Year of the king - Antony Sher

In 1984 Antony Sher
hailed as
the most exciting actor of his generation
by the Observer
made his debut
on homemade crutches
as the infamous Richard III in the Royal Shakespeare Company production of the play. He would go on to win the Laurence Olivier and Evening Standard Awards for best actor. In his own words and sketches
he chronicles his personal and professional journey to this award-winning performance
from the moment he was offered the role to opening night
in the critically acclaimed book Year of the King
now available in this special 20th anniversary edition.From his brainstorm to use crutches to bring the king's deformity to life
to his research for the role
which included watching interviews with psychopaths
reading about mass murderers
and speaking with doctors and physically challenged individuals
to his visit to his homeland of South Africa
to his experiences in working with the Royal Shakespeare Company
the reader is given a front-row seat to Sher's physical and mental preparation
or rather transformation
for his landmark performance as
the bottled spider.