DAVE SOLOMON is an award-winning New York-based writer and director.
His latest film, Brenda & Billy and the Pothos Plant, starring Santino Fontana, Sarah Stiles, Beethovan Oden, Julie Halston and Catherine Curtin will premiere in June 2023 as an official selection of Tribeca Film Festival.
He is currently directing and developing the new musical Pump up the Volume, by Jeff Thomson and Jeremy Desmon, based on the 1990 film starring Christian Slater. A workshop presentation of the first act just premiered in London as part of MTFestUK and he will be directing the world premiere production in 2024. He had previously directed a development workshop of the piece with the Canadian Musical Theatre Project in 2019 (which was also presented at the Winter Garden Theatre in Toronto), as well as a concert version at Joe’s Pub (featuring performers such as Leslie Odom, Jr, Lucas Steele and Nancy Opel) that was featured in Entertainment Weekly and New York Magazine.
He is the director of the first national tour of the Tony-winning Broadway musical, Tootsie; a slightly revised and newly conceived production with choreography by Tony-nominated Denis Jones and featuring new material by Robert Horn (Tony Winner - Best Book of a Musical) and David Yazbek, based on the original Broadway production directed by Scott Ellis. Now on its second successful year touring the U.S.
Solomon recently directed an acclaimed production of The Play That Goes Wrong for the historic Le Petit Theatre in New Orleans. He was also the creative director of the unique, experiential winter gala for THE SHED in New York City; conceiving of a ‘Sea Change’ concept that was carried out in a production design by Emmy-winner Jason Ardizzone-West (“Jesus Christ Superstar Live”) and featuring appearances by Marina Abramović, Ralph Fiennes and a DJ-set by Questlove.
During the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic, he directed a unique theatrical-cinematic hybrid production of Adam Gwon’s musical Ordinary Days for the Pittsburgh Playhouse, featuring a production design by Jason Ardizzone-West and new material by Adam Gwon; written exclusively for this production’s dual gender-bending casting which included future Tony-nominated actor Jaquel Spivey. His play, Margaret and Craig, starring Mario Cantone, has been seen at New York Stage and Film (directed by Tony-nominated Sheryl Kaller), and was part of The New Group’s New Work series; also directed by Kaller and featuring Cantone and Marin Ireland.
Solomon wrote and directed the award-winning short film photo op, starring Randy Harrison, that played over twenty film festivals including Palm Springs International ShortFest and Outfest Los Angeles. It can now be seen on Amazon Prime.
He assisted Bill Condon on the live-action film version of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast and also worked with Condon on the feature film, Mr. Holmes, starring Ian McKellen and Laura Linney. He also served as Condon’s Associate Director on the stage production of Side Show, working alongside the director in developing the revised version of the Henry Krieger musical that played La Jolla Playhouse and The Kennedy Center before arriving on Broadway.
Solomon has also been a recurrent Associate Director to Joe Mantello and Scott Ellis, and has worked on twelve Broadway productions including Tootsie, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, 9 to 5, Pal Joey, Sunday in the Park with George, The Ritz, Curtains and Assassins. He was also Scott Ellis’ associate and an Associate Producer on “A Christmas Story Live” for Fox. For stage, he directed the critically-acclaimed world premiere of Diana Amsterdam’s new play, The Dodgers, at the Hudson Theatre in Los Angeles (starring Corbin Bleu, Talisa Friedman, Jared Gertner, Asher Grodman, Emma Hunton, and Eric Nelsen) and directed the theatrical song-cycle You’re Gonna Hate This, with composer Michael Holland and Tony-Winner Lindsay Mendez at Joe's Pub.
Solomon was the bookwriter for Havana – Palace of Lights, an original musical for Norwegian Cruise Line directed and choreographed by Tony-winner Warren Carlyle and featuring music by Ryan Scott Oliver and two-time Grammy-winner Albita Cantante. As a writer, he has also had works produced or performed at Ars Nova and Developing Artists, has been a resident of SPACE on Ryder Farm.
Other directing credits for stage include Same Time, Next Year with John Bolton and Eve Plumb, a staged reading of Debra Monk’s play, Dick and Lola, for the Roundabout Theatre Company; that starred Ms. Monk alongside Andrea Martin and Brian Kerwin. He was also the director of Marrying Meg, which was one of the eight shows selected by the New York Times as a highlight of that year’s New York Musical Theatre Festival (NYMF).
Solomon is a graduate of Vassar College and is represented by Michael Finkle (theatre) and Hannah Davis (film) at William Morris Endeavor.
