Everything You Need to Know About AMADEUS: From Stage to Screen

Amadeus seems to be having a bit of a resurgence lately. Last year, a new limited series adaptation of the hit play debuted for U.K. viewers and will be coming across the pond sometime in 2026. There is also the ongoing stage production at the Pasadena Playhouse, which is led by Tony Award winner Jefferson Mays and has received rave reviews.

But what is Amadeus about? And what about the award-winning 1984 movie of the same name? Having not been seen on Broadway for more than 25 years, it may be time for a refresher. 

Before the series arrives on STARZ later this year, find out everything to know about the title, including its origin, major productions and players, adaptations, and more!

What Is Amadeus?

Amadeus is a fictionalized telling of composers Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Antonio Salieri set in 18th-century Vienna. First written as a stage play by Peter Shaffer, the story follows a (probably fictional) rivalry between the two musicians.

In the play, court composer Salieri, obsessed with Mozart's compositions, becomes jealous and hateful of the young musician after finding him a distasteful and vulgar person upon his arrival in Vienna. With a newfound determination, he makes a vow to himself and God to destroy the famed composer, whose musical talents far outshine his own.

Though largely fiction, Amadeus was inspired by rumors of Mozart being poisoned by Salieri. These were later dramatized in the 1830 play Mozart and Salieieri by Alexander Pushkin and the subsequent opera version of the same name by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov. Shaffer used both as inspiration for his script.

Who Wrote Amadeus?

Amadeus was written by two-time Tony Award-winning playwright Peter Shaffer. Over the course of his career, he penned more than 18 plays, including Black Comedy, Lettice and Lovage, The Royal Hunt of the Sun and Five Finger Exercise. Many of his works were later adapted for TV and film, including his first play, The Salt Land, written in 1951 and produced for television in 1955.

However, Shaffer was arguably best known for Amadeus and Equus, the latter of which won Best Play at the 1975 Tony Awards. First produced by London's National Theatre, Equus ran for over 1,200 performances on Broadway and was adapted as a film in 1977.

Notable Productions

The original production of Amadeus opened at the National Theatre, London, in 1979, directed by Peter Hall. The play later premiered on Broadway in 1980, where it ran for over 1,000 performances, winning five Tony Awards, including Best Play, Best Actor in a Play for Ian McKellen, and Best Direction of a Play for Hall. The production returned to London's West End the following year, playing at Her Majesty’s Theatre.

The play has since been performed all over the world, with notable productions that include a revival at the Old Vic in 1998, a National Theatre revival in 2016 (available to watch at National Theatre at Home), and recent productions at Steppenwolf Theatre and Pasadena Playhouse, among others.

In 1983, the original cast from the National Theatre production reunited for a BBC Radio Drama version, once again directed by Peter Hall from Shaffer's script. 

Who Has Starred in Amadeus?

The original National Theatre production starred Paul Scofield as Salieri and Simon Callow as Mozart and Felicity Kendal as Constanze, Mozart's wife. On the West End, Frank Finlay starred as Salieri, with Richard O'Callaghan as Mozart and Morag Hood as Constanze.

When the production moved to Broadway, the show featured a completely different cast led by Ian McKellen as Salieri, Tim Curry as Mozart and Jane Seymour as Constanze. McKellen and Curry were both nominated for a Tony Award in the same acting category, with the former ultimately taking home the honor. 

McKellen and Curry would later be replaced by John Wood as Salieri and Peter Firth as Mozart. During the original Broadway run, subsequent Salieris included Frank Langella, David Dukes, David Birney, John Horton, and Daniel Davis. Notable Mozarts included Dennis Boutsikaris, Mark Hamill, and John Pankow.

Director Peter Hall returned to the play in 1998, helming a production at the Old Vic in London, with Michael Sheen as Mozart, David Suchet as Salieri, and Cindy Katz as Constanze. When this production transferred to Broadway in 1999, it received Tony Award nominations for Best Revival and Best Actor in a Play for Suchet. 

The 2026 Pasadena Playhouse production stars Tony Award-winner Jefferson Mays as Salieri with Sam Clemmett as Mozart and Lauren Worsham as Constanze, under the direction of Tony Award-winner Darko Tresnjak.

What About the Movie?

After the successful productions were staged in the U.K. and on Broadway, Shaffer would adapt his own stage play for the big screen, expanding the story to fit the demands of cinema. Directed by two-time Academy Award winner Miloš Forman, Amadeus was released to critical acclaim in 1984.

The movie starred Academy Award winner F. Murray Abraham as Antonio Salieri, Academy Award nominee Tom Hulce as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Elizabeth Berridge as Constanze Mozart, Simon Callow as Emanuel Schikaneder, Roy Dotrice as Leopold Mozart, Christine Ebersole as Katerina Cavalieri, Jeffrey Jones as Emperor Joseph II and Charles Kay as Count Orsini-Rosenberg.

The film received eleven Academy Award nominations and won a whopping eight: Best Picture, Best Directing, Best Actor (F. Murray Abraham), Best Screenplay based on Material from Another Medium, Best Art Direction, Best Costume Design, Best Makeup, and Best Sound. Amadeus was produced by three-time Academy Award winner and Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award recipient Saul Zaentz.

Forman later reassembled the movie in 2002, adding 20 minutes to create a "Director's Cut." Consequently, the original theatrical version was made unavailable for several years before finally being restored and rereleased in 2024.

In 2019, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.”

What About the Series?

Debuting on Sky for British audiences in 2025, the limited series adaptation is a reimagining of Shaffer’s play. Notably, this is the first version of the story not directly written by Shaffer and has been adapted by screenwriter Joe Barton. It will arrive on STARZ sometime in 2026.

With Will Sharpe as Mozart and Paul Bettany as Salieri, the familiar premise unfolds over five episodes, featuring Amadeus' themes of jealousy, ambition, and genius as the two composers go head to head in 18th-century Vienna. 

The series also stars Rory Kinnear as Emperor Joseph, Lucy Cohu as Cecilia Weber, Jonathan Aris as Leopold Mozart, Ényì Okoronkwo as Da Ponte, Jessica Alexander as Katerina, Hugh Sachs as Von Strack, Paul Bazely as Von Swieten, Rupert Vansittart as Rosenberg, Anastasia Martin as Aloysia Weber, Nancy Farino as Josepha Weber, Olivia-Mai Barrett as Sophie Weber, Viola Prettejohn as Princess Elizabeth and Jyuddah Jaymes as Franz Süssmayr.

Photo Credit: Jeff Lorch