Amadeus

Amadeus is the title of both a stage play and a film written in 1979 by Peter Shaffer, both loosely based on the lives of the composers Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Antonio Salieri. Amadeus was inspired by Mozart and Salieri, a short play by Aleksandr Pushkin (later adapted into an opera by Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov).

Performance and filming

The 1980 Broadway performance of the play starred Ian McKellen as Salieri and Tim Curry as Mozart. Both actors were nominated for Tony Awards, and McKellen ended up winning. The play itself was also nominated for costume design (John Bury), and it also won awards for director Peter Hall, best play, lighting designer, and scenic designer, both of which were done by John Bury as well.

Related Topics:
Broadway - Ian McKellen - Tim Curry - Tony Awards - John Bury - Peter Hall

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The play was revived in 2000, and won Tony Awards for best revival and best actor (David Suchet).

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In 1984, Milo? Forman directed the screen version of Amadeus, which featured F. Murray Abraham and Tom Hulce as Salieri and Mozart; as in the Broadway production, both lead actors competed for the annual award for Best Actor. The film won eight Academy Awards that year, for Best Picture, Best Actor (F. Murray Abraham), Director (Milo? Forman), Art Direction (Patrizia von Brandenstein and Karel Cerny), Costume Design, Best Makeup, Best Sound, and Adapted Screenplay (Shaffer). It was the inspiration for Falco's song "Rock Me Amadeus."

Related Topics:
1984 - Milo? Forman - F. Murray Abraham - Tom Hulce - Academy Awards - Best Picture - Best Actor - Director - Art Direction - Patrizia von Brandenstein - Karel Cerny - Costume Design - Best Makeup - Best Sound - Adapted Screenplay - Falco

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A young Kenneth Branagh was originally cast to play Mozart in the film, but was replaced by Hulce at the eleventh hour.

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The film version was shot on location in Prague and Vienna. In fact, Forman was able to shoot scenes in the Tyl Theatre, where Don Giovanni had debuted two centuries before. Several other scenes were shot at the Barrandov Studios.

Related Topics:
Prague - Vienna - Don Giovanni - Barrandov Studios

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