WOOD, David 1944-

PERSONAL:

Born February 21, 1944, in Sutton, Surrey, England; son of Richard Edwin and Audrey Adele (Fincham) Wood; married Sheila Ruskin, 1966 (marriage ended, 1970); married Jacqueline Stanbury (an actress), January 17, 1975; children: Katherine, Rebecca. Education: Worcester College, Oxford, B.A. (with honors), 1966. Hobbies and other interests: Conjuring, collecting old books.

ADDRESSES:

Agent—(Plays) Casarotto Ramsay Ltd., National House, 60-66 Wardour St., London W1V 3HP, England; (children's books) Eunice McMullen, Low Ibbotsholme Cottage, Off Bridge Lane, Troutbeck Bridge, Windermere, Cumbria LA23 1HU, England.

CAREER:

Actor, composer, producer, director, and playwright. W.S.G. Productions Ltd., director, 1966—; Whirligig Theater (touring children's theater company), cofounder and director, 1979—; Verronmead Ltd. (television production company), founder and director, 1983—; Westwood Theater Productions, cofounder and director, 1986-94; W2 Productions, cofounder and director, 1995—. David Wood Magic and Music Show, touring magician and performer, 1992—. Arts Council of Great Britain, member of drama advisory panel of 1978-80; Polka Children's Theater, member of board of directors, 1979—; Wimbledon Theater, member of board of trustees, 1996—; Action for Children's Arts, chair, 1997—.

MEMBER:

British Actors Equity Association, Society of Authors, Magic Circle (member of Inner Magic Circle with gold star).

AWARDS, HONORS:

Nottinghamshire Children's Book of the Year Award, 1990, for Sidney the Monster; Equity Award, best show for children and young people, 2001, for Tom's Midnight Garden.

WRITINGS:

CHILDREN'S PLAYS

The Tinder Box (two-act; adaptation of a story by Hans Christian Andersen), produced in Worcester, England, at Swan Theater, 1967.

(Lyricist) Cinderella, book by Sid Collin, music by John Gould, produced in Glasgow, Scotland, 1968.

(With Sheila Ruskin) The Owl and the Pussycat Went to See… (two-act musical; adaptation of works by Edward Lear; produced in Worcester, England, at Swan Theater, 1968, and in London, England, at Jeannetta Cochrane Theater, 1969), Samuel French (London, England), 1970.

(With Sheila Ruskin) Larry the Lamb in Toytown (two-act musical; adaptation of stories by S. G. Hulme Beaman; produced in Worcester, England, at Swan Theater, 1969, and in London, England, at Shaw Theater, 1973), Samuel French (London, England), 1977.

The Plotters of Cabbage Patch Corner (two-act musical; produced in Worcester, England, at Swan Theater, 1970, and in London, England, at Shaw Theater, 1971), Samuel French (London, England), 1972.

Flibberty and the Penguin (two-act musical; produced in Worcester, England, at Swan Theater, 1971, and on tour, 1978), Samuel French (London, England), 1974.

Tickle (produced on tour of British cities, 1972, and in London, England, at Arts Theater, 1977), Samuel French (London, England), 1978.

The Papertown Paperchase (two-act musical; produced in Worcester, England, at Swan Theater, 1972, and in London, England, at Greenwich Theater, 1973), Samuel French (London, England), 1976.

Hijack over Hygenia (two-act musical; produced in Worcester, England, at Swan Theater, 1973), Samuel French (London, England), 1974.

Old Mother Hubbard (two-act musical; produced in Hornchurch, Essex, England, at Queen's Theater, 1975), Samuel French (London, England), 1976.

Old Father Time (two-act musical; produced in Hornchurch, Essex, England, at Queen's Theater, 1976), Samuel French (London, England), 1977.

The Gingerbread Man (two-act musical; produced in Basildon, Essex, England, at Towngate Theater, 1976, and in London, England, at Old Vic Theater, 1977), Samuel French (London, England), 1977.

