PETER COLLEY

Playwright-Screenwriter

 

"The thinking man's playwright" Columbia Tribune, 2008

Premiered in Calgary in 2008 at The Vertigo Theatre.  For more info: click here.


For more info: click here


For more info: click here

Now available in an Italian translation "Quando La Morte Chiama".  For details click here.

RECENT PRODUCTIONS:
YOU'LL GET USED TO IT - THE WAR SHOW
The Kanata Theatre, Ottawa, the Langham Court Theatre, Victoria BC, The Newmarket Stage and the Georgetown Music theatre.  

I'LL BE BACK BEFORE MIDNIGHT
COMING IN 2010, this play is to re-open in Rome, Italy where it last played in 1995, and also premiering in Spain for the first time, and in 2009 to the American Heartland Theatre, Kansas City, to open the theatre's 2009/2010 season. The play stars Darren Kennedy (CSI, Without A Trace).  This production got excellent reviews from the Kansas City Star and the KC Metro - for information on the American Heartland production, photos, video, reviews etc click here.  "Midnight" has been nominated for 9 New Zealand 2008 NAPTA Awards, and won three including Best Play.

 
Italian Production

It was produced in Munich, Germany at the famous Theater Blutenburg where it ran for many months in a  German translation.  Productions in the U.S., Ireland, Jamaica, South Africa and Australia, a National Tour of Britain, Nairobi, Kenya, and New Zealand.
  
WHEN THE REAPER CALLS
 Recently produced in Hamburg, Germany, and in at the Sudbury Theatre Centre.   This play won 5 awards at the Western Ontario Drama League's annual festival in Canada.  British premiere in 2007, New Zealand premiere in 2009 (The Waiuku Theatre and The Dolphin Theatre) and by the Columbia Entertainment Company WHEN THE REAPER CALLS has been published by Samuel French Ltd in London. 

The world famous Cambridge Footlights (Monty Python, Beyond The Fringe, Borat) produced I'LL BE BACK BEFORE MIDNIGHT in 2007.  For details click here.

I'LL BE BACK BEFORE MIDNIGHT recently named as "Best of Calgary Theatre" by the Calgary Sun.  "It’s no surprise I’ll Be Back Before Midnight has thrilled audiences in 26 countries and become the most produced Canadian play ever."

Peter's new play THE MAN IN THE DESERT about the life of Lawrence after his Arabia days was a semi-finalist for the 2007 Eugene O'Neill awards.  THE MAN IN THE DESERT was performed to much acclaim in 2007 at Theatre In The Park, Raleigh, North Carolina. 

For more information on THE MAN IN THE DESERT click here

I'LL BE BACK BEFORE MIDNIGHT - UK National Tour
UK Tour venues include: Theatre Royal Winchester, The Capitol Theatre, Hull New Theatre, Theatre Royal Margate, The Darlington Civic, The Grand Theatre Swansea, The Lighthouse Theatre at Poole, Devonshire Park Eastbourne.  Ian Dickens Productions, the largest UK producer of touring plays (300 productions), announced that the recent tour broke the company's box office records. 

Also produced at the Blyth Festival in its fourth revival at the theatre which premiered the play, the Vertigo Theatre in Calgary, the Spokane Civic Theatre and in the Nantucket Arts Festival.  The Totem Pole Playhouse, Pennsylvania, one of only 11 professional Equity summer stock companies left in the US.  Also Canberra Repertory Theatre, Australia.  Danish translation as "TILBAGE FØR MIDNAT!".  Arena Players ("Long Island's Oldest Professional Theatre"), Topeka Rep Theatre.  WHEN THE REAPER CALLS: Kanata Theatre, Guelph Theatre



A high-stepping new musical about the screen's greatest tough-guy.

For more info: click here

Peter's new musical play (Music & Lyrics by Christopher McGovern and Robert Creighton) on the life of James Cagney premiered at The Florida Stage in 2009.  It is the winner of a 2008 "New American Play Award" and starred Robert Creighton as Cagney (from Broadway's LITTLE MERMAID). To read article in Playbill Magazine click here.  ENTIRE RUN SOLD OUT!   


Poster design: Elliott Smith
For more info: click here


For more info: click here

UPCOMING MOVIES 

     

Peter is writing Endgame & Sweet Deceit for CinePartners, for more information click here

  UK National Tour - including The Grand Theatre Swansea shown above (to see more pictures of theatres click here)

"Peter Colley's play was the most memorable theatre experience of my life.  Made me realize what live theatre could be." Calgary Herald 2006

REVIEWS:
I'LL BE BACK BEFORE MIDNIGHT at The Coliseum Theatre, Nr. Manchester, England, where it received excellent notices (to see the Coliseum reviews, poster, photos, click here).  

        

In 2007 in a new Danish translation at Jomfru Ane Teatret!  To go to their website, click here.  Also a new Dutch translation called "Voor Middernacht Ben Ik Terug!" and a German translation titled "Gänsehaut" was a hit in 2007 in at Theater Blutenburg, Munich, Germany.

