Festival Biographies

Patricia Birch

Patricia Birch has worked with Michael Tilson Thomas on projects ranging from Gershwin to Stravinsky to The Thomashefskys: Music and Memories of a Life in the Yiddish Theater, which premiered last March on PBS. In a career that crosses all media, Ms. Birch has earned two Emmy Awards and five Tony nominations. Other honors include Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle, Barrymore, Billboard and MTV Awards, as well as a Directors Guild nomination and the prestigious Fred Astaire Award for her choreography and direction of music-driven projects ranging from Sondheim to the Rolling Stones. As well, Ms. Birch was recently inducted into the Theater Hall of Fame. Her theater highlights have included Sondheim's A Little Night Music, Pacific Overtures and Candide, and her television work ranges from Saturday Night Live to the current Boardwalk Empire. Grease and Grease 2 are among her film projects. Orphan Train, her newest musical theater project, will proudly play this year in Grand Central Station as part of the terminal's centennial celebration.