Laurence Olivier always liked pretending. When he was a small boy, he converted a large wooden chest in his parents' home, drew curtains on it, and with the help of his father, Gerard, turned it in to a makeshift stage (with half-tin cans and candles acting as footlights). Growing up, he wanted to follow his brother, Dickie, to India and become a rubber planter. His father, however, told him not to be ridiculous; Larry was going on the stage. His story from poor repertory player to the most famous actor of his time is truly one of rags to riches. In his illustrious career, Laurence Olivier broke ground and achieved major critical acclaim, especially for his Shakespearean roles such as King Lear, Richard III, and Macbeth. vastly prefering the stage to the screen, Larry criticized the film medium as having no artistic outlet...that is until he teamed with William Wyler in 1939 and went on to adapt the stage FOR the screen. He was a box office idol, often mobbed by female fans as he exited the theatre--this fame made even more prominent when partnered with Vivien Leigh, the other half of the 'Theatre Royals". His talents went beyond acting: he was the director of The Old Vic as well as the founder of the National Theatre (which now has a statue of him as Hamlet outside by the Thames on the West Bank), and in 1947, he became the youngest actor to ever be knighted by King George (he was 40).

Today, Laurence Olivier is still considered the greatest stage actor of his generation. Though he was classically trained, his style adapted as times changed. By the time he played Archie in The Entertainer in the late 1950's, he was all natural in his raw emotions, speech and movements. Many actors today, including Sir Anthony Hopkins, Ralph Fiennes, and Kevin Spacey consider Olivier to be a mentor and/or one of their main influences for going on the stage and acting all together. So respected was Olivier as an actor that the British theatre awards (aka the Olivier Awards) were named after him. Below is the list of plays in which Larry performed in and/or directed during his career.

1916
All Saints School, Marylebone
Brutus in Julius Caesar | by William Shakespeare

1922
All Saints Choir School Presentation--Stratford Memorial Theatre, Stratford-on-Avon
Katherine in The Taming of the Shrew | By William Shakespeare

1924
Century Theatre, London
Suloit Officer in Byron
* This was Larry's professional theatre debut

1925
Brighton Hippodrome, Brighton
Played in The Ghost Train

St. Christopher Theatre, Letchworth
Lenox in Macbeth | by William Shakespeare

Century Theatre, London with the Lena Ashwell Players
Flavius in Julius Caesar | by William Shakespeare

Empire Theatre, London
In The Cenci

Regent Theatre, London
Thomas of Clarence and Snare in Henry IV | by William

1926
With the Birmingham Repertory Company
Minstrel in The Marvelous History of St. Bernard
In The Barber and The Cow
Richard Coaker in The Farmer's Wife by Eden Phillpots
Guy Sidney in Something to Talk About

1927
Vanya in Uncle Vanya | by Anton Chekhov

Parolles in All's Well that Ends Well | by William Shakespeare

Tony Lumpkin in She Stoops to Conquer | by Oliver Goldsmith

1928
With the Brimingham Rep.--Royal Court Theatre, London
Young Man in The Adding Machine | by Elmer Rice

Malcom in Macbeth | by William Shakespeare
Harold in Harold | by Alfred Lord Tennyson

The Lord in The Taming of the Shrew | by William Shakespeare
Martellus in Back to Methuselah | by Bernard Shaw

Gerald Arnwood in Bird in Hand | by Drinkwater

Stanhope in Journey's End | by R.C. Sherriff

1929
Her Majesty's Theatre, London
Beau Geste in Beau Geste | by Basil Dean

New Theatre, London
Prince Pao in The Circle of Chalk

Lyric Theatre, London
Richard Parish in Paris Bound

Garrick Theatre, London
John Hardy in A Stranger Within

Eltinge Theatre, New York
Hugh Bromilow in Murder on the Second Floor | by Frank Vosper
* This was Larry's American debut

Fortune Theatre, London
Jerry Warrender in The Last Enemy | by Frank harvey

Arts Theatre, London
Ralph in After All

1930
Phoenix Theatre, London
Victor Prynne in Private Lives | by Noel Coward

1931
Times Square Theatre, New York
Victor Prynne in Private Lives | by Noel Coward

1933
Playhouse Theatre, London
Stevan Beringer in The Rats of Norway | by Keith Winter

1934
Globe Theatre, London
Richard Kurt in Biography | by S.N. Behrman

New Theatre, London
Bothwell in Queen of Scots | by Gordon Daviot

Lyric Theatre, London
Tony Cavendish in Theatre Royal | by Edna Ferber and S. Kaufman

1935
Shaftesbury Theatre, London
Peter Hammond in The Ringmaster | by Keith Winter

Whitehall Theatre, London
Richard Harben in The Golden Arrow | by Sylvia Thompson and Victor Cunard

New Theatre, London
Romeo and Mercutio (exchanging roles with John Gielgud) in Romeo and Juliet | by William Shakespeare

1936
Lyric Theatre, London
Bob Patch in Bees on the Boatdeck | by J.B. Priestly

1937
With The Old Vic Company
Hamlet in Hamlet | by William Shakespeare

Sir Toby Belch in Twelfth Night | by William Shakespeare

Henry V in Henry V | by William Shakespeare

Macbeth in Macbeth | by William Shakespeare

Kronborg Castle, Elsinore, Denmark
Hamlet in Hamlet | by William Shakespeare with Vivien Leigh as Ophelia

