Photo: Walter McBride/Getty
Harold “Hal” Prince, one of the most significant figures in American musical theatre history known as the “Prince of Broadway,” died on Wednesday morning after a brief undisclosed illness. He was 91.
The Broadway director and producer was in Reykjavik, Iceland at the time of his death, according to his press agent.
During his seven-decade career, Prince was known for shepherding some of the most groundbreaking shows to hit Broadway, includingThe Pajama Game,Damn Yankees,West Side Story,Cabaret,Fiddler on the Roof,Company,Sweeney Todd, and the Great White Way’s longest-running musical,The Phantom of the Opera.
Prince was awarded properly, taking home 21 Tony Awards — more than any other individual in multiple categories.
The New York Native, born Jan. 30, 1928 in Manhattan, began his career in the industry during its heyday and pushed the art form through some of its most challenging eras in the 20th century.
He was an stage manager first, working on the 1950 musical revueTickets, Please!and later on the original Broadway production ofCall Me Madam(1950) andWonderful Town(1953).
From there, Prince would turn to producing, collaborating withCall Me MadamandWonderful Town‘s director George Abbott to co-produceThe Pajama Gamein 1954. That show would earn Prince his first Tony for best musical
His next few works as a producer were equally triumphant.Damn Yankees (1956),Fiorello!(1960),A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum(1963), andFiddler on the Roof(1965) all earned best musical Tonys.Fiorello!won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama.West Side Story(1957), meanwhile, became a cultural phenomenon.
Chita Rivera with the cast ofWest Side Story.
In 1962, Prince directed his first Broadway show,A Public Affair.He would continue as a director for years to come, sometimes even on shows he was also producing (like 1963’sShe Loves Me;1966’sIt’s a Bird…It’s a Plane…It’s Superman; 1974’sCandide, and 1966’sCabaret, which earned Prince his first Tony for best director).
“He always makes me want to go to the piano and write,” Sondheim told NPR’sAll Things Consideredin 2017. “I always leave meetings with Hal just bursting with ideas. Hal’s as stimulating as anybody I’ve ever met.”
Donald Cooper/REX/Shutterstock
Many of Prince’s works are praised for advancing the musical in radical, bold ways.
Fiddler on the Roof, which Prince produced in 1965, was praised for showing how a musical could speak to all generations and culture in a time when the popularity of the art form was being threatened. It ran for more than 3,000 performances on Broadway.
The Phantom of the Operaproved ushered in in the boom of British musicals coming to the states. It’s still running today.
Phantommastermind Andrew Lloyd Webber remembered Prince in a statement to PEOPLE: “Farewell, Hal. Not just the prince of musicals, the crowned head who directed two of the greatest productions of my career,EvitaandPhantom. This wonderful man taught me so much and his mastery of musical theatre was without equal.”
Other hits in Prince’s unparalleled career includeOn the Twentieth Century(1978),Evita(1980),Kiss of the Spider Woman(1993),Parade(1998) andLovemusik(2007).
Prince earned his final Tony as director for the 1995 revival ofShow Boat.A 2006 Tony, his 21st, was for lifetime achievement.
His final Broadway credit was 2017’sPrince of Broadway, a musical that re-created numbers from his catalogue of successes.
source: people.com
