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Steven Pimlott
Steven Pimlott
Steven Pimlott
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Steven Charles Pimlott OBE (18 April 1953 – 14 February 2007) was an English opera and theatre director, whose obituary in The Times hailed him as "one of the most versatile and inventive theatre directors of his generation".[1] His output ran the gamut of the theatrical and operatic repertoire, from musicals, such as Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat, and popular plays, such as Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None,[2] through classics such as Shakespeare and Molière, to Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine's Sunday in the Park with George and Alexander Borodin's Prince Igor.

Key Information

Early life

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Pimlott's father worked in insurance, but Steven was interested in the performing arts from a young age. The first film he saw, The King and I, and first theatre visit, to see Christopher Plummer in Richard III at Stratford, both made a great impression. He was educated at Manchester Grammar School, where he met the younger Nicholas Hytner. They performed together in the school orchestra (Hytner played flute and Pimlott the oboe) and in school plays: Pimlott was an admired Gertrude opposite TV historian Michael Wood's Hamlet. Reading English at Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge, Pimlott also acted in university productions with Hytner and Declan Donnellan.

Opera and theatre work

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Pimlott began his career with the English National Opera, where he was Staff Director from 1976 to 1978. He moved to Opera North from 1978 to 1980, directing productions of Puccini's La bohème and Tosca, Verdi's Nabucco and Massenet's Werther, and the British première of Alexander Borodin's Prince Igor, which he translated with David Lloyd-Jones. He then worked with Scottish Opera, directing Don Giovanni, and Opera Australia, and then worked in regional opera houses in Manchester, Leeds and Sheffield.

While at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, he directed productions of Twelfth Night and The Winter's Tale. In 1988, he directed a production of the York Mystery Plays which was staged in the city's Museum Gardens, against the backdrop of the ruined St Mary's Abbey, and which featured the Indian actor Victor Banerjee as Jesus. Also in 1988, he directed the British première of Botho Strauss's Der Park. The same year he directed Samson et Dalila of Camille Saint-Saens at the Bregenzer Festspiele and subsequently at the Dutch National Opera in Amsterdam.[3]

Pimlott developed a wide range of theatrical work, which included avant garde, Shakespeare and popular musicals, such as the revival of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat with Jason Donovan and then Phillip Schofield at the Palladium in 1991 and on Broadway in 1993, Doctor Dolittle at the Hammersmith Apollo in 1998, and Bombay Dreams and at the Apollo Victoria in 2002 and in New York in 2004. At the National Theatre, he worked on the British première of Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine's Sunday in the Park with George in 1990, and a new translation of Molière's The Miser in 1991.

Pimlott directed many works with the Royal Shakespeare Company, working with RSC artistic director Adrian Noble, beginning with Julius Caesar in 1991, with Robert Stephens as the lead. He later produced Richard III in 1995, with David Troughton as the lead actor; Richard II in 2000 with Samuel West as the title character and David Troughton as Bolingbroke; and Hamlet at Stratford in 2001 with West again as the lead. For the RSC, he also produced T. S. Eliot's Murder in the Cathedral in 1993, Tennessee Williams' Camino Real at Stratford in 1997, with Leslie Phillips, Peter Egan and Susannah York, and staged Antony and Cleopatra at Stratford in 1999, with Alan Bates and Frances de la Tour (although an opening scene that showed oral sex was dropped when the production moved to London). He was Company Director at the RSC in Stratford in 1996 and an Associate Director of the RSC from 1996 to 2002. During his time with the RSC he also had Jason Carr (the composer of incidental music to ten of his RSC plays) commissioned to write a musical adaption of Charles Kingsley's novel The Water Babies; in the end the RSC never produced it but Pimlott later had it mounted at Chichester where he was Artistic Director, alongside Martin Duncan and Ruth Mackenzie, from 2003 to 2005. Pimlott also directed world premières of Phyllis Nagy's Butterfly Kiss, The Strip and Neverland.

His restaging of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat was revived in 2007 at London's Adelphi Theatre with Lee Mead in the title role. Before the show opened, booking was so brisk that the musical's originally planned six-month run was doubled. "I suppose he’s a dreamer. Even when things are going really badly he never gives up hope", Pimlott wrote of Joseph in the 1991 production's programme. "We all dream a lot, some are lucky, some are not..."

