Christopher Fry facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Christopher Fry
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| Born | Arthur Hammond Harris 18 December 1907 Bristol, England |
| Died | 30 June 2005 (aged 97) Chichester, England |
| Occupation | Playwright, Screenwriter, Translator, and Critic |
| Education | Bedford Modern School |
| Notable works | The Lady's Not for Burning |
| Spouse | Phyllis Marjorie Hart Fry (1936–1987) |
Christopher Fry (born Arthur Hammond Harris; 18 December 1907 – 30 June 2005) was an English poet and playwright. He is most famous for his plays written in verse, especially The Lady's Not for Burning. This play made him a very important figure in theatre during the 1940s and 1950s.
Contents
Biography
Early Life of Christopher Fry
Christopher Fry was born as Arthur Hammond Harris in Bristol, England. His father, Charles John Harris, was a builder who later became a full-time Lay Reader for the Church of England. His mother was Emma Marguerite Fry Hammond Harris.
When he was young, he started using his mother's maiden name, Fry. He believed he was distantly related to Elizabeth Fry, a famous 19th-century Quaker who worked to improve prisons. He also became a Quaker, following her faith.
Fry went to Bedford Modern School, where he enjoyed writing plays for fun. After school, he became a teacher. He taught at the Bedford Froebel Kindergarten and Hazelwood School in Limpsfield, Surrey. In the 1920s, he met writer Robert Gittings, who became his friend for life.
Christopher Fry's Career Beginnings
In 1932, Fry stopped teaching to start his own theatre group. It was called the Tunbridge Wells Repertory Players. He managed this group for three years. He directed and acted in the first English performance of George Bernard Shaw’s A Village Wooing in 1934. He also wrote music for a show called She Shall Have Music in 1935.
In 1935 and 1936, a play he wrote about Dr. Thomas John Barnardo toured. Barnardo was famous for founding children's homes. The play helped raise money and even featured a young Deborah Kerr.
Fry's professional career really started when a church in Steyning, West Sussex, asked him to write a play. It was to celebrate the local saint, Cuthman of Steyning. This play became The Boy With A Cart in 1938. It was performed professionally in 1950, with Richard Burton in his first main role.
Tewkesbury Abbey then asked him to write his next play, The Tower, in 1939. The famous poet T. S. Eliot saw this play and became Fry's friend. Eliot is often seen as an important influence on Fry's work. In 1939, Fry also became the artistic director of Oxford Playhouse.
During World War II, Fry was a pacifist. This meant he believed all war was wrong. He was a conscientious objector, so he refused to fight. Instead, he served in the Non-Combatant Corps, doing non-fighting jobs. For some time, he even cleaned London's sewers.
After the war, he wrote a comedy called A Phoenix Too Frequent. It was performed in London in 1946 and starred Paul Scofield. The play is a funny story based on an old tale. It's about a widow who is mourning her husband but finds new joy in life with a handsome officer.
The Firstborn was performed in 1948. This play tells the story of Moses in Egypt. It shows the conflict between masters and slaves. Moses gives up his life as an Egyptian soldier to lead his people. Two songs for the play were specially written by Leonard Bernstein.
In 1948, he also wrote Thor, With Angels for the Canterbury Festival.
Christopher Fry's Major Works
Fry was then asked to write a play for the Arts Theatre in London. This play was The Lady's Not for Burning. It was first performed in 1948 and directed by Jack Hawkins. It was a huge success and moved to the West End, where it ran for nine months. John Gielgud starred, with Richard Burton and Claire Bloom also in the cast. It was later shown on Broadway in 1950, again with Burton.
This play helped bring back the popularity of poetic drama. T. S. Eliot was a big supporter of this style. The Lady's Not for Burning is Fry's most performed play. It even inspired British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher to say, "You turn if you want to — the lady’s not for turning," in 1980.
In 1950, Fry adapted a French play by Jean Anouilh called Invitation to the Castle. Fry's version was called Ring Round the Moon. He also wrote Venus Observed, which was produced by Laurence Olivier. A Sleep of Prisoners followed in 1951. It was first performed in a church in London and later toured with actors like Denholm Elliott.
