PRINCE, HAROLD

born Jan. 30, 1928, New York, N.Y., U.S. in full Harold Smith Prince, byname Hal Prince American theatrical producer and director who won Antoinette Perry (Tony) awards for the production or direction (or both) of a wealth of Broadway musicals. The son of a New York stockbroker, Prince majored in English at the University of Pennsylvania (B.A., 1948) and began his theatrical career as an apprentice and stage manager for the noted producer and director George Abbott. In 1953 he began producing musicals (initially in partnership with Robert E. Griffith) and was highly successful in his first outing, with The Pajama Game (1954); he thereafter produced or coproduced more than 30 musicals, including Damn Yankees (1955), West Side Story (1957), Fiorello! (1959), A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (1962), Fiddler on the Roof (1964), Cabaret (1966), Zorba (1968), Company (1970), Follies (1971), A Little Night Music (1973), Pacific Overtures (1976), Sweeney Todd (1979), Evita (1980), and The Phantom of the Opera (1988). From 1963 (with She Loves Me), when he began directing many musical productions-and often producing or coproducing them, too-Prince came to be recognized as one of the most creative and innovative figures on Broadway. He received directorial Tony awards for Cabaret, Company, Follies, Candide, Sweeney Todd, Evita, The Phantom of the Opera, and Show Boat, which was revived for Broadway in 1994.