Anthony Drewe is a British

lyricist A lyricist is a writer who writes lyrics (the spoken words), as opposed to a composer, who writes the song's music which may include but not limited to the melody, harmony, arrangement and accompaniment. Royalties A lyricist's income derives ...

and book writer for Broadway and West End musicals. He is best known for his collaborations with George Stiles.

Education

He was educated at Maidstone Grammar School between 1974–1980. He studied Zoology at

Exeter University The University of Exeter is a research university in the West Country of England, with its main campus in Exeter, Devon. Its predecessor institutions, St Luke's College, Exeter School of Science, Exeter School of Art, and the Camborne School o ...

between 1980–1983 where he met his writing partner George Stiles.

Collaboration with George Stiles

For more than 30 years, Drewe has worked with the composer George Stiles. Together they have written eleven shows (see below). Projects currently in development include: ''Soap Dish''; an adaptation of Graham Greene's ''Travels with My Aunt''; and a new project with the director and choreographer Jerry Mitchell.

Tutankhamun

''Tutankhamun'' was first performed at the Northcott Theatre and Imagination Buildings in 1984.

Just So

''Just So'' was co-produced by

Cameron Mackintosh Sir Cameron Anthony Mackintosh (born 17 October 1946) is a British theatrical producer and theatre owner notable for his association with many commercially successful musicals. At the height of his success in 1990, he was described as being "t ...

at the

Watermill A watermill or water mill is a mill that uses hydropower. It is a structure that uses a water wheel or water turbine to drive a mechanical process such as mill (grinding), milling (grinding), rolling, or hammering. Such processes are needed in ...

in 1989 where it was directed by

Julia McKenzie Julia Kathleen Nancy McKenzie (born 17 February 1941) is an English actress, singer, presenter, and theatre director. She has premièred leading roles written by both Alan Ayckbourn and Stephen Sondheim. On television, she is known for her BAFT ...

. A further production was mounted in 1990 directed by Mike Ockrent at the

Tricycle Theatre The Kiln Theatre (formerly the Tricycle Theatre) is a theatre located in Kilburn, in the London Borough of Brent, England. Since 1980, the theatre has presented a wide range of plays reflecting the cultural diversity of the area, as well as n ...

s in the UK. The celebrated

Goodspeed Opera House Goodspeed Musicals is a non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation and advancement of musical theater and the creation of new works, located in East Haddam, Connecticut. Its landmark Goodspeed Opera House is a distinctive feature of ...

in Connecticut produced a new version of the show in 1996. In 2001, Anthony Drewe directed an extensively reworked version at Boston’s North Shore Music Theatre in the USA, with designs by Peter McKintosh and choreography by Stephen Mear. With the same team, Anthony directed the 2004

Chichester Festival Theatre Chichester Festival Theatre is a theatre and Grade II* listed building situated in Oaklands Park in the city of Chichester, West Sussex, England. Designed by Philip Powell and Hidalgo Moya, it was opened by its founder Leslie Evershed-Mart ...

production, which received glowing reviews and proved to be a big hit.

Honk!

'' Honk!'' was commissioned by the Watermill Theatre (1993). Under the direction of

it was developed at the Stephen Joseph Theatre (1997) in a production designed by Peter McKintosh and choreographed by Aletta Collins. In 1999, during

Trevor Nunn Sir Trevor Robert Nunn (born 14 January 1940) is an English theatre director and lyricist. He has been the artistic director for the Royal Shakespeare Company, the Royal National Theatre, and, currently, the Theatre Royal Haymarket. He has dir ...

's time as artistic director at the National Theatre, Julia Mackenzie was invited to restage her production in the Olivier Theatre. It was the first new British musical to be produced in the history of the National Theatre. Honk! won three Best Musical awards – the 2000

Laurence Olivier Award The Laurence Olivier Awards, or simply The Olivier Awards, are presented annually by the Society of London Theatre to recognize excellence in West End theatre, professional theatre in London. The awards were originally known as the Society of We ...

, the FNB VITA Award in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

, and the Elliot Norton Award in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. The National Theatre production toured the UK in 2001. It is frequently produced by schools and community theatre groups. Honk! has been seen by more than 6 million people all over the world in over 8,000 productions in more than 20 languages.

