London: Andre Deutsch, 1980
Small 8vo, pp. 124. Original red boards, lettered in silver to spine. Errata slip to p. 109. Photographic dustwrapper, portrait of the author to rear panel. A fine copy in a fine dustwrapper.
First edition.
Amadeus began life at the National Theatre: Peter Hall's 1979 production starred Simon Callow as Mozart and Paul Schofield as Salieri; the Broadway premiere the following year starred Tim Curry and Ian McKellen. The play won everything, the film adaptation (Tom Hulce, F. Murray Abraham) won everything, and the show was restaged at its birthplace, the National, only two years ago.
A beautiful copy of an absolute masterpiece, purchased at the National Theatre bookshop during the run of the first production (their bookmark is laid in).