Margo Lion
Encyclopedia
Margo Lion is a producer
for plays and musicals both on Broadway
and off-Broadway
. She is known for her role in producing the stage and screen hit Hairspray
. Combined, the works Lion produced have won 20 Tony Award
s and a Pulitzer Prize
.
, Maryland
. She started her producing career with Lyn Austin at The Music-Theater Group/Lenox Arts Center. Her first commercial production was How I Got That Story in 1982. Later off-Broadway productions included the 1987 version of Martha Clarke's The Garden of Earthly Delights
, Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune
and The Cryptogram.
Her first Broadway production was I Hate Hamlet
in 1991.
In 1987 Lion commissioned George Wolfe
, Susan Birkenhead and Luther Henderson to write a show about Jelly Roll Morton
. That musical became the 1992 Broadway show, Jelly's Last Jam
, starring Gregory Hines
.
In 1993-94 Lion produced Angels in America: Millennium Approaches and Perestroika
followed by the 1995 production of Seven Guitars
. Angels in America: Millennium Approaches won the 1993 Pulitzer Prize for Drama
.
In 1997, Lion produced Triumph of Love
, based on a 1732 comedy by Pierre de Marivaux. Shortly after its run, while watching John Waters
' 1988 film, Hairspray she had the idea to adapt the film into a musical. She recruited Marc Shaiman
, a Hollywood film composer, for the musical's score. Four years later, in August 2002, the musical Hairspray
premiered on Broadway and became an immediate commercial and critical hit.
Following Hairspray, Lion produced the Broadway productions Caroline, or Change
(2004), The Wedding Singer
(2006), and Radio Golf
(2007) as well as Harlem Song at The Apollo. Lion also garnered a Tony Award
for Elaine Stritch at Liberty.
She is currently the producer of the musical adaptation of Catch Me If You Can
which played at Seattle's 5th Avenue Theatre in July 2009, as well as musical adaptations of Mira Nair
's Monsoon Wedding, and Like Water for Chocolate.
Lion is an adjunct professor at the Tisch School of the Arts
of New York University
. She also served as Co-Chair to President Barack Obama's Arts Policy Committee during the 2008 Presidential Election and was appointed in 2009 as Co-Chair of President's Committee on the Humanities and the Arts.
Theatrical producer
A theatrical producer is the person ultimately responsible for overseeing all aspects of mounting a theatre production. The independent producer will usually be the originator and finder of the script and starts the whole process...
for plays and musicals both on Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
and off-Broadway
Off-Broadway
Off-Broadway theater is a term for a professional venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, and for a specific production of a play, musical or revue that appears in such a venue, and which adheres to related trade union and other contracts...
. She is known for her role in producing the stage and screen hit Hairspray
Hairspray (musical)
Hairspray is a musical with music by Marc Shaiman, lyrics by Scott Wittman and Shaiman and a book by Mark O'Donnell and Thomas Meehan, based on the 1988 John Waters film Hairspray. The songs include 1960s-style dance music and "downtown" rhythm and blues...
. Combined, the works Lion produced have won 20 Tony Award
Tony Award
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway...
s and a Pulitzer Prize
Pulitzer Prize
The Pulitzer Prize is a U.S. award for achievements in newspaper and online journalism, literature and musical composition. It was established by American publisher Joseph Pulitzer and is administered by Columbia University in New York City...
.
Biography
Margo Lion is from BaltimoreBaltimore
Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...
, Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
. She started her producing career with Lyn Austin at The Music-Theater Group/Lenox Arts Center. Her first commercial production was How I Got That Story in 1982. Later off-Broadway productions included the 1987 version of Martha Clarke's The Garden of Earthly Delights
The Garden of Earthly Delights
The Garden of Earthly Delights is a triptych painted by the early Netherlandish master Hieronymus Bosch , housed in the Museo del Prado in Madrid since 1939. Dating from between 1490 and 1510, when Bosch was about 40 or 50 years old, it is his best-known and most ambitious work...
, Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune
Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune
Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune is a two-character play by Terrence McNally.It focuses on two lonely, middle-aged people whose first date ends with them tumbling into bed. Johnny is certain he has found his soul mate in Frankie. She, on the other hand, is far more cautious and disinclined...
and The Cryptogram.
Her first Broadway production was I Hate Hamlet
I Hate Hamlet
I Hate Hamlet is a dramatic comedy written in 1991 by Paul Rudnick. Set in John Barrymore's old apartment in New York City - at the time, the author's real-life home - the play follows successful television actor Andrew Rally as he struggles with taking on the dream role of Hamlet, dealing with a...
in 1991.
In 1987 Lion commissioned George Wolfe
George Wolfe
George Wolfe may refer to:*George C. Wolfe , African-American playwright and director*George Wolfe , Irish Cumann na nGaedhael TD 1923–1932*George Wolfe , US government administrator in Iraq...
, Susan Birkenhead and Luther Henderson to write a show about Jelly Roll Morton
Jelly Roll Morton
Ferdinand Joseph LaMothe , known professionally as Jelly Roll Morton, was an American ragtime and early jazz pianist, bandleader and composer....
