Production List

Click on Program Cover or Title To See 
Production Photos And Reviews

A Christmas Carol

McCarter Theatre

(Princeton, NJ)

"This is an evening that soars from the first moments... sensitive direction… it has the size and feel of the best Broadway family musicals."

 

"Where, I asked myself, does Unger hide his magic wand? He must have one. Every year, what he brings to his grateful audiences of all ages is another memorable occasion. "

 

"Once again, the annual production is warmer than a thick-logged fireplace in a happy home. …excellent special effects.. sensitive direction… "

 

"When is some other regional theater in the area going to discover the magic that Unger exudes?"

See the McCarter Trailer here:

http://www.mccarter.org/Trailers/viewtrailer.aspx?page_id=96

 

Behind The Limelight

By Christopher Curtis

New York Stage and Film

& New York Musical Theatre Festival

OPENING SOON AT LA JOLLA PLAYOUSE!!!

 

Michael Unger directs this ambitious, full-length show with some bold choices and it fills the eye, the mind and the heart.  

 

There are times when a show begins and you just know that you are in for something extraordinarily special – this is such a show.

 

 

Crimes of the Heart

By Beth Henley

Theatre Aspen

July/August, 2008

www.theatreaspen.org

My Sister in This House

Deaf West Theatre

“… a striking new production...  Director, Michael Unger and his cast create a rich world of ritual… intensely erotic symbiosis… This may be the most embodied production I’ve ever seen in L.A.  “My Sister” is an absorbing, often oppressive study of class and codependency. “  - LA Times

 

"Handsomely staged."  - LA Weekly 

 

A View From the Bridge (Opera)

By William Bolcom based on the play by Arthur Miller

Veritcal Player Repertory

www.vpropera.org

- Thrilling theatre.  Extraordinary, vivid direction.- Opera Today 

   

L'Amico Fritz

By Pietro Mascagni and P. Saurdon

Sarasota Opera

www.sarasotaopera.org

To put it bluntly, this three-act opera, directed with strength and understanding. This production is terrific. (Longboat Observer) 

 

The Happy Time

By John Kander, Fred Ebb

and N. Richard Nash

Signature Theatre

a little charmereffervescent.  ( Washington Post)

 

a fresh and earnest revival, staged by Michael Unger with ultimate intimacy in Signature's tiny Ark Theater.  Unger keeps the kid-filled cast in perpetual motion… (Variety)

 

A picture-perfect production.” (Washingtonian)

 

a fresh look at an overlooked jewel of a show.  a spectacular castMr. Unger has masterfully utilized the tiny space with a simple concept and beautifully paced staging.   Wondrous staging and technical craft… one of the most dazzling jewels of the season   (BroadwayWorld.com)

 

Signature Theatre's illustrious Kander & Ebb Celebration might end up being most remembered for reviving The Happy Time Director Michael Unger, aided by composer John Kander, has stripped away the Broadway trappings to reveal a quaint but emotionally intense chamber musical.   (TheatreMania.com)
 

La rondine

By Gioccomo Puccini and Giuseppi Adami

Sarasota Opera Company

 

Stage Director Michael Unger kept the lovers' tumultuous emotions in tight focus.”  ( Sarasota Herald Tribune)

 

breathtakingly beautiful from the creative, innovative staging by Michael Unger that one can’t help but sigh with the romance of it all.   (Longboat Observer)

 

Director Michael Unger proved that La Rondine is anything but a poor man's Traviata.  It is an opera to be taken seriously for its own merits.  (Opera Today)
Janet Metz and Leslie Uggams in <I>The
 Rink</i><br>
(Photo
 © Jered Fournier)

Janet Metz and Leslie Uggams in <I>The
 Rink</i><br>
(Photo
 © Jered Fournier)

The Rink (revised version)

(starring Leslie Uggams and Janet Metz)

By John Kander, Fred Ebb

and Terrence McNally

Cape Playhouse

 

"...if there's any fairness in the world, this show will eventually find its way back to Broadway."

 

"Director Michael Unger has delivered a musical with quirky, captivating charm that is reminiscent of the debut of ``The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee" at Barrington Stage two summers ago, which he also helmed. That offbeat phenomenon quickly found a home on Broadway. This show has the potential to make a comparable leap."

 

"It takes considerable legerdemain to balance a story of family dysfunction with the periodic upbeat numbers that a musical needs to stay afloat.  Fortunately, director Michael Unger never lets the pace flag or the tone go maudlin. The show's "sour" quality reads today as refreshingly astringent..."

Die Fledermaus

Sarasota Opera Company

(Sarasota, FL)

"Superb stage direction by Michael Unger included physical comedy and pratfalls executed cleanly with great effect. The cast managed to keep pace with both the musical and acting demands brilliantly.  From start to finish, the Sarasota Opera has produced a winner.."

 

"Unger is gloriously surefooted.  His direction draws out an honesty of feeling that’s often lacking in broad comedies."

 

"A finer production is hard to imagine"

Tiny Dancer

The Prince Music Theatre

.


Pippin

By Stephen Schwartz and Roger O. Hirson

Depot Theatre

 

www.depottheatre.org

 

La Gioconda

By Ed McNamee & Donya Lane

Harold Clurman Theatre

Retribution

The Lambs Theatre

(Off-Broadway)

"Provocative and unrelenting... surprisingly gripping and dynamic performances."

