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LONDON, Nov 29 (Reuters) – Tom Stoppard, one of Britain's best-known playwrights, has died at the age of 88. Below are some tributes and reactions. KING CHARLES AND QUEEN CAMILLA "A dear friend who wore his genius lightly, he could, and did, turn his pen to any subject, challenging, moving and inspiring his audiences, borne from his own personal history… Let us all take comfort in his immortal line: 'Look on every exit as being an entrance somewhere else'." MICK JAGGER "Tom Stoppard was my favourite playwright. He leaves us with a majestic body of intellectual and amusing work. I will always miss him." UNITED AGENTS Stoppard's agent said it was an honour to work with him. "We are deeply saddened to announce that our beloved client and friend, Tom Stoppard, has died peacefully at home in Dorset, surrounded by his family. He will be remembered for his works, for their brilliance and humanity, and for his wit, his irreverence, his generosity of spirit and his profound love of the English language." THEATRE CRITIC MARK SHENTON "For over 50, 60 years he's dominated the theatre," Shenton told Sky News. "And the cinema as well. He had a phenomenal impact. He was probably Britain's leading playwright." UK WRITERS' TRADE UNION "We are so sad to learn of the death of Tom Stoppard," The Writers' Guild of Great Britain said. "A recipient of our Outstanding Contribution to Writing in 2017, he was presented by fellow playwright and former WGGB President (David Edgar) who said of him: 'Like no one else, he has challenged, dazzled and amazed.'" BRITAIN'S NATIONAL THEATRE "We are devastated to hear of the death of Tom Stoppard. As a corner stone of the National Theatre for 50 years, Tom's influence on British theatre has been simply immense." JOHN LENNON'S SON, SEAN ONO LENNON "An absolute genius." BILL KRISTOL, FORMER CHIEF OF STAFF TO U.S. VICE PRESIDENT DURING GEORGE H.W. BUSH PRESIDENCY "What an interesting and talented playwright! On hearing of his death, I was struck that one should be grateful that he was given the time to write his last and perhaps most personal play, Leopoldstadt." ROYAL COURT THEATRE "Today we join with writers and theatre artists across the world to mark the passing of Tom Stoppard, a playwright whose work probed the deepest human mysteries of truth, time, mortality and frailty while dazzling with wit, laughter and the buoyancy of the human spirit." (Reporting by Sam Tabahriti; Editing by Andrew Heavens and Nia Williams)

