Quite stricken to hear of the death of Sir Peter Hall this morning and can only mutter the words of the Prince at the end of Romeo & Juliet:
"A glooming peace this morning with it brings;
The sun for sorrow will not show his head:
Go hence, to have more talk of these sad things..."
A gulp, too, when I realised that I am only a few months younger than Sir Peter,
yet our paths crossed many times over the years and now with hindsight, I'm quite
convinced that he was the greatest presence in our theatre during the 20th century.
I clearly recall visiting the tiny Arts Theatre in central London to see his production of Beckett's,
Waiting for Godot, mid 1950s - and being dazzled by the play and Hall's production. I resettled in London, circa 1958, with a RADA scholarship, and still recall the exhilaration we all felt at the arrival of the RSC, based at the Aldwych Theatre for several years, the opening production was Anouilh's, Becket, directed by PH and a cast headed by Eric Porter & Christopher Plummer. In due course, the Wars of the Roses followed as a trail blazer in the West End as well as being an indicator to the Old Vic as an emerging NT. In the interim, Hall had democratised life at the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre, introducing 3 year contracts for leading performers - an attractive innovation for many reasons - and even opening the Green Room space to all the company, instantly banishing status precedence for good. Many names proliferate: Olivier, Scofield, Richardson, Gielgud, Finney, Peggy Ashcroft; with Pinter, Osborne, Shaffer, Ayckbourn,Hare, Brenton, Bond, Beckett; and with the directors, John Schlesinger, Bill Bryden,
Jonathan Miller, John Dexter,Christopher Morahan. He creates portraits of friends and enemies and illuminates the productions - in London, Glyndebourne, on the Continent, and in New York
As a reminder of this era, I've just taken PH's autobiography, Making an Exhibition of Myself, 1993, (Sinclair-Stevenson), off the shelves, alongside the essential Peter Hall Diaries - The Story of a Dramatic Battle, 1983, Hamish Hamilton - the crucial years of the formation of the National Theatre and it's a real page-turner in so many aspects. Of course, these years fostered many triumphs and a few flops; the Zefferelli production of Othello/ John Gielgud, in the early 60's a particular disaster! Hall was also acutely aware of the enmity this can bring. No surprise to hear that later he was hospitalised from sheer exhaustion. I treasure many anecdotes from friends in the biz and was always delighted to accept invites to social do's at the Old Vic or South Bank over a couple of decades.
I salute you, Peter Hall. RIP
"A glooming peace this morning with it brings;
The sun for sorrow will not show his head:
Go hence, to have more talk of these sad things..."
A gulp, too, when I realised that I am only a few months younger than Sir Peter,
yet our paths crossed many times over the years and now with hindsight, I'm quite
convinced that he was the greatest presence in our theatre during the 20th century.
I clearly recall visiting the tiny Arts Theatre in central London to see his production of Beckett's,
Waiting for Godot, mid 1950s - and being dazzled by the play and Hall's production. I resettled in London, circa 1958, with a RADA scholarship, and still recall the exhilaration we all felt at the arrival of the RSC, based at the Aldwych Theatre for several years, the opening production was Anouilh's, Becket, directed by PH and a cast headed by Eric Porter & Christopher Plummer. In due course, the Wars of the Roses followed as a trail blazer in the West End as well as being an indicator to the Old Vic as an emerging NT. In the interim, Hall had democratised life at the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre, introducing 3 year contracts for leading performers - an attractive innovation for many reasons - and even opening the Green Room space to all the company, instantly banishing status precedence for good. Many names proliferate: Olivier, Scofield, Richardson, Gielgud, Finney, Peggy Ashcroft; with Pinter, Osborne, Shaffer, Ayckbourn,Hare, Brenton, Bond, Beckett; and with the directors, John Schlesinger, Bill Bryden,
Jonathan Miller, John Dexter,Christopher Morahan. He creates portraits of friends and enemies and illuminates the productions - in London, Glyndebourne, on the Continent, and in New York
As a reminder of this era, I've just taken PH's autobiography, Making an Exhibition of Myself, 1993, (Sinclair-Stevenson), off the shelves, alongside the essential Peter Hall Diaries - The Story of a Dramatic Battle, 1983, Hamish Hamilton - the crucial years of the formation of the National Theatre and it's a real page-turner in so many aspects. Of course, these years fostered many triumphs and a few flops; the Zefferelli production of Othello/ John Gielgud, in the early 60's a particular disaster! Hall was also acutely aware of the enmity this can bring. No surprise to hear that later he was hospitalised from sheer exhaustion. I treasure many anecdotes from friends in the biz and was always delighted to accept invites to social do's at the Old Vic or South Bank over a couple of decades.
I salute you, Peter Hall. RIP
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