Peter Pan

'' Peter Pan: A Musical Adventure'' won Best Song (When I Kill Peter Pan, performed by

Denis Quilley Denis Clifford Quilley (26 December 1927 – 5 October 2003) was an English actor and singer. From a family with no theatrical connections, Quilley was determined from an early age to become an actor. He was taken on by the Birmingham Repertor ...

) and the Orchestra's Award for Best Musical at the 1997 International Musical of the Year. It premiered in 1999 at the Ny Theater,

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

. In 2001, it was performed at the

Royal Festival Hall The Royal Festival Hall is a 2,700-seat concert, dance and talks venue within Southbank Centre in London, England. It is situated on the South Bank of the River Thames, not far from Hungerford Bridge, in the London Borough of Lambeth. It is a G ...

, starring

John Thaw John Edward Thaw (3 January 1942 – 21 February 2002) was an English actor in television, stage and cinema, best known for his television roles starring as Detective Inspector Jack Regan in '' The Sweeney'' (1975—78) and as Detective Chief ...

Jenna Russell Jenna Russell (born 5 October 1967) is an English actress and singer. She has appeared on the stage in London in both musicals and dramas, as well as appearing with the Royal Shakespeare Company The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) is a maj ...

, Joe MacFadden and

Sheila Hancock Dame Sheila Cameron Hancock (born 22 February 1933) is an English actress, singer, and author. She has performed on stage in both plays and musicals in London theatres, and is also known for her roles in films and on television. Her Broadway ...

accompanied by the

BBC Concert Orchestra The BBC Concert Orchestra is a British concert orchestra based in London, one of the British Broadcasting Corporation's five radio orchestras. With around fifty players, it is the only one of the five BBC orchestras which is not a full-scale sym ...

. The performance also boasted a first in that three real-life siblings,

Laura Michelle Kelly Laura Michelle Kelly (born 4 March 1981) is an English actress and singer, best known for originating the roles of Mary Poppins in ''Mary Poppins'' in the West End, for which she received the Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical, and ...

and her brothers Jorim and Nathan played Wendy, Michael and John. The

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

broadcast the concert on

New Year's Eve In the Gregorian calendar, New Year's Eve refers to the evening, or commonly the entire day, of the last day of the year, 31 December, also known as Old Year's Day. In many countries, New Year's Eve is celebrated with dancing, eating, drinkin ...

2001. Following the concert’s success, a fuller semi-staged version, with the

Royal Philharmonic Orchestra The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO) is a British symphony orchestra based in London, England. The RPO was established by Thomas Beecham in 1946. In its early days, the orchestra secured profitable recording contracts and important engagemen ...

, ran for 6 weeks at the

over Christmas 2002 starring Richard Wilson and James Gillan, with

Susannah York Susannah Yolande Fletcher (9 January 1939 – 15 January 2011), known professionally as Susannah York, was an English actress. Her appearances in various films of the 1960s, including '' Tom Jones'' (1963) and '' They Shoot Horses, Don't They?'' ...

as the Storyteller and Lottie Meyer as Wendy. In 2007, the show was given its British theatrical premiere in a fully fledged production at the

Birmingham Repertory Theatre Birmingham Repertory Theatre, commonly called Birmingham Rep or just The Rep, is a producing theatre based on Centenary Square in Birmingham, England. Founded by Barry Jackson, it is the longest-established of Britain's building-based theatre ...

as directed by Rachel Kavanaugh. In the summer of 2011, it made its American premiere at the Tri-County Performing Arts Center in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, recently renamed Steel River Playhouse. The production made its Canadian premiere with the St. Albert Children's Theatre in St. Albert, Alberta in November 2011. In October 2015 a concert version directed by Jonathan Butterell was performed at London's

Adelphi Theatre The Adelphi Theatre is a West End theatre, located on the Strand in the City of Westminster, central London. The present building is the fourth on the site. The theatre has specialised in comedy and musical theatre, and today it is a receiv ...

with Bradley Walsh as Hook, Ray Quinn as Peter Pan,

as The Storyteller and

as Mrs Darling.

