Maurice Podbrey

Last updated
Maurice Podbrey
Maurice Podbrey CTM Interview 2007.jpg
Podbrey in 2007
Born (1934-04-25) April 25, 1934 (age 90)
Occupation(s) Theatre director, actor
SpouseElsa Podbrey

Maurice Podbrey CM (born April 25, 1934) is a South African actor and theatre director. He has spent much of his career in Canada, where he co-founded and was the artistic director of the English-language Centaur Theatre in Montreal.

Contents

Biography

Podbrey was born in Durban in 1934 into a Lithuanian Jewish family. His father had had Bundist sympathies and his politics influenced his children; Podbrey's sister Pauline later became a trade union organiser.

Podbrey was educated at the University of the Witwatersrand and at the College of Education; after graduating, he emigrated to England and worked as a schoolteacher. In 1959, he switched careers to work as an actor and director. He briefly served as the artistic director for the Chester Playhouse before moving again to Montreal in 1967, when he was invited to join the National Theatre School of Canada as an instructor. Seeking to remedy the lack of English-language theatre in Montreal, Podbrey and Herb Auerbach opened a theatre company in Montreal's former Montreal Stock Exchange building on François-Xavier St. in Old Montreal. Podbrey was the artistic director of the newly founded Centaur Theatre, with Auerbach acting as president and founding chairman.

Having seen and admired the work of South African playwright Athol Fugard in London, Podbrey introduced his work to the North American theatre scene by staging People Are Living There at the Centaur in 1975. Podbrey held his position as artistic director of the Centaur until his retirement in 1997, when he was succeeded by Gordon McCall. He then returned to South Africa and founded Mopo Cultural Trust, a non-profit devoted to developing South African theatre.

Podbrey was awarded membership of the Order of Canada on April 19, 1991, for his services to the performing arts in Canada.

Film and television performances

DateTitleRoleNotes
1960 Scotland Yard (BBC TV series)DetectiveEpisode: "Information Received"
1964 A Christmas Night with the Stars VicarEpisode dated December 24, 1964
1965 Out of the Unknown DirectorEpisode: "A Stranger in the Family"
1965 The Wednesday Play SergeantEpisode: "The Girl Who Loved Robots"
1964-66 Hugh and I 2 episodes
1964-1967 Theatre 625 2 episodes
1971Doodle FilmVoiceShort
1974 Why Rock the Boat? Guest Speaker
1975 Aucassin and Nicolette NarratorShort
1977Strangers at the DoorShort
1981 Happy Birthday to Me Dr. Feinblum
1982Odyssey of the PacificPoliceman
1982-1983 The Mysterious Cities of Gold Governor Pizarro 39 episodes
1985One Step Away
1986 Spearfield's Daughter London Editor
1987 The Last Straw Dr. Cameron
1991 Urban Angel Newton MackenzieEpisode: "Battered Lives"
1992 The Boys of St. Vincent Archbishop
1993 Love and Human Remains The Theatre Director
1994 Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle Long Island Investor
1996 Everything to Gain The Priest
1998 The Adventures of Sinbad FinEpisode: "Castle Keep"
1998 The Sleep Room Dr. Gottlieb
1998 Inside Out (1998 film) Costa

Bibliography

Charlebois, Gaetan. "Maurice Podbrey." Canadian Theatre Encyclopedia. N.p., 5 July 2013. Web. [1]

Marsh, James H. "Centaur Theatre." The Canadian Encyclopedia: Year 2000 Edition. Toronto: McClelland & Stewart, 2000. 425-26. Print.

Podbrey, Maurice, and R. Bruce. Henry. Half Man, Half Beast: Making a Life in Canadian Theatre. Montréal: Véhicule Press, 1997. Print.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Theatre of Canada</span> Canadas contemporary theatre

Canada's contemporary theatre reflects a rich diversity of regional and cultural identities. Since the late 1960s, there has been a concerted effort to develop the voice of the 'Canadian playwright', which is reflected in the nationally focused programming of many of the country's theatres. Within this 'Canadian voice' are a plurality of perspectives - that of the First Nations, new immigrants, French Canadians, sexual minorities, etc. - and a multitude of theatre companies have been created to specifically service and support these voices.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Albert Millaire</span> Canadian actor and theatre director (1935–2018)

Rodolphe Albert Millaire, CC, CQ was a Canadian actor and theatre director.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jean Gascon</span> Canadian opera director, actor, and administrator

Jean Gascon was a Canadian opera director, actor, and administrator.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Theatre School of Canada</span>