Mother Goose's Golden Christmas (two-act; produced in Hornchurch, Essex, England, at Queen's Theater, 1977), Samuel French (London, England), 1978.

Nutcracker Sweet (two-act; produced in Farnham, Surrey, England, at Redgrave Theater, 1977, and in London, England, 1980), Samuel French (London, England), 1981.

Babes in the Magic Wood (two-act; produced in Hornchurch, Essex, England, at Queen's Theater, 1978), Samuel French (London, England), 1979.

There Was an Old Woman… (two-act; produced in Leicester, England, at Haymarket Theater, 1979), Samuel French (London, England), 1980.

Cinderella (produced in Hornchurch, Essex, England, at Queen's Theater, 1979), Samuel French (London, England), 1980.

The Ideal Gnome Expedition (produced as Chish 'n' Fips in Liverpool, England, 1980; produced as The Ideal Gnome Expedition, on tour and in London, England, 1981), Samuel French (London, England), 1982.

Aladdin (produced in Hornchurch, Essex, England, 1980), Samuel French (London, England), 1981.

(With Dave Arthur and Toni Arthur) Robin Hood (produced in Nottingham, England, 1981, and in London, England, 1982), Samuel French (London, England), 1985.

Meg and Mog Show (adaptation of stories by Helen Nicoll and Jan Pienkowski; produced in London, England, 1981), Samuel French (London, England), 1984.

Dick Whittington and Wondercat (produced in Hornchurch, Essex, England, 1981), Samuel French (London, England), 1982.

Jack and the Giant (produced in Hornchurch, Essex, England, 1982), Samuel French (London, England), 1987.

The David Wood Magic and Music Show, produced in London, England, and on tour, 1982.

The Selfish Shellfish (produced in Farnham, Surrey, England, and London, England, 1983), Amber Lane Press (Summertown, Oxford, England), 1983.

(With Dave Arthur and Toni Arthur) Jack the Lad (produced in Manchester, England, 1984), Samuel French (London, England), 1991.

The Old Man of Lochnagar (adaptation of story by Prince Charles; produced in Aberdeen, Scotland, and London, England, 1986), Amber Lane Press (Summertown, Oxford, England), 1986.

Dinosaurs and All That Rubbish, music by Peter Pontzen (adaptation of story by Michael Foreman; produced in Denbigh, Wales, 1986, and in London, England, 1988), Samuel French (London, England), 1986.

The See-Saw Tree (produced in Farnham, Surrey, England, 1986, and in London, England, 1987), Amber Lane Press (Summertown, Oxford, England), 1987.

Play Theatre (includes The Nativity Play and Jack and the Beanstalk), two volumes, illustrated by Richard Fowler, Holt (New York, NY), 1987.

(With Dave Arthur and Toni Arthur) The Pied Piper (based on poem by Robert Browning; produced in Exeter, England, and on tour, 1988), Samuel French (London, England), 1991.

Save the Human (based on story by Wood and Tony Husband; produced in London, England, and on tour, 1990), Samuel French (London, England), 1990.

(Adaptor) The BFG (Big Friendly Giant) (adapted from book by Roald Dahl; produced in London, England, and on tour, 1991), Samuel French (London, England), 1991.

(Adaptor) The Witches (adapted from book by Roald Dahl; produced in London, England, and on tour, 1992), Samuel French (London, England), 1994.

(And lyricist and composer) Rupert and the Green Dragon: A Musical Play, (based on the Rupert stories and characters created by Mary Tourtel and Alfred Bestall; produced in Leatherhead, England, and on tour, 1993), Samuel French (New York, NY), 1997.

The BFG: Plays for Children (based on his full-length play), illustrated by Jane Walmsley, Puffin (New York, NY), 1993.

(Adaptor) Noddy, (adapted from book by Enid Blyton; produced in London, England, and on tour, 1993), Samuel French (New York, NY), 1995.

