James Edward Lyons Biografie

James Edward Lyons has been active as an author and director in the German theater scene for the past 25 years.
A graduate of Wesleyan University in Connecticut, Lyons was granted a Fulbright Scholarship to study directing at the Folkwangschule in Essen, Germany. As an assistant director at the Duesseldorfer Schauspielhaus he had the opportunity of working with several reknowned German directors. He collaborated on the European Premiere of 'Childen of a Lesser God' and opened his own German directing career in 1983 with the first German production of Sam Shepard's 'True West'.
Directing credits include 'A Streetcar Named Desire' in his own new German translation, as well the German Premiere of Terence McNally's 'Master Class' at the Staatstheater Stuttgart.

In the course of a 16-year artistic collaboration with singer/comedienne Ortrud Beginnen, Lyons wrote and staged several cabaret musicals and satirical shows, with titles such as '1000 Years of German Humor', 'My Friend Rudi' or 'Minna Goes Majorcan' - the third part of the so-called 'Minna Trilogy' under artistic director Claus Peymann at the Schauspielhaus Bochum.1993, during a wave of neonazi violence in Germany, Lyons and Beginnen brought their biting musical satire 'Sing, German Maidens!' to the stage at the Hamburg Schauspielhaus. In a commissioned play for the prestigious Burgtheater in Vienna, 'The Crown Jewels', Beginnen portraited a madwoman who reinstates the Austrian monarchy. For the Rheingau Music Festival Lyons wrote and staged musical portraits of the composer Ralph Benatzky ('The White Horse Inn') and operetta legend Fritzi Massary.

The list of his musical biographies includes the 1920's cabaret singer Claire Waldoff, western legend Calamity Jane, and 60's rock singer Janis Joplin. His musical portrait of the singer-actress Hildegard Knef 'It's Raining Roses' has been produced at several German theatres since its premiere in 2002, and in the original cast production has played over 200 performances.
'The Beast In Me', his haunting portrait of the country singer Johnny Cash, opened a year before the Hollywood film in December 2004. After a successful run in Berlin a touring production is planned for 2008.
To kick off the World Cup 2006 in Germany, Lyons put together an evening of soccer songs for eleven singer/players titled 'SchussChor'. Commerating the 100th birthday of Ufa- Film composer Michael Jary, his musical 'Ever Kissed in the Dark?' tells the story of six popular artists during the Nazi-era. His latest play 'Alraune' ('Mandrake') is a modern-day adaptation of a old German fantasy novel and silent film theme about the creation of an artificial woman.