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By Barbara Lewis LONDON, Nov 29 (Reuters) – "What's it about?" was a frequent response from bemused theatre-goers to "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead", Tom Stoppard's first stage triumph. Tired of being asked, Stoppard is said to have replied to a woman outside a theatre on Broadway: "It's about to make me very rich." He later questioned whether he had said "very", Hermione Lee writes in Stoppard's authorised biography, but he had undoubtedly managed to transform his previously precarious finances. For every puzzled spectator, there were many more ecstatic fans and critics, dazzled by the wit, brilliant wordplay and sheer daring of a young playwright who had turned Shakespeare inside out and placed the spotlight, not on the eponymous Hamlet, but on two minor characters from the same play. First performed at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 1966, the following year, "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead" made Stoppard, at the age of 29, the youngest playwright to be staged at the National Theatre in London. From there, the play went to Broadway and had more than 250 productions worldwide over its first decade. Stoppard's career flourished for decades more, embracing stage, screen and radio, and demonstrating his thirst to tackle any subject – from mathematics to Dadaist art to landscape gardening. His final play, "Leopoldstadt", first performed in 2020, follows the story of a Jewish family in Vienna inspired by his own history. Stoppard's many other successes included "“The Real Inspector Hound", which parodied stage whodunnits and sent up theatre critics, “"Jumpers", a 1.5 million word epic that delighted and confused its public, and "“Night and Day", a satire on the British media. His densely packed, intricately constructed plays were based on extensive research. "“Arcadia", in 1993, considered by many critics to be his masterpiece, blended chaos theory, Isaac Newton and the poet Lord Byron's love life. The word Stoppardian, first recorded in 1978, meanwhile entered the Oxford English Dictionary. It refers to the use of verbal gymnastics while addressing philosophical concepts. The honours he won at home and abroad included an Oscar for co-authoring the screenplay of the 1998 hit film "Shakespeare in Love", and a record five Tony awards for Best Play. In 1997, he was knighted for his contributions to theatre. He died at home in Dorset, surrounded by his family, his agent United Agents said on Saturday. The cause was not immediately known. 'INCREDIBLY LUCKY' Stoppard was born Tomas Straussler on July 3, 1937 in what was then Czechoslovakia, the son of Eugen Straussler, a doctor, and Marta (or Martha), née Beckova, who had trained as a nurse. The Jewish family fled the Nazis and moved to Singapore when he was an infant. Singapore in turn became unsafe. With his mother and elder brother Peter, he escaped to India. His father stayed behind and died while fleeing after Singapore fell to the Japanese. In India, Marta Straussler married a British army major, Kenneth Stoppard, and the family moved to England. Boarding school followed at Pocklington in Yorkshire, northern England, where Tom Stoppard loved cricket more than drama and learned how to be British, which Major Stoppard considered the ultimate nationality. The adult Stoppard, who rediscovered decades later the Jewish roots that he explored in his final play, would accuse his stepfather of "an innate antisemitism". He eventually learnt from Czech relatives that all four of his grandparents had been Jewish, and that they had died in Nazi concentration camps. "I feel incredibly lucky not to have had to survive or die. It's a conspicuous part of what might be termed a charmed life," he wrote in Talk, a U.S. magazine, in 1999, reflecting on returning with his brother to their birthplace Zlin in what is now the Czech Republic. 'INTELLECT AND EMOTION ARE BEDFELLOWS' Despite showing academic prowess at school, Stoppard decided not to go to university. Instead, he went straight to work as a reporter on a local newspaper in Bristol, western England. “I wanted to be a great journalist," Stoppard later said. "My first ambition was to be lying on the floor of an African airport while machine-gun bullets zoomed over my typewriter. But I wasn’t much use as a reporter. I felt I didn’t have the right to ask people questions. "I always thought they’d throw the teapot at me or call the police." While he found reporting daunting, he threw himself into working as a theatre and cinema critic, and his love of drama took hold. He began making the influential friendships with actors and other writers that would shape his career. He made up his mind to move to London and start writing plays. Success only ensued after dogged persistence and sleepless nights spent chain-smoking and wrestling with writer's block. One of Britain's most established critics, Michael Billington, who reported on every Stoppard first night for half a century, sought to pin down the playwright's status in a piece in Britain's Guardian newspaper in 2015. Stoppard, Billington found, was "a writer capable of inciting admiration, awe and astonishment as well as a baffled bewilderment, sometimes all in the same evening". Addressing the frequent criticism that Stoppard could be overly cerebral, Billington wrote that, at his finest, he demonstrated that "intellect and emotion are bedfellows rather than opposites". He showed the world that a scientific or philosophical concept could be dramatic subject matter. HOPES OF POSTERITY The self-deprecating dramatist rejected classification and resisted requests to explain himself. “Whenever I talk to intelligent students about my work, I feel nervous, as if I were going through customs," he told the New Yorker magazine in 1977. "‘Let’s have a look in your suitcase, if you don’t mind, sir," Stoppard continued. "And, sure enough, under the first layer of shirts there’s a pound of hash and fifty watches and all kinds of exotic contraband. ‘How do you explain this, sir?’ ‘I’m sorry, Officer, I admit it’s there, but I honestly can’t remember packing it.’" For all Stoppard's dismissal of academic interpretation, he had hopes his name would live on. "Quite frankly, it has always meant a lot to me, the idea that one is writing for the future as well," he said on receiving a lifetime achievement award in 2017. "I’m never convinced it will work out that way." 'THEATRE IS RECREATION' For Stoppard, theatre, first of all, was for fun. "Theatre is recreation, it must entertain. But does the audience have to understand everything they see? If you or I go into an art gallery, we don’t understand what the artist is trying to tell us, though we may enjoy the painting," he said in a 1995 interview. Stoppard's ventures into film led to his taking the top award at the Venice Film festival in 1990 for his screen adaptation of "“Rosencratz and Guildenstern Are Dead". He wrote the screenplay for Steven Spielberg's "“Empire of the Sun" and earned an Oscar nomination for his work on Terry Gilliam's cult 1985 hit “"Brazil" before winning with "Shakespeare in Love". Stoppard had four sons, two from each of his first two marriages. He married his third wife television producer Sabrina Guinness in 2014. His son Ed Stoppard is an actor, who performed in "Leopoldstadt". Critics hailed Stoppard for confronting his own family history in the play. It marked the end of a theatrical journey that was willing to take on almost any subject matter. In his thirties, he said: "“I would like ultimately, before being carried out feet first, to have done a bit of absolutely everything." (Additional reporting by Peter Griffiths and Sam Tabahriti; Editing by Olivier Holmey)

