Crispin Whittell
Encyclopedia
Crispin Whittell is a British director and playwright
.
He spent much of his early life in Africa
. He was a member of the National Youth Theatre
of Great Britain, and studied English at Cambridge University.
(1997).
He is perhaps best known for his play Darwin in Malibu
which premiered at Birmingham Repertory Theatre
in 2003 in a production directed by John Dove. It was shortlisted for the TMA Award for Best New Play. It was subsequently produced at Hampstead Theatre
in London.
His play Happy Valley premiered at the Liverpool Everyman Theatre in 1997 in a production directed by Whittell.
Clever Dick, a farce about the American physicist Richard Feynman
and The Manhattan Project, was produced at Hampstead Theatre in 2006 in a production directed by Whittell.
Whittell was then commissioned by Roger Rees
to write Villa America about the American socialite couple Gerald and Sara Murphy
, and their relationship with Pablo Picasso
, F. Scott Fitzgerald
and Ernest Hemingway
. Villa America premiered at Williamstown Theatre Festival
in 2007 in a production directed by Whittell.
Whittell is also the translator of Argentinian playwright-director Rafael Spregelburd’s play Stupidity (La Estupidez). Stupidity was developed at the National Theatre Studio as part of their Channels project. Richard Wolfe directed the English-language premiere for Theatre Conspiracy, in Vancouver
, in 2007.
Other produced plays include Killing Him (Pleasance Edinburgh), and Party Tricks (Nottingham Playhouse) directed by Martin Clunes
.
Whittell wrote and directed a short film, Hot Dog starring Tim McInnerny
and Stephen Mangan
.
He has also directed for the BBC
(Twisted Tales) and Channel 4
(Coming Up).
He is the writer of Happy Birthday, a short film directed by Helen Mirren
for Showtime. It starred Helen Mirren, John Goodman
, David Hyde Pierce
and Christopher Lloyd
.
He is under commission to write new plays for the Guthrie Theater
in Minneapolis, Hampstead Theatre
, and Birmingham Repertory Theatre
.
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
.
He spent much of his early life in Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
. He was a member of the National Youth Theatre
National Youth Theatre
The National Youth Theatre is a registered charity in London, Great Britain, committed to creative, personal and social development of young people through the medium of creative arts....
of Great Britain, and studied English at Cambridge University.
Career
After leaving university Whittell was writer-in-residence at Nottingham PlayhouseNottingham Playhouse
The Nottingham Playhouse is a theatre in Nottingham, England. It was first established as a repertory theatre in the 1950s when it operated from a former cinema. Directors during this period included Val May and Frank Dunlop.-The building:...
(1997).
He is perhaps best known for his play Darwin in Malibu
Darwin in Malibu
Darwin in Malibu is a play by British playwright and director, Crispin Whittell.Darwin in Malibu imagines a meeting between Charles Darwin , Thomas Huxley and the Bishop of Oxford, Samuel Wilberforce on the deck of a beach house overlooking the Pacific over a hundred years after their deaths.It...
which premiered at Birmingham Repertory Theatre
Birmingham Repertory Theatre
Birmingham Repertory Theatre is a theatre and theatre company based on Centenary Square in Birmingham, England...
in 2003 in a production directed by John Dove. It was shortlisted for the TMA Award for Best New Play. It was subsequently produced at Hampstead Theatre
Hampstead Theatre
Hampstead Theatre is a theatre in the vicinity of Swiss Cottage and Belsize Park, in the London Borough of Camden. It specialises in commissioning and producing new writing, supporting and developing the work of new writers. In 2009 it celebrates its 50 year anniversary.The original theatre was...
in London.
His play Happy Valley premiered at the Liverpool Everyman Theatre in 1997 in a production directed by Whittell.
Clever Dick, a farce about the American physicist Richard Feynman
Richard Feynman
Richard Phillips Feynman was an American physicist known for his work in the path integral formulation of quantum mechanics, the theory of quantum electrodynamics and the physics of the superfluidity of supercooled liquid helium, as well as in particle physics...
and The Manhattan Project, was produced at Hampstead Theatre in 2006 in a production directed by Whittell.
Whittell was then commissioned by Roger Rees
Roger Rees
Roger Rees is a Welsh actor. He is best known to American audiences for playing the characters Robin Colcord on the American television sitcom show Cheers and Lord John Marbury on the American television drama The West Wing...
to write Villa America about the American socialite couple Gerald and Sara Murphy
Gerald and Sara Murphy
Gerald Clery Murphy and Sara Sherman Wiborg were wealthy, expatriate Americans who moved to the French Riviera in the early 20th century and who, with their generous hospitality and flair for parties, created a vibrant social circle, particularly in the 1920s, that included a great number of...
, and their relationship with Pablo Picasso
Pablo Picasso
Pablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno María de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santísima Trinidad Ruiz y Picasso known as Pablo Ruiz Picasso was a Spanish expatriate painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist, and stage designer, one of the greatest and most influential artists of the...
