Lear deBessonet
Lear deBessonet is an American theatre director who currently works as the Kewsong Lee Artistic Director of Lincoln Center Theater. For her work, she has been nominated for a Tony Award and Obie Award, as well as winning the Drama League Founders Award for Excellence in Directing.
Early life and education
deBessonet grew up in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where she has noted that Mardi Gras, football and church influenced her upbringing. She attended the University of Virginia as a James J. Bailey III Scholar, graduating in 2002 with a Bachelor's of Arts in political and social thought.
Career
In 2012, while living in New York City, she founded Public Works, a series through The Public Theater, which is described as "musical pageants adapted from classic works and featuring a mix of professional and amateur performers." She directed the program's inaugural program, The Tempest, starring Laura Benanti, Norm Lewis and over 200 community members, including the elderly and incarcerated individuals.
In 2017, she was named resident director for New York City Center and Encores!, directing Pump Boys and Dinettes in 2014 and Big River in 2017. In 2019, she was named Artistic Director of the company after Jack Viertel, then artistic director, announced he was stepping down.
Her tenure at New York City Center included directing Oliver!, starring Raúl Esparza, Into the Woods with Sara Bareilles, Patina Miller and Neil Patrick Harris, and Once Upon a Mattress, starring Sutton Foster and Ana Gasteyer, the latter two which later transferred to Broadway. For her direction of Into the Woods, deBessonet was nominated for her first Tony Award for Best Direction of a Musical.
In 2021, deBessonet directed the Annie Live! on NBC, alongside Alex Rudzinski, starring Taraji P. Henson and Harry Connick Jr..
In 2024, she was named the Kewsong Lee Artistic Director of Lincoln Center Theater, working with resident director Bartlett Sher. That same fall, she directed the Encores! revival of Ragtime, starring Joshua Henry, Caissie Levy and Brandon Uranowitz. The production later transferred to the LCT's Vivian Beaumont Theater on Broadway in 2025. For her direction, deBessonet was nominated for an Outer Critics Circle Award and a Drama League Award.
Stage credits
Year |
Title |
Role |
Venue |
Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
2007 |
transFigures |
Director |
Off-Broadway, Theatre Four |
|
2010 |
On the Levee |
Off-Broadway, Duke on 42nd Street |
||
2013 |
The Good Person of Szechwan |
Off-Broadway, The Foundry Theatre |
||
2014 |
Pump Boys and Dinettes |
Off-Broadway, New York City Center |
||
The Winter's Tale |
Director and Conceiver |
Off-Broadway, Delacorte Theatre |
||
2015 |
The Odyssey |
Director |
||
2017 |
A Midsummer Night's Dream |
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2018 |
Miss You Like Hell |
Off-Broadway, The Public Theater |
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2019 |
Hercules |
Off-Broadway, Delacorte Theatre |
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2022 |
Into the Woods |
Off-Broadway, New York City Center |
||
Broadway, St. James Theatre |
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2023 |
U.S. National Tour |
|||
Oliver! |
Off-Broadway, New York City Center |
|||
2024 |
Once Upon a Mattress |
Off-Broadway, New York City Center |
||
Broadway, Hudson Theatre |
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Ragtime |
Off-Broadway, New York City Center |
|||
2025 |
Broadway, Vivian Beaumont Theatre |
Awards and nominations
Year |
Award |
Category |
Work |
Result |
Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2013 |
Obie Award |
Distinguished Direction |
The Good Person of Szechwan |
||
Drama Desk Award |
Outstanding Director of a Play |
||||
2014 |
Lucille Lortel Award |
Outstanding Director |
|||
2023 |
Tony Award |
Best Direction of a Musical |
Into the Woods |
||
Drama League Award |
Outstanding Direction of a Musical |
||||
Founders Award for Excellence in Directing |
|||||
2026 |
Tony Award |
Best Direction of a Musical |
Ragtime |
||
Outer Critics Circle Award |
Outstanding Direction of a Musical |
||||
Drama League Award |
Outstanding Direction of a Musical |
||||
Drama Desk Award |
Outstanding Direction of a Musical |