(The article has been published through a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has been published verbatim. Liability lies with original publisher.)

LONDON, Nov 29 (Reuters) – Tom Stoppard, one of Britain's best-known playwrights, has died at the age of 88. Below are some tributes and reactions. MICK JAGGER "Tom Stoppard was my favourite playwright. He leaves us with a majestic body of intellectual and amusing work. I will always miss him." UNITED AGENTS Stoppard's agent said it was an honour to work with him. "We are deeply saddened to announce that our beloved client and friend, Tom Stoppard, has died peacefully at home in Dorset, surrounded by his family. He will be remembered for his works, for their brilliance and humanity, and for his wit, his irreverence, his generosity of spirit and his profound love of the English language." THEATRE CRITIC MARK SHENTON "For over 50, 60 years he's dominated the theatre," Shenton told Sky News. "And the cinema as well. He had a phenomenal impact. He was probably Britain's leading playwright." UK WRITERS' TRADE UNION "We are so sad to learn of the death of Tom Stoppard," The Writers' Guild of Great Britain said. "A recipient of our Outstanding Contribution to Writing in 2017, he was presented by fellow playwright and former WGGB President (David Edgar) who said of him: 'Like no one else, he has challenged, dazzled and amazed.'" BRITAIN'S NATIONAL THEATRE "We are devastated to hear of the death of Tom Stoppard. As a corner stone of the National Theatre for 50 years, Tom's influence on British theatre has been simply immense." JOHN LENNON'S SON, SEAN ONO LENNON "An absolute genius." BILL KRISTOL, FORMER CHIEF OF STAFF TO U.S. VICE PRESIDENT DURING GEORGE H.W. BUSH PRESIDENCY "What an interesting and talented playwright! On hearing of his death, I was struck that one should be grateful that he was given the time to write his last and perhaps most personal play, Leopoldstadt." ROYAL COURT THEATRE "Today we join with writers and theatre artists across the world to mark the passing of Tom Stoppard, a playwright whose work probed the deepest human mysteries of truth, time, mortality and frailty while dazzling with wit, laughter and the buoyancy of the human spirit." (Reporting by Sam Tabahriti; Editing by Andrew Heavens and Nia Williams)

(The article has been published through a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has been published verbatim. Liability lies with original publisher.)

