Melody is the founder and artistic director of New Perspectives. She has directed the company’s innovative productions of Macbeth, Othello, Julius Caesar and The Two Gentlemen of Verona, as well as creating and directing NP’s Shakespeare in the Schools program for the last nine years, which includes performances, text workshops and teacher training. She also appeared as Queen Elizabeth opposite Austin Pendleton in Richard III. In addition, she has developed and directed a number of original scripts with the company, including the award-winning productions of Exhibit #9 and Jihad, and Anatomy of a Love Affair, and directed Miss Julie, and Vaclev Havel’s The Increased Difficulty of Concentration. Other notable producing/directing credits include Temporary Lucidity for the Edinburgh International Theatre Festival and the Off-Broadway productions of Solo Voyages (directed by Joseph Chaikin), About Anne (with Salome Jens) and Through the Leaves (directed by Joanne Akalaitis). Melody is on the adjunct faculty of Long Island University’s Communication Sciences, Performance Studies and Theatre Department. She also conducts a teacher training seminar for Bank Street College of Education’s New Perspectives division on making Shakespeare more fun and exciting for students.
