Snowdon on Stage

Snowdon (then Tony Armstrong Jones) started taking photographs professionally when he graduated from Cambridge in 1950. It was his uncle and mentor, the stage designer Oliver Messel, who encouraged him to take theater photographs. He used a small camera, available light, and often worked during performances. For some 40 years, Snowdon has been commissioned to photograph virtually everyone working in the theater; in so doing, he has brilliantly documented the changing life of the British stage. Among the many arresting images in this handsome volume are portraits of Ralph Richardson, Alec Guinness, John Gielgud, Vanessa Redgrave, and Noël Coward. There are portraits, too, of contemporary stars, including Jeremy Irons, Natasha Richardson, Emma Thompson, Jude Law, and Rupert Everett. Introducing the book, and bringing the photos into sharper focus, is "A Personal View of the British Theatre 1954­-1996" by noted actor Simon Callow.