By Hanna Rantala LONDON (Reuters) -Filmmaker Shih-Ching Tsou takes audiences to a bustling Taipei night market in family drama "Left-Handed Girl", weaving in personal and "collected" experiences. Chosen to represent Taiwan at the 2026 Oscars, the movie marks Tsou's solo directorial debut. She co-directed 2004's "Take Out" with Oscar winner Sean Baker and the two became frequent collaborators. The "Anora" filmmaker co-wrote, edited and produced "Left-handed Girl". Around two decades in the making, "Left-Handed Girl" stemmed from her grandfather telling Tsou off for using her left hand, traditionally believed to be the devil's hand. Tsou shared the story with Baker after meeting him at university in New York and they set out to make a movie, finishing a draft script in 2010 and travelling to Taiwan to scout locations, but the project proved difficult to finance. Tsou kept in touch with the night market vendors over the years and found new inspiration when she became a mother. "I'd always go back to visit them, getting to know their stories and the life in the night market… it's like collecting stories and also maturing this whole idea," she said. TAIPEI NOODLE STAND In "Left-Handed Girl", a single mother and her two daughters return to Taipei to open a noodle stand after living in the countryside. Settling into new routines, they face new challenges and past secrets resurface after the youngest child is scolded for using her left hand by her conservative grandfather. The movie is shot on iPhones, the only option for filming in a busy market, said Tsou. "I always knew I wanted to shoot in a real night market but to do that, you have to hide everything because when people see you filming on location, they always want to know who is the star. If you're using an iPhone…they wouldn't think that's a movie," said Tsou. The approach also helped show the young protagonist's perspective on the world around her. "We want the audience to see it through this little girl's eyes. It's like a sense of wonder," said Tsou, who juxtapositioned the vibrant scenes with an intergenerational family story. "I wanted to keep the whole family dynamic really strong. You can see how women survive in this society that's male-dominated," said Tsou. "It's really important to show that dynamic and to have the audience think about their own family." "Left-Handed Girl" premieres on Netflix on Friday. (Reporting by Hanna Rantala, editing by Ed Osmond)

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By Hanna Rantala LONDON (Reuters) -Actor Kiefer Sutherland, whose career spans four decades, says he got to expand his repertoire in the new Christmas movie "Tinsel Town". Sutherland stars as past-his-prime Hollywood actor Bradley Mack. Deemed difficult and temperamental, Mack finds work drying up after he wraps the seventh instalment of his action movie franchise and is left with no choice but to accept an offer to appear in a play in England. But instead of London's West End, Mack finds himself cast in a small town's traditional Christmas pantomime production. Sutherland showcases his singing and dancing skills as well as a range of emotions as Mack connects with his colourful co-stars and his estranged young daughter. "I thought it was really heartwarming to follow a character that starts off the movie not the best version of themselves and through the Christmas spirit and his daughter, becomes the better version of himself. I think that's a very kind of heartfelt, warm Christmas message," Sutherland said at the film's premiere in London on Thursday. "I've never done a song and dance number before, so that was a real challenge for me and very exciting. After 40 years of doing this as a profession, to be able to find new things to try, makes me really grateful," Sutherland, 58, said. The film also stars Rebel Wilson as the pantomime's choreographer, Jill. Theodora Williams, daughter of pop star Robbie Williams and actress Ayda Field, makes her acting debut as Jill's daughter, Cara.  "My mum gave me advice to enjoy the moment. I was really worried about working on my accent because I don't normally have a Yorkshire accent and I forgot the accent and just was in the moment and it worked out perfectly," she said. "Tinsel Town" is directed by Chris Foggin, who set out to make a movie all generations could watch together at Christmas. A celebration of the British pantomime tradition, it also stars Katherine Ryan as Mack's agent and Derek Jacobi as Albert, who has devoted his life to the theatre form. "It celebrates Britishness, but it also celebrates kindness," said actress Maria Friedman who plays a member of the troupe. "It's got a big, warm heart. My goodness, don't we need that right now." "Tinsel Town" is released in select U.S. theatres and digital platforms on Friday and debuts on Sky Cinema in the UK on December 5. (Reporting by Hanna Rantala; Editing by David Gregorio)

(The article has been published through a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has been published verbatim. Liability lies with original publisher.)