Matt Kunkel, named one of Newsday’s Rising Stars of Tomorrow, is a freelance NYC based director and producer. He directed and co-conceived the St. Louis Muny’s critically acclaimed 100th anniversary production entitled An Evening with the Stars, which starred Broadway Legends Chita Rivera and Tommy Tune, along with Heather Headley and Matthew Morrison, as well as The Sound of Music for their 2021 Season. He also directed The Sound of Music and Camelot for The Muny, as well as the first ever collaboration for The Muny and the St. Louis Symphony entitled A Celebration of Muny 100 and Directed the Couples Segments for the Muny’s 2020 Summer Variety Hour. Other recent directing credits include The Sound of Music for the Virginia Arts Festival and Virginia Opera (with Maestro Rob Fisher), Follow the Fellow Who Follows A Dream for the Lyrics and Lyricists Series @ the 92nd St Y, White Christmas, Sunset Boulevard, and Elf the Musical at the John W. Engeman Theatre at Northport, Considering Matthew Shepard for the University of Michigan and Detroit PBS, and he directed the first reading of Dick Scanlan’s opera libretto Fallingwater for The Metropolitan Opera.

Associate Directing credits include the National Tour of An Officer and a Gentleman, Candide at Carnegie Hall (starring John Lithgow), The Music Man (staring Jessie Mueller, Norm Lewis, and Rosie O’Donnell), Tommy, and Footloose (The Kennedy Center), Carmel Dean and Dick Scanlan’s new musical Renascence with the Transport Theatre Group, the Actors Fund Reunion Concert of Thoroughly Modern Millie (starring Sutton Foster), and the first ever regional production of the landmark musical Jerome Robbins’ Broadway (The Muny). He has also worked at the St. Louis Muny for over 6 years as an Associate and Assistant Director on over 25 productions, working with such directors as Marc Bruni, Marcia Milgrom Dodge, Gary Griffin, John Tartaglia, Denis Jones, Kathleen Marshall, Christian Borle, Gordon Greenberg, and Dan Knecthges.

He is also the Producer of the 92Y’s acclaimed Lyrics and Lyricists Series which is now in it’s 50th Season and is an Assistant General Manager for Work Light Productions.

As an educator, he has directed shows at universities including Big Fish, Avenue Q, and We Are Proud to Present… at University of Michigan, The Wolves and Gutenberg the Musical for the Governor’s School for the Arts in Norfolk, VA, Grease for Pioneer Theatre Guild, Godspell, God of Carnage, The Laramie Project, Steel Magnolias, and Brighton Beach Memoirs for the Northport Theatre Troupe. He has experience teaching a variety of masterclasses for performing arts programs such as The Long Island High School for the Arts, the University of Michigan, the University of Delaware, the Growing Studio, and the Engeman Studio of Theatre.

He is a graduate of the University of Michigan and the Long Island High School for the Arts, and is a Member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society. He continues to teach masterclasses throughout the country and coach privately.

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