George Stiles

George William Stiles (born 9 August 1961) is an English composer of musicals for stage and screen.

Education

From 1974 to 1979, he was educated at Gresham's School, in Norfolk. In 1983 Stiles graduated in music at Exeter University, where performance in organ formed part of his final examinations.

Collaboration with Anthony Drewe

With Anthony Drewe, Stiles has written four shows (see below) and also contributed to Mary Poppins. Frost at Midnight, Dave, A Private Function and Soho Cinders are all in development, many of which were showcased at Her Majesty's Theatre In London on 6 July 2008.

Tutankhamun

Tutankhamun was performed at the Northcott Theatre and Imagination Buildings.

Just So

Just So was produced by Cameron Mackintosh at the Watermill and Tricycle Theatres in the UK and at the Goodspeed Opera House and North Shore Music Theatre in the United States. It won the 1985 Vivian Ellis Prize, and Steven Spielberg secured an option to turn it into a feature animation.

Honk!

Honk! was commissioned by the Watermill Theatre (1993), and was developed at the Stephen Joseph Theatre (1997) and London's Royal National Theatre (1999). It won three Best Musical awards - the 2000 Laurence Olivier Award, the FNB VITA Award in South Africa, and the Elliot Norton Award in the United States. The National Theatre production toured the UK in 2001. It is frequently produced by schools and community theatre groups.

Peter Pan

Peter Pan: A Musical Adventure premiered at the Ny Theater, Copenhagen. In Denmark it won both Best Song and the Orchestra Award at the 1996 International Musical of the Year. In 2001, it was performed at the Royal Festival Hall, starring the late John Thaw accompanied by the BBC Concert Orchestra. The BBC broadcast the concert on New Year's Eve 2001. In 2007, the show was given it's British theatrical premiere in a fully fledged production at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre as directed by Rachel Kavanaugh. In the summer of 2011, it made its American Premiere at the Tri-County Performing Arts Center in Pottstown, Pennsylvania. The production will make its Canadian Premier with the St. Albert Children's Theatre in St. Albert, Alberta in November 2011.

Outside Stiles & Drewe

Stiles is the composer of Moll Flanders, which won the Best Musical award in the 1995 TMA Awards, Tom Jones (performed at the Theatre Royal, York) and The Three Musketeers (Stadttheater, St Gallen, Switzerland), premiered in the United States at the American Musical Theatre of San Jose. He and Anthony Drewe have written five musicals together, most recently the new songs, additional music and lyrics, vocal and dance arrangements for the Disney/Cameron Mackintosh production of Mary Poppins. Their other shows include Tutankhamun; Just So; Honk! (seen Watermill Theatre, Stephen Joseph Theatre and Royal National Theatre and in over 2000 productions worldwide), winner of three Best Musical awards - the 2000 Laurence Olivier Award the FNB VITA Award in South Africa, and the Elliot Norton Award in the US); and Peter Pan (Det Ny Theater, Copenhagen, and the Royal Festival Hall) which won Best Song and the Orchestras Award at the 1996 International Musical of the Year in Denmark. They have also written two revues and contributed songs to a variety of theatre, TV, and radio shows, including the RSC's Shakespeare Revue, The Challenge, and Dame Edna's Look At Me When I'm Talking To You. Stiles and Drewe's next project is Soho Cinders, and together they are founder board members of MMD, a charity promoting new writing for the musical theatre. Independently, George is the composer of Moll Flanders (winner of Best Musical in the 1995 TMA Awards), Tom Jones (Theatre Royal, York, North Shore Music Theatre, NYMF New York) and, most recently, The Three Musketeers (Stadttheater, St. Gallen, Switzerland, American Musical Theatre of San Jose, Chicago Shakespeare Theatre). George's other recent projects include the score for Sam Mendes's productions of Habeas Corpus, Twelfth Night and Uncle Vanya at the Donmar Warehouse and working as Dame Edna's musical director and arranger.

Other

Stiles and Drewe are founder members of The Mercury Workshop (now known as MMD) and have also written other revues and songs for theatre, TV, and radio, including the RSC's Shakespeare Revue, The Challenge, and Dame Edna Everage's Look at Me When I'm Talking to You.

Awards

Stiles is the composer of Moll Flanders, which won the Best Musical award in the 1995 TMA Awards

Sources

• Stiles & Drewe
• MusicalTalk Podcast interview with Stiles and Drewe
• MusicalTalk Podcast episode discussing, with Stiles and Drewe, the art of pantomime.
• MMD (formerly the Mercury Workshop)

http://americantheatrewing.org/biography/detail/george_stiles/