Peter was interviewed twice in the New York-based "The Dramatist" magazine, and Writer's Digest named Peter's dialogue software among the "Best Software For Writers" and it has now been sold in 41 countries. 

FOR MORE INFORMATION -  NEWSPAPER REVIEWS, PRODUCTION HISTORY ETC -  CLICK ON TITLES BELOW LEFT

PLAYS:
bullet I'll Be Back Before Midnight
(mystery-thriller)
bulletMurder In Noirville  NEW!
(a film noir style mystery-thriller)
bulletCagney! JUST OPENED IN 2009!
(a musical on the life of James Cagney)
bulletThe Man In The Desert  NEW!
(The story of Lawrence after Arabia)
bulletYou'll Get Used To It - The War Show 
(musical)
bullet When The Reaper Calls
(comedy-mystery)
bullet Stolen Lives 
(true-life drama)
bulletThe Mark of Cain  (a.k.a. The Murderer In The Mirror)
(mystery-thriller)
bullet The Donnellys
(true-life drama with music)
bullet The Vaudevillians
(musical revue)

FILMS:

bullet Illusions
bullet The Mark Of Cain
bulletSweet Deceit & Endgame COMING SOON

TV

bullet Mythic Warriors (CBS)
bullet The Zack Files (Fox)
bulletWatership Down (British ITV)
bulletDue South (CBS)

 

AWARDS

(For full size headshot for programs etc. click here)

Peter Colley is an award-winning Canadian writer based in Los Angeles and Toronto.  His stage plays have been produced in 26 countries, 48 of the 50 states in the U.S. and every province in Canada.  He was nominated for the 2000 Humanitas Prize for screenwriting and was a semi-finalist for the 2006 and 2007 Eugene O'Neill playwriting awards and the winner of a 2008 New American Play Award from Theatre Communications Group (TCG), 2009 nominee for 9 of New Zealand's NAPTA awards. 

From his start as one of the youngest playwrights ever produced at Canada's National Arts Centre, he has gone on to win one international, six national and four regional awards for writing.  His plays have been translated into several languages (including sign-language for the deaf).  One of his plays (I'll Be Back Before Midnight) was named in a Toronto Globe & Mail retrospective on Canadian theatre as  "the most produced Canadian play ever".  This play has grossed over $25 million worldwide.   For his body of work, the Canadian press called Mr. Colley "a national treasure".

Peter Colley has been published by Samuel French Inc., (New York and London), Baker's Plays of Boston, Macmillans, and Simon & Pierre.  Two of his plays have been made into feature films, with Mr. Colley writing both screenplays.  

He has written extensively for CBS Television, as well as Fox Family Channel, British ITV, CBC Canada, WNET TV (New York).  

FOR A MORE DETAILED BIOGRAPHY/ RESUMÉ CLICK HERE:
Biography

Peter Colley is also the creator of an educational software program for writers called Great Dialogue Software™.  This software has been sold in 41 countries.  For more details, click here, or click on the logo below.  

 

THEATRE COMPANIES: For free perusal copies of Peter's plays email:

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Click on poster below to see larger version

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For more information on Peter Colley's Great Dialogue Software™  click on the above logo. This popular educational software for writers has been sold in 41 countries.

THEATRES WHICH HAVE PERFORMED PETER'S PLAYS INCLUDE: 
Theatre Royal, Windsor (England); The Grand Theatre, London (Ont.); The National Arts Centre, Ottawa; Theatre Royal Winchester (England); The Coliseum, Manchester (England); The Vancouver Playhouse; Theatre Royal, Margate (England); The Salisbury Playhouse (England); Theatre New Brunswick; The Palace Theatre (England); The Tarragon, Toronto; The Saint Lawrence Centre, Toronto; The City Theatre, Pittsburgh; Theatre-By-The-Sea, Portsmouth (US); The Octagon Theatre (England); The American Heartland Theater, Kansas City; The Capitol Theatre (England); The Blyth Festival (Canada); The Charlottetown Festival (Canada); The Grand Theatre, Swansea (Wales); The Neptune Theatre Halifax (Canada); Canberra Repertory Theatre (Australia), ETH Hamburg, (Germany), The Wangherie Theatre (New Zealand), Theater Blutenburg, Munich, (Germany), Alliance Francaise (Kenya), Salon Varietes (Spain) and thousands more in 26 countries.  


TO SEE PICTURES OF SOME OF THE THEATRES: 

CLICK HERE

The Grand Theatre, London (Ont.), where Peter started his career as the Resident Playwright for 3 years. 

 

THEATRE COMPANIES: For free perusal copies of Peter's plays email:

The above email address is a graphic so that email harvesting  programs cannot see it.  You  must manually type in the email address!  Thanks! 

Please include company name