The Dark is Light Enough was a winter play from 1954. It starred Katharine Cornell and Edith Evans. Leonard Bernstein wrote music for this play too. This play was the third in a series of "seasonal" plays. The Lady’s Not For Burning was spring, and Venus Observed was autumn. The last play in the series, A Yard Of Sun, representing summer, came out in 1970.
His next plays were translations of French plays. These included The Lark (1955), Tiger At The Gates (1955), Duel of Angels (1960), and Judith (1962).
Even though Fry lived until 2005, his poetic style of drama became less popular. This happened when a new group of writers, called the Angry Young Men, appeared in British theatre in the mid-1950s. Fry mostly worked in cinema during the 1960s. But he kept writing plays, like Curtmantle for the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1962. A Yard of Sun was performed in 1970.
Curtmantle (1962) is about Henry II of England and his conflict with Thomas Becket. A Yard of Sun (1970) takes place just after World War II. It is set during the famous horse race, Palio di Siena, in the streets of Siena.
After his plays became successful, Fry bought a beautiful house in Breconshire. He often walked to Llansantffraed church, where the 17th-century poet Henry Vaughan is buried. Vaughan's poetry had a strong influence on Fry.
For the next ten years, Fry focused on more translations. These included Henrik Ibsen’s Peer Gynt and Edmond Rostand’s Cyrano de Bergerac. These were performed at the Chichester Festival Theatre.
In 1986, he wrote One Thing More. This play is about a 7th-century monk named Cædmon. He suddenly gained the gift of writing songs. It was first performed in Chelmsford Cathedral and later shown on the BBC.
His very last play was A Ringing Of Bells. His old school, Bedford Modern School, asked him to write it. It was performed there in 2000. The next year, it was performed again at the Royal National Theatre.
In his later years, Fry lived in East Dean, West Sussex. He passed away in Chichester in 2005. His wife, Phyllis, died in 1987. He was survived by their son, Tam.
Revivals of Christopher Fry's Plays
Some of Fry's plays have been performed again. In 2001, The Lady's Not For Burning was read on stage at the National Theatre. It was chosen as one of the 100 best plays of the 20th century. Actors like Alex Jennings and Prunella Scales took part. In 2002, it was produced at the Chichester Festival Theatre. In 2007, a new production was performed in London.
Ring Round The Moon was performed again at the Theatre Royal Haymarket in 1967-68. It starred John Standing and Angela Thorne. In 2008, it was revived once more. Angela Thorne returned, playing the older role of Madame Desmortes.
Christopher Fry's Legacy
To remember his achievements, Bedford Modern School named their new Junior School hall after Christopher Fry.
Awards
- 1948 Shaw Prize Fund for The Lady's Not for Burning
- 1951 William Foyle Poetry Prize for Venus Observed
- 1951 New York Drama Critics Circle Award for The Lady's Not for Burning
- 1952 New York Drama Critics Circle Award for Venus Observed
- 1956 New York Drama Critics Circle Award for The Tiger At The Gates
- 1956 Tony Award nomination for The Tiger At The Gates
- 1962 Queen's Gold Medal for Poetry
- 1962 Heinemann Award, Royal Society of Literature for Curmantle
- 1966 Doctor of Arts from Manchester Metropolitan University
- 1971 Writers Guild Best British Television Dramatization award nomination for The Tenant of Wildfell Hall
- 1987 Doctor of Letters from Oxford University
- 1988 Honorary Fellow of Manchester Metropolitan University
- 1994 Doctor of Letters from De Montfort University
- 1994 Doctor of Letters from University of Sussex
- 2000 Benson Medal Fellow and Recipient
Quotes
Try thinking of love, or something. Amor vincit insomnia.
Life is a hypocrite if I can't live
The way it moves me!
If this is less than your best, then never, in my presence,
Be more than your less: never!
Images for kids
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Christopher Fry at a rehearsal of a revival of A Sleep of Prisoners by the Next Stage Company, Holy Trinity Church, Sloane Square, Nov. 1987
See also
In Spanish: Christopher Fry para niños
