Laurence Olivier - National Theatre

National Theatre

Olivier was one of the founders, and the inaugural director, of the National Theatre. He became first NT Director at the Old Vic before the South Bank building was constructed with his opening production of Hamlet in October 1963.

During his directorship he appeared in twelve plays (taking over roles in three) and directed nine, enjoying particularly remarkable personal successes for his performances in Othello (1964), The Dance of Death (1967) and Long Day's Journey into Night (1971). Reportedly, some felt that his tenure as the director of the NT was marred by his jealousy towards other performers when he manoeuvred to block famous names like John Gielgud and Ralph Richardson from appearing there, although young actors like Michael Gambon, Robert Lang, Maggie Smith, Sheila Reid, Christopher Timothy, Alan Bates, Frank Finlay, Derek Jacobi and Anthony Hopkins (both of whom understudied Olivier) made their names there during the period.

Olivier's tenure as director of the National began to unravel when a proposed production of Rolf Hochhuth's Soldiers was vetoed by the National's board of directors. The production had been championed by Olivier's dramaturg, Kenneth Tynan. Though Olivier, a great admirer of Winston Churchill (who essentially is accused of assassinating Polish Prime Minister General Władysław Sikorski by Hochhuth), did not particularly like the play or its depiction of Churchill (whom Tynan wanted him to play), he backed his dramaturg. There was a potential problem with the Lord Chamberlain, who might not have licensed the play due to its controversy. The production was vetoed by the National board, which was headed by chairman Lord Chandos, a member of Churchill's wartime cabinet, who damned the play as "grotesque and grievous libel".

The stymying of the production was a watershed event at the National, leading to the eventual ouster of Tynan and the eventual replacement of Olivier. When the board subsequently vetoed a proposed production of Guys and Dolls (a cherished project of Olivier who longed to play Nathan Detroit) after a postponement due to his poor health, it was apparent he was on shaky ground. He tried to interest Richard Burton and Albert Finney in replacing him. Neither was interested. Burton, commenting in his diaries, balked at the proposition for many reasons, but mentioned the mistreatment of Olivier by the board. If the great Olivier, the first actor to be made a peer—a man who had given up a fortune in earnings in the West End and in films to nurture the National could be frustrated when it came to putting on controversial and even non-controversial projects by bureaucrats—what chance did Burton have?

Olivier never was able to choose his successor. His career at the National ended, in his view, in betrayal when the theatre's governorship decided to replace him with Peter Hall in 1973 without consulting him on the choice and not informing him of the decision until several months after it had been made. Picking Hall, the founder of the Royal Shakespeare Company, the National's great rival, was seen by many as a calculated insult to Olivier.