Andrei Șerban (born June 21, 1943) is a Romanian-born American
theater director. A major name in twentieth-century theater, he is
renowned for his innovative and iconoclastic interpretations and
stagings. Since 1992, he has been Professor of Theater at the Columbia
University School of the Arts.Born in Bucharest, he is the son of
George and Elpis Șerban. His father came from an old family of Țara
Chioarului in MaramureÈ™, studied law at Leipzig, directed a bank and
was close friends with Iuliu Maniu, who attended Serban's baptism.
After the onset of the communist regime, George was fired and obliged
to work as a photographer. His mother came from a family of Greek
merchants settled in Tulcea, originally from Cephalonia. She worked as
a teacher of Romanian language and literature.As a child, he was
presenting puppet shows at home and staging mock battles with his
friends in Bucharest's Grădina Icoanei. From 1961 to 1968, he studied
at the Theatrical and Cinematographic Art Institute in Bucharest. As a
student, he directed Julius Caesar, which he now calls his "most
daring production ever". Set in the Japanese Kabuki style, with a
flower bridge built over the audience, and with Caesar's death
performed in slow motion created an enormous scandal. After that, it
became very hard for him to find a job in Romania.In 1969, Șerban
emigrated to the United States, with the help of Ellen Stewart, and a
grant from the Ford Foundation. In 1970, he went to Paris to study at
Peter Brook's International Centre for Theatre Research. In 1971, he
staged Medea at La MaMa, E.T.C., the experimental theater club in New
York City. Three years later, he directed Fragments of a Greek Trilogy
(Medea, The Trojan Women, and Electra), also at La MaMa.
theater director. A major name in twentieth-century theater, he is
renowned for his innovative and iconoclastic interpretations and
stagings. Since 1992, he has been Professor of Theater at the Columbia
University School of the Arts.Born in Bucharest, he is the son of
George and Elpis Șerban. His father came from an old family of Țara
Chioarului in MaramureÈ™, studied law at Leipzig, directed a bank and
was close friends with Iuliu Maniu, who attended Serban's baptism.
After the onset of the communist regime, George was fired and obliged
to work as a photographer. His mother came from a family of Greek
merchants settled in Tulcea, originally from Cephalonia. She worked as
a teacher of Romanian language and literature.As a child, he was
presenting puppet shows at home and staging mock battles with his
friends in Bucharest's Grădina Icoanei. From 1961 to 1968, he studied
at the Theatrical and Cinematographic Art Institute in Bucharest. As a
student, he directed Julius Caesar, which he now calls his "most
daring production ever". Set in the Japanese Kabuki style, with a
flower bridge built over the audience, and with Caesar's death
performed in slow motion created an enormous scandal. After that, it
became very hard for him to find a job in Romania.In 1969, Șerban
emigrated to the United States, with the help of Ellen Stewart, and a
grant from the Ford Foundation. In 1970, he went to Paris to study at
Peter Brook's International Centre for Theatre Research. In 1971, he
staged Medea at La MaMa, E.T.C., the experimental theater club in New
York City. Three years later, he directed Fragments of a Greek Trilogy
(Medea, The Trojan Women, and Electra), also at La MaMa.
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