We Made It: Stage Designer John Napier

The celebrated designer of 'Les Mis' and 'Cats' is putting on a show of his sculpture

by Mark SheerinSunday, 08 November 2015

'Beached at Troy': sculpture by stage designer John Napier

It may seem like a long way from Shakespeare to Siegfried and Roy, but John Napier has had a remarkable career in which high and low art come together and share the applause. So not only has the theatre designer staged a magic show in Vegas, he’s worked a more subtle magic in his time at the RSC. And in a world where musicals run for decades, Napier’s stage sets have been among the most consistent and celebrated factors in the success of many of our best-loved West End shows.

So if you’ve ever seen Cats or Starlight Express, Les Misérables or Miss Saigon – or caught Nicholas Nickleby in the 1980s – you’ll have enjoyed the designer’s work and contributed to the success of his ventures. Napier helped keep bums on seats, and won a host of industry gongs (including five Tony Awards, four Olivier Awards and a BAFTA). Although best known for plays, operas and musicals, Napier comes from a sculpture background, and claims to hate mere scenery. So this month he returns to his roots, some 40 years after leaving art school, with a show of his sculpture at Towner Gallery in Eastbourne.

Read the interview with John Napier on the Bruichladdich site.

John Napier: Stages, Beyond the Fourth Wall is at Towner Art Gallery from 29 November to 31 January 2016

Read other articles in We Made It, our series on craft in partnership with Bruichladdich

I don’t like scenery. Basically I’ve fought my entire career fighting scenery

Explore topics

Share this article

The future of Arts Journalism

You can stop theartsdesk.com closing!

We urgently need financing to survive. Our fundraising drive has thus far raised £33,000 but we need to reach £100,000 or we will be forced to close. Please contribute here: https://gofund.me/c3f6033d

And if you can forward this information to anyone who might assist, we’d be grateful.

Subscribe to theartsdesk.com

Thank you for continuing to read our work on theartsdesk.com. For unlimited access to every article in its entirety, including our archive of more than 15,000 pieces, we're asking for £5 per month or £40 per year. We feel it's a very good deal, and hope you do too.

To take a subscription now simply click here.

And if you're looking for that extra gift for a friend or family member, why not treat them to a theartsdesk.com gift subscription?

more We made it

Strike: An Uncivil War review - shame of the nation How paramilitary policing broke the miners' spirit at Orgreave in 1984

We Made It: Guitar Maker Brian Cohen The incredible one-man string band

We Made It: Basket-maker Lois Walpole Weaving works of art from 'ghost gear' and the detritus of consumerism

We Made It: Horn Maker Tom Fisher Bespoke horns, handcrafted in a Derbyshire cellar

We Made It: Stufish Entertainment Architects From U2 and Madonna to Chinese theatre and the Martian Fighting Machine

We Made It: 'Carol' Costume Designer Sandy Powell How she brought a melange of styles to Todd Haynes's sublime period romance

We Made It: Stuntwoman Tracy Caudle Forget Evel Knievel: a well-crafted stunt is more about precision than daring

We Made It: 'The Revenant' Production Designer Jack Fisk How he stunningly recreated the authentic American frontier of 1823

We Made It: Double Bass Maker Laurence Dixon Love at first sight, a six-day week and the satisfaction of a job well done

We Made It: The Electric Recording Company Pete Hutchison's quest for musical perfection on vinyl

We Made It: Watchmaker Roger W Smith The world-leading horologist keeping British watchmaking alive, crafting exquisite timepieces by hand

We Made It: Concert hall acoustics The RSNO have a new concert hall. The lead acoustician explains why it sounds so good

Follow @theartsdesk