Last years

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A lifelong Gilbert and Sullivan afficiando, he was the director of the short-lived Savoy Theatre Opera project in 2004, founded by Raymond Gubbay. He took to the stage for the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company in their last season at the Strand, playing Sir Joseph Porter in H.M.S. Pinafore. With Martin Duncan and Ruth Mackenzie, he was appointed as the joint artistic director of the Chichester Festival Theatre between 2003 and 2005, reviving its fortunes.

He directed Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None at the Gielgud Theatre in the West End in 2005, with Tara FitzGerald, Gemma Jones and Graham Crowden, and Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin at the Royal Opera House in 2006. He was awarded the OBE in the 2007 New Year Honours list.

Although he had been suffering from lung cancer, at the time of his death he was rehearsing a revival of Tennessee Williams' The Rose Tattoo, starring Zoë Wanamaker, which was taken over by his friend Nicholas Hytner. Also in later years, Pimlott's oboe playing became something more than a hobby, and he played in a number of professional concerts.

He married German soprano Daniela Bechly in 1991. Steven died at home in February 2007. Daniela, along with their two sons, Oskar and Raphael, and daughter, Phoebe, continue living in their family home in Great Horkesley.

References

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Steven Pimlott

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Steven Pimlott is a British theatre director known for his acclaimed productions of Shakespeare and classic musicals across major UK stages. His career encompassed key roles at the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC), where he served as an associate director, and later as artistic director of the Chichester Festival Theatre, earning praise for his insightful interpretations and ability to bridge classical and commercial theatre. Pimlott's work often emphasized textual clarity and emotional intensity, bringing fresh perspectives to both traditional plays and large-scale musical revivals. Born in Stockport, Cheshire on 18 April 1953, Pimlott studied English at Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge before embarking on a directing career that spanned more than three decades until his death in 2007. He directed numerous notable productions at the RSC, including several Shakespeare histories and tragedies, as well as West End transfers of musicals such as Oklahoma! and My Fair Lady. His tenure at Chichester saw ambitious programming that combined established classics with new work, cementing his reputation as one of Britain's most respected directors of his generation.

Early life

Birth and family background

Steven Charles Pimlott was born on 18 April 1953 in Stockport, Cheshire, England. He was the son of Arthur Pimlott and Marian Pimlott. Pimlott grew up in northern England, rooted in the industrial and cultural milieu of the Stockport area. His mother, Marian Pimlott, survived him.

Education and early influences

Steven Pimlott attended Manchester Grammar School, where he actively participated in the school's musical and dramatic circles. He developed a passion for music as a keen oboist and performed in school productions, including the role of Claire Zachanassian in Friedrich Dürrenmatt’s The Visit and Gertrude in Hamlet. His early exposure to theatre included seeing Richard III at Stratford-upon-Avon and the film version of The King and I, experiences that instilled in him an equal passion for Shakespearean drama and musical theatre. Pimlott expressed lifelong enthusiasm for Gilbert and Sullivan alongside Shakespeare, Agatha Christie, and Andrew Lloyd Webber, later describing himself as "one of the last Savoyards" in reference to his affection for the Savoy operas. He went on to read English at Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge, where he became deeply involved in student drama and opera. Pimlott was a leading light in the university's Operatic Society and participated enthusiastically as both an actor and director in Cambridge productions, which helped shape his commitment to a career in opera and theatre. These formative experiences in amateur and university theatre marked his transition from performing to directing.

Career

Early directing roles and regional theatre

Steven Pimlott transitioned from acting to directing in the late 1970s, beginning his professional directing career in regional theatre. He served as director of the Contact Theatre in Manchester from 1978 to 1981, where he was responsible for programming and directing a diverse range of productions that included new writing and revivals, helping to establish the venue's reputation for innovative work. In 1981, Pimlott moved to the Nottingham Playhouse as associate director, a position he held until 1983. During this time, he directed several productions and contributed to the artistic direction of the theatre, gaining further experience in managing repertory seasons and working with ensemble casts in a regional context. These early roles in Manchester and Nottingham allowed him to develop his approach to directing, emphasizing textual clarity and actor-centered interpretations that would characterize his later career. This regional experience preceded his later work at the Royal Shakespeare Company.