The National Theatre School of Canada is a private institution of professional theatre studies in Montreal, Quebec. Established in 1960, the NTS receives its principal funding from grants awarded by the Government of Canada and cultural ministries in each province, with added financial support from private and corporate donors. It has offered incomparable training to actors, directors, playwrights, set and costume designers and production specialists to work in professional theatre.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marianne Ackerman</span> Canadian novelist, playwright, and journalist

Marianne Letitia Ackerman is a Canadian novelist, playwright, and journalist. Mankind and Other Stories of Women, her fifth work of prose fiction, was published by Guernica Editions in 2016. Her play Triplex Nervosa premiered at Centaur Theatre in April 2015. Triplex Nervosa Trilogy was published by Guernica in 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Centaur Theatre</span>

The Centaur Theatre Company is a theatre company based in Montreal, Quebec. It was co-founded in 1969 by Maurice Podbrey along with The Centaur Foundation for the Performing Arts. It currently has Eda Holmes as the artistic and executive director, and Michael Baratta as chairman of the board.

John Juliani was a Canadian actor, writer, producer, director and educator. His career spanned four decades in a number of different media, including radio and film. In addition to his artistic contributions, Juliani was a strong advocate of Canadian theatre and the arts. He is the father of actor Alessandro Juliani.

Montreal was referred to as "Canada's Cultural Capital" by Monocle Magazine. The city is Canada's centre for French-language television productions, radio, theatre, film, multimedia, and print publishing. The Quartier Latin is a neighbourhood crowded with cafés animated by this literary and musical activity. Montreal's many cultural communities have given it a distinct local culture.

Fernand Nault, OC, CQ was a Canadian dancer and choreographer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robin Phillips</span> English-Canadian film and stage director (1942–2015)

Robin Phillips OC was an English actor and film director.

Richard Jean Monette CM, DHum, LLD, was a Canadian actor and director, best known for his 14-season tenure as the longest-serving artistic director of the Stratford Festival of Canada from 1994 to 2007.

Greg Kramer was a British-Canadian author, actor, director, and magician. Born and raised in Hertfordshire, England, he emigrated to Canada in 1981 and spent the remainder of his life living in Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vittorio Rossi</span> Canadian screenwriter (born 1961)

Vittorio Luciano Rossi is a playwright, actor and screenwriter born in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. He grew up in the district of Ville Emard. Graduating from Concordia University in 1985 with a B.F.A. specializing in theatre performance, Rossi has earned the respect of the national theatre community with his award-winning plays. Mr. Rossi received two consecutive Best New Play Awards at the Quebec Drama Festival in 1986 and 1987 with Little Blood Brother and Backstreets. His plays have been produced in Montreal, Toronto, Ottawa, Vancouver, New York City, Boston, Syracuse and The Stratford Festival in Ontario.

Steve Galluccio is a Canadian screenwriter and playwright, most noted for his play Mambo Italiano and its feature film adaptation Mambo Italiano.

Guy Sprung is a film and theatre director born in Ottawa in 1947. He lives in the Mile End area of Montreal and was the artistic director of Infinitheatre for 22 years. He retired and was succeeded by Zach Fraser in March 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nelson Villagra</span> Chilean actor

Nelson Villagra is a Chilean actor, writer and director of stage and screen. He is recognised as one of the most masterful actors in Chilean cinema and is widely known in Chile for his exceptional portrayal of a mentally retarded murderer in Miguel Littín's El Chacal de Nahueltoro (1969). He also collaborated with Raúl Ruiz on Tres tristes tigres (1968), La colonia penal (1970) and Nadie dijo nada (1971).

Advert|date=July 2019}}

Imago Theatre is a professional feminist theatre company based in Tiohtià:ke/Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The company was founded in 1987 by Andres Hausmann, Ray Tomalty, and Kelly Patterson, and is now led by the current Artistic and Executive Director, Krista Jackson. Imago Theatre is a catalyst for conversation, an advocate for gender inclusion and a space that centres feminist values and artistic practices. Imago's ethos is that by holding space for gender-inclusivity and giving power to women and gender-diverse people, art can create a more inclusive, safe, compassionate world.

Alexandre Marine is a Russian-born actor-director-playwright currently based in Montreal. On April 23, 1993, he was recognized by the Russian government as a Distinguished Artist of the Russian Federation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Denis Marleau</span> Canadian director

Denis Marleau is a Canadian director living in Quebec.

References

  1. "Canadian Theatre Encyclopedia".