1938
With The Old Vic Company
Iago in Othello | by William Shakespeare

Vivaldi in King of Nowhere | by James Bridie

Coriolanus in Coriolanus | by William Shakespeare

1939
Ethel Barrymore Theatre, New York
Gaylord Eastbrook in No Time for Comedy | by S.N. Behrman

1940
San Francisco, Chicago and New York
Romeo Montague in Romeo and Juliet | by William Shakespeare

1944
With the Old Vic Company (appointed co-director)
New Theatre, London
Sergius in Arms and the Man | by Bernard Shaw

Button Moulder in Peer Gynt | by Henrick Ibsen

Richard III in Richard III | by William Shakespeare

1945
Phoenix Theatre, London
Directed Vivien Leigh in The Skin of Our Teeth | by Thornton Wilder

New Theatre, London
Arstov in Uncle Vanya | by William Shakespeare

Justice Shallow in Henry IV, Part 2 | by William Shakespeare

Oedipus in Oedipus | by Sophocles

Mr. Puff in The Critic | by Richard Sheridan

On tour in Belgium, Holland, Germany and France
Arms and the Man, Peer Gynt, Richard III

1946
With The Old Vic
Century Theatre, New York
Henry IV Parts I and II, Oedipus, The Critic, Uncle Vanya

New Theatre, London
King Lear in King Lear | by William Shakespeare

1947
Garrick Theatre, London
Presented and directed Born Yesterday | by Garson Kanin

1948
With the Old Vic, Australia
Sir Peter Teazle in The School for Scandal | by Richard Sheridan
Also directed

Mr. Antrobus in The Skin of Our Teeth | by Thornton Wlder
Also directed

Richard in Richard III | by William Shakespeare

1949
Old Vic Season, New Theatre, London
Sir Peter Teazle in The School for Scandal | by Thornton Wilder

Chorus in Antigone | Adapted by Jean Anouilh from the Sophocles play
Also directed

Directed The Proposal | by Anton Chekhov

Richard III in Richard III | by William Shakespeare

Aldwych Theatre, London
Directed Vivien Leigh in A Streetcar Named Desire | by Tennessee Williams

1950
Actor-Manager at St James's Theatre, London
The Duke of Altaire in Venus Observed | by Christopher Fry
Also Directed

1951
London and the Ziegfeld Theatre, New York
Caesar in Caesar and Cleopatra | by Bernard Shaw

Antony in Antony and Cleopatra | by William Shakespeare

1952
New Century Theatre, New York
Directed Venus Observed | by Christopher Fry

1953
London
The Grand Duke in The Sleeping Prince | by Terence Rattigan
Also Directed

1955
Shakespeare Memorial Theatre, Stratford-on-Avon
Malvolio in Twelfth Night | by William Shakespeare

Macbeth in Macbeth | by William Shakespeare

Titus Andronicus in Titus Andronicus | by William Shakespeare

1957
Royal Court Theatre, London
Archie Rice in The Entertainer | by John Osborne
* Rumor has it that Osborne wrote this play with Olivier in mind for the part of Archie. Larry said later that Archie was the character that he most identified with.

On tour in Paris, Venice, Belgrade, Zagreb,Vienna, Warsaw and London
Titus Andronicus in Titus Andronicus | by William Shakespeare

Palace Theatre, London
Archie Rice in The Entertainer | by John Osborne

1958
Royal Theatre, New York
Archie Rice in The Entertainer | by John Osborne

1959
Shakespeare Memorial Theatre, Startford-on-Avon
Coriolanus in Coriolanus | by William Shakespeare

1960
Royal Court Theatre, London
Berenger in Rhinocerous | by Eugene Ionesco

St. James Theatre, London
Becket in Becket | by Jean Anouilh

Helen Hayes Theatre, London
Directed The Tumbler | by Benn W. Levy

1961
Hudson Theatre, New York
Toured as Henry II in Becket

1962
Director of the Chichester Festival Theatre
The Chances | by John Fletcher

Prologue and Bassanes in The Broken Heart | by John Ford
Also Directed

Astrov in Uncle Vanya | by Aton Checkhov

Saville Theatre, London
Directed Fred Midway in Semi-Detached | by David Turner

1963
The Old Vic, director of the National Theatre
Directed Hamlet

Astrov in Uncle Vanya | by Anton Checkhov

Captain Brazen in The Recruiting Officer | by Farquhar

1964
Othello in Othello | by William Shakespeare

Solness in The Master and the Builder | by Henrik Ibsen

1965
Directed The Crucible | by Arthur Miller

Tattle in Love for Love | by William Congreve

National Theatre Tour, Berlin and Moscow
Othello in Othello | by William Shakespeare

The Old Vic
Tattle in Love for Love | by William Congreve

1966
Directed Juno and the Paycock | by Sean O'Casey

1967
Edgar in The Dance of Death | by August Strindberg

National Theatre Company Tour, Canada (including he O'Keefe Center in Toronto)
Plucheux in A Flea in Her Ear | by Georges Faydeau

1968
Directed Love's Labour's Lost | by William Shakespeare

Co-directed with Donald MacKechnie
The Advertisement | by Natalia Ginsburg

1970
Shylock in The Merchant of Venice | by William Shakespeare

1971
New Theatre, London
Directed Amphitryon 38 | by Jean Giraudoux

New Theatre, London
James Tyrone in Long Day's Journey Into Night | by Eugene O'Neill

1972
The Old Vic, London
James Tyrone in Long Day's Journey Into Night | by Eugene O'Neill

1973
The Old Vic, London
Antonio in Saturday, Sunday, Monday | by Eduardo de Filippo

The Old Vic, London
John Tagg in The Party | by Trevor Griffiths

1974
Directed Eden End | by J. B. Priestly

1980
New York
Directed Filumena | by Eduardo de Filippo

     

 
 
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