Royal Shakespeare Company tenure

Steven Pimlott joined the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1990, collaborating with artistic director Adrian Noble for twelve years until his resignation in 2002. Appointed associate director in 1996, he also oversaw the company's new writing venue, The Other Place. His RSC tenure encompassed a diverse repertoire of Shakespearean and classical works, alongside new plays, marked by an emphasis on visual storytelling drawn from his opera background, which stressed imagery, gesture, and staging over text alone. Pimlott made a striking debut with Julius Caesar in 1991, featuring Robert Stephens as Caesar and hailed as a spectacular introduction to the company. He followed with Richard III, described as unusually eclectic and entertaining, with David Troughton in the title role. Among his later Shakespeare productions, Antony and Cleopatra in 1999 starred Alan Bates and Frances de la Tour in a main-stage staging noted for its bold opening and overall strength. Richard II in 2000, with Sam West as the king and David Troughton as Bolingbroke, was presented in a stark white chamber setting and interpreted as a lucid examination of brutal realpolitik rather than lyrical tragedy. His 2001 Hamlet, again starring Sam West, ran four hours and focused on the political dysfunction of Elsinore as a failed state. Pimlott's non-Shakespeare RSC work included a beautiful modern-dress revival of T.S. Eliot's Murder in the Cathedral, a 1997 Swan Theatre production of Tennessee Williams's Camino Real praised as an irresistible reclamation of a challenging play, and Molière's The Learned Ladies. He also directed As You Like It in 1996, Measure for Measure, and several new plays, including world premières by Michael Hastings, Robert Holman, and Phyllis Nagy. His tenure ended in 2002 amid controversy over the RSC's restructuring plans, particularly concerning The Other Place.

Opera directing work

Steven Pimlott began his professional involvement in opera as a staff producer at English National Opera in 1976. He moved to Opera North in 1978, where he directed a series of productions that established his reputation in the field, including Puccini's La bohème and Tosca, Verdi's Nabucco, Massenet's Werther, Weber's Der Freischütz, Smetana's The Bartered Bride, and Mascagni's Cavalleria Rusticana paired with Leoncavallo's Pagliacci. These works highlighted his affinity for core Italian and verismo repertoire. He also staged the British premiere of Borodin's Prince Igor at Opera North, for which he collaborated with David Lloyd Jones on the English translation. Among his large-scale projects was a production of Bizet's Carmen at the Earls Court Arena in 1988, presented by the Royal Opera with Maria Ewing and José Carreras in leading roles. In 2000, Pimlott directed Monteverdi's L'Incoronazione di Poppea at English National Opera, a staging praised as one of the finest baroque revivals seen in Britain since Peter Hall's era at Glyndebourne and one that helped establish Alice Coote's reputation. The production was noted for its bold, at times scandalous interpretation. That same year, he directed the world premiere of Param Vir's Ion for Almeida Opera. Pimlott continued his opera work into the 2000s, making his Royal Opera House debut with Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin in 2006. He also directed Samson and Delilah at the Bregenz Festival. Pimlott pursued a successful international career as an opera director throughout his professional life, often bringing a theatrical sensibility to his stagings of both classic and contemporary works.

Musical theatre and West End productions

Steven Pimlott achieved significant success directing large-scale commercial musicals in the West End, applying his operatic background to create visually extravagant productions that appealed to broad audiences. His most celebrated musical achievement was the 1991 revival of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice's Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at the London Palladium. This gloriously excessive staging opened on June 12, 1991, with Jason Donovan in the title role, choreography by Anthony Van Laast, and Linzi Hateley as the Narrator. The production ran until January 15, 1994, becoming the London Palladium's longest-running show at the time and featuring distinctive picture-book designs by Mark Thompson. Jason Donovan was later succeeded by Philip Schofield in the lead role. It transferred to Broadway and toured extensively across Britain, Canada, Australia, North America (including over eighty U.S. cities), and thirteen other countries, greatly boosting the musical's international popularity. Pimlott also directed the original West End production of Bombay Dreams, a Bollywood-themed musical with music by A. R. Rahman, lyrics by Don Black, and book by Meera Syal and Thomas Meehan (based on an idea by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Shekhar Kapur). Choreographed by Anthony Van Laast and Farah Khan, it opened on June 19, 2002, and ran until June 13, 2004. Pimlott subsequently directed the Broadway transfer, which opened on April 29, 2004, and closed on January 1, 2005. These productions exemplified Pimlott's versatility in handling flamboyant, spectacle-driven musical theatre while maintaining dramatic coherence.

