# Richard Rose (director)

Richard Rose CM (born January 18, 1955) is a Canadian theatre director, most noted as the former artistic director of the Toronto theatre companies Necessary Angel and Tarragon Theatre.

## Background

He was born in Maracaibo, Venezuela, and raised in Sudbury, Ontario. He studied theatre at York University.

## Career

He was the founding artistic director of Necessary Angel in 1978. The company's first production, Aeschylus's Oresteia, was not well-regarded by critics but telegraphed the company's high ambitions.
Necessary Angel rose to critical and popular favour with the breakout success of John Krizanc's play Tamara in 1981, which won numerous Dora Mavor Moore Awards in 1982 including Best Director for Rose. Following the success of Tamara, he collaborated with Thom Sokoloski, the artistic director of Theatre Autumn Leaf, to create Autumn Angel Repertory, who won the Dora for Outstanding New Play in 1984 for Mein.
In 1989 he attracted acclaim for his theatrical adaptation of Michael Ondaatje's novel Coming Through Slaughter, cowritten with Ondaatje and D.D. Kugler. In 1992, Rose and Kugler debuted another stage adaptation, of Timothy Findley's novel Not Wanted on the Voyage.
He also directed the short film Giant Steps, which screened at the 1992 Toronto International Film Festival, and served for three years as director of the youth company at the Stratford Festival.
In 2002 he was appointed artistic director of Tarragon. His role with the company was marked by brief controversy in 2012 when Michael Healey resigned as the company's playwright in residence after Rose declined to produce his play Proud, but Rose remained with the company until his retirement in 2020.
In 2024, he was appointed as a member of the Order of Canada. He lives in Toronto.

## Awards

| Award | Year | Category | Work | Result |
| Dora Mavor Moore Awards | 1982 | Outstanding Direction of a Play, General Theatre | Tamara | Won |
| Dora Mavor Moore Awards | 1983 | Best Original Play, General Theatre | Censored | Nominated |
| Dora Mavor Moore Awards | 1984 | Best Original Play, General Theatre | Mein with Stewart Arnott, Ines Ruchli, Mark Christmann, Dorian Clark, Denis Forest, Maggie Huculak, Tanja Jacobs, Susan McKenzie | Won |
| Dora Mavor Moore Awards | 1989 | Outstanding Direction of a Play, General Theatre | The Possibilities | Nominated |
| Dora Mavor Moore Awards | 1990 | Best Original Play, General Theatre | Coming Through Slaughter with Michael Ondaatje, D.D. Kugler | Nominated |
| Dora Mavor Moore Awards | 1990 | Outstanding Direction of a Play, General Theatre | The Europeans | Nominated |
| Dora Mavor Moore Awards | 1993 | Outstanding Direction of a Play, Midsize Theatre | Glenn | Nominated |
| Dora Mavor Moore Awards | 1996 | Outstanding Direction of a Play, Midsize Theatre | Seven Lears | Won |
| Dora Mavor Moore Awards | 1998 | Outstanding Direction of a Play, General Theatre | Inexpressible Island | Nominated |
| Dora Mavor Moore Awards | 2004 | Outstanding Direction of a Play, General Theatre | Remnants | Won |
| Dora Mavor Moore Awards | 2004 | Outstanding Direction of a Play, General Theatre | Simpl | Nominated |
| Dora Mavor Moore Awards | 2006 | Outstanding Direction of a Play, General Theatre | Léo | Nominated |
| Dora Mavor Moore Awards | 2007 | Outstanding Direction of a Play, General Theatre | Scorched | Won |
| Dora Mavor Moore Awards | 2010 | Outstanding Direction of a Play, General Theatre | Courageous | Nominated |
| Dora Mavor Moore Awards | 2014 | Outstanding Direction of a Play, General Theatre | A God in Need of Help | Nominated |
| Dora Mavor Moore Awards | 2015 | Outstanding Direction of a Play, General Theatre | An Enemy of the People | Nominated |
| Dora Mavor Moore Awards | 2018 | Outstanding Direction of a Play, General Theatre | Hamlet | Nominated |