chosen ones *Chosen people, people who believe they have been chosen by a higher power to do a certain thing including **Jews as the chosen people Books * ''The Chosen'' (Potok novel), a 1967 novel by Chaim ...

'' for

(2018) * Directed '' The Immigrant'' by

Mark Harelik Marcus Frank Harelik (born June 5, 1951) is an American television, film, and stage actor, and playwright. Early life Harelik was born in Hamilton, Texas. In 1909, Harelik's Russian Jewish grandfather, Haskell Harelik—upon whom Harelik's ...

for Sierra Madre Playhouse, where it received rave reviews. (2018) * Produced the premiere of Stephen Sachs' play '' Arrival & Departure'' for

(2018)

Awards and recognition

Levy is the recipient of the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle's Milton Katselas Career Achievement Award in Directing.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Levy, Simon Living people 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights American theatre directors 1949 births People from Surrey