Life and career

Zaks was born in Stuttgart, Germany, the son of Holocaust survivors, Lily (Gliksman) and Sy Zaks, a butcher. His family emigrated to the United States in 1948, finally settling in Paterson, New Jersey. He graduated from Dartmouth College and received a Master of Fine Arts from Smith College.

Career

Stage

He made his Broadway acting debut in the original production of Grease as "Kenickie" and appeared in Tintypes in 1980. He made his directing debut in 1981 with the off-Broadway production of Christopher Durang's Beyond Therapy. He has directed many Broadway productions, both musicals and dramas.

He has also directed many Off-Broadway productions, several at Playwrights Horizons and the Public Theater. He directed the City Center Encores! productions of Girl Crazy (November 2009), Stairway to Paradise (May 2007), and Bye Bye Birdie (May 2004).

He was the director of the new musical 101 Dalmatians Musical, which toured the United States from October 2009 through April 2010. Zaks was named "creative consultant" for the new musical The Addams Family, which opened on Broadway in April 2010.

He directed the Broadway production of Sister Act, which opened in Spring 2011.

Lincoln Center

Zaks served as Resident Director at Lincoln Center from 1986 to 1990 and is a founding member of the Ensemble Studio Theatre.

Television and film

As an actor, Zaks' screen credits include Outrageous Fortune, Crimes and Misdemeanors, and Husbands and Wives. On television he has appeared in M*A*S*H and The Edge of Night and directed episodes of Everybody Loves Raymond, Frasier, Hope and Faith, and Two and a Half Men, among others. He also directed the feature films Marvin's Room and Who Do You Love?. Marvin's Room won the Golden St. George at the 20th Moscow International Film Festival.

Honors

Zaks received the George Abbott Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theater in 1994 and an honorary Doctorate of Fine Arts from Dartmouth College in 1999. He was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame in 2013.

Personal

Zaks married Jill Rose, an actress, on January 14, 1979; they have two children, Emma and Hannah Zaks.

Broadway stage productions

• Sister Act, 2011
• A Bronx Tale, 2007
• The Caine Mutiny Court Martial, 2006
• La Cage aux Folles, 2004
• Little Shop of Horrors, 2003
• 45 Seconds from Broadway, 2001
• The Man Who Came to Dinner, 2000
• Swing!, 1999
• Epic Proportions, 1999
• The Civil War, 1999
• A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, revival, 1996
• Smokey Joe's Cafe, 1995
• Laughter on the 23rd Floor, 1993
• Guys and Dolls, revival, 1992
• Six Degrees of Separation, 1990
• Lend Me a Tenor, 1989
• Anything Goes, revival, 1987
• The Front Page, revival, 1986
• The House of Blue Leaves, 1986

Awards and nominations

Awards

• 1986 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Director of a Play - The Marriage of Bette & Boo and The House of Blue Leaves
• 1986 Tony Award for Best Direction of a Play - The House of Blue Leaves
• 1989 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Director of a Play - Lend Me a Tenor
• 1989 Tony Award for Best Direction of a Play - Lend Me a Tenor
• 1991 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Director of a Play - Six Degrees of Separation
• 1991 Tony Award for Best Direction of a Play - Six Degrees of Separation
• 1992 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Director of a Musical - Guys and Dolls
• 1992 Tony Award for Best Direction of a Musical - Guys and Dolls
• 1988 Outer Critics Circle Awards - Wenceslas Square
• 1985 Obie - The Marriage of Bette and Boo
• 1985 Obie - The Foreigner

Nominations

• 1980 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Musical - Tintypes
• 1988 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Director of a Musical - Anything Goes
• 1988 Tony Award for Best Direction of a Musical - Anything Goes
• 1991 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Director of a Musical - Assassins
• 1995 Tony Award for Best Direction of a Musical - Smokey Joe's Cafe
• 1996 Tony Award for Best Direction of a Musical - A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum
• 2006 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Director of a Play - The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial
• NAACP Image Award nomination for the national tour of The Tap Dance Kid.

[ Source: Wikipedia ]