David Warrilow (28 December 1934 – 17 August 1995) was an English actor best known as one of the "finest interpreters of Samuel Beckett’s work".Cited in Ackerley, C.J., and Gontarski, Stan, ''The Grove Companion to Samuel Beckett'', New York, Grove Press, 2006, p. 627

Life and career

A shoemaker's son born in

Stone In geology, rock (or stone) is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloid matter. It is categorized by the minerals included, its Chemical compound, chemical composition, and the way in which it is formed. Rocks ...

, Staffordshire, Warrilow studied at the

University of Reading The University of Reading is a public university in Reading, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1892 as University College, Reading, a University of Oxford extension college. The institution received the power to grant its own degrees in 192 ...

under James Knowlson, Beckett’s biographer. In 1967 in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

, he joined ''Réalités'', editing the magazine for eleven years. He co-founded the

Mabou Mines Mabou Mines is an experimental theatre company founded in 1970 and based in New York City. Founding and history Mabou Mines was founded by David Warrilow, Lee Breuer, Ruth Maleczech, JoAnne Akalaitis, and Philip Glass, at the house of Akalait ...

theater group in 1970. Three years later, he starred in a theatrical adaptation of Beckett’s '' The Lost Ones'', directed by

Lee Breuer Esser Leopold Breuer (February 6, 1937 – January 3, 2021) was an American playwright, theater director, academic, educator, filmmaker, poet, and lyricist. Breuer taught and directed on six continents. Career Breuer was a founding co-artistic ...

and Thom Cathcart. In 1984, he directed a cinematic adaptation of the novella. At Warrilow's request, Beckett wrote '' A Piece of Monologue'' for him in 1979, impressed by the actor’s bilingualism. "In August 1977", writes James Knowlson, "the actor, David Warrilow, who had had such a resounding success with the adaptation of ''The Lost Ones'', wrote to Beckett asking him if he would write a solo piece for him to perform. Questioned as to what he had in mind, Warrilow wrote back saying that he 'had an image of a man standing on stage lit from above. He’s standing there in a sort of cone of light. You couldn't see his face and he’s talking about death.' Beckett's reply began: 'My birth was my death.'" The play, directed by the actor, premiered in New York in December 1979. In 1981 Warrilow played the "Reader" in Beckett's '' Ohio Impromptu'' under

Alan Schneider Alan Schneider (December 12, 1917 – May 3, 1984) was an American theatre director responsible for more than 100 theatre productions. In 1984 he was honored with a Drama Desk Special Award for serving a wide range of playwrights. He directed th ...

’s direction. First performed in Columbus, Ohio, the play toured

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

, Paris,

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

and

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...

. In 1983 in Paris, he starred in Beckett’s '' That Time'' and '' Catastrophe'', both plays directed by Alan Schneider. In 1989 in London, Warrilow was Krapp in Beckett’s ''

Krapp's Last Tape ''Krapp's Last Tape'' is a 1958 one-act play, in English, by Samuel Beckett. With a cast of one man, it was written for Northern Irish actor Patrick Magee and first titled "Magee monologue". It was inspired by Beckett's experience of listenin ...

'', directed by Antoni Libera. Between 1986 and 1995, the actor worked with Paris-based theater director Joël Jouanneau, interpreting the texts of Samuel Beckett,

Thomas Bernhard Nicolaas Thomas Bernhard (; 9 February 1931 – 12 February 1989) was an Austrian novelist, playwright and poet who explored death, social injustice, and human misery in controversial literature that was deeply pessimistic about modern civilizat ...

, Joseph Conrad, Robert Pinget, and Robert Walser. In 1991 Warrilow played the role of Stanford Garland in the film''

Barton Fink ''Barton Fink'' is a 1991 American period black comedy psychological thriller film written, produced, edited and directed by the Coen brothers. Set in 1941, it stars John Turturro in the title role as a young New York City playwright who is hir ...

'', directed by Joel Cohen. A year after his performance in Beckett’s '' Company'', a theatrical reading directed by Jouanneau at the Petit Odéon in Paris, Warrilow died of complications of AIDS in 1995, aged 60.La mort de David Warrilow
lesechos.fr, 21 August 1995; accessed 12 September 2014.

Filmography

*1975: ''The Lost Ones'' (directed by Lee Breuer) *1980: ''

Simon Simon may refer to: People * Simon (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the given name Simon * Simon (surname), including a list of people with the surname Simon * Eugène Simon, French naturalist and the genus ...

'' (directed by

Marshall Brickman Marshall Brickman (born August 25, 1939) is an American screenwriter and director, best known for his collaborations with Woody Allen. He is the co-recipient of the 1977 Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for ''Annie Hall''. He is also kn ...

