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David Firth (actor)
David Firth (born 15 March 1945) is an English actor, writer and singer. Firth created the role of Monsieur André in the original cast of '' Phantom of the Opera'', among other roles in the West End, and originated the role of John Wilkes Booth in the first London production of ''Assassins'', in a career spanning more than 40 years. Early life Firth was born David Firth Coleman in Bedford on 15 March 1945, the son of Ivor Firth Coleman and Beatrice Jenkins. He was educated at Bedford Modern School, the University of Sussex and the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. In 1969 he married Julia Elizabeth Gould, and the couple have two sons. Career Firth was with the Royal Shakespeare Company (1967–70) and the Royal National Theatre (1973). His first West End role was The Courier in ''1776'' (Albery Theatre, 1970), for which he was nominated as Most Promising Actor in the Plays and Players Awards. He created the role of Monsieur André in the original cast of ''The Phantom of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Phantom Of The Opera (1986 Musical)
''The Phantom of the Opera'' is a musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber, lyrics by Charles Hart, additional lyrics by Richard Stilgoe, and a libretto by Lloyd Webber and Stilgoe. Based on the novel by Gaston Leroux, it tells the tragic story of beautiful soprano Christine Daaé, who becomes the obsession of a mysterious and disfigured musical genius living in the subterranean labyrinth beneath the Paris Opera House. The musical opened in London's West End in 1986 and on Broadway in New York in 1988, in a production directed by Harold Prince and starring English classical soprano Sarah Brightman (Lloyd Webber's then-wife) as Christine Daaé, screen and stage star Michael Crawford as the Phantom, and international stage performer Steve Barton as Raoul. It won the 1986 Olivier Award and the 1988 Tony Award for Best Musical, with Crawford winning the Olivier and Tony for Best Actor in a Musical. A film adaptation, directed by Joel Schumacher, was released in 2004. ''The Pha ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wyndham's Theatre
Wyndham's Theatre is a West End theatre, one of two opened by actor/manager Charles Wyndham (the other is the Criterion Theatre). Located on Charing Cross Road in the City of Westminster, it was designed c. 1898 by W. G. R. Sprague, the architect of six other London theatres between then and 1916. It was designed to seat 759 patrons on three levels; later refurbishment increased this to four seating levels. The theatre was Grade II* listed by English Heritage in September 1960. History Wyndham had always dreamed of building a theatre of his own, and through the admiration of a patron and the financial confidence of friends, he was able to realise his dream. Wyndham's Theatre opened on 16 November 1899, in the presence of the Prince of Wales. The first play performed there was a revival of T. W. Robertson's ''David Garrick''. A number of successes followed, including Lena Ashwell playing the lead role in '' Mrs Dane's Defence'' in 1900, upon which Wyndham said that “''the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Forty Years On (play)
''Forty Years On'' is a 1968 play by Alan Bennett. It was his first West End play. It takes its name from the Harrow School song. The play is set in a British public school called Albion House ("Albion" is an ancient word for Britain), which is putting on an end of term play in front of the parents, i.e. the audience. A play within the play is a review of the first half of the 20th Century, made up of a series of vignettes. The scenes are linked by a conversation involving a Member of Parliament and his family that takes place during World War II, reflecting on what has passed. The first vignette is a parody of Oscar Wilde. This is followed by an evocation of the Edwardian era, seen through people's too-rosy memories, including growing up and going to school at the time. There follows a spoof lantern-slide lecture on Lawrence of Arabia, "the man and the myth". Bertrand Russell appears, as do Lady Ottoline Morrell and Osbert Sitwell. A memoir follows about a group of young ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Follies
''Follies'' is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and a book by James Goldman. The plot centers on a crumbling Broadway theater, now scheduled for demolition, previously home to a musical revue (based on the ''Ziegfeld Follies''). The evening follows a reunion of the Weismann Girls who performed during the interwar period. Several of the former showgirls perform their old numbers, often accompanied by the ghosts of their younger selves. The score offers a pastiche of 1920s and 1930s musical styles, evoking a nostalgic tone. The original Broadway production, directed by Harold Prince and Michael Bennett, with choreography by Bennett, opened April 4, 1971. The musical was nominated for 11 Tony Awards and won seven at the 26th Tony Awards. The original production, among the most costly on Broadway, ran for over 500 performances but ultimately lost its entire investment. The musical has had a number of major revivals, and several of its songs have become standar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Knickerbocker Holiday
''Knickerbocker Holiday'' is a 1938 musical written by Kurt Weill (music) and Maxwell Anderson (book and lyrics); based loosely on Washington Irving's '' Knickerbocker's History of New York'' about life in 17th-century New Netherland (old New York). The musical numbers include " September Song", now considered a pop standard. History ''Knickerbocker Holiday'' is both a romantic comedy and a thinly veiled allegory equating the New Deal of Franklin D. Roosevelt with fascism. (A Roosevelt ancestor is one of the characters on the corrupt New Amsterdam council in the play.) Playwright Anderson believed that government was necessary in society, but that it must always be watched because it is swayed by the self-interests of those in power. He saw FDR's New Deal as an American version of the corporatism and concentration of political power which had given rise to Nazism and Stalinism. Plot summary The action is narrated by 19th-century author Washington Irving, who announces h ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Herald (Glasgow)
