Julie Taymor
- Director
- Additional Crew
- Producer
Julie Taymor is an Academy Award-nominated director, known for such
films as Frida (2002) and
Across the Universe (2007).
She was born on December 15, 1952, in Newton, Massachusetts, a suburb
of Boston. Her father, Melvin Lester Taymor, was a gynecologist. Her
mother, Elizabeth Bernstein, was a teacher of political science. Young
Taymor was fond of international folklore and mythology, and also
developed a passion for theatre. She spent her formative years living
in several countries. As a teenager, during the 1960s, she lived in Sri
Lanka and India with the Experiment in International Living program,
then studied acting in Paris, at the mime school of
Jacques Lecoq. From 1969 to
1974, she studied theatre and mythology at Oberlin College, graduating
in 1974 with a degree in folklore and mythology.
During the 1970s, Taymor lived in Japan, studying the art of puppetry
and Japanese theatre. Then, she spent five years in Indonesia, working
as director of international theatre with Asian, European, and American
actors. Back in the USA, she worked on and off Broadway. There, she
achieved her first success with staging a fairy tale, "The King Stag",
and then toured 66 cities across the world, including Los Angeles,
Venice, Tokyo, and Moscow.
In the 1990s, Taymor directed several classic operas. Her 1992
production of Igor Stravinsky's "Oedipus
Rex" in Japan earned the Emmy Award. Then, she directed the 1993
production of "The Magic Flute" by
'Wolfgang
Mozart', in Florence, with
conductor Zubin Mehta, and the acclaimed
1994 production of "Salome"
in St. Petersburg, Russia, with conductor
Valery Gergiev.
In New York, she continued a stellar theatrical career, directing such
productions as
William Shakespeare's "Titus
Andronicus" and "Juan Darién: A Carnival Mass" at the Lincoln Center.
In 1997, Taymor directed a massive
Walt Disney Company's production of "The
Lion King" on Broadway, for which she also co-designed over a 100
costumes and masks of animals, and earned two Tony Awards.
Her film, Frida (2002), received six Oscar
nominations, and two Oscars, for make-up and for the music score by
Elliot Goldenthal. Taymor continued
her success with the 2004 production of "The Magic Flute" at the
Metropolitan Opera (which is now in repertoires at the Met), and the
2006 staging of "Grendel" at the Los Angeles Opera and, later, at the
Linolcn Center Festival. Taymor's experience with cross-genre and
cross-cultural productions came to culmination in her latest film,
Across the Universe (2007).
It is a musical set in the 1960s England, Vietnam, and America, where a
love story and social protest are intertwined with over thirty songs by
The Beatles.
Outside of her directing profession, Taymor amassed puppets, masks and
folk art from around the world. As an artist, she has been involved in
making puppets, masks, costumes and stage sets. Since 1980, Julie
Taymor has been a long-time collaborator with the Oscar-winning
composer, Elliot Goldenthal, and the
couple lives in Manhattan.
films as Frida (2002) and
Across the Universe (2007).
She was born on December 15, 1952, in Newton, Massachusetts, a suburb
of Boston. Her father, Melvin Lester Taymor, was a gynecologist. Her
mother, Elizabeth Bernstein, was a teacher of political science. Young
Taymor was fond of international folklore and mythology, and also
developed a passion for theatre. She spent her formative years living
in several countries. As a teenager, during the 1960s, she lived in Sri
Lanka and India with the Experiment in International Living program,
then studied acting in Paris, at the mime school of
Jacques Lecoq. From 1969 to
1974, she studied theatre and mythology at Oberlin College, graduating
in 1974 with a degree in folklore and mythology.
During the 1970s, Taymor lived in Japan, studying the art of puppetry
and Japanese theatre. Then, she spent five years in Indonesia, working
as director of international theatre with Asian, European, and American
actors. Back in the USA, she worked on and off Broadway. There, she
achieved her first success with staging a fairy tale, "The King Stag",
and then toured 66 cities across the world, including Los Angeles,
Venice, Tokyo, and Moscow.
In the 1990s, Taymor directed several classic operas. Her 1992
production of Igor Stravinsky's "Oedipus
Rex" in Japan earned the Emmy Award. Then, she directed the 1993
production of "The Magic Flute" by
'Wolfgang
Mozart', in Florence, with
conductor Zubin Mehta, and the acclaimed
1994 production of "Salome"
in St. Petersburg, Russia, with conductor
Valery Gergiev.
In New York, she continued a stellar theatrical career, directing such
productions as
William Shakespeare's "Titus
Andronicus" and "Juan Darién: A Carnival Mass" at the Lincoln Center.
In 1997, Taymor directed a massive
Walt Disney Company's production of "The
Lion King" on Broadway, for which she also co-designed over a 100
costumes and masks of animals, and earned two Tony Awards.
Her film, Frida (2002), received six Oscar
nominations, and two Oscars, for make-up and for the music score by
Elliot Goldenthal. Taymor continued
her success with the 2004 production of "The Magic Flute" at the
Metropolitan Opera (which is now in repertoires at the Met), and the
2006 staging of "Grendel" at the Los Angeles Opera and, later, at the
Linolcn Center Festival. Taymor's experience with cross-genre and
cross-cultural productions came to culmination in her latest film,
Across the Universe (2007).
It is a musical set in the 1960s England, Vietnam, and America, where a
love story and social protest are intertwined with over thirty songs by
The Beatles.
Outside of her directing profession, Taymor amassed puppets, masks and
folk art from around the world. As an artist, she has been involved in
making puppets, masks, costumes and stage sets. Since 1980, Julie
Taymor has been a long-time collaborator with the Oscar-winning
composer, Elliot Goldenthal, and the
couple lives in Manhattan.