Mary Poppins

George Stiles and Anthony Drewe were commissioned by

and

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Di ...

to write additional material augmenting the

Sherman Brothers The Sherman Brothers were an American songwriting duo that specialized in musical films, made up of brothers Robert Sherman (December 19, 1925 – March 6, 2012) and Richard Sherman (June 12, 1928 – May 25, 2024). Together they received ...

' original

Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...

winning Disney's classic 1964 film song score. The stage musical featured a new book by

Downton Abbey ''Downton Abbey'' is a British historical drama television series set in the early 20th century, created and co-written by Julian Fellowes. It first aired in the United Kingdom on ITV (TV network), ITV on 26 September 2010 and in the United St ...

writer and

winner

Julian Fellowes Julian Alexander Kitchener-Fellowes, Baron Fellowes of West Stafford (born 17 August 1949), known professionally as Julian Fellowes, is an English actor, novelist, writer, producer, film director, and Conservative peer. He has received nume ...

. ''

Mary Poppins Mary Poppins may refer to: * Mary Poppins (character), a nanny with magical powers * Mary Poppins (franchise), based on the fictional nanny ** Mary Poppins (book series), ''Mary Poppins'' (book series), the original 1934–1988 children's fanta ...

'' opened at the

Prince Edward Theatre The Prince Edward Theatre is a West End theatre situated on Old Compton Street, just north of Leicester Square, in the City of Westminster, London. History The theatre was designed in 1930 by Edward A. Stone, with an interior designed by Mar ...

in December 2004 where it had a hugely successful 3-year run before embarking on a UK national tour in 2008. It opened on Broadway in 2006 where it ran for 6 years at the

New Amsterdam Theatre The New Amsterdam Theatre is a Broadway theatre, Broadway theater at 214 West 42nd Street (Manhattan), 42nd Street, at the southern end of Times Square, in the Theater District, Manhattan, Theater District of Manhattan in New York City, New Yor ...

. A US tour hit the road in 2009, touring for over 2 years. A new production opened at the Ronacher Theatre in

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

in 2014. In the autumn of 2015 it embarked on a new UK Tour.

Betty Blue Eyes

Betty Blue Eyes opened at the

Novello Theatre The Novello Theatre is a West End theatre on Aldwych, in the City of Westminster. It was known as the Strand Theatre between 1913 and 2005. History The theatre was built as one of a pair with the Aldwych Theatre on either side of The Waldo ...

in April 2011 produced by

, starring

Sarah Lancashire Sarah-Jane Abigail Lancashire (born 10 October 1964) is an English actress. Known for her work in television and theatre, she has received numerous accolades over a career spanning four decades, including three British Academy Television Award ...

and Reece Shearsmith. It received rave reviews from critics and audiences alike and received nominations for ‘Best New Musical’ in the 2012

Laurence Olivier Awards The Laurence Olivier Awards, or simply The Olivier Awards, are presented annually by the Society of London Theatre to recognize excellence in professional theatre in London. The awards were originally known as the Society of West End Theatre Aw ...

, The Evening Standard Awards and the WhatsOnStage.com Awards. The show received its US premiere at the Music Theatre of Wichita, Kansas in July 2013. A UK tour of ran from March–August 2014.

Soho Cinders

The show was premiered at a sold-out concert performance at the Queen's Theatre in October 2011 in aid of The

Teenage Cancer Trust Teenage Cancer Trust is a cancer care and support charity in the UK that exists to improve the cancer experience of young people aged 13–24. Founded in 1990, the charity's key service is providing specialist teenage units in NHS hospitals. It ...

. A full staged production opened at the

Soho Theatre Soho Theatre is a theatre and registered charity in the Soho district of the City of Westminster, and Soho Theatre Walthamstow in north-east London. It produces and presents new works of theatre, together with comedy and cabaret, across three pe ...

in the summer of 2012. Further productions have been staged in Dallas, Texas, at the Arts Educational School, London, University of Cumbria, University of West England, and it will open in 2015 in Belgium.

