Matthew Warchus | |
|---|---|
 Warchus at the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival | |
| Born | 24 October 1966 |
| Alma mater | Bristol University |
| Occupations |
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| Notable work | Simpatico The Lord of the Rings Pride Matilda the Musical |
| Title | Artistic Director of The Old Vic (2015–present) |
| Spouse | Lauren Ward |
| Children | 3 |
| Awards | |
Matthew Warchus (born 24 October 1966) is an English theatre director, filmmaker and dramaturg. [1] [2] He has been the Artistic Director of London's The Old Vic since September 2015. [3]
Warchus grew up in Selby, North Yorkshire where he attended Selby High School. [4] He majored in music at Bristol University and studied in the school's department of drama. [5] [6]
Warchus has directed for the National Youth Theatre, Bristol Old Vic, Donmar Warehouse, Royal Shakespeare Company, National Theatre, Opera North, West Yorkshire Playhouse, Welsh National Opera, English National Opera in the West End and on Broadway. He won the Globe's Most Promising Newcomer Award for Much Ado About Nothing in the West End, the Evening Standard Best Director award, and Olivier Award nominations for Henry V and Volpone .[ citation needed ]
Productions include Sejanus his Fall (Edinburgh), "Master Harold"...and the Boys (Bristol Old Vic), The Suicide, Coriolanus (National Youth Theatre), Life is a Dream , Plough and the Stars (West Yorkshire Playhouse), True West , (West Yorkshire Playhouse, Donmar Warehouse, Broadway), Henry V , The Devil is an Ass , Hamlet (RSC), Volpone (RNT), Troilus and Cressida (Opera North), Rake's Progress (Welsh National Opera), Falstaff (Opera North & ENO), and Art (West End and Broadway).
His 1997 productions of Hamlet at the Barbican Theatre and Falstaff at the English National Opera have been nominated for several Olivier Awards including Best Director. Hamlet was also seen at the Brooklyn Academy in New York and the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. [ citation needed ]
Warchus directed Yasmina Reza's plays The Unexpected Man (RSC) and Life x 3 (National Theatre) in London and New York (at, respectively, the Promenade Theatre and Circle in the Square Theatre). In 1999, he completed his debut feature film – an adaptation of Sam Shepard's play Simpatico – which he co-wrote and directed, starring Nick Nolte, Jeff Bridges, Albert Finney and Sharon Stone. In 2000 he directed Sam Shepard's True West starring Philip Seymour Hoffman and John C. Reilly. In 2002 he directed Our House, at the Cambridge Theatre, a new musical written by Tim Firth featuring the music of Madness which won the Olivier Award for Best New Musical.
In 2007 he directed The Lord of the Rings , the stage adaptation of the novel The Lord of the Rings , which played at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane from May 2007 to July 2008 and which he wrote the music and book for. It was the most expensive stage production ever at the time of its debut. In 2008 he directed David Mamet's Speed-the-Plow , starring Kevin Spacey and Jeff Goldblum and Alan Ayckbourn's trilogy of plays The Norman Conquests at London's The Old Vic, and Boeing Boeing at New York's Broadhurst Theatre for which he received a Tony Award nomination for Best Direction of a Play.
During the 2009 Broadway season, Warchus directed two productions. One was the critically lauded, 2009 Tony Award winner for Best Revival of a Play transfer of his Old Vic production of The Norman Conquests , for which he won the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Director of a Play. The other was the 2009 Tony Award winner for Best Play, Yasmina Reza's God of Carnage , for which Warchus won the Tony Award for Best Direction of a Play. [7]
In 2010, Warchus directed the acclaimed Royal Shakespeare Company musical Matilda , with a book by Dennis Kelly and music and lyrics by Tim Minchin, which transferred to the West End in October 2011 at the Cambridge Theatre, before opening at the Shubert Theatre on Broadway in March 2013. The musical has since gone on to tour the US, Australia and New Zealand, winning multiple awards with a record-breaking seven Olivier Awards including Best New Musical and Best Director for Warchus. [8]
Warchus's production of Ghost: The Musical , a stage adaptation of the Academy Award winning 1990 film Ghost, premiered at the Manchester Opera House in March 2011, and opened at the West End's Piccadilly Theatre in July 2011 and closed on 6 October 2012. The show transferred to Broadway beginning at the Lunt Fontanne Theater on 15 March 2012 and closed on 18 August 2012. Ghost The Musical was on tour in UK and USA in 2013 while also playing in Budapest. It opened in Korea in November 2013.
His film Pride was selected to be screened as part of the Directors' Fortnight section of the 2014 Cannes Film Festival, [9] where it won the Queer Palm award on 23 May 2014.
A film adaptation of Matilda the Musical based on the stage musical, also directed by Warchus with screenplay by Dennis Kelly and songs by Tim Minchin was released by Netflix on 23 November 2022 in the United Kingdom and 9 December 2022 in the United States.
In September 2024 he will direct a revival of Seán O'Casey's Juno and the Paycock starring J. Smith-Cameron and Mark Rylance at the Gielgud Theatre in London's West End.
