For other people with the same name, see John Napier (disambiguation). John Napier (born 1 March, 1944 in London) is a Tony Award-winning set designer for Broadway and London theatrical performances.
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Education
John Napier studied at Hornsey College of Art and the Central School of Arts and Crafts, studying under notable set designer Ralph Koltai.
Career
Napier earned a position as an Associate Designer at the Royal Shakespeare Company. He has designed for the National Theatre, notably the production of Peter Shaffer's Equus, Trelawny of the Wells, An Enemy of the People and Candide. John Napier has also designed for the Royal Opera House, for Glyndebourne, for the English National Opera and others. He designed Children of Eden, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? and Jesus Christ Superstar in London's West End. He reworked his original designs for Equus for the 2007 London production. Napier is responsible for many of the iconic images of modern theatre, including the stark set and metal horse masks of Equus, the roller-skating trains of Starlight Express, the larger-than-life cat junkyard in Cats and the moving barricades of Les Misérables. In the United States, in addition to numerous Broadway productions, he designed and co-directed the show for illusionists Siegfried & Roy at The Mirage, Las Vegas. He also designed the Captain EO video starring Michael Jackson for Disney and Steven Spielberg's film Hook.
Awards
Napier's design awards include Society of West End Theatre Awards (Oliviers) for King Lear, Lohengrin, and Burning Blue. Napier has won Tony Awards for Nicholas Nickleby, Cats, Starlight Express, Les Misérables and Sunset Boulevard. He has won Drama Desk Awards for Outstanding Set Design for Starlight Express and Les Misérables as well as for Outstanding Costume Design for Starlight Express. He has twice won The Critics' Circle Award for set design. First in 1989 for Miss Saigon and again in 1997 for Peter Pan.
Honours
Napier is a member of the American Academy of Achievement. He was elected Royal Designer for Industry in 1996 and is an Honorary Fellow of the London Institute.
Partial list of productions designed
For the Royal Shakespeare Company
- Hedda Gabler
- King Lear
- Macbeth
- Mother Courage and Her Children
- Nicholas Nickleby (televised in 1982 for Channel 4)
- Once in a Lifetime
- Peter Pan
- The Comedy of Errors
For the National Theatre
- The Party
- Equus (later seen worldwide)
- Trelawny of the Wells
- An Enemy of the People
- Peter Pan
- Candide
- South Pacific
On Broadway and London's West End
Opera
- Lohengrin (Covent Garden)
- Macbeth (Covent Garden)
- Idomeneo (Glyndebourne)
- The Devils (ENO)
- Nabucco (Met)
