1. Kenny Gannon
kennygannon@gmail.com | kennygannon.com | 404-938-9435
DIRECTOR, TEACHER, WRITER, AND ACTOR
REVIEWS
“Director Kenny Gannon's
restaging of the adaptation Polly
Teale wrote for London's Shared
Experience is a standout. Melissa
Lee’s performance is an
achievement—a tribute to fine
acting and fine direction by
Gannon. Teale's deft editing finds
a match with Gannon's pacing
brisk but never hurried. He gives
the moments of the drama their
full value, then quickly replaces
one well-developed moment with
another.”
- BYRON WOODS, NEWS AND OBSERVER
“Gannon has instilled a rare
confidence and cohesiveness in a
large cast of varying experience
and has fleshed out his grand
conception with inventive details
and fresh characterizations. The
cast's energy level and well-
rehearsed focus is a telling tribute
to Gannon's abilities.”
- ROY DICKS, NEWS AND OBSERVER
Now based in Atlanta, Georgia, Kenny
has had a prolific career directing
productions throughout the
southeast. Most recently, Kenny guest
directed and wrote the script for
Florida State University's 2014
production of The Melody Lingers On,
The Music of Irving Berlin.
He worked as Education Director and head of the acting program
of the North Carolina Theatre and North Carolina Theatre
Conservatory, instituting long-term strategic planning while
directing and overseeing acting programs throughout the school
year. He doubled participation in acting classes and increased
ticket sales. While there, he adapted and directed productions of
The Rime of Ebenezer Scrooge, A Midsummer Night's Dream, and
Dreams of Anne Frank.
During Kenny's years as Alumnae Distinguished Professor and
Artistic Director at William Peace Theatre, Kenny designed and
implemented a new musical theatre program that quickly
became the most popular program at the university. He designed
a versatile "machine," which innovatively served as the set for
three different demanding productions and was featured in
Southern Theatre Magazine.
Kenny produced over ninety theatrical events during his time at
William Peace Theatre. The American premiere of Polly Teale's
adaptation of Jane Eyre was called a “standout” and “some of the
Triangle’s best theatre” by Raleigh News and Observer. He directed
A Shayna Maidel while working closely with the author Barbara
Lebow, and it was voted one of the top ten productions of the
year by Spectator Magazine.
His many professional directorial credits include 110 in the Shade
at the Third Avenue Playhouse of Rome, Georgia, and American
Beauty with Steven Chicurel at the Tapestry Theatre in
Wilmington, North Carolina. Orla Swift called his production of
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof at Kennedy Theatre a “cause for celebration.”
Kenny currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Curtain
Call Players of Cobb County.