In May 2014 Warchus was appointed Artistic Director of The Old Vic in London, [10] succeeding Kevin Spacey. His first season began in September 2015 directing a new play, Future Conditional by Tamsin Oglesby, starring Rob Brydon. In 2016 he also directed The Master Builder by Henrik Ibsen starring Ralph Fiennes, The Caretaker by Harold Pinter starring Timothy Spall, Daniel Mays and George Mackay, and the world premiere of the new musical Groundhog Day with book by Danny Rubin and music and lyrics by Tim Minchin. [11] The musical ran for 8 weeks from July to September 2016 before transferring to the August Wilson Theatre on Broadway from April to September 2017. The musical later returned to the Old Vic from May to August 2023 before playing at the Princess Theatre, Melbourne from January to April 2024.
His second season at the Old Vic saw him direct the 20th anniversary revival of 'Art' starring Rufus Sewell, Tim Key and Paul Ritter from December 2016 to February 2017 (followed by UK tours in 2018 and 2019).
For the 2017 Christmas season, Warchus directed a new adaptation of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol by Jack Thorne starring Rhys Ifans as Scrooge which has since returned to The Old Vic every year due to its popular demand starring Stephen Tompkinson, Paterson Joseph, Stephen Mangan, Owen Teale and Christopher Eccleston as Scrooge. It has also played the Lyceum Theatre, Broadway for the 2019 season a US tour in 2021 and the Comedy Theatre, Melbourne in 2022 and 2023.
In 2019 he directed a revival of Noël Coward's Present Laughter starring Andrew Scott, followed by Duncan Macmillan's Lungs starring Claire Foy and Matt Smith.
In 2020, Warchus was planned to direct Amy Herzog’s 4000 Miles starring Eileen Atkins and Timothée Chalamet in April to May 2020, however due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the production has been postponed with the rescheduled dates to be announced. Also his production of Lungs which was due to transfer with Claire Foy and Matt Smith reprising their roles to the Brooklyn Academy of Music, New York in March to April 2020 was also cancelled due to the pandemic.
During the COVID-19 pandemic a series called Old Vic: in Camera began broadcasting performances from the empty auditorium of The Old Vic live to audiences around the world via Zoom, beginning with a social distanced version of Lungs with Claire Foy and Matt Smith returning. This was followed by Three Kings by Stephen Beresford starring Andrew Scott, Faith Healer by Brian Friel starring Michael Sheen, David Threlfall and Indira Varma and A Christmas Carol (which was due to return for a fourth consecutive season) starring Andrew Lincoln as Scrooge.
In summer 2024, Warchus will direct The Constituent, a new political drama by Joe Penhall starring James Corden and Anna Maxwell Martin at the Old Vic. In January 2025, Warchus will co-direct with Hofesh Shechter a new adaptation of Oedipus by Ella Hickson starring Rami Malek and Indira Varma at the Old Vic.
It was announced that he will step down as Artistic Director at The Old Vic from September 2026 after 11 years in the role. [12]
Warchus is married to American actress Lauren Ward, who played the role of Miss Honey in the Stratford-upon-Avon, London, and Broadway productions of Matilda the Musical . [13] Ward and Warchus met when he directed her in the 2001 revival of Follies on Broadway. [14] They have three children. [15]
| Year | Category | Nominated work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Best Director | Volpone and Henry V | Nominated |
| 1997 | Art | Nominated | |
| 1998 | Hamlet | Nominated | |
| 2012 | Matilda | Won | |
| 2017 | Groundhog Day | Nominated |
| Year | Category | Nominated work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Best Direction of a Play | Art | Nominated |
| 2000 | True West | Nominated | |
| 2008 | Boeing-Boeing | Nominated | |
| 2009 | The Norman Conquests | Nominated | |
| God of Carnage | Won | ||
| 2013 | Best Direction of a Musical | Matilda | Nominated |
| 2017 | Groundhog Day | Nominated |
| Year | Category | Nominated work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Outstanding Director of a Play | The Unexpected Man | Nominated |
| 2008 | Boeing-Boeing | Nominated | |
| 2009 | The Norman Conquests | Won | |
| 2013 | Outstanding Director of a Musical | Matilda | Nominated |
| Year | Category | Nominated work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Outstanding Director of a Play | Art | Nominated |
| 2009 | The Norman Conquests | Won | |
| 2017 | Outstanding Director of a Play | Groundhog Day | Nominated |
| Year | Category | Nominated work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Best Director | Pride | Nominated |
The Old Vic is a 1,000-seat, not-for-profit producing theatre in Waterloo, London, England. It was established in 1818 as the Royal Coburg Theatre, and renamed in 1833 the Royal Victoria Theatre. In 1871 it was rebuilt and reopened as the Royal Victoria Palace. It was taken over by Emma Cons in 1880 and formally named the Royal Victoria Hall, although by that time it was already known as the "Old Vic". In 1898, a niece of Cons, Lilian Baylis, assumed management and began a series of Shakespeare productions in 1914. The building was damaged in 1940 during air raids and it became a Grade II* listed building in 1951 after it reopened.