''The Herald'' is a Scottish broadsheet newspaper founded in 1783. ''The Herald'' is the longest running national newspaper in the world and is the eighth oldest daily paper in the world. The title was simplified from ''The Glasgow Herald'' in 1992. Following the closure of the '' Sunday Herald'', the ''Herald on Sunday'' was launched as a Sunday edition on 9 September 2018. History Founding The newspaper was founded by an Edinburgh-born printer called John Mennons in January 1783 as a weekly publication called the ''Glasgow Advertiser''. Mennons' first edition had a global scoop: news of the treaties of Versailles reached Mennons via the Lord Provost of Glasgow just as he was putting the paper together. War had ended with the American colonies, he revealed. ''The Herald'', therefore, is as old as the United States of America, give or take an hour or two. The story was, however, only carried on the back page. Mennons, using the larger of two fonts available to him, put it in t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Donmar Warehouse
The Donmar Warehouse is a 251-seat, not-for-profit Off-West End theatre in Covent Garden, London, England. It first opened on 18 July 1977. Sam Mendes, Michael Grandage, Josie Rourke and Michael Longhurst have all served as artistic director, a post held since March 2024 by Tim Sheader. The theatre produces new writing, contemporary reappraisals of European classics, British and American drama and small-scale musical theatre. As well as presenting at least six productions a year at its home in Covent Garden, as well transferring shows to the West End, Broadway and elsewhere. History Theatrical producer Donald Albery formed Donmar Productions around 1953, with the name derived from the first three letters of his name and the first three letters of his friend, ballerina Margot Fonteyn. In 1961, he bought the warehouse, a building that in the 1870s had been a vat room and hops warehouse for the local brewery in Covent Garden, and in the 1920s had been used as a film studio ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Barbican Theatre
The Barbican Centre is a performing arts centre in the Barbican Estate of the City of London, England, and the largest of its kind in Europe. The centre hosts classical and contemporary music concerts, theatre performances, film screenings and art exhibitions. It also houses a library, three restaurants, and a conservatory. The Barbican Centre is a member of the Global Cultural Districts Network. The London Symphony Orchestra and the BBC Symphony Orchestra are based in the centre's Concert Hall. In 2013, it once again became the London-based venue of the Royal Shakespeare Company following the company's departure in 2001. The Barbican Centre is owned, funded, and managed by the City of London Corporation. It was built as the City's gift to the nation at a cost of UK£161 million (equivalent to £ in ), and was officially opened to the public by Queen Elizabeth II on 3 March 1982. Together with the Southbank Centre, a similar arts centre, the Barbican Centre is also ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Hunting Of The Snark
''The Hunting of the Snark'', subtitled ''An Agony, in Eight Fits'', is a poem by the English writer Lewis Carroll. It is typically categorised as a nonsense poem. Written between 1874 and 1876, it borrows the setting, some creatures, and eight portmanteau words from Carroll's earlier poem "Jabberwocky" in his children's novel ''Through the Looking-Glass'' (1871). Macmillan published ''The Hunting of the Snark'' in the United Kingdom at the end of March 1876, with nine illustrations by Henry Holiday. It had mixed reviews from reviewers, who found it strange. The first printing of the poem consisted of 10,000 copies. There were two reprints by the conclusion of the year; in total, the poem was reprinted 17 times between 1876 and 1908. The poem also has been adapted for musicals, movies, opera, plays, and music. The narrative follows a crew of ten trying to hunt the Snark, a creature which may turn out to be a highly dangerous ''Boojum''. The only crew member to find the Snar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Old Vic
Old or OLD may refer to: Places *Old, Baranya, Hungary *Old, Northamptonshire, England *Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD) *OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, Maine, United States People *Old (surname) Music *OLD (band), a grindcore/industrial metal group *Old (Danny Brown album), ''Old'' (Danny Brown album), a 2013 album by Danny Brown *Old (Starflyer 59 album), ''Old'' (Starflyer 59 album), a 2003 album by Starflyer 59 *Old (song), "Old" (song), a 1995 song by Machine Head *"Old", a 1982 song by Dexys Midnight Runners from ''Too-Rye-Ay'' Other uses *Old (film), ''Old'' (film), a 2021 American thriller film *''Oxford Latin Dictionary'' *Online dating *Over-Locknut Distance (or Dimension), a measurement of a Bicycle wheel#Construction, bicycle wheel and frame See also *Old age *List of people known as the Old *''Old LP'', a 2019 album by That Dog * * *Olde, a list of people with the surna ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
King Lear
''The Tragedy of King Lear'', often shortened to ''King Lear'', is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare. It is loosely based on the mythological Leir of Britain. King Lear, in preparation for his old age, divides his power and land between his daughters Goneril and Regan (King Lear), Regan, who pay homage to gain favour, feigning love. The King's third daughter, Cordelia (King Lear), Cordelia, is offered a third of his kingdom also, but refuses to be insincere in her praise and affection. She instead offers the respect of a daughter and is disowned by Lear who seeks flattery. Regan and Goneril subsequently break promises to host Lear and his entourage, so he opts to become homeless and destitute, and goes insane. The French King married to Cordelia then invades Britain to restore order and Lear's rule. In a subplot, Edmund, the illegitimate son of the Earl of Gloucester, betrays his brother and father. Tragically, Lear, Cordelia and several other main ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Queen Elizabeth Hall
The Queen Elizabeth Hall (QEH) is a music venue on the South Bank in London, England, that hosts European classical music, classical, jazz, and avant-garde music, talks and dance performances. It was opened in 1967, with a concert conducted by Benjamin Britten. The QEH was built along with the smaller Purcell Room as part of Southbank Centre arts complex. It stands alongside the Royal Festival Hall, which was built for the Festival of Britain of 1951, and the Hayward Gallery which opened in 1968. History The QEH stands on the site of Shot Tower, Lambeth, a former shot tower, built as part of a lead works in 1826 and retained for the Festival of Britain. The QEH and the Purcell Room were built together by Higgs and Hill and opened in March 1967. The venue was closed for two years of renovations in September 2015, and reopened in April 2018. Description The QEH has over 900 seats and the Purcell Room in the same building has 360 seats. The two auditoriums were designed by a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
