Nicholas Hytner (born 7 May 1956) is an English producer and director, whom many regard as the most prolific and accomplished theatre director of his generation on either side of the Atlantic. He has been the artistic director of London's National Theatre since 2003, a position which in the theatrical climate of the early 21st century offers unrivaled influence over the contemporary stage.
Biography
Hytner was born in Manchester, England to a Jewish family, the son of the barrister Benet Hytner QC. He attended Manchester Grammar School and read English at Trinity Hall, Cambridge. In the early 1980s he worked at Exeter University's Northcotte Theatre, and in the theatre department. He later became an Associate Director at Manchester's Royal Exchange Theatre, where he worked between 1985 and 1989. Hytner first found himself working regularly at the National Theatre in London between 1989 and 1997.
Hytner's directorial work includes The Country Wife, Edward II, Don Carlos, Ghetto, Miss Saigon, Orpheus Descending, a 2-part adaptation of Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy, Alan Bennett's The History Boys, Carousel, Southwark Fair and The Alchemist, Measure For Measure (1987), The Tempest (1988) and King Lear (1990), The Recruiting Officer by George Farquhar (1992), Carousel by Rodgers and Hammerstein (1992), The Cripple of Inishmaan by Martin McDonagh (1997), The Winter's Tale (2001), Mother Clap's Molly House by Mark Ravenhill (2001) and Henry V (2003).
Hytner has also directed movies, such as The Crucible, The Madness of King George, The Object of My Affection and Center Stage. Openly gay, Hytner strived to avoid stereotypical gay characters in The Object of My Affection. The film was later criticized by some gay critics as a "commercial whitewash."1
Hytner is also a sucsessful opera director with his production of Xerxes winning the Laurence Olivier Opera Award in 1985. Xerxes and his production of The Magic Flute are both still in the English National Opera repertory. He has also directed opera for Kent Opera, Covent Garden, Glyndebourne, Paris Opera, Théâtre du Châtelet, Grand Théâtre de Genève and Bavarian State Opera.
The National Theatre
Hytner was appointed director of the National Theatre in London in April 2003.2 He made drastic changes at the National, choosing much more political and controversial pieces than his predecessors, but he was famously quoted upon being appointed the job that he himself was "a member of all sorts of interesting minorities". He also introduced a very successful plan called the Travelex GB£10 Season, which, as the name suggests, offers up a number of tickets at a greatly reduced price.3
Hytner's film version of the very successful stage play The History Boys was released in 2006.
Work
Screen
Theatre
References
- ^ Matthew Hays (2000-05-11). "Dancing Queen", Montreal Mirror. Retrieved on 21 May 2008.
- ^ "National Theatre Departmental Glossary: Nicholas Hytner". National Theatre (May 2006). Retrieved on 2008-05-21.
- ^ Fiachra Gibbons (26 September 2003). "The Guardian profile: Nicholas Hytner", The Guardian. Retrieved on 21 May 2008.
External links
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Films directed by Nicholas Hytner |
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Wikipedia content modification information:
- This page was last modified on 16 November 2008, at 19:22.
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