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Hal Prince

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Hal Prince (born January 30 1928), full name Harold Smith Prince, is an American theatrical producer and director associated with many of the best-known Broadway musical productions of the past half-century. His shows are known for their political context, new approach to romance, and characters who sing and dance with thematic import.

He was born in New York City, and began work in the theatre as an assistant stage manager to legendary theatrical producer and director George Abbott. Along with Abbott, he co-produced The Pajama Game, which won the 1955 Tony Award for Best Musical. His went on to direct his own productions in 1962 beginning with A Family Affair and hit a series of unsuccessful productions. He almost gave up the musical theater right before he hit success with Cabaret in 1966. 1970 marked the start of his greatest collaboration to composer/lyricist Steven Sondheim. They had previously worked on West Side Story and had now finally decided to embark on their own project. Their pairing led to a long string of collaborations including Company, Follies, A Little Night Music, Pacific Overtures, and Sweeney Todd. After the disappointing Merrily We Roll Along, they did not work together again until Bounce.

Prince was also involved in directing operas. Some of these include Ashmedai, Madame Butterfly, and the revival of Candide. He currently holds the title as president over the National Institute for Music Theater (formally called The National Opera Institute).

He directed two of Andrew Lloyd Webber's successes: Evita and The Phantom of the Opera.

Prince won his twentieth Tony Award in 1995 for Best Direction of the musical revival Show Boat, making him the record holder for most Tony Awards won. Additionally, he received a Tony for Lifetime Achievement in the Theater at the Tony Awards in June, 2006.

He married Judy Chaplin, daughter of Saul Chaplin. They are parents of director Daisy Prince.

In response to the question of how he goes about deciding what next to direct, Prince explained that he decides based on whatever quality he felt was lacking in the current Broadway shows, as well as whatever topic he felt was very important to him at any given time. He felt that he hadn't seen a romantic musical in over twenty-five years, and thus he directed Phantom. From his growing frustration at the media and his inability to fully trust what he and the rest of the country were being told by the government, he created Evita. Finally, after surpassing his thirty-second wedding anniversary and, following that, becoming a grandfather, Prince decided to direct Show Boat. He calls Show Boat the quintessential family show.

Prince also directed "Phantom: The Las Vegas Spectacular," a 95-minute Vegas version of the show that opened at The Venetian in June 2006. In a May 18 interview with "The Strip" podcast, [link] he said shortening shows for Vegas doesn't bother him and, in fact, he did shortened versions of The Pajama Game and Fiddler on the Roof in the 1960s at Vegas casinos. He also expressed disappointment with the recent lack of originality on Broadway.

Contents

Stage credits

Additional Tony Awards

Film credits

Books

 

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