The Outer Critics Circle Award for Direction of a Play, formerly the award for Director of a Play, is an annual award given to the best director of a (non-musical) play on Broadway or Off-Broadway, as determined by Outer Critics Circle. The award has been given out since the 1992âÂÂ1993 season, when the Best Director award split and renamed into musical and play categories. In 2024, the award was renamed to Outstanding Direction of a Play.
Jack O'Brien has won the most awards, with four, followed by Daniel J. Sullivan, Joe Mantello, Nicholas Hytner, Marianne Elliott and Sam Mendes with two awards each. Daniel J. Sullivan has received the most nominations with eight each, followed by Jack O'Brien and Joe Mantello with six and five nominations, respectively.