Richard Israel is an LA and New York-based theatre director specializing in the development of new musicals. Current development projects include King Of Pangaea (2022 NAMT Festival of New Musicals), A Very Brady Musical with Lloyd Schwartz (original Brady Bunch series producer), Schwab’s with Paul Gordon (composer/lyricist – Daddy Long Legs/Jane Eyre), Good Man with David Goldsmith (book writer – Motown) and American Whore Story (conceived by and starring American Horror Story’s Naomi Grossman). Ongoing development projects include the Jeff Marx/Fat Mike punk rock musical Home Street Home (produced by Kevin McCollum) and Rocket Science with Stephen Weiner (composer – The Honeymooners).
Richard’s regional and southern California directing credits include the world premiere of Having It All for the Laguna Playhouse; the world premiere of the Jeff Marx/Fat Mike punk rock musical Home Street Home at San Francisco’s Z Space; a virtual presentation of A Very Brady Musical for the Ogunquit Playhouse; She Loves Me for San Diego Musical Theatre; Mamma Mia and Something Rotten for 5-Star Theatricals; The World Goes Round for Reprise!; West Side Story, Rent and Floyd Collins for McCoy/Rigby Entertainment (Ovation Awards for Direction and Outstanding Musical for Floyd Collins), Kiss Me Kate and Once Upon a Mattress for Cabrillo Music Theatre; and Meet Me In St. Louis for Musical Theatre West.
Intimate theatre credits include Violet (Ovation Award for Direction) 110 In The Shade (Ovation Award for Outstanding Musical), The Baker’s Wife, Bronies – The Musical, The Burnt Part Boys, Avenue Q, The Full Monty, Falsettos, Gypsy, Assassins, Big-The Musical and the west coast premiere of Anita Bryant Died For Your Sins. For L.A.’s Musical Theatre Guild, Richard has directed Road Show, Promises Promises, High Fidelity and Violet, among others.
Richard was the Theatrical Coordinator for the Emmy award-winningseries, Big Little Lies (directing all of the on-screen Avenue Q scenes) and was the director of the multiple award-winning musical short film Into Light.
He is the recipient of the L.A. Drama Critics Circle Career Achievement Award for Directing and is the co-artistic director of L.A’s Music Stand Series, a reading series dedicated to the development of new musicals by southern California musical theatre creators.
Website: www.richardisraeldirector.com