. That musical became the 1992 Broadway show, Jelly's Last Jam
Jelly's Last Jam
Jelly's Last Jam is a musical with a book by George C. Wolfe, lyrics by Susan Birkenhead, and music by Jelly Roll Morton and Luther Henderson...
, starring Gregory Hines
Gregory Hines
Gregory Oliver Hines was an American actor, singer, dancer and choreographer.-Early years:Born in New York City, Hines and his older brother Maurice started dancing at an early age, studying with choreographer Henry LeTang...
.
In 1993-94 Lion produced Angels in America: Millennium Approaches and Perestroika
Perestroika
Perestroika was a political movement within the Communist Party of the Soviet Union during 1980s, widely associated with the Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev...
followed by the 1995 production of Seven Guitars
Seven Guitars
Seven Guitars is a 1995 play by American playwright, August Wilson. It focuses on seven African American characters in the year 1948. The play begins and ends after the funeral of one of the main characters, showing events leading to the funeral in flashbacks...
. Angels in America: Millennium Approaches won the 1993 Pulitzer Prize for Drama
Pulitzer Prize for Drama
The Pulitzer Prize for Drama was first awarded in 1918.From 1918 to 2006, the Drama Prize was unlike the majority of the other Pulitzer Prizes: during these years, the eligibility period for the drama prize ran from March 2 to March 1, to reflect the Broadway 'season' rather than the calendar year...
.
In 1997, Lion produced Triumph of Love
Triumph of Love
Triumph of Love is a musical with a book by James Magruder, lyrics by Susan Birkenhead, and music by Jeffrey Stock.Resembling a chamber musical more than a traditional book musical, it is based on the 1732 Pierre de Marivaux commedia dell'arte play Le Triomphe de l'Amour and centers on Spartan...
, based on a 1732 comedy by Pierre de Marivaux. Shortly after its run, while watching John Waters
John Waters (filmmaker)
John Samuel Waters, Jr. is an American filmmaker, actor, stand-up comedian, writer, journalist, visual artist, and art collector, who rose to fame in the early 1970s for his transgressive cult films...
' 1988 film, Hairspray she had the idea to adapt the film into a musical. She recruited Marc Shaiman
Marc Shaiman
Marc Shaiman is an American composer, lyricist, arranger, and performer for films, television, and theatre. He is perhaps best known for writing the music and co-writing the lyrics for the Broadway musical version of the cult John Waters film Hairspray, for which Shaiman won Tony and Grammy...
, a Hollywood film composer, for the musical's score. Four years later, in August 2002, the musical Hairspray
Hairspray (musical)
Hairspray is a musical with music by Marc Shaiman, lyrics by Scott Wittman and Shaiman and a book by Mark O'Donnell and Thomas Meehan, based on the 1988 John Waters film Hairspray. The songs include 1960s-style dance music and "downtown" rhythm and blues...
premiered on Broadway and became an immediate commercial and critical hit.
Following Hairspray, Lion produced the Broadway productions Caroline, or Change
Caroline, or Change
Caroline, or Change is a through-composed musical with book and lyrics by Tony Kushner and score by Jeanine Tesori that combines spirituals, blues, Motown, classical music, and Jewish klezmer and folk music....
(2004), The Wedding Singer
The Wedding Singer (musical)
The Wedding Singer is a musical with music by Matthew Sklar, lyrics by Chad Beguelin, and a book by Chad Beguelin and Tim Herlihy. It is based on the 1998 film The Wedding Singer.-Synopsis:Act 1...
(2006), and Radio Golf
Radio Golf
Radio Golf is a play by American playwright, August Wilson, the final installment in his ten-part series, The Pittsburgh Cycle. It was first performed in 2005 by the Yale Repertory Theatre in New Haven, Connecticut and had its Broadway premiere in 2007 at the Cort Theatre...
(2007) as well as Harlem Song at The Apollo. Lion also garnered a Tony Award
Tony Award
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway...
for Elaine Stritch at Liberty.
She is currently the producer of the musical adaptation of Catch Me If You Can
Catch Me If You Can
Catch Me If You Can is a 2002 American biographical comedy-drama film based on the life of Frank Abagnale Jr., who, before his 19th birthday, successfully performed cons worth millions of dollars by posing as a Pan American World Airways pilot, a Georgia doctor, and a Louisiana parish prosecutor...
which played at Seattle's 5th Avenue Theatre in July 2009, as well as musical adaptations of Mira Nair
Mira Nair
Mira Nair is an Indian film director and producer based in New York. Her production company is Mirabai Films.She was educated at Delhi University and Harvard University. Her debut feature film, Salaam Bombay! , won the Golden Camera award at the Cannes Film Festival and also earned the nomination...
's Monsoon Wedding, and Like Water for Chocolate.
Lion is an adjunct professor at the Tisch School of the Arts
Tisch School of the Arts
Tisch School of the Arts is one of the 15 schools that make up New York University ....
of New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
. She also served as Co-Chair to President Barack Obama's Arts Policy Committee during the 2008 Presidential Election and was appointed in 2009 as Co-Chair of President's Committee on the Humanities and the Arts.