Tom Cairns (born November 1, 1952, in Dromara, Northern Ireland) is an Irish-born theatre, opera, and film director, writer, and set designer.
Early Life and Background
Cairns was born in Dromara, Northern Ireland, the son of Thomas James and Nora Lillian Cairns. He began his career in theatre design before moving into directing.
Opera Directing
Cairns has directed numerous operas at major international venues. His opera directing credits include The Exterminating Angel (Salzburg Festival / Royal Opera House, Covent Garden / The Metropolitan Opera / Royal Danish Opera); La traviata (Glyndebourne Festival Opera); The Tempest (Olivier Award, Royal Opera House, Covent Garden / Opéra National du Rhin, Strasbourg / Royal Opera, Copenhagen); La Voix Humaine (Royal Opera House, Covent Garden); The Second Mrs Kong (Glyndebourne Festival Opera); La Bohème (Staatsoper, Stuttgart); Un ballo in maschera (Bayerische Staatsoper, Munich); The Makropulos Case (Opera North and Edinburgh International Festival); Jenůfa and Werther (Opera North); Don Giovanni (Scottish Opera); and King Priam (English National Opera / Opera North / Flanders Opera).
Theatre Directing
His theatre directing credits include Scenes from an Execution, Aristocrats, and The Odyssey (Royal National Theatre); Being Shakespeare (Trafalgar Studios, New York and Chicago); All About My Mother and Cloud Nine (Old Vic); Phaedra (Donmar Warehouse); Aunt Dan and Lemon (Almeida); Minetti (Edinburgh International Festival); A Christmas Carol (Arts Theatre); The Music Teacher (New York); A Delicate Balance (Nottingham Playhouse); The Lady from the Sea (Citizens Theatre, Glasgow); and Miss Julie (Greenwich).
Film and Television
Cairns directed the film Marie and Bruce (2004), starring Julianne Moore and Matthew Broderick. His television directing credits include Trouble in Tahiti (BBC – Grammy Nomination / Best Film, Vienna Festival); Amongst Women (BBC – BAFTA Nomination, Best Television Series, Banff Television Festival); La voix humaine (Channel 4); Big Day (BBC); and Alistair Fish (BBC).
Set Design
Earlier in his career, Cairns worked extensively as a set designer. His design credits include Hamlet (Crucible Theatre, Sheffield, 1983); Don Giovanni (Crucible Theatre, 1986); The Midsummer Marriage (Opera North, 1986); Edward the Second (Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester, 1987); The Trojans (Welsh National Opera, 1987); Billy Budd (English National Opera, 1988); Samson & Dalila (Bregenz Festival, 1988); Beatrice & Benedict (English National Opera, 1989); and Sunday in the Park with George (National Theatre, 1990). He also designed sets for Philistines (Royal Shakespeare Company, 1986).
Note: The name "Tom Cairns" is shared by several other individuals, including a Head of Business Services at the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC), a clinical hypnotherapist and poet, an Investment Director at Bordier & Cie (UK) PLC, a CFO of Painted Wolf Resources, a motorsport journalist and commentator, and a software developer. This entry focuses on the Irish-born theatre and opera director, who is the most widely documented figure bearing this name.
