Berkeley Rep Names Lisa Peterson New Associate Director

Berkeley Repertory Theatre announced yesterday that Lisa Peterson has been appointed the theater's new associate director. Peterson, who will direct the 2016-17 season opener, It Can’t Happen Here, joins the theater’s artistic team effective Thursday, September 1.

Her duties will include directing for Berkeley Rep’s main stage, developing new work through The Ground Floor: Berkeley Rep’s Center for the Creation and Development of New Work, and supporting ongoing artistic endeavors.

"This is a kind of homecoming for me," says Peterson, "because I have always loved working at Berkeley Rep, and feel honored to join their team. Berkeley Rep produces some of the most exciting, challenging, and thoughtful work in the country. I look forward to being part of that crazily creative organization."

"I am excited to welcome Lisa to our staff" adds Berkeley Rep Artistic Director Tony Taccone. "She has an impressive track record as a preeminent director, of both new works and classics. Lisa is a terrific collaborator, and I feel lucky to be working with her on It Can’t Happen Here."

Peterson is a two-time Obie Award-winning writer and director. Her previous projects at Berkeley Rep include Mother Courage (2006), The Fall (2001), Antony & Cleopatra (1999), and An Iliad (2012), which she co-wrote with Denis O’Hare. She and O'Hare are currently working on a commission for the McCarter Theatre titled The Song of Rome, and Peterson is also writing a new music-theater piece with Todd Almond called The Idea of Order, co-commissioned by La Jolla Playhouse, Berkeley Rep, and Seattle Rep.