Cities in Transition

Andrew Lloyd Webber, 1948 - Andrew Lloyd Webber was born March 22, 1948 to William and Jean Lloyd Webber. He was introduced to music by his aunt and began writing music. In 1956, Webber went to Westminster where he composed music for the school plays. He won a Challenge Scholarship in 1962 and, in 1964, he received a scholarship to transfer to Oxford. It was during this time that Webber met Tim Rice. He eventually dropped out of school to pursue composing music with Rice.

His first musical, "The Likes of Us," was a failure. After that, in 1968, "Joseph" premiered at Colet Court. In 1971, "Jesus Christ Superstar" opened and he married Sarah Hugill. Webber tried writing music with Alan Ayckbourn and did "Jeeves", which was not successful. Again working with Tim Rice, they wrote "Evita" in 1975. "Cats," was a hit and beat "A Chorus Line" for longest running musical and highest grossing musical. "Starlight Express", a musical about trains, was created in 1984 and was the most expensive musical up to that point. "Requiem" and "Phantom of the Opera" featured his new wife Sarah Brightman. They were married from 1984 to 1991. In 1991, he married Madeleine Gurdon. Also to Webber's credit is "Aspects of Love," "Sunset Boulevard" and "Whistle Down Wind."

Andrew Lloyd Webber was knighted in 1997and during his career, has received several awards that include an Academy Award, Tony Awards, Grammy Awards, Drama Desk Awards and Critic Circle Awards.

030