Sir Nicholas Robert Hytner is an English theatre director, film director, and film producer.
20 Facts About Nicholas Hytner
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Nicholas Hytner was previously the Artistic Director of London's National Theatre.
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Nicholas Hytner has known for directing films such as The Madness of King George, The Crucible, The History Boys, and The Lady in the Van.
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Nicholas Hytner was born in the prosperous suburbs of south Manchester in 1956, to barrister Benet Nicholas Hytner and his wife, Joyce.
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Nicholas Hytner is the eldest child of four, and has described his upbringing as being in "a typical Jewish, cultured family".
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Nicholas Hytner did some acting whilst at university, including co-scripting and performing in a televised production of the 1977 Cambridge Footlights Revue.
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Nicholas Hytner did some directing, including a production of Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill's Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny.
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Nicholas Hytner then directed a series of productions at the Leeds Playhouse, including The Ruling Class by Peter Barnes, an adaptation of Tom Jones and a musical version of Alice in Wonderland.
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Nicholas Hytner was hired by producer Cameron Mackintosh to direct Miss Saigon, the next work from Les Miserables creators Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schonberg.
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Nicholas Hytner directed the New York production, where the show recouped its $10.9m investment in 39 weeks.
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Nicholas Hytner was on a percentage for both London and New York productions, allowing him to never need worry about money again.
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Nicholas Hytner continued as an Associate Director at the National until 1997, when the new Director, Trevor Nunn, took up his post.
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Nicholas Hytner directed more films: The Crucible with Daniel Day-Lewis, The Object of My Affection and Center Stage.
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Nicholas Hytner spent 15 months developing a film of the musical Chicago, to star Madonna, but the project foundered and was later made with a different director and cast.
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Nicholas Hytner has said that this diversity is a consequence of the theatre's direction rather than the motivation for it.
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Similarly, most of Nicholas Hytner's films have achieved critical and commercial success, with The Madness of King George winning BAFTA and Evening Standard awards for best British film, but he still sees himself as primarily a theatre practitioner.
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Nicholas Hytner's mother, Joyce Nicholas Hytner OBE, is a theatrical fundraiser, who has served on the board of many organisations including The Old Vic, the Criterion Theatre, the Royal Court Theatre and Historic Royal Palaces.
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Nicholas Hytner is on the Board of Trustees of the Royal Opera House.
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Nicholas Hytner is a patron of many organisations including London International Festival of Theatre, HighTide Festival Theatre, the Shakespeare Schools Festival, Dance UK, Action for Children's Arts, Pan Intercultural Arts and Prisoners' Penfriends.
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Nicholas Hytner was knighted in the 2010 New Year Honours for services to drama.