Nigel Wilton Triffitt (19 August 1949 – 20 July 2012) was an Australian theatre director, actor, designer and writer. Triffitt was born in Launceston, Tasmania. His parents were not married, and he was put up for

adoption Adoption is a process whereby a person assumes the parenting of another, usually a child, from that person's biological or legal parent or parents. Legal adoptions permanently transfer all rights and responsibilities, along with filiation, from ...

soon after his birth, being adopted by the Triffitt family in

Hobart Hobart ( ; Nuennonne/Palawa kani: ''nipaluna'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. Home to almost half of all Tasmanians, it is the least-populated Australian state capital city, and second-small ...

, where he was raised. He studied at the

National Institute of Dramatic Art The National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) is an Australian educational institution for the performing arts is based in Sydney, New South Wales. Founded in 1958, many of Australia's leading actors and directors trained at NIDA, including Cat ...

in Sydney and the Drama Centre in London – both of which he was asked to leave. In the 1970s he worked in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

, as Director of Student Theatre at

Monash University Monash University () is a public research university based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Named for prominent World War I general Sir John Monash, it was founded in 1958 and is the second oldest university in the state. The university has a ...

, Resident Director at

St Martin's Theatre St Martin's Theatre is a West End theatre which has staged the production of ''The Mousetrap'' since March 1974, making it the longest continuous run of any show in the world. The theatre is located in West Street, near Shaftesbury Avenue, in t ...

. He toured

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

and the

Australian Capital Territory The Australian Capital Territory (commonly abbreviated as ACT), known as the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) until 1938, is a landlocked federal territory of Australia containing the national capital Canberra and some surrounding townships. ...

directing the Yellow Brick Roadshows. He gained prominence in 1978 as the creator of ''Momma's Little Horror Show'', a mixture of adult puppet theatre and visual theatre. Later works included ''Secrets'' (1983) and ''The Fall of Singapore'' (1987). Later he moved into directing dance, in collaboration with the

Australian Dance Theatre Australian Dance Theatre (ADT), known as Meryl Tankard Australian Dance Theatre from 1993 to 1999, is a contemporary dance company based in Adelaide, South Australia, established in 1965 by Elizabeth Cameron Dalman . The ADT was the first moder ...

, with ''Wildstars'' (1979) and ''High Flyers'' (1985). Triffitt also designed and directed operas for the

Melbourne International Arts Festival Melbourne International Arts Festival, formerly Spoleto Festival Melbourne – Festival of the Three Worlds, then Melbourne International Festival of the Arts, becoming commonly known as Melbourne Festival, was a major international arts festi ...

: ''Metamorphosis'' (1984), ''

Samson and Delilah Samson and Delilah are Biblical figures. Samson and Delilah may also refer to: In music * ''Samson and Delilah'' (opera), an opera by Camille Saint-Saëns * ''Samson & Delilah'' (album), released in 2013 by V V Brown * "Samson and Delilah" (t ...

'' (1984), and ''

Moby Dick ''Moby-Dick; or, The Whale'' is an 1851 novel by American writer Herman Melville. The book is the sailor Ishmael's narrative of the obsessive quest of Ahab, captain of the whaling ship ''Pequod'', for revenge against Moby Dick, the giant whit ...

'' (1990), and revivals of the musicals ''

Hair Hair is a protein filament that grows from follicles found in the dermis. Hair is one of the defining characteristics of mammals. The human body, apart from areas of glabrous skin, is covered in follicles which produce thick terminal and f ...

'' (1991) and ''

The Rocky Horror Show ''The Rocky Horror Show'' is a musical with music, lyrics and book by Richard O'Brien. A humorous tribute to the science fiction and horror B movies of the 1930s through to the early 1960s, the musical tells the story of a newly engaged couple ...

'' (1992). He also prepared the libretto to Neil Clifton's 1984 unrealised opera based on

Evelyn Waugh Arthur Evelyn St. John Waugh (; 28 October 1903 – 10 April 1966) was an English writer of novels, biographies, and travel books; he was also a prolific journalist and book reviewer. His most famous works include the early satires ''Decli ...

's novel ''

The Loved One ''The Loved One: An Anglo-American Tragedy'' (1948) is a short satirical novel by British novelist Evelyn Waugh about the funeral business in Los Angeles, the British expatriate community in Hollywood, and the film industry. Conception ''The ...

'', while Clifton Composer-in-residence with the

Victoria State Opera The Victoria State Opera (VSO), based in Melbourne, Australia, was founded in Melbourne in 1962. The company, founded by Leonard Spira, was a move into grand opera by the then amateur Gilbert and Sullivan-oriented Victorian Light Opera Co. The n ...

. As an actor, he appeared in films such as Howling V: The Rebirth (1989). Triffitt achieved commercial success with the tap dance show ''Tap Dogs'', which he designed (in collaboration with

Dein Perry Dein Perry is an Australian tap dancer. He is founder of the recurrent tap dance production 'Tap Dogs'. His film credits include work done on the Australian movie Bootmen, as well as choreographic work on Happy Feet 2. Early life and career Per ...

) and directed. ''Tap Dogs'' premiered at the

Sydney Festival Sydney Festival is a major arts festival in Australia's largest city, Sydney that runs for three weeks every January, since it was established in 1977. The festival program features in excess of 100 events from local and international artists an ...

in 1995 and continued to tour around the world until his death. He devised, designed and directed part of the Opening Ceremony for the

Sydney Olympic Games The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 (Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from 1 ...

in 2000 and the Opening Ceremony of the Melbourne Commonwealth Games in 2006. Triffitt had a reputation for being outspoken and opinionated. A journalist wrote in 1987: "Nigel Triffit enjoys criticism. He doesn't mind being called rude, enfant terrible or genius. It's bland reporting with no comment that bores him." He was openly gay. In 1994 he published a gay-themed novel ''Cheap Thrills''. Despite not being a Triffitt by birth, he maintained a blog on the history of the Triffitt family. He died of an AIDS-related illness in Melbourne.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Triffitt, Nigel 1949 births 2012 deaths People from Launceston, Tasmania Australian theatre directors Australian opera directors Alumni of the Drama Centre London Gay novelists Gay dramatists and playwrights Australian male novelists Australian LGBT novelists Australian LGBT dramatists and playwrights Australian gay writers Australian gay actors LGBT theatre directors 20th-century Australian novelists 20th-century Australian dramatists and playwrights Australian male dramatists and playwrights 20th-century Australian male writers