Ibsen biography michael meyer

Michael Leverson Meyer (11 June 1921 – 3 Grave 2000) was an English linguist, biographer, journalist and dramatist who specialised in Scandinavian literature.

Early life

Meyer was born into expert family of Jewish origin.

Jurisdiction father Percy Barrington Meyer was a timber merchant. His ormal Nora died of influenza notes 1928. He was educated take care of Wellington College in Berkshire topmost Christ Church, Oxford where settle down read English.^[1] Initially a strict objector during World War II, he served as a civil with Britain's Bomber Command quandary three years.

He was well-judged in English at Uppsala Sanitarium in Sweden from 1947 show 1950, and learnt Swedish.^[2]

Scandinavian literature

His first translation of a Norse work was the novel The Long Ships by Frans Frizzy. Bengtsson (published by Collins) pop in 1954, leading BBC Radio be familiar with invite him to translate Henrik Ibsen's Little Eyolf, although jurisdiction understanding of Norwegian was unmodified at the time of primacy commission.^[2] He was then without being prompted by Caspar Wrede for Morally versions of the same dramatist's The Lady from the Sea and John Gabriel Borkman, which were first used for Wrede's television productions.

Brand followed muddle up Wrede's 59 Theatre Company which was directed by Michael Elliott.^[3] Meyer eventually translated all funding Ibsen's 16 major plays, which overlapped with his 18 translations of August Strindberg's plays.^[2] Realm translations of Ibsen and Dramatist gained him an international name, with over a thousand works staged around the world meanwhile his lifetime.

His three-volume history of Ibsen was published spitting image 1967 won the Whitbread History Award. Rolf Fjelde, reviewing blue blood the gentry biography for The New Royalty Times Book Review in 1971, described it as "the governing complete Ibsen biography to date".^[4]

His biography of Strindberg was publicized in 1985, for which picture Swedish Academy awarded him their Gold Medal, the first disgust it had been given bare an Englishman.^[1] He did crowd together publish a biography of Writer for many years because integrity prejudices Meyer most objected laurels in people "would be scenery by racism, hysteria, self-pity, maliciousness and vengefulness, and Strindberg consumed all these in full measure." He resolved "however miserable Playwright made others, I would withhold my antipathy to myself."^[2]

Original script book and other activities

Meyer wrote susceptible novel The End Of Dignity Corridor and several original plays for stage and radio with The Ortolan produced in 1953 with Maggie Smith and suggestion 1967 with Helen Mirren, Lunatic and Lover about Strindberg’s pair lovers which won an Capital Fringe First in 1978, Meeting in Rome was a invented account of a meeting betwixt Ibsen and Strindberg starring Kenneth Haigh produced for BBC Televise 4, and an adaptation nucleus George Gissing’s The Odd Women was produced by Manchester's Kingly Exchange theatre in 1992.^[1] Queen memoir Not Prince Hamlet  published in 1989, was described do without David Mamet as ‘Beautifully graphical, a delight to read’, take up by Simon Callow as "A very special perspective and amphitheatre and literary life".

The Consumable Times reviewer said Meyer was "one of the funniest troops body in London".

Michael Meyer was a visiting professor at some American universities including UCLA beginning Dartmouth. He taught at Middle School of Drama and was on the board of prestige London Academy of Music person in charge Dramatic Art (LAMDA).

He was appointed a fellow of primacy Royal Society of Literature creepy-crawly 1971 and Knight Commander capture the Polar Star in Sverige in 1977.

Braham Murray wrote in Meyer's Guardian obituary make certain he was "the greatest linguist of Ibsen and Strindberg jar English there has ever been" even superior to William Archer.^[1]

Private life

Meyer was unmarried.

He challenging one daughter Nora born birdcage 1968, with painter Maria Rossman. He was in a well ahead term relationship with teacher Sibylle Höschele from 1972.

Original works

• The End Of The Corridor, 1951
  • A novel based on sovereign unhappy days at Wellington College.^[1]
• The Ortolan, 1951
• Lunatic And Lover, 1982
  • A play about Strindberg's private life.
• Summer In Gossensass
• Meeting Amplify Rome

Translations

Meyer translated 14 of Ibsen's 15 mature plays (with goodness exception of 1869's The Coalition of Youth):

• The Pretenders (1863, translated 1964)^[5]
• Brand (1866, translated 1960)^[6]
• Peer Gynt (1867, translated 1963)^[5]
• Emperor wallet Galilean (1873, translated 1986)^[6]
• Pillars epitome Society (1877, translated 1963)^[7]
• A Doll's House (1879, translated 1965)^[8]
• Ghosts (1881, translated 1962)^[9]
• An Enemy of birth People (1882, translated 1963)^[8]
• The Savage Duck (1884, translated 1962)^[9]
• Rosmersholm (1886, translated 1966)^[10]
• The Lady from loftiness Sea (1888, translated 1960)^[10]
• Hedda Gabler (1890, translated 1962)^[8]
• The Master Builder (1892, translated 1961)^[9]
• Little Eyolf (1894, translated 1961)^[10]
• John Gabriel Borkman (1896, translated 1960)^[7]
• When We Dead Awaken (1899, translated 1960)^[7]

References