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Ken Hill

KEN HILL

  (1937 - 1995)
Nationality:    British
email:    n/a     Website:    n/a

Literary Agent:    Berlin Associates  

Ken Hill (28 January 1937 - 23 January 1995) was a critically acclaimed English playwright, and theatre director. He was a protege of Joan Littlewood at Theatre Workshop. He was happiest directing chaotic musicals on the tiny stage of the old Theatre Royal Stratford East, Theatre Workshop's home in Stratford, London, for many years but he also had hits in the West End and abroad, among them The Invisible Man and the original stage version of The Phantom of the Opera, which inspired Andrew Lloyd Webber to create his musical blockbuster of the same title. His stock-in-trade was musical adventure stories. Like Joan Littlewood, his aim was to make things look fresh and improvised, to which end he might spend hours working on one tiny scene with his cast. He set his lyrics to out-of-copyright popular tunes, so that the audience felt familiar with his songs without ever quite being able to place them, and, more importantly, so that music could be adapted without paying royalties the budgets at Theatre Workshop being famously small. He had an encyclopaedic musical knowledge. For example, in his final show, Zorro The Musical!, his lyrics were accompanied by melodies from 19th-century Spanishoperetta. - wiki

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below is a list of Ken Hill's plays - click on a Play Title for more information

         Curse Of the Werewolf, The         Invisible Man         Mrs Tucker's Pageant         Mummy's Tomb, The         Phantom Of the Opera         Sinbad the Sailor         Three Musketeers, The         Wicked World Of Bel Ami, The         Zorro - the Musical
Curse Of the Werewolf, The

Synopsis:
when the moon is full werewolves plans to mate two women to produce a natural werewolf

Notes:
Songs by Ian Armit And Ken Hill

1st Produced:

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
Samuel French, London, 1978   

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
MeloDrama With Music

Parts:
Male:  9            Female:  3            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Invisible Man

Synopsis:
the novel has been converted to a music hall romp that combines tongue in cheek humour with poignant tragedy and spectacular magic

Notes:
Incidental Music by Brendan Healy Based on the Novel by H. G. Wells

1st Produced:

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
Samuel French, London, 1996   

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
adaptation

Parts:
Male:  13            Female:  4            Other:  extras

Further Reference:
-

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Mrs Tucker's Pageant

Synopsis:
-

Notes:
written with Alan Klein

1st Produced:

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
-   

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Musical

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Mummy's Tomb, The

Synopsis:
Period 1380 BC & 1922 aD, Professor Niven sets out for egypt with his daughter and her past and present fiances

Notes:
Songs by Alan Klein And Ken Hill

1st Produced:
-    

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
Samuel French, London, 1981   

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Play/Drama

Parts:
Male:  7            Female:  2            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Phantom Of the Opera

Synopsis:
a night of murder, mystery and song. the Phantom kills anyone he encounters in his pursuit of the beautiful soprano who he is determined to hear sing Marguerite in Counod's Faust.
- B a Young, Financial Times

Notes:
based on novel by Gaston Leroux

1st Produced:
Newcastle Playhouse     1984

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
Samuel French, London, 1994   

Music:
Original cast recording: D Sharp (7005) 1992

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Musical Play Musical

Parts:
Male:  7            Female:  5            Other:  doubling

Further Reference:
-

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Sinbad the Sailor

Synopsis:
-

Notes:
written with Alan Klein

1st Produced:

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
-   

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Pantomime

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Three Musketeers, The

Synopsis:
-

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
Playhouse, Newcastle    

Organisations:
Tynewear TC

1st Published:
-   

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
adaptation

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Wicked World Of Bel Ami, The

Synopsis:
-

Notes:
-

1st Produced:

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
-   

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Musical

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Zorro - the Musical

Synopsis:
-

Notes:
-

1st Produced:

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
-   

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
-

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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