Three Little Pigs

The Three Little Pigs was commissioned by the Singapore Repertory Theatre for their Little Company and forms the first in a “trilogy of trios” (along with Goldilocks And The Three Bears and The Three Billy Goats Gruff). It premiered for 70 sell-out performances at the DBS Arts Centre in Singapore in March 2012 (in English), and returned for a further four week run at the same venue in July 2013 (in Mandarin). In October 2013 it was selected for the NAMT Festival in New York – the first children’s show ever to receive that honour. Since then, there have been productions at The Greenwich Theatre, London, a hit season at Emerald City Theatre, Chicago and productions in Finland and China. In the summer of 2015 Three Little Pigs had its West End premiere at

Palace Theatre, London The Palace Theatre is a West End theatre in the City of Westminster in London. Its red-brick facade dominates the west side of Cambridge Circus, London, Cambridge Circus behind a small plaza near the intersection of Shaftesbury Avenue and Chari ...

starring

Simon Webbe Simon Solomon Webbe (born 30 March 1978) is an English singer, rapper and actor. He is best known as a member of the boy band Blue, selling over 15 million records. Webbe released three solo studio albums in 2005, 2006 and 2017 and had five UK ...

as the Big Bad Wolf, Alison Jiear as Mummy Pig and Leanne Jones, Taofique Folarin and Daniel Buckley as the three piglets. A studio cast recording featuring Gareth Gates, Alison Jiear, Clive Rowe, Amy Lennox and Lewis Barnshaw was released in 2012.

Goldilocks and the Three Bears

Goldilocks and the Three Bears "Goldilocks and the Three Bears" is a 19th-century English fairy tale of which three versions exist. The original version of the tale tells of an impudent old woman who enters the forest home of three anthropomorphic bachelor bears while th ...

'' was commissioned by the Singapore Repertory Theatre and premiered there in 2013. The Mandarin production opened that same year. A studio cast recording featuring David Bedella, James Gillan, Leanne Jones, Amy Lennox and Michael Xavier was released in 2015.

Three Billy Goats Gruff

Three Billy Goats Gruff "The Three Billy Goats Gruff" () is a Norwegian fairy tale collected by Peter Christen Asbjørnsen and Jørgen Moe in their '' Norske Folkeeventyr'', first published between 1841 and 1844. It has an Aarne-Thompson type of 122E. The first versi ...

was commissioned by the Singapore Repertory Theatre and premiered there in 2015.

Travels with My Aunt

''Travels with My Aunt'', based on the novel by

Graham Greene Henry Graham Greene (2 October 1904 – 3 April 1991) was an English writer and journalist regarded by many as one of the leading novelists of the 20th century. Combining literary acclaim with widespread popularity, Greene acquired a re ...

, premiered at the Minerva Theatre, Chichester in April 2016

Half a Sixpence

Following the success of ''Mary Poppins'', Stiles and Drewe were reunited with producer

and book writer

to create a new musical version of ''Half a Sixpence'' based on the original musical, using the original songs by

David Heneker David William Heneker (31 March 1906 – 30 January 2001) was a writer and composer of British popular music and musicals, best known for creating the music and lyrics for '' Half a Sixpence''. Life and career Heneker was born in Southsea, Eng ...

. The production premiered at

in July 2016 before transferring to London's West End in October 2016.

The Wind in the Willows

Commissioned by producer Jamie Hendry in 2011, ''

The Wind in the Willows ''The Wind in the Willows'' is a children's novel by the British novelist Kenneth Grahame, first published in 1908. It details the story of Mole, Ratty, and Badger as they try to help Mr. Toad, after he becomes obsessed with motorcars and get ...

'', a musical adaptation of

Kenneth Grahame Kenneth Grahame ( ; 8 March 1859 – 6 July 1932) was a British writer. He is best remembered for the classic of children's literature ''The Wind in the Willows'' (1908). Born in Scotland, he spent most of his childhood with his grandmother in ...