Meg and Mog: Four Plays for Children (based on The Meg and Mog Show), Puffin (New York, NY), 1994.

The Christmas Story, A and C Black (London, England), 1996.

(Adaptor) Babe, the Sheep-Pig, (adapted from the book The Sheep-Pig by Dick King-Smith; produced in London, England, and on tour, 1996), Samuel French (New York, NY), 1997.

More Adventures of Noddy (based on stories by Enid Blyton; produced in London, England, and on tour, 1998), Samuel French (New York, NY), 1998.

(Librettist) The Forest Child (opera; based on book by Richard Edwards), music by Derek Clark, produced on tour of Welsh cities, 1998.

David Wood: Plays 1 and 2, two volumes, Methuen (New York, NY), 1999.

The Lighthouse Keeper's Lunch (one-act with music; based on book by David Armitage and Rhonda Armitage), produced in Oxford, England, at Oxford Playhouse, 2000.

Fantastic Mr. Fox (adapted from book by Roald Dahl), produced in Coventry, England, at Belgrade Theater, 2000.

James and the Giant Peach (adapted from novel by Roald Dahl), produced in Cardiff, Wales, and Birmingham, England, 2001.

Tom's Midnight Garden (based on book by Philippa Pearce; produced in London, England, and on tour, 2001), Samuel French (New York, NY), 2001.

(And lyricist and composer) Spot's Birthday Party (based on books by Eric Hill; produced in London, England, and on tour, 2001), Samuel French (New York, NY), 2002.

The Witches: Plays for Children (adaptation of his full-length play), Puffin (New York, NY), 2002.

Contributor of plays to books, including Robin Hood and Friar Tuck and Marian and the Witches' Charm, in Playstages, edited by John Alcock, Methuen (New York, NY), 1987.

CHILDREN'S FICTION

The Operats of Rodent Garden, illustrated by Geoffrey Beitz, Methuen (New York, NY), 1984.

The Gingerbread Man (based on Wood's play), illustrated by Sally Anne Lambert, Salem House (Salem, NH), 1985.

The Discorats, illustrated by Geoffrey Beitz, Methuen (New York, NY), 1985.

(With Don Seed) Chish 'n' Fips, Boxtree (London, England), 1987.

Sidney the Monster, illustrated by Clive Scruton, Walker (London, England), 1988.

(With Richard Fowler) Happy Birthday, Mouse!: A First Counting Book, Grosset & Dunlop (New York, NY), 1990.

Save the Human! (based on his play), illustrated by Tony Husband, Hamish Hamilton (London, England), 1991.

(With Richard Fowler) Baby Bear's Buggy Ride to the Shops, Hazar (London, England), 1993.

(With Richard Fowler) Baby Bear's Buggy Ride to the Park, Hazar (London, England), 1993.

Bedtime Story: A Slip-in-the-Slot Book, Ingram (England), 1994, Western Publishing (New York, NY), 1995.

Pop-up Theater Proudly Presents Cinderella, Jack and the Beanstalk, illustrated by Richard Fowler, Kingfisher (New York, NY), 1994 (published in London, England, as Kingfisher Pop-up Theatre: Cinderella, Jack and the Beanstalk).

(With Richard Fowler) The Magic Show, Hazar (London, England), 1995.

(With Richard Fowler) Mole's Summer Story, Transworld (London, England), 1998.

(With Richard Fowler) Mole's Winter Story, Transworld (London, England), 1998.

(With Richard Fowler) Silly Spider!, Harcourt Brace (San Diego, CA), 1998.

The Phantom Cat of the Opera, illustrated by Peters Day, Watson-Guptill (New York, NY), 2000.

(With Richard Fowler) Funny Bunny's Magic Show, Transworld (London, England), 2000.

(With Richard Fowler) The Toy Cupboard, Pavilion (London, England), 2000, Watson-Guptill (New York, NY), 2001.