Chichester Festival Theatre artistic directorship

In 2003, Steven Pimlott was appointed joint artistic director of the Chichester Festival Theatre, serving as part of a triumvirate with Martin Duncan and Ruth Mackenzie to revitalize the venue following financial difficulties. This leadership structure emphasized a shared company of actors across productions and adventurous programming that encompassed classics, rarities, and new works. He held the position until 2005, when the triumvirate's tenure concluded amid renewed financial challenges that threatened the theatre's viability. During this period, Pimlott directed several notable productions that stood out for their ambition and quality. In 2003, he staged a passionate, boldly conceived, and often very funny production of Anton Chekhov's The Seagull, which featured Sheila Gish's final stage performance as Arkadina. That same year, he presented a revival of Gotthold Lessing's Nathan the Wise, noted as a rarity that offered an impassioned plea for religious tolerance with Michael Feast in the lead. In 2004, he directed an innovative adaptation by Edward Kemp of Mikhail Bulgakov's The Master and Margarita, praised for its extraordinary imagination and for positioning Chichester at the forefront of avant-garde theatre. In 2005, at the Minerva Theatre, he helmed a spare but powerful King Lear starring David Warner in a long-overdue return to the English classical stage. Also in 2005, he directed Edward Kemp's new play 5/11, a vivid examination of terrorism through the lens of the Gunpowder Plot. Pimlott's directorial work at Chichester was widely regarded as among the strongest output during the triumvirate's leadership, though some productions faced box office struggles despite the overall artistic daring.

Awards and honours

OBE and professional recognitions

Steven Pimlott was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2007 New Year Honours for services to drama. The honour, announced on 30 December 2006, recognized his substantial contributions to British theatre and the performing arts through his work as a director across classical plays, opera, and musical productions. Pimlott's professional standing was also reflected in the critical esteem his productions consistently received throughout his career, though the OBE remained the most prominent formal recognition bestowed upon him during his lifetime. Tributes following his death highlighted the respect he commanded among peers and critics for his versatile and insightful direction.

Personal life and death

Family and final years

Steven Pimlott was married to Daniela Bechly, a German soprano. They had three children: sons Oskar and Raphael, and daughter Phoebe. In his final years, Pimlott continued to pursue his passion for theatre while balancing family life. Obituaries described him as a director of remarkable versatility with a catholic taste that spanned classical plays, musicals, opera, and contemporary works, reflecting his broad artistic interests and commitment to diverse theatrical forms.

Illness and legacy

In 2006, Steven Pimlott was diagnosed with lung cancer. Despite the illness, he continued working actively, announcing in December 2006 his plans to resume directing and remaining involved in rehearsals for productions including a planned revival of The Rose Tattoo at the National Theatre until days before his death. Pimlott died of lung cancer on 14 February 2007 at his home near Colchester, aged 53. He was surrounded by his family and is survived by his wife, the German soprano Daniela Bechly, and their three children. Tributes following his death celebrated Pimlott as a director of unusual versatility and catholicity of taste, equally adept at Shakespeare, grand opera, Gilbert and Sullivan, Agatha Christie adaptations, and Andrew Lloyd Webber musicals. He was described as one of the most original and sought-after directors in Britain, who recognized no cultural barriers between high art and commercial theatre, viewing all his work as fundamentally about telling stories. Colleagues, including Nicholas Hytner, remembered his superhuman appetite for experience, infectious enthusiasm across high and low culture, and his ability as a companion and collaborator. His stylistic range was praised for spanning extravagant flamboyance, high European elegance, and stripped-down purity.
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