Hassard Short

[9][11] During the 1919 Actors' Equity Association strike he staged a series of four all-star fundraising shows, which were so well received[11] that he decided his future lay in directing and stagecraft; a small advertisement in The New York Times in July 1920 announced "his intention of becoming a vaudeville impresario on a large scale", as well as his appointment by producer Joseph Weber as director of the operetta Honeydew.

[3] His first major hits as a stage director came with the series of Music Box Revues from 1921 to 1923, which showcased Irving Berlin's songs.

[14] Short adapted well to the more limited budgets of the 1930s by staging revues, including many collaborations with producer Max Gordon and choreographer Albertina Rasch.

[6] His opulent staging of The Great Waltz (1934), financed by John D. Rockefeller, was an exception to the tightened purse-strings of the time and confounded many critics by becoming a hit in both New York and London.

[2][6] His wartime hits included Lady in the Dark (1941), Something for the Boys (1943) and Carmen Jones (1943), for which he won the first Donaldson Award for best musical direction.

Black-and-white full-length photo of actor on stage in elaborate costume
Short in the 1905 Broadway play The Toast of the Town
Caricature by Ralph Barton , 1925