PLAYS FOR ADULTS

(With David Wright) Hang Down Your Head and Die (two-act), produced in Oxford, England, at Oxford Playhouse, in London, England, at Comedy Theater, and in New York, NY, at Mayfair Theater, 1964.

(Coauthor) The Oxford Line (two-act), produced in Edinburgh, Scotland, at Edinburgh Festival, and on tour, 1965.

(With John Gould) Four Degrees Over (two-act), produced in Edinburgh, Scotland, and in London, England, at Mermaid Theater and Fortune Theater, 1966.

(With Mick Sadler and John Gould) And Was Jerusalem, produced in Oxford, England, 1966; produced as A Present from the Corporation in Worcester, England, at Swan Theater, and in London, England, 1967.

(With David Wright) A Life in Bedrooms (two-act), produced in Edinburgh, Scotland, at Traverse Theater, 1967; produced as The Stiffkey Scandals of 1932 in London, England, at Queen's Theater, 1968.

(With John Gould) Three to One On (two-act), produced in Edinburgh, Scotland, at Edinburgh Festival, on tour, and on television, 1968.

(With John Gould) Postscripts (two-act), produced in London, England, at Hampstead Theater Club, 1969.

(Lyricist) Have You Seen Manchester?, produced by 69 Theater Company, Manchester, England, 1969.

(Lyricist) Dead Centre of the Midlands (revue), music by John Gould, produced in Worcester, England, at Swan Theater, 1970.

(With John Gould) Down Upper Street (two-act), produced in London, England, at King's Head Theater Club, 1971.

(Lyricist) Turn Your Own Sod (revue), music by John Gould, produced in Worcester, England, at Swan Theater, 1972.

(With John Gould) Just the Ticket (two-act), produced in Leatherhead, Surrey, England, at Thorndike Theater, 1973.

Rock Nativity (two-act musical), music by Tony Hatch and Jackie Trent (produced in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, England, at University Theater, 1974; produced as A New Tomorrow in Wimbledon, England, at Wimbledon Theater, 1976), Weinberger, 1977.

(With Iwan Williams) Maudie (two-act), produced in Leatherhead, Surrey, England, at Thorndike Theater, 1974.

(With Bernard Price and Julian Sluggett) Chi-Chestnuts (two-act), produced in Chichester, England, at Assembly Rooms, 1975.

(With John Gould) Think of a Number (two-act), produced in Peterborough, England, at Key Theater, 1975.

(Coauthor) More Chi-Chestnuts (two-act), produced in Chichester, England, at Assembly Rooms, 1976.

(With John Gould) Bars of Gould (two-act revue), produced in Exeter, England, at Northcott Theater, 1977.

(With John Gould) The Luck of the Bodkins (two-act; adaptation of a work by P. G. Wodehouse), produced in Windsor, England, at Theater Royal, 1978.

Abbacadabra, lyrics by Don Black, Mike Batt, and Bjørn Ulvaeus, music by Bjørn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson, produced in London, England, at Lyric Theater, Hammersmith, 1983.

OTHER

Swallows and Amazons (screenplay), EMI Ltd., 1974. (With Janet Grant) Theatre for Children: Guide to Writing, Adapting, Directing, and Acting, Faber & faber (London, England), 1997, Ivan R. Dee (Chicago, IL), 1999.

Also writer for television, including the series Playaway, 1973-77; Emu's Christmas Adventure, 1977; Writer's Workshops, Thames Television, 1978; Chish 'n' Fips, 1984; Chips' Comic, 1984; Seeing and Doing, 1986; The Gingerbread Man (based on his play), 1986; The Old Man of Lochnagar (based on his play), Channel 4 (England), 1987; Back Home (adaptation of story by Michelle Magorian), 1989; Watch, British Broadcasting Corp., 1992; and the animated series The Gingerbread Man, Central Television, 1992. Work represented in anthologies, including The Kingfisher Book of Comic Verse, edited by Roger McGough, Kingfisher (London, England), 1986; and Much Better Story Book, Red Fox (London, England), 1992. Author of screenplay Tide Race, 1990. Contributor of articles to magazines, including Drama and London Drama.

