A Theatre Project
A Backstage Adventure
Richard wrote A Theatre Project a decade and a half before A Sense of Theatre, but
the earlier book is in many ways now the perfect companion to A Sense of Theatre.
While ASoT focuses on the National Theatre and the lessons Richard learnt from it,
A Theatre Project covers the whirlwind of the rest of his llife before, during and after
the creation of the National Theatre. It is quite a story. From the distance of time, it is
almost impossible to work out just how he crammed so much life in!
It is his autobiography. It explores how he was introduced to theatre. How he took
that and ran with it. How he went to drama school to train as a stage manager but
discovered lighting from a book about lighting design from America. How he created
a rental company, Theatre Projects, in 1957 to support his work as a lighting
designer, and how that company just grew as opportunities presented themselves in
the heat of the 1960s and 1970s: lighting, then sound design, then theatre
consultancy on some of the biggest projects in the UK, and then around the world.
How he brought countless innovations to lighting, from large-format projection to new
generations of lighting control. How he found himself the first British lighting designer
to light a show on Broadway, and went on to light many more there, often
collaborating with his life-long friend, the designer Tony Walton. How from that he
went on to be a producer of a number of legendary musicals in London, as well as of
a film, Swallows and Amazons.
But it’s also searingly open and honest about the stresses and strains this life put
him under, culminating at one point in a complete breakdown – and how his friends
and family pulled him back from that, and then encouraged him to start a new
chapter of his life in the USA, where he re-invented theatre consultancy and brought
the lessons he’d learned from the National Theatre to a whole new generation of
remarkable theatres around the world.
Quite a story. One that can be enjoyed by anyone with any interest in any aspect of
theatre, not just in theatre lighting.
A Theatre Project is available for direct purchase only through this website, shipping
from the UK or USA.
Quotes:
"Huge and superbly illustrated . . . It's an absolute joy to read . . . a history of
theatre from an entirely new and fresh perspective:
Michael Coveney. WhatsOnStage.com
"Richard Pilbrow's Brilliant Book. The ultimate book on the creative team side of theatre. For the theatre aficionado, the perfect Christmas present."
Musical Theatre News. UK
"These stories are page-turners. For those with a love of theatre . . . this book is a
gripping tale."
AK Bennett-Hunter. The Stage
Rich, engaging and insightful . . . jam-packed with wonderful stories . . . a visual feast. A THEATRE PROJECT is highly recommended."
Michael Eddy, Stage Directions
