# Peter Coe (director)

Peter Leonard Coe (18 April 1929 – 25 May 1987), was an English film and theatre director and actor.

## Early life

Coe was born in London on 18 April 1929 and graduated from the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art.

## Career

After beginning his career as an actor, Coe staged dramas, musicals and operas across several continents in a long career. His first London success came in 1959 with the musical Lock Up Your Daughters and by 1961 he had three hits running simultaneously. He also directed both the West End and Broadway productions of Oliver! as well as its U.S. national tour and the 1983 London and 1984 Broadway revivals.
His operatic credits included The Love of Three Oranges, The Angel of Fire, and Ernani.
In 1981 Coe received an Antoinette Perry Award nomination as Best Director for A Life, and in 1982 he won the award for his revival of Othello.
His appointments included artistic director for the Citadel Theatre in Edmonton, Canada in 1980, and the American Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford, in United States and prior to his death artistic director of the Churchill Theatre in Bromley, Kent.

## Awards and nominations

He was thrice nominated for the Tony Award on Broadway; in 1963 for Best Director (musical) for Oliver!, 1981 for Best Director (play) for A Life before winning for Best Director (drama) with Othello in 1982.

## Theatre productions

| Production | Playwright | Venue | Year |
| Lock Up Your Daughters | Musical by Lionel Bart | Mermaid Theatre, London | 1959 |
| The World of Suzie Wong | Paul Osborne | Prince of Wales Theatre, London | 1959 |
| The Miracle Worker | William Gibson | London | 1961 |
| The World of Suzie Wong | Paul Osborn | London | 1961 |
| Oliver! | Musical written by Lionel Bart | New Theatre, London | 1961 |
| Castle in Sweden | Francois Sagan | Piccadilly Theatre, London | 1962 |
| Caligula | | Phoenix Theatre, London | 1964 |
| Golden Boy | Clifford Odets | | 1964 |
| Oliver! | Written by Lionel Bart | Hanna Theatre, Cleveland, Ohio | 1964 |
| On a Clear Day You Can See Forever | | | 1966 |
| The Italian Straw Hat | | Chichester Festival Theatre | 1967 |
| The Skin of Our Teeth | | Chichester Festival Theatre | 1969 |
| Oliver! | | Piccadilly Theatre, London | 1968 revival |
| The Caucasian Chalk Circle | | Chichester Festival Theatre | 1969 |
| Kiss Me, Kate | | London Coliseum | 1970 |
| Peer Gynt | | Chichester Festival Theatre | 1970 |
| Hamlet | William Shakespeare | Bankside Globe Playhouse, London | 1972 |
| Decameron '73 | | Roundhouse, London | 1973 |
| Tonight We Improvise | | Chichester Festival Theatre | 1974 |
| Mister Lincoln | | | 1980 |
| On the Twentieth Century | | Her Majesty's Theatre, London | 1980 |
| Barnum | | London Palladium | 1981 |
| Henry V | William Shakespeare | Shakespeare Memorial Theatre, Stratford, Connecticut | 1981 |
| Hamlet | | Shakespeare Memorial Theatre, Stratford, Connecticut | 1982 |
| Othello | William Shakespeare | Shakespeare Memorial Theatre, Stratford, Connecticut | 1982 revival |
| Barnum | | London Palladium | 1983 revival |
| Oliver! | | London | 1983 revival |
| Hello Dolly | | Birmingham Rep and Prince of Wales Theatre with Danny La Rue |
| Barnum | | Manchester Opera House 1984 revival with Wendy Toye | |
| Great Expectations | | Birmingham Rep and The Old Vic, London | 1984 |
| Oliver! | | Broadway | 1984 revival |
| Jane Eyre | | Chichester Festival Theatre | 1986 |

## Filmography

* Lock Up Your Daughters (1969)
* Barnum (1981)
* Mr Lincoln (1981)