Noel Coward
Sir Noël Peirce Coward (16 December 1899 – 26 March 1973) was an English playwright, composer, director, actor, producer, and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what Time magazine called "a sense of personal style, a combination of cheek and chic, pose and poise".
He made his name as a playwright with The Vortex (1924), in which he also appeared. His numerous other successful plays included Fallen Angels (1925), Hay Fever (1925), Private Lives (1933), Design for Living (1933) and Blithe Spirit (1941). Following World War II, he began a new career as a cabaret entertainer and published many volumes of verse.
Stephen Unwin
Stephen Unwin is an award-winning director who has directed much of the Noel Coward canon including Hay Fever, The Vortex, (Rose Theatre) This Happy Breed, Present Laughter and Song at Twilight (Theatre Royal, Bath). He was Artistic Director of the Rose Theatre in Kingston from 2008 to 2014 and founded the English Touring Theatre in 1993. He has directed more than fifty theatre and opera production for the Royal National Theatre, English National Opera, the Royal Opera House, the Royal Court, and many others. His work has been seen at the Donmar Warehouse, the Almedia Theatre, and the Old Vic.