The 25th Annual Putnam County

Spelling Bee

Barrington Stage Company

(Sheffield, MA)

"richly inventive and insightful collaborative work"

Chosen "Best Director" and "Best Production" by

The Berkshire Eagle

 

Caligula

An Ancient Glam Rock Epic

By Eric Svejcar

Showcase production in the 

New York Music Theatre Festival

"It rocks... Michael Unger, the director, keeps it all balanced on several tightropes at once..."

On The Razzle

By Tom Stoppard

The Babcock Theatre at the University of Utah

(in the Pioneer Theatre building)

"Michael Unger's stylish and inventive direction... is simply out to entertain, and it succeeds admirably."

Love's Fire

By Eric Bogosian, William Finn, John Guare, Tony Kushner, Marsha Norman, Wendy Wasserstein

FSU/Asolo Conservatory

(Sarasota, FL)

"The production is beautifully staged by guest director Michael Unger, who brings out the best performances we've seen this season from the second-year students."

Chosen Top Ten Pick by Sarasota's Weekly Planet

Noises Off

New Harmony Theatre (Evansville, IN)

CLICK HERE TO SEE DESIGN PROCESS

"A frothy, frenzied, often breathlessly funny evening of folly."

School For Wives

Weston Playhouse (Weston, VT)

CLICK HERE TO SEE DESIGN PROCESS

 

"A superb production... Director Michael Unger has produced an amazingly clear-sighted realization of the play. "

The Mikado

The Depot Theatre (Westport, NY)

"Staged with color and elegance."

Triumph Of Love

Weston Playhouse (Weston, VT)

Haven: The Musical

Gindy Auditorium

(Los Angeles, CA)

I'll Be Seeing You

The Kimmel Center -- Innovation Space

(Philadelphia, PA)

Meet Me In St. Louis

MUNY (St. Louis, MO)

"A totally wonderful show for the entire family."

Changes Of Heart

Barrington Stage -  BRAVO Award (Great Barrington, MA)

"Michael Unger has artfully walked the dangerously thin line between broad comedy and philosophical observations."

Les Liaisons Dangereuses

Sanford Meisner Theatre

(Studio Dramatique, NYC)

Still

Generation Productions

(Chicago, IL)

"An engrossing world premiere in a disturbing and driven production tightly directed by Michael Unger..."

 

Steel Magnolias

Freed Center for the Arts

(Ohio Northern University)

Crimes Of The Heart

Blowing Rock Stage

(Blowing Rock, NC)

 

Love's Labours Lost

American Academy of Dramatic Arts

 

Dancing At Lughnasa

American Academy of Dramatic Arts

In Perpetuity Throughout the Universe

The Juilliard School

Taming Of The Shrew

The Complex (L.A., CA)

"Finely tuned and well-trimmed adaptation."

Cries From The Mammal House

The Limelight (L.A., CA)

"Michael Unger’s fluid direction is first-rate staging."

Blair Arch Project

McCarter Theatre

(Princeton University's Triangle Club)

"Michael Unger, keeps the show rolling at a fast, smooth, upbeat and engaging pace, with consistently high production values..."

UPCOMING PROJECTS

A Christmas Carol

(Annual Production)

By Charles Dickens

Adapted by David Thompson

McCarter Theatre, Princeton, NJ

November/December, 2010

www.mccarter.org

The Crucible (Opera)

By Robert Ward based on the play by Arthur Miller

Spring, 2011

www.sarasotaopera.org

 



Public Enemy Number One

By Paul Aleman

Currently in development

Reading at Manhatta Theatre Club June 26, 2008

www.dillingerthemusical.com

Behind The Limelight

By Christopher Curtis

La Jolla Playhouse

September 7th, 2010 - October 17th, 2010

www.behindthelimelight.com

 
READINGS

Dillinger

By Paul Aleman

New 42nd Street Studios

Click Here To Link To The Project's Web Site

Ug

By Jim Goeghan, Rick Rhodes, Vivian Rhodes

Liberty Smith

Book by Eric Cohen and Mark Madneck

Lyrics by Adam Abraham, Music by Michael Weiner

The Lambs Theatre, Studio

The Mystery Of The

Dancing Princesses

By Alan Zachary and Michael Weiner

National Alliance for Musical Theatre Festival '01

Christina Alberta's Father

By Polly Penn

(Based on the novel by H.G. Wells)

National Music Theatre Network

Broadway USA Series

The Real McCoy

By Joan Ross Sorkin and David Loud

Reading and Workshop at CAP-21

Water From The Moon

By Rosemary Loar and Robert Atwood

Education Alliance Jefferson St. and East Broadway

Yes, Virginia, There Is A Santa Claus

By David Krishenbaum and Miles McDonnell

The York Theatre

Dance on the Rooftops

By Allan Knee, Jon Marans and Dan Levine

The York Theatre

Pandora's Box

By Glen Roven and Maria Schlatter

With Laura Benanti, Jeff McCarthy, Donna McKechnie, Marcy Harriel, Jordan Leeds, Sandy Richter, Tina Johnson, Mark Chmiel, Michael Minarek and Desmond Confoy

January, 2005