Steven Kunis

Director Dramaturg Producer Sometimes Writer

I am an American director for theater and opera, currently based in London.

3x Nominated for Best Director at the Off West End Awards for AFTERGLOW; STRAIGHT WHITE MEN (named by The Independent as one of the top ten theatre events of 2021); and HIR starring Emmy & Golden Globe winner Felicity Huffman.

Director of ROCKY ROAD, described by Arifa Akbar as 'a riveting cat-and-mouse thriller' and 'a fine example of onscreen theatre wrought with the suspense of live drama' (****Guardian). Listed by The Guardian among the top online theatre experiences during UK lockdown.

2020 Clore Emerging Leader.

I have a particular interest in experimental work that is both international in outlook and communal in its spirit. All of my creative work is centered on the audience: I aim to make theater that allows us to feel closer to one another, and to collectively imagine better possibilities for how we might all get along.

Credits

DIRECTOR, Hir, Park Theatre 200, Five Weeks, 2024

DIRECTOR, F**king Men, Waterloo East, Sixteen Weeks, 2023/2024

DIRECTOR, Bright Half Life, King's Head Theatre, Four weeks, 2022

ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR, Legally Blonde, dir. Jeffrey Moss, US National Tour, Seven months, 2022-23

DIRECTOR, Straight White Men, Southwark Playhouse, Four weeks, 2021

DIRECTOR, Rocky Road, Jermyn Street Theatre, Four weeks, 2021

ASSISTANT DIRECTOR, Bitterenders, dir. Maxine Peake, Arcola Theatre, Three Weeks, 2021

DIRECTOR, cuts cuts cuts (R&D), Southwark Playhouse, 2021

DIRECTOR, Life is a Dream (R&D), Cervantes Theatre, 2021

ASSISTANT DIRECTOR, Dig, dir. Willi Richards, The Shipwright, Three Weeks, 2021

DIRECTOR, Afterglow, Waterloo East, 10 weeks, 2019

ASSISTANT DIRECTOR, A Lesson from Aloes, dir. Janet Suzman, Finborough Theatre, Four weeks, 2019

DIRECTOR, Refugee Orchestra Project UK Launch, London Symphony Orchestra, St Luke's, One Performance, 2019

DIRECTOR (Short), Bedtime Story, White Bear Theatre, Three performances, 2018

DIRECTOR, Blue-Balls, National Taiwan University of Arts, Three weeks, 2018

DIRECTOR, La bohème, Shanghai Theatre Academy, Two weeks, 2017

DIRECTOR, The Demon, Cutler Majestic Theater (Boston), Three weeks, 2017

DIRECTOR, Alexander's Feast, Agassiz Theater (Boston), Two weeks, 2016

Training

National Film & Television School, Directors Series, 2022

Clore Leadership, Emerging Leaders, 2020

University of Oxford, MSc Cognitive & Evolutionary Anthropology (Neuroscience of Theatre Audiences), 2018

Harvard University, BA Cognitive Neuroscience, 2017

Location

London

Experience

2-5 years

Art forms / Disciplines

  • Music
  • Opera
  • Streaming
  • Theatre / Live perfomance

What I do

  • Devising
  • Directing
  • Dramaturgy
  • Facilitating
  • Languages
  • Music - Can learn by ear
  • Music - Can Read
  • Music - Plays Instruments
  • Music - Singing
  • Producing
  • Teaching / Coaching
  • Theatre making
  • Working with learning disabled artists
  • Working with young people
  • Working with young people with special educational needs
  • Workshopping & Development
  • Writing

Additional Languages

Spanish, Japanese, Greek (intermediate)

Social

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