In November 2008, James Marvel made his Lincoln Center debut for The Juilliard Opera Center, directing Mussorgsky’s The Marriage; Krenek’s The Heavyweight; and Shostakovich’s Rothschild’s Violin with Maestro James Conlon conducting. Other recent productions include Il Ritorno D’Ulisse in Patria for the Wolf Trap Opera Company; La Traviata for Kentucky Opera; and Falstaff for Toledo Opera. In May 2008, James was named Classical Singer Magazine's "2008 - Stage Director of the Year."

Since his professional directing debut in 1996, James has directed over 60 productions in the United States, England, Scotland, Germany, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, and the Czech Republic. In July 2008, James made his Italian debut directing La Boheme at Teatro Comunale in Sulmona, Italy. In August 2009, James made his South Korean debut with the Seoul International Opera directing Die Zauberflöte. And in 2010, James will make his Canadian debut directing Rape of Lucretia for Opera on the Avalon in Newfoundland. His new production of Stravinsky's The Rake's Progress for the San Francisco Opera Merola Program was named "Best Production of the Year" by the San Francisco Chronicle, and his production of Faust was named “Best Production of the Year” by the Augusta Chronicle.

Other career highlights include groundbreaking new productions of Salome for Toledo Opera; Les Pécheurs de Perles for Opera Boston; La Voix Humaine at Florence Gould Hall in New York City; The Telephone for the Royal Conservatory in Brussels, Belgium; and Tosca at The Kimmel Center in Philadelphia. In the 2007 Season, James directed four scenes for the Young Artist Program at The Santa Fe Opera. He also directed Lucia Di Lammermoor for Syracuse Opera, New Orleans Opera, and Opera Company of North Carolina. He has directed Carmen for Opera Grand Rapids; Il Trovatore for Utah Festival Opera; Cavalleria Rusticana for Toledo Opera; Aida for Sacramento Opera; and Idomeneo for University of Southern California.

International credits include work at the 5th International Theatre Festival in Budapest, Hungary; the Istropolitana Theatre Festival in Bratislava, Slovakia; the Viola Stage in Prague, Czech Republic; the Edinburgh Festival in Scotland; the Wadham Theatre and Burton-Taylor Theatre in Oxford, England. James served as Co-Director with Henryk Baranowski at Teatr Wielki in !odz, Poland on Philip Glass' Akhnaten, which won 2 Golden Mask Awards for Best Direction and Best Production of the Year. James also directed a new production of Philip Glass’ Galileo Galilei for Boston University’s Opera Institute. Theatre credits include repeat engagements with the Passage Theatre Company in New Jersey, Clarence Brown Theatre in Tennessee, and the Inter-Act Theatre Company of Philadelphia. James also directed the Southern Premiere of a new Christopher Durang play at the Southern Repertory Theatre in New Orleans. In addition to his work as an actor and director, James has also played violin in numerous orchestras; composed original music for professional theatre productions; danced in pieces choreographed by members of the Martha Graham company; and published works in a variety of international journals.