Sir Peter Hall, 1930-2017

[seabright]

It was a pity they didn't mention the 1959 season at Stratford-on-Avon when Peter Hall directed "A Midsummer Night's Dream" with Charles Laughton as Bottom. Still, there's a brief snippet of the play on You Tube, from a Simon Callow documentary about the great actor, in which Peter Hall talked interestingly about Laughton's performance ...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9RzFLBFcbEY

[Belgrove]

Very sad news, he was a hugely significant figure for the arts in post-war Britain whose influence both in performing practices and the institutions he established and consolidated will persist. I saw many of his productions at the National’s new home in the late 70’s, when I first started to attend theatre. Productions there that remain prominent in the memory are his Macbeth with Albert Finney and Dorothy Tutin as Mr & Mrs M; The Oresteia, but one I particularly cherish was Entertaining Strangers with Judy Dench and Tim Piggott-Smith, set in the round at the Cottesloe – a magical evening. We only saw his production of Midsummer Night’s Dream revived at Glyndebourne last year – more magic to behold. I was saddened to learn of his cruel illness.

[gurnemanz]

His contribution was huge. Most recent memories include Twelfth Night at the Cottesloe with his daughter, Rebecca, as Viola, and Simon Callow doing a fine turn as Sir Toby. Worth mentioning the Peter Hall Company's Summer Season at Theatre Royal, Bath - 27 productions over nine years. I remember a most enjoyable Pygmalion with Tim Pigott-Smith and Michelle Dockery.

[Conchis]

Somewhat to my surprise I never saw one of his productions in the theatre.

Those who followed him tend to think that he lost his cutting edge over the years until he was merely a 'nominal presence' at his own rehearsals. It's an open secret that a lot of his later productions were largely the work of his assistants, while Hall provided a broad overview and his (bankable) name on the playbill (though among 'name' directors he was by no means alone in that).

His best work - and the production for which he will probably be remembered - remains the Wars Of The Roses adaptation that he created with John Barton. Thankfully, the BBC realised how special this was and filmed it for posterity. It was released on DVD last year and is one of my most treasured discs.

[Stanley Stewart]

A warm two-page eulogy to Peter Hall in today's Sunday Times Culture magazine by
Richard Eyre, who subsequently took over from him as MD at the RNT.

"Peter Hall breathed life back into Shakespeare, revolutionised the company system
and inspired a generation..." Well said.

[Richard Tarleton]

A warm two-page eulogy to Peter Hall in today's Sunday Times Culture magazine by
Richard Eyre, who subsequently took over from him as MD at the RNT.

"Peter Hall breathed life back into Shakespeare, revolutionised the company system
and inspired a generation..." Well said.

....and a touching piece by Simon Callow in the same paper's News Review, with some revealing insights. Being coached by Hall on delivering Shakespeare's sonnets - "You have a tendency to fall in love with the wrong word", in which Callow said Hall was absolutely right. An eye-watering encounter with Mrs T after Amadeus.....