Sheldon Epps

Sheldon Epps conceived and directed the Duke Ellington musical
Play On! which received three Tony Award nominations, and was
produced at the Goodman Theatre in Chicago, where it received
four Jefferson Awards including Best Musical. The Pasadena
Playhouse production was filmed by PBS for broadcast as part of
the “Great Performances” series.   He also conceived
and directed the highly acclaimed musical revue, Blues in the
Night. The Broadway production was nominated for a Tony Award for
Best Musical of the Year, and the London production, which he
also directed, was nominated for two Laurence Olivier Awards, and
ran for over a year on the West End before being broadcast in
Europe by Thames Television. His 2018 production of the show in
Los Angeles received unanimously positive critical acclaim and
set box office records at The Wallis Annenberg Center for the
Arts.   Mr. Epps was honored to be the Artistic
Director of the renowned Pasadena Playhouse for two decades
(1997-2017) and is widely credited with the rejuvenation and
rebirth of that respected theatre company. His directing credits
at The Playhouse include the record breaking production of Fences
(starring Laurence Fishburne and Angela Bassett), Kiss Me Kate,
Twelve Angry Men, Intimate Apparel, Blues for an Alabama Sky, The
Night Is a Child, As Bees In Honey Drown, Blue, Play On!, Les
Liaisons Dangereuses, The Importance of Being Earnest, The Old
Settler, The Real Thing, On Borrowed Time, Mr. Rickey Calls a
Meeting, Blues in the Night, Purlie (a co-production with the
Goodman Theatre), and the world premiere productions of the
musicals Sleepless In Seattle, Breaking Through, and Ray Charles
Live!  He inaugurated Hothouse at The Playhouse, the
theatre’s hugely successful new play development program.
 He also co-directed the Broadway production of Baby It’s
You!, which was originally produced at The Playhouse. He now
continues his association with the theatre as Artistic Director
Emeritus.     Under his leadership, The
Pasadena Playhouse once again established a reputation for
outstanding productions distinguishing themselves in their
artistic excellence and theatrical diversity. During his tenure
several productions successfully transferred to Broadway, off
Broadway and numerous theatres all over the country. Among many
other honors he received the NAACP Community Service Award and
the prestigious James Irvine Foundation Leadership Award for his
many accomplishments during his tenure at The Playhouse.
    For television he has directed episodes
of “The Upshaws,” “Family Reunion,” “Frasier,” “Friends,” “The
George Lopez Show,” “Everybody Loves Raymond,” “Hannah Montana,”
“Instant Mom,” “Evening Shade,” “Sister, Sister,” and many
others, as well as several pilots. For five seasons he was also
producer/director for the hit series “Girlfriends.” In
recognition of his work in television, he was invited to be the
Pankey Chair/Filmmaker in Residence at Chapman University.
  He has also taught acting, directing and theatre
management at Yale School of Drama, USC, UCLA, University of San
Diego, Occidental College, and Cal State LA among others. He was
honored to receive the coveted Alumni Achievement Award from his
alma mater Carnegie-Mellon University.   He is a
long-time member of the Executive Board of the Society of
Directors and Choreographers and served as Chair of the SDC
Foundation Board of Trustees. He is also on the board of the Ten
Chimneys Foundation. Mr. Epps is a two-time recipient of the
Theatre Communications Group/Pew Charitable Trust National
Theatre Artists Residency Grant, which supported his four-year
tenure at The Old Globe as Associate Artistic Director.
    Currently, he is honored to serve as
Senior Artistic Advisor at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, DC.
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