) - Blades *1981: '' Strong Medicine'' (directed by Richard Foreman) - Doctor *1984: ''Le Dépeupleur'' (directed by David Warrilow) (adaptation of novella by Samuel Beckett) *1987: ''

Radio Days ''Radio Days'' is a 1987 American comedy-drama film written and directed by Woody Allen, who also narrates the story. The film looks back on an American family's life during the Golden Age of Radio using both music and memories to tell the story. ...

'' (directed by

Woody Allen Heywood "Woody" Allen (born Allan Stewart Konigsberg; November 30, 1935) is an American film director, writer, actor, and comedian whose career spans more than six decades and multiple Academy Award-winning films. He began his career writing ...

) - Roger *1988: '' Bright Lights, Big City'' (directed by James Bridges) - Rittenhouse *1988: ''Milan noir'' (directed by Ronald Chammah) - Moran *1989: ' (directed by Jacques Rouffio) - Piepe *1991: ''Buster's Bedroom'' (directed by

Rebecca Horn Rebecca Horn (born 24 March 1944, in Michelstadt, Hesse) is a German visual artist, who is best known for her installation art, film directing, and her body modifications such a''Einhorn'' (Unicorn) a body-suit with a very large horn projecting ve ...

) - Mr. Warlock *1991: ''

'' (directed by

Joel Coen Joel Daniel Coen (born November 29, 1954) and Ethan Jesse Coen (born September 21, 1957),State of Minnesota. ''Minnesota Birth Index, 1935–2002''. Minnesota Department of Health. collectively known as the Coen brothers (), are American film ...

) - Garland Stanford *1992: '' Mirror On The Moon'' (directed by Leandro Katz) - Douglas Stonea *1994: ''Les Derniers Jours d'Emmanuel Kant'' (directed by Philippe Collin) - Immanuel Kant (final film role)

Theatre

*1978: ''The Lost Ones'' by Samuel Beckett, directed by

and Thom Cathcart, Théâtre Gérard Philipe (Saint Denis) *1983: ''Solo, cette fois'' by Samuel Beckett, directed by K. D. Codish, Théâtre National de Strasbourg, Théâtre Gérard Philipe (Saint-Denis) *1984: ''Akhnaten'' by Philip Glass, directed by Achim Freyer, Stuttgart State Theatre *1985: ''Marat/Sade'' by

Peter Weiss Peter Ulrich Weiss (8 November 1916 – 10 May 1982) was a German writer, painter, graphic artist, and experimental filmmaker of adopted Swedish nationality. He is particularly known for his plays ''Marat/Sade'' and ''The Investigation'' and hi ...

, directed by Walter Le Moli, MC93, Bobigny *1986: ''Catastrophe'' and ''Impromptu d'Ohio'' by Samuel Beckett, directed by Pierre Chabert, Théâtre Renaud-Barrault *1987: ''L'Hypothèse'' by Robert Pinget, directed by Joël Jouanneau,

Festival d'Avignon The ''Festival d'Avignon'', or Avignon Festival, is an annual arts festival held in the French city of Avignon every summer in July in the courtyard of the Palais des Papes as well as in other locations of the city. Founded in 1947 by Jean Vila ...

*1988: ''Minetti'' by

, directed by Joël Jouanneau, Théâtre des Treize Vents *1990: ''Les Enfants Tanner'' by Robert Walser, directed by Joël Jouanneau, Théâtre de la Bastille *1990: ''En attendant Godot'' by Samuel Beckett, directed by Joël Jouanneau, Théâtre Nanterre-Amandiers *1992: ''Le Marin perdu en mer'' by Joël Jouanneau, Théâtre de l'Athénée-Louis-Jouvet *1992: ''Au cœur des ténèbres'' by Joël Jouanneau, adaptation of Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad, Théâtre de l'Athénée-Louis-Jouvet *1993: ''L'Inquisitoire'' by Robert Pinget *1994: ''La Dernière Bande'' by Samuel Beckett, directed by Joël Jouanneau, Théâtre de l'Athénée-Louis-Jouvet *1994: ''Compagnie'' by Samuel Beckett, directed by Joël Jouanneau, Petit Odéon

Distinctions

*1975: Obie Award for "The Lost Ones" *1990: Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et Lettres *1994: Prix du Syndicat de la critique : Prix du meilleur comédien du Syndicat de la critique for ''Compagnie'' by Samuel Beckett

Notes and references

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Warrilow, David English expatriates in France 1934 births 1995 deaths People from Stone, Staffordshire English male stage actors English male film actors 20th-century English male actors AIDS-related deaths in France