, F. Scott Fitzgerald
F. Scott Fitzgerald
Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald was an American author of novels and short stories, whose works are the paradigm writings of the Jazz Age, a term he coined himself. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest American writers of the 20th century. Fitzgerald is considered a member of the "Lost...
and Ernest Hemingway
Ernest Hemingway
Ernest Miller Hemingway was an American author and journalist. His economic and understated style had a strong influence on 20th-century fiction, while his life of adventure and his public image influenced later generations. Hemingway produced most of his work between the mid-1920s and the...
. Villa America premiered at Williamstown Theatre Festival
Williamstown Theatre Festival
The Williamstown Theatre Festival is a regional summer stock theatre on the campus of Williams College in Williamstown, Massachusetts, founded in 1954 by Williams College news director, Ralph Renzi, and drama program chairman, David C. Bryant. The theatre was conceived as a way to use the Adams...
in 2007 in a production directed by Whittell.
Whittell is also the translator of Argentinian playwright-director Rafael Spregelburd’s play Stupidity (La Estupidez). Stupidity was developed at the National Theatre Studio as part of their Channels project. Richard Wolfe directed the English-language premiere for Theatre Conspiracy, in Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
, in 2007.
Other produced plays include Killing Him (Pleasance Edinburgh), and Party Tricks (Nottingham Playhouse) directed by Martin Clunes
Martin Clunes
Alexander Martin Clunes is an English actor and comedian. Clunes is perhaps best known for his roles as Gary Strang in Men Behaving Badly, Doctor Martin Ellingham in Doc Martin and the title character in Reggie Perrin....
.
Whittell wrote and directed a short film, Hot Dog starring Tim McInnerny
Tim McInnerny
Tim McInnerny is an English actor. He is known for his role as Percy in Blackadder and Blackadder II, and as Captain Darling in Blackadder Goes Forth...
and Stephen Mangan
Stephen Mangan
Stephen Mangan is an English actor, best known for his roles as Guy Secretan in the television series Green Wing, Dan Moody in I'm Alan Partridge and as Holistic Detective Dirk Gently in the 2010 BBC adaptation of Douglas Adams' book Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency, as well as Sean Lincoln...
.
He has also directed for the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
(Twisted Tales) and Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
(Coming Up).
He is the writer of Happy Birthday, a short film directed by Helen Mirren
Helen Mirren
Dame Helen Mirren, DBE is an English actor. She has won an Academy Award for Best Actress, four SAG Awards, four BAFTAs, three Golden Globes, four Emmy Awards, and two Cannes Film Festival Best Actress Awards.-Early life and family:...
for Showtime. It starred Helen Mirren, John Goodman
John Goodman
John Stephen Goodman is an American film, television, and stage actor. He is best known for his role as Dan Conner on the television series Roseanne for which he won a Best Actor Golden Globe Award in 1993, and for appearances in the films of the Coen brothers, with prominent roles in Raising...
, David Hyde Pierce
David Hyde Pierce
David Hyde Pierce is an American actor and comedian best known for playing psychiatrist Dr. Niles Crane on the NBC sitcom Frasier, for which he received many accolades including four Emmy Awards for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series.-Early life:Pierce, the youngest of four siblings,...
and Christopher Lloyd
Christopher Lloyd
Christopher Allen Lloyd is an American actor. He is best known for playing Emmett Brown in the Back to the Future trilogy, Uncle Fester in The Addams Family and Addams Family Values, and Judge Doom in Who Framed Roger Rabbit. He played Reverend Jim Ignatowski in the television series Taxi and more...
.
He is under commission to write new plays for the Guthrie Theater
Guthrie Theater
The Guthrie Theater is a center for theater performance, production, education, and professional training in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It is the result of the desire of Sir Tyrone Guthrie, Oliver Rea, and Peter Zeisler to create a resident acting company that would produce and perform the classics in...
in Minneapolis, Hampstead Theatre
Hampstead Theatre
Hampstead Theatre is a theatre in the vicinity of Swiss Cottage and Belsize Park, in the London Borough of Camden. It specialises in commissioning and producing new writing, supporting and developing the work of new writers. In 2009 it celebrates its 50 year anniversary.The original theatre was...
, and Birmingham Repertory Theatre
Birmingham Repertory Theatre
Birmingham Repertory Theatre is a theatre and theatre company based on Centenary Square in Birmingham, England...
.
Unpublished
- Killing Her (Old Red Lion)
- Killing Him (Pleasance, Edinburgh)
- Party Tricks (Nottingham Playhouse)
- Happy Valley (Liverpool Everyman)
- Villa America (Williamstown Theatre Festival)
Published
- Darwin in MalibuDarwin in MalibuDarwin in Malibu is a play by British playwright and director, Crispin Whittell.Darwin in Malibu imagines a meeting between Charles Darwin , Thomas Huxley and the Bishop of Oxford, Samuel Wilberforce on the deck of a beach house overlooking the Pacific over a hundred years after their deaths.It...
(Birmingham Repertory Theatre) - Stupidity/La Estupidez (Theatre Conspiracy, Vancouver)
- Clever Dick (Hampstead Theatre)