Tom Moore
In the theatre, Mr. Moore is best known as the director of ‘Night, Mother (with Kathy Bates and Anne Pitoniak) which won the Pulitzer Prize and garnered him his second Tony nomination. His first production on Broadway, the original Grease, ran for eight years and is one of the longest running shows in Broadway history. His most recent Broadway production was Moon Over Buffalo with Carol Burnett. A documentary, Moon Over Broadway, chronicled the production from rehearsals to the Broadway opening. His recent documentary, The Flight Fantastic, has received international acclaim, the New York Times calling it “Magnetic” and the Village Voice “Exhilirating!” Mr. Moore’s first Tony nomination was for the direction of the Big Band Musical Over Here! which brought the Andrews Sisters out of retirement. Other Broadway productions include the critically acclaimed revival of Once in a Lifetime at Circle-in-the Square, Division Street, The Octette Bridge Club, A Little Hotel on the Side and the short-lived, but legendary Frankenstein at the Palace Theatre.
Mr. Moore has a long time association with the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles where he directed Feydeau’s A Flea in Her Ear, Division Street (premiere), A Month in the Country, Wild Oats, ‘Night, Mother, and Henceforward. In Los Angeles, he’s also directed Hay Fever at the Ahmanson, Once in a Lifetime in a special benefit for the L.A. Classic Theatre Works and The Pentagon Papers. At the American Conservatory Theatre in San Francisco, Mr. Moore directed Knock Knock, Hotel Paradiso, The Little Foxes, and The Three Sisters. Also in San Francisco, he directed The Boys in Autumn with Burt Lancaster and Kirk Douglas. Regionally, he’s directed Loot at the Guthrie Theatre in Minneapolis, Once in a Lifetime at Arena Stage, Our Town (with Geraldine Fitzgerald as the Stage Manager), Hay Fever, The Madwoman of Chaillot at the Williamstown Theatre Festival, The Importance of Being Earnest, Fallen Angels, the world premiere of The Lady with All the Answers at the Old Globe Theatre, Traveler in the Dark (with Sam Waterston & Hume Cronyn) and ‘Night, Mother at the American Repertory Theatre and the Brian Friel adaptation of A Month in the Country for Antaeus Theatre Company. He has directed two productions of Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard: one at the La Jolla Playhouse (with Lynn Redgrave); and the other (with Marsha Mason), a premiere stage production at the Lensic Center for Performing Arts for Santa Fe Stages. Mr. Moore’s recently directed When Something Wonderful Ends, was developed at the Ojai Playwrights Conference and presented as part of The Humana Festival and Interact Theatre in Philadelphia.
Mr. Moore has taught and directed at the State University of New York at Buffalo, Brandeis University, and the University of London, England. He was artistic director of the Peterborough Players in New Hampshire, and has lectured at the Seminar in American Studies in Salzburg, Austria. He directed the National touring companies of Grease and ‘Night, Mother, and presented ‘Night, Mother at the Spoleto Festival in Italy.
On film, Mr. Moore directed ‘Night, Mother with Sissy Spacek and Anne Bancroft, and his short film Journey, made for the American Film Institute won two international film awards. On television, he directed Disney’s first original musical for television, Geppetto starring Drew Carey and Julia Louis-Dreyfuss; ER (Emmy nomination), Mad About You (Emmy nomination), L.A. Law (Emmy nomination), Huff, Miss Match, Gilmore Girls, Ally McBeal, Felicity, Lateline, Nothing Sacred, Dharma and Greg, Suddenly Susan, Something So Right, Cybill, Pride and Joy, thirtysomething, The Wonder Years (The Humanitas Prize), Almost Grown, Cheers, Picket Fences, Civil Wars, Northern Exposure, The Class of ’96, Good Company, Boston Common, Maybe It’s Me, The Court, the late night Fridays, and the pilots of First Years, 50-Minute Man, and The Flamingo Kid. He also directed the television movies Maybe Baby and Fine Things. He is currently producing and directing a documentary on the flying trapeze, TO FLY: A Trapeze Legacy, and he spends as much time as possible on the flying trapeze.
Mr. Moore is presently on the executive board of the Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers.
Mr. Moore was a fellow at the American Film Institute, and he holds a B.A. from Purdue University and an M.F.A. from the Yale University School of Drama. He was also awarded the degree of Doctor of Fine Arts, honoris causa from Purdue University and is an inaugural recipient of the Purdue Theatre Legacy Award.