'Art' is a French-language play by Yasmina Reza that premiered in 1994 at Comédie des Champs-Élysées in Paris. The play subsequently ran in London in 1996 and on Broadway in 1998.
Ken Ludwig is an American playwright, author, screenwriter, and director whose work has been performed in more than 30 countries in over 20 languages. He has had six productions on Broadway and eight in London's West End. His 34 plays and musicals are staged throughout the United States and around the world every night of the year.
Timothy David Minchin AM is an Australian actor, writer, musician, poet, composer, songwriter and comedian.
Joe Scott Penhall is an English-Australian playwright and screenwriter, best known for his award-winning stage play Blue/Orange, the award-winning West End musical Sunny Afternoon and creating the Netflix original series Mindhunter.
Kevin Gerard Wallace is an Irish theatre producer.
Rob Ashford is an American stage director and choreographer. He is a Tony Award, Olivier Award, Emmy Award, Drama Desk Award, and Outer Critics Circle Award winner.
John Newport Caird is an English stage director and writer of plays, musicals and operas. He is an honorary associate director of the Royal Shakespeare Company, was for many years a regular director with the Royal National Theatre of Great Britain and is the principal guest director of the Royal Dramatic Theatre, Stockholm (Dramaten).
The Lord of the Rings is a stage musical with music by A. R. Rahman, Värttinä, and Christopher Nightingale, and lyrics and book by Shaun McKenna and Matthew Warchus, based on the novel of the same name by J. R. R. Tolkien. It is the most prominent of several theatre adaptations of the novel. Set in the world of Middle-earth, the musical tells the tale of a humble hobbit who is asked to play the hero and undertake a treacherous mission to destroy an evil, magic ring without being seduced by its power.
Hugh Vanstone is one of the UK’s foremost lighting designers. He has lit more than 160 productions, working in all spheres of live performance lighting, as well as exhibitions and architectural projects. His career has taken him all over the world and his work has been recognised with many awards, including a Tony Award for his lighting of Matilda the Musical, and the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Lighting Design in 1999, 2001 and 2004.
Roald Dahl's Matilda, also known simply as Matilda and Matilda the Musical, is a musical with music and lyrics by Tim Minchin and a book by Dennis Kelly. It is based on the 1988 novel Matilda by Roald Dahl. The musical's narrative centres on Matilda Wormwood, a precocious five-year-old girl with the gift of telekinesis, who loves reading, overcomes obstacles caused by her family and school, and helps her teacher to reclaim her life. After a twelve-week trial run staged by the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) at Stratford-upon-Avon from November 2010 to January 2011, it received its West End premiere on 24 November 2011 at the Cambridge Theatre and its Broadway premiere on 11 April 2013 at the Shubert Theatre.
Alex Gaumond is a Canadian actor, singer, songwriter and filmmaker best known for his involvement in West End theatre. He plays series regular gendarme Caron, the chief of police in Sainte Victoire, in the Channel 5 television series The Madame Blanc Mysteries, starring Sally Lindsay.
Robert Hugh Carvel is a British film and theatre actor. He has twice won a Laurence Olivier Award: for Best Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical for his role as Miss Trunchbull in Matilda the Musical, and for Best Actor in a Supporting Role for his performance as Rupert Murdoch in Ink. For the latter role, he won the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Featured Role in a Play.
Peter Caulfield is an English actor.
Lauren Ward is an American singer and actress. She has appeared in Broadway, Off-Broadway and West End musicals and plays. Ward originated the role of Miss Honey in the original Stratford-Upon-Avon, West End, and Broadway productions of the musical Matilda, and was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for her performance.
Robert Stuart Howell is a British costume and set designer. He is primarily known for his work on the London stage. Howell won the Olivier Award for his set design for the musical Matilda the Musical in 2012. He has also designed both scenery and costumes for several Broadway shows, and won the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Set Design for Ghost the Musical in 2012.
Groundhog Day is a musical with music and lyrics by Tim Minchin and a book by Danny Rubin. It is based on the 1993 film of the same name, which featured a screenplay co-written by Rubin.
Elise McCann is an Australian actress and musical theatre performer most well known for originating the role of Miss Honey in the Australian production of Matilda the Musical and as Lucille Ball in Everybody Loves Lucy.
A Christmas Carol is a play by Jack Thorne based on the 1843 novella of the same name by Charles Dickens.
Roald Dahl's Matilda the Musical, or simply Matilda the Musical, or Matilda, is a 2022 fantasy musical film directed by Matthew Warchus from a screenplay by Dennis Kelly, based on the stage musical of the same name by Tim Minchin and Kelly, which in turn was based on the 1988 novel Matilda by Roald Dahl. It is the second film adaptation of the novel, following Matilda (1996). The film stars Alisha Weir as the title character, alongside Lashana Lynch, Stephen Graham, Andrea Riseborough, Sindhu Vee, and Emma Thompson. In the plot, Matilda Wormwood (Weir), who is neglected and mistreated by her parents, develops psychokinetic abilities to deal with Miss Trunchbull (Thompson), the ruthless and cruel headmistress of Crunchem Hall School.
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