Mel Shapiro

Mel Shapiro is an award-winning American theatre director and writer, college professor, and author.

For Broadway, Shapiro wrote the book and directed the 1971 musical adaptation of Two Gentlemen of Verona, and directed the 1978 revival of Stop the World - I Want to Get Off with Sammy Davis, Jr. and John Guare's 1979 play Bosoms and Neglect. He directed the original off-Broadway production of The House of Blue Leaves, and has staged works at Lincoln Center, the Public Theater, and for the New York Shakespeare Festival.

Shapiro was one of the founding members of NYU's Tisch School of the Arts and served as the head of drama at Carnegie Mellon University. He currently is the head of Acting and Music Theatre at UCLA's Theatre Department.

Shapiro is the author of The Director's Companion and An Actor Performs.

[edit] Awards and nominations

1972 Tony Award for Best Book of a Musical (Two Gentlemen, winner)
1972 Tony Award for Best Direction of a Musical (Two Gentlemen, nominee)
1972 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Book (Two Gentlemen, winner)
1972 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Director of a Play (Older People, winner)
1972 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Director of a Musical (Two Gentlemen, winner)