Jeremy Sams (born 12 January 1957) is a British theatre director, composer, and lyricist.
Early life and education Born and raised in Croydon, London, Sams is the son of the Shakespearean scholar and musicologist Eric Sams and his wife Enid (née Tidmarsh). He was educated at the independent Whitgift School.
Sams attended Magdalene College, Cambridge and initially read modern languages (French and German) before switching to music. After Cambridge, he went on to train as a pianist at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama.
Career At the start of his career, Sam worked as a freelance pianist and coach, giving frequent recitals and tours and doing stints as a repetiteur at opera houses in Brussels and Ankara. His first big break in theatre came about through working with Steven Pimlott in the early 1980s, when he was commissioned by Pimlott to write the music for his production of Ring Round the Moon at the Manchester Royal Exchange.
Sams directed a revival of Michael Frayn's farce Noises Off, which he mounted in London's Royal National Theatre in 2000. This production then transferred to the West End, and then to Brooks Atkinson Theatre on Broadway in 2001.
Among his other directing credits are the West End musicals Spend Spend Spend (1999), the story of Viv Nicholson, who squandered a fortune won in the British lottery, and a stage adaptation of the film Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (2002) for both of which he received Laurence Olivier Award nominations; the 2002 Broadway production Amour, which he translated from the original French libretto by Didier Van Cauwelaert. His efforts earned him two Tony Award and two Drama Desk Award nominations. His directing credits also include Jason Carr and Gary Yershon's musical of The Water Babies at the Chichester Festival Theatre in 2003. He directed the Jason Robert Brown Broadway musical13 at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre, on Broadway. He has also written and directed the stage adaptation of The Good Life based on the BBC TV sitcom which toured the UK in autumn 2021. He directed a stage adaptation of The Lavender Hill Mob based on the 1951 Ealing comedy film which began touring in autumn 2022.
Sams' many translations include plays by Botho Strauß; Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro, The Magic Flute, Puccini's La Boheme, and Wagner's The Ring Cycle for ENO; The Merry Widow for Covent Garden; Les Parents terribles, The Miser and Mary Stuart for the Royal National Theatre; The Threepenny Opera for the Donmar Warehouse; and What's in a Name? for the Birmingham Repertory Theatre.
Sams' composing credits include the 1995 BBC film adaptation of Jane Austen's Persuasion, for which he won the British Academy Television Craft Awards for Best Original Music. Other scores include The Mother (2003) and Enduring Love (2004).
Sams has written, arranged, and directed music for some 50 theatre productions, including The Wind in the Willows and Arcadia (Royal National Theatre) and The Merry Wives of Windsor (Royal Shakespeare Company).
Honours In 2013, Sams was awarded an honorary degree by Birmingham City University and was appointed as an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Academy of Music.
Personal life Sams has one child with his former partner, actress Maria Friedman.
Works
Published play texts YearTitlePublisherNote1990MacbethJohn CalderTranslation of the libretto from Giuseppe Verdi's Macbeth1991Don Juan on TrialDramatic PublishingTranslation of Eric-Emmanuel Schmitt's play1994Les Parents terriblesNick Hern BooksTranslation of Jean Cocteau's play1995Wild OatsNick Hern BooksAdaptation of John O'Keefe's play1996Mary StuartNick Hern BooksTranslation of Friedrich Schiller's play1997Anouilh Plays: 2Methuen DramaIncludes Sams' translation of Jean Anouilh's The Rehearsal and Becket2002AntigoneSamuel French, Inc.Translation of Anouilh's play2005ScapinoNick Hern Books Translation of Molière's play2005Botho Strauss: Three PlaysOberon BooksTranslation of The Park, Seven Doors, and The Room by Botho Strauss2021The Good Life Nick Hern Books Adapted from the TV series by John Esmonde and Bob Larbey
Awards and nominations +Awards and nominations received by Jeremy SamsYearAwards CeremonyCategoryNominated work(s)ResultNote/1995Laurence Olivier AwardsBest Revival of a Play or ComedyLes Parents terribles Nominated as translator of the playBest Musical RevivalThe Threepenny OperaNominated as translator of the lyrics1996British Academy Television AwardsBest Original MusicPersuasion2000Laurence Olivier AwardsBest DirectorSpend Spend Spend2002Outer Critics Circle AwardsOutstanding Direction of a PlayNoises Off2003Laurence Olivier AwardsBest New MusicalChitty Chitty Bang BangJoint nomination with Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. ShermanTony AwardsBest Book of a MusicalAmourJoint nomination with Didier van CauwelaertBest Original Score (Music and/or Lyrics) Written for the TheatreJoint nomination with Michel Legrand and Didier van CauwelaertDrama Desk AwardsOutstanding Book of a MusicalJoint nomination with Didier van CauwelaertOutstanding Lyrics2005Ivor Novello AwardsBest Original Film ScoreEnduring Love2007Laurence Olivier AwardsBest RevivalDonkey's YearsDirector of the revival
References
External links