Motley Theatre Design Group
Encyclopedia
Motley was the name of the theatre design firm made up of three English designers, sisters Margaret Harris
(known as "Percy") (1904–2000) and Sophie Harris
(1900–1966), and Elizabeth Montgomery Wilmot
(1902–1993). The name derives from the word 'Motley
' as used by Shakespeare. The group won two Tony Awards for costume design and was nominated seven additional times.
They met at art school in the 1920s and went on to great success as John Gielgud
's designers during the 1930s. They started teaching theatre design at Michel Saint-Denis
's London Theatre Studio (1936–1939), the first time a design course had been incorporated into a drama school in the UK. Margaret Harris and Elizabeth Montgomery spent World War II
in the United States, designing for Broadway
, and Harris also worked with Charles Eames on his moulded plywood airplane parts. Sophie Harris, now married to George Devine
, and mother of their child Harriet, stayed in the UK designing for stage and screen. After the war Margaret Harris returned to the UK, and both sisters once again joined Saint-Denis, teaching design at the Old Vic Theatre School (1947–1953). Elizabeth Montgomery stayed in the United States designing for many Broadway productions. All three continued to design under the name "Motley" for both stage and screen.
In 1966, Margaret Harris founded Motley Theatre Design Course
which continues to this day, now under the directorship of designer Alison Chitty
(OBE).
Margaret Harris
Margaret Frances Harris was an English theatre and opera costume and scenic designer.-Early years:Harris was born in Hayes, Kent, the fourth child and second daughter of William Birkbeck Harris, a Lloyds Insurance clerk, and his wife Kathleen Marion, née Carey...
(known as "Percy") (1904–2000) and Sophie Harris
Sophie Harris
Audrey Sophia “Sophie” Harris was an English award winning theatre and opera costume and scenic designer.-Biography:...
(1900–1966), and Elizabeth Montgomery Wilmot
Elizabeth Montgomery Wilmot
Elizabeth Montgomery Wilmot was an English award winning theatre and opera costume and scenic designer.-Biography:...
(1902–1993). The name derives from the word 'Motley
Motley
Motley refers to the traditional costume of the court jester, or the harlequin character in commedia dell'arte. The latter wears a patchwork of red, green and blue diamonds that is still a fashion motif....
' as used by Shakespeare. The group won two Tony Awards for costume design and was nominated seven additional times.
They met at art school in the 1920s and went on to great success as John Gielgud
John Gielgud
Sir Arthur John Gielgud, OM, CH was an English actor, director, and producer. A descendant of the renowned Terry acting family, he achieved early international acclaim for his youthful, emotionally expressive Hamlet which broke box office records on Broadway in 1937...
's designers during the 1930s. They started teaching theatre design at Michel Saint-Denis
Michel Saint-Denis
Michel Saint-Denis , dit Jacques Duchesne, was a French actor, theater director, and drama theorist whose ideas on actor training have had a profound influence on the development of European theater from the 1930s on.Michel Saint-Denis was born in Beauvais, France, the nephew of Jacques Copeau, who...
's London Theatre Studio (1936–1939), the first time a design course had been incorporated into a drama school in the UK. Margaret Harris and Elizabeth Montgomery spent World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
in the United States, designing for Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
, and Harris also worked with Charles Eames on his moulded plywood airplane parts. Sophie Harris, now married to George Devine
George Devine
George Alexander Cassady Devine CBE was an extremely influential theatrical manager, director, teacher and actor in London from the late 1940s until his death. He also worked in the media of TV and film.-Biography:...
, and mother of their child Harriet, stayed in the UK designing for stage and screen. After the war Margaret Harris returned to the UK, and both sisters once again joined Saint-Denis, teaching design at the Old Vic Theatre School (1947–1953). Elizabeth Montgomery stayed in the United States designing for many Broadway productions. All three continued to design under the name "Motley" for both stage and screen.
In 1966, Margaret Harris founded Motley Theatre Design Course
Motley Theatre Design Course
Motley Theatre Design Course is a one-year independent theatre design course in London. It was founded at Sadler's Wells Opera in 1966.- Sadler's Wells Opera & English National Opera:...
which continues to this day, now under the directorship of designer Alison Chitty
Alison Chitty
Alison Chitty OBE is an Olivier Award winning production designer and set and costume designer, known for her collaborations with Mike Leigh, Francesca Zambello and Sir Peter Hall. She is also the Director of the Motley Theatre Design Course, a successor to Motley Theatre Design Group...
(OBE).
Work (Broadway selected)
- Look Homeward, AngelLook Homeward, Angel (play)Look Homeward, Angel is an acclaimed 1957 stage play by the playwright Ketti Frings. It opened on Broadway at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre November 28, 1957, and ran for a total of 564 performances, closing on April 4, 1959....
(1957) Tony Award for Best Costume DesignTony Award for Best Costume DesignThese are the winners and nominees for the Tony Award for Best Costume Design. The award was first presented in 1947 and included both plays and musicals...
(nominee) - The Country WifeThe Country WifeThe Country Wife is a Restoration comedy written in 1675 by William Wycherley. A product of the tolerant early Restoration period, the play reflects an aristocratic and anti-Puritan ideology, and was controversial for its sexual explicitness even in its own time. The title itself contains a lewd pun...
(1957) scenery and costume design; Tony Award Best Costume Design (nominee) - Look Back in AngerLook Back in AngerLook Back in Anger is a John Osborne play—made into films in 1959, 1980, and 1989 -- about a love triangle involving an intelligent but disaffected young man , his upper-middle-class, impassive wife , and her haughty best friend . Cliff, an amiable Welsh lodger, attempts to keep the peace...
(1957) Tony Award Best Costume Design (nominee) - Shinbone AlleyShinbone AlleyShinbone Alley is a musical with a book by Joe Darion and Mel Brooks, lyrics by Darion, and music by George Kleinsinger. Based on archy and mehitabel, a series of New York Tribune columns by Don Marquis, it focuses on poetic cockroach Archy, alley cat Mehitabel, and her relationships with...
(1957) Tony Award Best Costume Design (nominee) - The First Gentleman (1957) Tony Award Best Costume Design (winner)
- Becket (1961) Tony Award Best Costume Design (Dramatic) (winner)
- Kwamina (1961) Tony Award Best Costume Design (nominee)
- Mother Courage and Her ChildrenMother Courage and Her ChildrenMother Courage and Her Children is a play written in 1939 by the German dramatist and poet Bertolt Brecht with significant contributions from Margarete Steffin...
(1963) Tony Award Best Costume Design (nominee) - Baker StreetBaker Street (musical)Baker Street is a musical with a book by Jerome Coopersmith and music and lyrics by Marian Grudeff and Raymond Jessel.Loosely based on the Sherlock Holmes story A Scandal in Bohemia by Arthur Conan Doyle, it is set in and around London in 1897, the year in which England celebrated the Diamond...
(1965) Tony Award Best Costume Design (nominee)