ADAPTATIONS:

Wood's stage adaptation of Enid Blyton's books was adapted into the video production Noddy, BBC Video, 1994.

SIDELIGHTS:

An actor, director, and writer, David Wood is the cofounder of the Whirligig Theater, a touring company devoted entirely to bringing his plays, as well as the works of others, to children throughout England. Among these plays are those that give a new spin to old tales, including The Gingerbread Man and The Owl and the Pussycat Went to See…, and those that bring original, new stories to audiences, such as Flibberty and the Penguin and The See-Saw Tree.

Wood first began to write seriously while a student at Oxford University; his first play, Hang Down Your Head and Die, was produced at the Comedy Theater in 1964 while he was still a student. From that point on, he has written, directed, and acted in several plays, both for children and adults. In addition, Wood writes for television, films, and radio, and has also broken into the children's book market. It is his children's plays, however, for which he is best known.

The plays that are based on well-known stories, such as Robin Hood and Old Mother Hubbard, are familiar to children, offering a level of comfort. Wood's original plays utilize traditional stock characters like those found in his adaptations—friendly dragons, well-intentioned but bumbling characters, and evil villains—and place them in action-filled adventures that incorporate audience participation.

Wood told CA: "Since 1967 I have written approximately sixty plays for children. It is still a passion and a real challenge. It never gets easier! My plays are usually written for professional adult actors to perform in theaters for audiences of children in family and school parties, but an increasing number of schools put on productions of their own. I write original plays and adaptations of popular books. For musical plays, I often write the music and lyrics of the songs.

"My aims haven't changed. I am trying to give children an exciting, memorable theater experience by triggering their imaginations, making them laugh and sometimes cry, emotionally involving them in a really good story. I want to use the magic of theater—the lighting, the sound, the scenery, the costumes, the music, the movement—to provide a unique, special event. This is why I prefer to work in theaters rather than schools. In theaters I have more control! I produce and direct many of my plays for my own company, Whirligig Theater (founded with John Gould in 1979), and for other companies, both commercial and subsidized.

"Over the years, children's theater in the United Kingdom has achieved a somewhat higher status and profile than in the days when I started. There are more companies and more dedicated practitioners. But the attitude shown toward children's theater by everyone—the public, the theatrical profession, critics, and funding bodies—still relegates it to the second division, rather than hailing it as the exciting and groundbreaking art form it can be. Children's theater is not just a means to an end, a way of building up an audience for adult theater of the future. It is an important branch of theater which should be celebrated and supported now. It should not be an optional extra, nourished when funds allow, but the first to be dropped when money is tight. One of the problems is always money, because children's theater is often costly to mount, yet the rightly low seat price yields far less at the box office than an equivalent adult show. But in fairness, over all the years I have specialized in this area, the quantity and quality of theater for children in the United Kingdom has undoubtedly gone up considerably.

"I am fortunate in that many of my plays are performed all over the world. My work is becoming more popular now in the United States, and since writing my book, Theatre for Children: Guide to Writing, Adapting, Directing, and Acting, I have been asked to lecture and do workshops in Chicago, San Diego, Shreveport, and New York.

"Since the late 1980s, I have also written children's books, many in collaboration with Richard Fowler, illustrator and paper engineer. School visits give me great pleasure. I try to enthuse children with the message that books are fun, using my own books and stories. For the last twenty years I have also toured the David Wood Magic and Music Show to theaters all over the United Kingdom. This takes me back to my roots—entertaining at children's parties was how I started my career in my teens. In 2002 I was delighted to be promoted by the Magic Circle to become a member of the Inner Magic Circle with Gold Star, as a reward for my services to children's magic."