Adam George Brace (25 March 1980 – 29 April 2023) was a British playwright and director. Brace was the resident associate dramaturg of Soho Theatre in London.[1]

Adam Brace
BornAdam George Brace
(1980-03-25)25 March 1980
London, England
Died29 April 2023(2023-04-29) (aged 43)
London, England
Occupation
  • Playwright
  • director
Alma materUniversity of Kent (BA)
Years active2008–2023
PartnerRebecca Fuller

Background edit

Adam George Brace was born in London on 25 March 1980, to George Brace, an architect, and Nikki (née Sturdy), a floor manager at the BBC.[2] His father died in a bicycle accident several months before his son's birth.[2] Brace attended the University of Kent, where he got a degree in drama.[2] His first jobs included teaching English in South Korea and working as a children's entertainer in Malaysia.[2] He was briefly a journalist for The Irish Post, but was fired after publicly disparaging a film at a Q-and-A held for the press screening.[2] Brace was also a master's student at Goldsmiths, University of London, though sources differ on whether he received a degree.[2][3]

Career edit

His play Stovepipe, performed in promenade, premiered at the HighTide festival in Suffolk in 2008,[3] before transferring to London for an eight-week run in collaboration with the National Theatre.[4][5] The play is about corporate soldiers and Brace wrote it after a tour of Jordan where he conducted interviews with men in that job. The play was critically acclaimed, receiving numerous five star reviews and being called "rivetingly intelligent"[6] by the Sunday Times and "exhilaratingly convincing[7]' by The Independent. The play was named at number 10 in The Times Top Twenty Plays of the Decade.[8]

Other plays include They Drink It in the Congo (Almeida Theatre, 2016),[3] A Real Humane Person Who Cares And All That,[9] (Edinburgh Fringe, 2008 / Arcola Theatre, 2009).

Brace worked extensively as a director, with credits including Liz Kingsman's One Woman Show at the Ambassadors Theatre, London and Soho Theatre. He also collaborated as a director or script editor with acts including Jessie Cave, Ahir Shah, Ruby Wax and Sh!t Theatre, a theatrical duo consisting Louise Mothersole and his partner, Rebecca Fuller.[3][10]

At the time of Brace's death, he was preparing a Broadway production of his one-man show Just for Us, set to run at the Hudson Theatre in the summer of 2023, with Alex Edelman starring.[2][11]

Personal life and death edit

Brace was in a relationship with stage performer Rebecca Fuller, known by her stage name, Rebecca Biscuit. He died at a hospital in London from complications of a stroke on 29 April 2023, at the age of 43.[2][3]

References edit

  1. ^ "Adam Brace: 'Stand-up directing is hardcore dramaturgy'". The Stage. Retrieved 20 December 2022.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Coveney, Michael (5 May 2023). "Adam Brace obituary". The Guardian. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
  3. ^ a b c d e Sandomir, Richard (7 May 2023). "Adam Brace, Director of Ambitious One-Person Shows, Dies at 43". The New York Times. Retrieved 8 May 2023.
  4. ^ [1] Archived June 28, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
  5. ^ [2] Archived June 17, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
  6. ^ "Arts and entertainment". Entertainment.timesonline.co.uk. Retrieved 12 December 2015. (subscription required)
  7. ^ Bassett, Kate (15 March 2009). "Stovepipe, West 12 Shopping Centre, London | Reviews | Culture". The Independent. Archived from the original on 4 November 2012. Retrieved 12 December 2015.
  8. ^ "Arts and entertainment". Entertainment.timesonline.co.uk. Retrieved 12 December 2015. (subscription required)
  9. ^ "Arcola Theatre". Arcola Theatre. Retrieved 12 December 2015.
  10. ^ "Adam Brace: 'Stand-up directing is hardcore dramaturgy'". The Stage. Retrieved 9 December 2022.
  11. ^ Hatcher, Kirsty (3 May 2023). "Adam Brace, British Playwright and Director, Dies at 43 — Just Weeks Before His Broadway Debut". People. Retrieved 5 May 2023.