John Peter (critic)

John Anthony Peter (born 24 August 1938)[1] is a Hungarian-born British theatre critic, who immigrated to Britain in 1956. He was chief drama critic of The Sunday Times from 1984 to 2003, and The Sunday Times contributing drama critic through to 2010. In 1990 he founded the Ian Charleson Awards, which he directs.

Early life and education

John Peter was born in Hungary in 1938,[2][3] and attended various state schools in Hungary.[1]

Peter fled from Budapest to England at the age of 18, during the Hungarian Revolution of 1956.[4][5][6] He knew no English at the time, and lived in one of the refugee camps that the 30,000 Hungarian refugees to Britain were placed in.[5][6][7][8] He worked at Forte's Milk Bar in London, and learned the English language and British customs.[5][7]

Nine months after arriving in England,[6] Peter entered Campion Hall, Oxford University, where he studied English Language and Literature.[1][4][9] He worked as a part-time college servant and waiter in return for his fees and expenses,[4][6] and after one year he was given a grant.[4] After graduation, he did post-graduate work at Lincoln College, Oxford, receiving a Bachelor of Letters (B.Litt.) in Renaissance English Literature,[1][4] and his earlier degree was raised to a Master of Arts.[1]

In 1996, Peter was awarded an honorary doctorate degree from De Montfort University in Leicester.[1][10]

Career

Times Newspapers

Peter began his career while still a post-graduate student at Oxford writing a dissertation on Elizabethan and Jacobean drama. An undergraduate friend was writing theatre reviews for The Times, and after his friend left the university Peter applied to The Times. He was interviewed and asked to submit a few short reviews of university productions.[11]

He applied and was accepted as a reporter and editorial assistant for the Times Educational Supplement from 1964 to 1967. This was a three-year apprenticeship, during which he saw a lot of London theatre and became a freelance theatre critic, submitting reviews more and more frequently to The Times.[1][11]

From 1967 to 1979, Peter was on The Sunday Times editorial staff, contributing theatre reviews regularly.[1][9] He became the newspaper's assistant arts editor in 1979.[1][11][12]

In September 1984 Peter became chief drama critic of The Sunday Times.[9] He continued in this position through 2003, following which he was the Sunday Times contributing drama critic through to 2010.[1][13]

Ian Charleson Award

Peter saw and reviewed Ian Charleson's extraordinary Hamlet at the National Theatre in late 1989.[14] Unbeknownst to the audience, Charleson performed it during the last weeks of his life while he was seriously ill with AIDS, and died in January 1990 at the age of 40 eight weeks after his final performance. In November 1990, in memory of Charleson's fine performance, Peter established the annual Ian Charleson Award, to recognise and reward the best classical stage performance by an actor under age 30.[15] The awards are jointly sponsored by The Sunday Times and the National Theatre, where they are held. Recipients receive a cash prize, as do runners-up and third-place winners.

Upon founding the awards, Peter noted:

Classical work is the solid bedrock of all acting. It is classical acting, with its twin demands of psychological perception and formal excellence, which truly tests and proves the actor's ability and stamina, both physical and mental.[15]

The first annual Ian Charleson Award was presented in January 1991.[16] The awards defined a classic play as one written prior to 1900;[15] this cut-off was eventually extended to 1918. The awards are presented at a friendly, low-key private luncheon at one of the restaurants at the National Theatre. There is no filming and no outside press, and there are no acceptance speeches; the awards are attended however by Britain's theatre royalty, who take great interest in preserving the foundations of their profession. Recipients and shortlist nominees receive a plaque signed by the judges, which number around four and include Peter.

Bibliography

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "John Anthony Peter". Debrett's.
  2. ↑ Paton, Maureen. Alan Rickman: The Unauthorised Biography. Random House, 2012. p. 25.
  3. ↑ Plays and Players, Issues 466–477. Hansom Books, 1993. p. 63.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Hobson, Harold; Knightley, Phillip; Russell, Leonard. The pearl of days: an intimate memoir of the Sunday Times, 1822–1972. Hamilton, 1972. p. 467.
  5. 1 2 3 Peter, John. "Letter to the Editor: Chagos islanders deserve better". The Times. 1 November 2008.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Smith, Godfrey. "Is this the way the wind is blowing?". Sunday Times. 11 April 1982.
  7. 1 2 "It's Not Enough To Be Hungarian" (review). In: Donovan, Paul. "Critic's choice". Sunday Times. 13 October 1996.
  8. ↑ "It's Not Enough To Be Hungarian". BBC Radio 4. 17 October 1996.
  9. 1 2 3 "John Peter". Sunday Times. 9 September 1984. p. 40.
  10. ↑ Honorands 1996. De Montfort University.
  11. 1 2 3 Stefanova, Kalina. Who Keeps the Score on the London Stages?. Routledge, 2013. pp. 20ff.
  12. ↑ Drama. British Theatre Association, 1984. p. 37.
  13. ↑ Peter, John. "Stairway to success". Sunday Times. 20 June 2010. (paywall)
  14. ↑ Peter, John. "A Hamlet who would be king at Elsimore". Sunday Times. 12 November 1989.
  15. 1 2 3 Peter, John. "A prize fit for princes". Sunday Times. 11 November 1990.
  16. ↑ "Timely tributes for a new generation of actors". Sunday Times. 13 January 1991.

External links

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