Brandon Bruce approaches the theatre with the experience of a seasoned professional and the freshness of a novice. With each new production, he attempts to transcend the boundaries of what theatre is, and in turn, seems to redefines both the theatre and himself. His is a theatre of collaboration and experiment, a compelling and poignant event that challenges its viewers as well as entertains. On the stage, he unfolds material that speaks to current social climates and re-examines established works. Above all, however, Bruce takes every step to not only maintain the play's artistic integrity, but to breathe an invigorating, new life into each work that he helms.

While he puts no limits on the genres of work he chooses to direct, there are two common themes to which Bruce seems to return: satire and history.

Satire

During his career as a director in Chicago, Bruce could be found at the forefront of the satirical theatre. A fan of all forms of comedy, Brandon reverently approaches satire to properly deliver the most irreverent event. From the gentlest of Horacian satires like Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest, Thornton Wilder's The Skin of Our Teeth and the world premiere production of Eric Schmiedl's Denise Druczweski's Inferno to the most biting of the Juvenalian satires in the forms of Joseph Heller's Catch-22, Slawomir Mrozek's Tango and Peter Barnes' The Ruling Class, Brandon has staged some of the most challenging and compelling satires of the theatre.

History

One could say that Brandon Bruce is a historian trapped in a director's mind. One of his most favored hobbies, Bruce relishes in his studies of history; a study that has led him to conclude that history is not set in stone, but a series of controversies. Many of the plays that he directs are historically based or have a great deal of historical significance. Bruce's rendering of Ted Tally's Terra Nova was an intimate re-telling of Robert Falcon Scott's heroic expedition to the South Pole in the winter of 1911-1912. His revival of Steve Martin's Picasso at the Lapin Agile took a lightning speed and whimsical look at the geniuses of the early 20^th century.

Background

Brandon Bruce is a director with an actor's instincts and a designer's eyes and ears. Bruce's intimate knowledge of the theatre comes from a long and eclectic resume that has included everything from performing to designing to administrative work. His work is largely informed by having performed in well over 60 productions. Previous roles have included the title roles in Hamlet and Macbeth, Larry in Closer, Dogberry in Much Ado About Nothing, Horner in The Country Wife, and Gabriel in Mad Forest. As a sound designer, he has created designs for such productions as Anton in Show Business, The Skin of Our Teeth, Terra Nova, Catch-22, and the world premieres of Denise Druczweski's Inferno and Landslide. As a graphic designer, his artwork for Terra Nova and Anton in Show Business as well as his photography used in the poster for Denise Druczweski's Inferno have been an excellent mainstay for BackStage Theatre Company. As a fight choreographer, his sword mastery has wowed the audiences of Romeo and Juliet (Festival 56), The Two Gentleman of Verona (Weathervane Playhouse), and Macbeth (Expanded Arts, NYC).