Peter Shaffer facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Sir
Peter Shaffer
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Shaffer in 1966
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Peter Levin Shaffer
15 May 1926 Liverpool, England
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| Died | 6 June 2016 (aged 90) County Cork, Ireland
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| Resting place | Highgate Cemetery |
| Alma mater | Trinity College, Cambridge |
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| Partner(s) | Robert Leonard (died 1990) |
| Relatives | Anthony Shaffer (brother) Diane Cilento (sister-in-law) |
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Sir Peter Levin Shaffer (born May 15, 1926 – died June 6, 2016) was a famous English writer. He wrote many plays for the stage, scripts for movies, and novels. Many of his plays won awards, and some were even made into popular films.
Contents
Early Life
Peter Shaffer was born in Liverpool, England. His family was Jewish. His father, Jack Shaffer, worked as an estate agent. Peter grew up in London. He had an identical twin brother named Anthony Shaffer, who also became a playwright.
Peter went to school at Hall School and St Paul's School, London. Later, he earned a scholarship to Trinity College, Cambridge, where he studied history. During World War II, Shaffer worked as a coal miner. He also had other jobs, like working in a bookstore and at the New York Public Library. It was after these experiences that he discovered his talent for writing plays.
Amazing Plays
Peter Shaffer's first play was called The Salt Land. It was shown on TV in 1955. This success encouraged him to keep writing. He became well-known in 1958 with his play Five Finger Exercise. This play opened in London and won an award. When it moved to New York City in 1959, it was also very popular. It won the New York Drama Critics' Circle Award for Best Foreign Play.
Shaffer then wrote two short plays, The Private Ear and The Public Eye. These plays were about different kinds of love. They opened in London in 1962. Famous actors like Maggie Smith and Kenneth Williams starred in them. Maggie Smith won an award for her acting in these plays.
The Royal National Theatre started in 1963. Peter Shaffer wrote most of his later plays for this theatre. His plays often mixed serious ideas with funny parts. For example, The Royal Hunt of the Sun (1964) was about the Spanish conquest of the Inca ruler Atahuallpa in Peru. On the other hand, Black Comedy (1965) was a funny play where the stage was bright, but the characters acted like they were in a pitch-black room.
Famous Plays
Equus
One of Shaffer's most famous plays is Equus (1973). This play won him a Tony Award for Best Play in 1975. It also won the New York Drama Critics' Circle Award. Equus explores the mind of a 17-year-old stable boy. It was performed over 1,000 times on Broadway. The play has been brought back to the stage many times since then.
Amadeus
After Equus, Shaffer wrote Amadeus (1979). This play won awards in London. It tells the story of the famous composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and another composer, Antonio Salieri. When Amadeus moved to Broadway, it also won the 1981 Tony Award for Best Play. Like Equus, it was performed more than a thousand times.
Lettice and Lovage
In 1986, Shaffer wrote Lettice and Lovage especially for the actress Dame Maggie Smith. This play earned him another Tony Award nomination. Maggie Smith won a Tony Award for Best Actress for her role in it in 1990. Another actress in the play, Margaret Tyzack, also won an award.
Plays on the Big Screen
Many of Peter Shaffer's plays were made into movies. These include Five Finger Exercise (1962) and The Royal Hunt of the Sun (1969). His play The Public Eye was adapted into the film Follow Me! (1972).
The movie version of Equus came out in 1977. Shaffer wrote the screenplay for it. He was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay.
His play Amadeus was made into a movie in 1984. This film was a huge success! It won eight Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Peter Shaffer won both the Golden Globe and the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay for Amadeus.
Later Life and Legacy
Peter Shaffer lived in Manhattan from the 1970s. He passed away on June 6, 2016, in County Cork, Ireland, shortly after his 90th birthday. He is buried in Highgate Cemetery in London.
Awards and Recognition
Peter Shaffer received many awards for his writing.
- In 1993, he received an honorary degree from the University of Bath.
- His play Five Finger Exercise won the Evening Standard Drama Award in London. It also won the New York Drama Critics' Circle Award in New York.
- Equus won the Tony Award for Best Play and the New York Drama Critics' Circle Award. The movie script for Equus was nominated for an Oscar.
- Amadeus won the Evening Standard Drama Award and the Theatre Critics' Award in London. On Broadway, it won the 1981 Tony Award for Best Play. The movie script for Amadeus won an Oscar and a Golden Globe.
- Lettice and Lovage was nominated for a Tony Award. Maggie Smith won Best Actress for her role, and Margaret Tyzack won Best Featured Actress.
Honours
Peter Shaffer was made a CBE in 1987. He was also given the title of Knight Bachelor in 2001, which means he became "Sir Peter Shaffer". In 2007, he was added to the American Theater Hall of Fame.
List of Works
- The Salt Land (Television, 1955)
- Balance of Terror (Television, 1957)
- The Prodigal Father (Radio, 1957)
- Five Finger Exercise (1958)
- The Private Ear (1962)
- The Public Eye (1962)
- The Establishment (1963)
- The Merry Roosters' Panto (1963)
- The Royal Hunt of the Sun (1964), a play about Atahualpa, the last emperor of the Inca people.
- Black Comedy (1965)
- The White Liars (1967)
- The Battle of Shrivings (1970)
- Equus (1973)
- Amadeus (1979)
- Black Mischief (1983)
- Yonadab (1985)
- Lettice and Lovage (1987)
- Whom Do I Have the Honour of Addressing? (1990)
- The Gift of the Gorgon
Detective Novels
Peter Shaffer wrote three detective novels with his brother Anthony Shaffer. They used the pen name Peter Antony for these books.
- The Woman in the Wardrobe (1951)
- How Doth the Little Crocodile? (1952)
- Withered Murder (1955)
See also
In Spanish: Peter Shaffer para niños
