Peter Brook, an English theater and film director known for an influential and distinguished career that earned him worldwide acclaim, has passed away. He is 97 years old.
The two-time Tony Award winner, who settled in France decades ago, has directed adaptations of his best theatrical works as well as the 1963 film Lord in the air.
Brook’s publisher Nick Hern Books said in a statement Sunday that he “left behind an incredible artistic legacy.” French media reported that Brook died in Paris on Saturday.
Born in London in 1925, Brook would go on to study at Oxford University and direct his first London gig, Dr. Faustus, while he was still a teenager.
After working as a producer at the Royal Opera House, he rose to further fame through his work with the Royal Shakespeare Company, or RSC, including Titus Andronicus, starring Laurence Olivier.
He was the winner of the Tony Award for Best Direction in 1966 for his interpretation of Peter Weiss’ Marat / Sade and in 1970 to produce Shakespeare’s Midsummer night’s dream.
Brook is also the recipient of an Olivier Award, an Emmy Award and an International Emmy Award during his seven-decade career.
After settling in Paris in the 1970s, the director founded the International Center for Theater Studies, where he would recreate the run-down Bouffes du Nord theater in the French capital.
Worldwide recognition has also seen him honored with art awards including Japan’s Praemium Imperiale, Italy’s Prix Italia and most recently Spain’s Princess Asturias in 2019.
British actor Adrian Lester, who has worked with Brook on RSC productions about Hamlettweeted that he was already a “giant in our field.”
Brook was married to actress Natasha Parry since 1951 before her death from a stroke in 2015. They are survived by two children, Irina and Simon, both directors.
