Epps, Sheldon 1952–

PERSONAL

Born November 15, 1952, in Los Angeles, CA; son of St. Paul (a Presbyterian minister) and Kathryn (a teacher; maiden name, Gilliam) Epps. Education: Carnegie Mellon University, B.F.A., 1973.

Addresses: Agent—The Kaplan, Stahler, Gumer, Brown Agency, 8383 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 923, Beverly Hills, CA 90211. Contact—Administration, 39 S. El Molina Ave., 3rd Floor, Pasadena, CA 91101.

Career: Director. Cofounder of the Production Company in New York; directed productions at the Phoenix Theatre, McCarter Theatre, Guthrie Theatre, Seattle Repertory Theatre, Crossroads Theatre, Pasadena Playhouse, Manhattan Theatre Club, Playwrights Horizons, and McCarter Theater; Old Globe Theatre, San Diego, CA, associate artistic director, for four years c. 1990s; Pasadena Playhouse, Pasadena, CA, artistic director, 1997–.

Member: Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers (executive board member), Actors' Equity Association, Screen Actors Guild.

Awards, Honors: Theatre Communication Group (TCG)/Pew Charitable Trust National Theatre Artists Residency Grant (twice); Black Entertainment Television (BET) Comedy Award nomination (with others), outstanding directing for a comedy series, 2005, for Girlfriends.

CREDITS

Stage Director:

Scenes and Revelations, Circle in the Square, New York City, 1981.

Blues in the Night, Rialto Theatre, New York City, 1982.

Dark of the Moon, Asolo State Theatre, Sarasota, FL, 1983.

Young Playwright's Festival, Playwrights Horizon Theatre, New York City, 1987.

Play On!, Old Globe Theatre, San Diego, CA, then Brooks Atkinson Theatre, New York City, 1997.

Turning Up the Heat, Pasadena Playhouse, Pasadena, CA, 1999.

As Bees in Honey Drown, Pasadena Playhouse, 2003.

Purlie, Goodman Theatre, Chicago, 2005.

Fences, Pasadena Playhouse, 2006.

Also directed Disgustingly Rich, Incandescent Tones, and A Midsummer Night's Dream, all Production Company, New York City; And I Ain't Finished Yet, Manhattan Theatre Club, New York City; Bravo: A Musical Portrait of Edith Piaf, Mayfair Theatre, Los Angeles, then Apollo Theatre Center, Chicago; Bring in the Morning, Variety Arts Theatre, New York City; The Old Settler; My Rickey Calls a Meeting; Blues in the Night, Broadway and London productions.

Major Tours:

Directed Broadway Rhythm and The Best of Broadway, international tours as part of the "I Love New York," commercial campaign; Blues in the Night, national tour.

Television Work; Specials:

Stage director, Play On!, 2000.

Television Director; Episodic:

Evening Shade, CBS, 1993.

Sister, Sister, The WB, 1996–98.

Frasier, NBC, 1997–99.

In the House, UPN, 1997.

Smart Guy, The WB, 1997.

Encore! Encore!, NBC, 1998.

Getting Personal, Fox, 1998.

Reunited, UPN, 1998.

Maggie, 1998.

Grown Ups, ABC, 1999.

The Jamie Foxx Show, The WB, 1999.

Stark Raving Mad, NBC, 1999.

Veronica's Closet, NBC, 2000.

Friends, NBC, 2001–2003.

My Wife and Kids, ABC, 2002.

What I Like About You, The WB, 2002.

In-Laws, NBC, 2002.

Everybody Loves Raymond (also known as Raymond), CBS, 2002.

The Tracy Morgan Show, NBC, 2003.

Second Time Around, UPN, 2004.

Life on a Stick, Fox, 2004.

Girlfriends, UPN, 2004–2005.

Joey, NBC, 2004–2005.

Out of Practice, CBS, 2005.

Stacked, Fox, 2005.

Less Than Perfect, ABC, 2005.

Hannah Montana, The Disney Channel, 2005.

George Lopez, ABC, 2006.

Love, Inc., UPN, 2005–2006.

Television Producer; Series:

Girlfriends, UPN 2003–.

Television Director; Movies:

The Soluna Project, 2004.

OTHER SOURCES

Periodicals:

American Theatre, December, 1999, pp. 63.