's novel, opens at the Theatre Royal, Plymouth in October 2016 before heading to

The Lowry Lowry is a theatre and gallery complex at Salford Quays, Salford, Greater Manchester, England. It is named after the early 20th-century painter L. S. Lowry, known for his paintings of industrial scenes in North West England. The complex opened ...

in Salford and London's West End. The book was written by

who Stiles and Drewe previously worked with on ''Mary Poppins'' and ''Half a Sixpence''. The production will be directed by Rachel Kavanaugh (who also directed ''Half a Sixpence'') with set and costume design by Peter McKintosh and lighting design by Howard Harrison.

Becoming Nancy

The

musical Musical is the adjective of music. Musical may also refer to: * Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance * Musical film Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the Character (arts), charac ...

, based on the novel "Becoming Nancy" by Terry Ronald and with a book by Elliot Davis, will debut in 2019 at the Alliance Theatre in Atlanta from Sept. 5 to Oct. 6, directed by

Jerry Mitchell Jerry Mitchell is an American theatre director and choreographer. Early life and education Born in Paw Paw, Michigan, Mitchell later moved to St. Louis where he pursued his acting, dancing and directing career in theatre. Although he did not ...

Identical

Based on the 1949 novel

Lottie and Lisa ''Lisa and Lottie'', published in the United Kingdom and Australia as ''The Parent Trap'', (original German title: ''Das doppelte Lottchen'', "The Double Lottie") is a 1949 German children's novel by Erich Kästner. The book is about identical ...

Erich Kästner Emil Erich Kästner (; 23 February 1899 – 29 July 1974) was a German writer, poet, screenwriter and satirist, known primarily for his humorous, socially astute poems and for children's books including ''Emil and the Detectives'' and '' Lisa an ...

(also known as the basis for

Disney's The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Di ...

''The Parent Trap''), ''

Identical Identical may refer to: * Identical, when two things are the same, see Identity (philosophy) * Identical (Hopkins novel), ''Identical'' (Hopkins novel), a 2008 young adult novel by Ellen Hopkins * Identical (Turow novel), ''Identical'' (Turow novel ...

'' will premiere at the Nottingham Playhouse and Theatre Royal, Bath in summer 2020 with a book by Stuart Paterson and will be directed by Sir Trevor Nunn.

Other

Stiles and Drewe are founding members of Mercury Musical Developments (MMD), a charity devoted to nurturing new musical theatre in the United Kingdom. They have also written other revues and songs for theatre, TV, and radio, including the RSC's ''Shakespeare Revue'', ''The Challenge'', and

Dame Edna Everage Dame Edna Everage, often known simply as Dame Edna, is a character created and portrayed by Australian comedian Barry Humphries, known for her lilac-coloured ("wisteria hue") hair and cat eye glasses ("face furniture"); her favourite flower, ...

's ''Look at Me When I'm Talking to You''.

Awards

Awards include the

for Best New Musical ( Honk!), an Elliot Norton Award for Outstanding Musical Production ( Honk!), and a host of awards for Mary Poppins around the world. As a founding board-member of Mercury Musical Developments, Anthony also awards the annual Stiles and Drewe Prize for a new song written for the musical stage.

Independent work as a lyricist

*''The Card'' *''Twist of Fate''

Work as an actor

*''Rouges to Riches'' – Porthos *''A Twist of Fate (musical), A Twist of Fate'' – Inspector East

Directing credits

*''

Snoopy Snoopy is an anthropomorphic beagle in the comic strip ''Peanuts'' by American cartoonist Charles M. Schulz. He also appears in all of the ''Peanuts'' films and television specials. Since his debut on October 4, 1950, Snoopy has become one of ...

'' – at the Watermill *'' Cowardy Custard'' – at the Royal Academy of Music *'' Honk!'' – in

Cape Town Cape Town is the legislature, legislative capital city, capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. Cape Town is the country's List of municipalities in South Africa, second-largest ...

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, and

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

, *''Just So'' – at the Chicester Festival Theatre

References

Additional links

*https://web.archive.org/web/20080312161506/http://www.playbill.com/celebritybuzz/whoswho/biography/16550.html {{DEFAULTSORT:Drewe, Anthony Alumni of the University of Exeter British musical theatre lyricists People educated at Maidstone Grammar School Living people Year of birth missing (living people)