A good director

Hey everyone! I was watching some old theatre talk episodes and came across one where Terry Teachout mentioned Kenny Leon as an underrated director because he's not flashy or conceptual. Conceptual and flashy aside, what do you think makes a good director, especially in plays?

I've given it some thought though most of what I come up with refers to musicals - usually far more flashy than a play and where the direction is perhaps easier to spot.

Druid recently toured a production of Sive in Ireland and the final scene is one moment I can think of where I really appreciated the direction/staging - a giant mirror that hung above the stage slowly tilts downwards to reveal Sive's body floating in the a bog hole. Audible gasps all round.

As mentioned, it's really only moments of quite impressive theatrical effects or whimsically staged numbers in a musical I really notice direction so I'm genuinely interested to hear peoples thoughts. Thanks everyone, looking forward to reading some responses!

JBroadway said: "A bold, creative spirit, and intelligent imagination can make good director in a flashy or unconventional productions.

But when it comes to the more standard, nitty-gritty makings of a good director, I think it has a lot to do with their ability to collaborate and communicate with all artists involved (especially the actors). They must be intelligent and detail-oriented. They have to have a good sense of pacing and physical space, and an understanding of each moment in the play, and how it fits once with the whole. They need to act as a translator from words on a page, to real-life, human action happening in front of the audience"

This is worded beautifully!

It's all about creating a world and telling a story. How one goes about that varies greatly. It all takes GADS of communication.