Raymond Hawthorne

Last updated

Raymond Hawthorne
ONZM
Born
Raymond Benjamin Thomas Hawthorne

(1936-05-03) 3 May 1936 (age 88)
Hastings, New Zealand
Alma mater Royal Academy of Dramatic Art
Occupation Theatre director
Years active1950s–present
Spouse Elizabeth Hawthorne
Relatives Emmeline Hawthorne (daughter)
Sophia Hawthorne (daughter)

Raymond Benjamin Thomas Hawthorne ONZM (born 3 May 1936) is a New Zealand theatre director, and is regarded as one of the country's most senior performing arts practitioners.

Contents

Background

Hawthorne grew up in Hawkes Bay. He used to ride a horse to his schooling at Pakipaki School (now Te Kura Pakipaki) and Hastings High School. At age five he won a primary school singing competition judged by Emma Natzke, the mother of Russian New Zealand opera singer Oscar Natzka. He also performed with Hawkes Bay community opera and theatrical companies. [1]

Career

In 1955 Hawthorne became a member of the New Zealand Players, the nation's first major professional theatre company. It was directed by Richard Campion, father of filmmaker Jane Campion. Granted a government bursary in 1957, Hawthorne studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. Following graduation he pursued a career as a performer but his interest moved towards directing and teaching. Returning to New Zealand in 1971, he joined the Mercury Theatre under the directorship of Anthony Richardson. [2]

Hawthirne directed many play with Theatre Corporate including, The Fantastiks by Tom Jones, music by Harvey L Schmidt (1977), The Two Tigers by Brian McNeill (1977), Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw (1978), A Doll's House by Henrik Ibsen (1979), Cabaret by John Kander and Fred Ebb (1984). [3] In 1982 Hawthorne became Director of the National Opera of New Zealand. He directed Brecht/ Weills’ Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny and Benjamin Britten’s The Turn of the Screw but the company financially failed and finished soon after. [4]

Mercury Theatre, Auckland, 2011 Mercuty Theater, Auckland, 2011.jpg
Mercury Theatre, Auckland, 2011

In 1985 he was appointed Director of the Mercury Theatre, a position he retained for seven years. During his tenure he directed numerous operas, musicals and plays. Hawthorne established an acting studio in 1992, The Actor's Space. In 1992 he also directed the first Auckland Theatre Company production, Lovelock's Dream Run by David Geary out of the ashes of the Mercury Theatre. [5]

In 1997 he became the Head of Major in ‘Directing and Writing for Theatre and Screen’ at Unitec Institute of Technology. He was appointed Head of the School of Performing and Screen Arts in 2003. [2]

He has acted and directed for Auckland Theatre Company numerous productions including Someone Who'll Watch Over Me , Travels With My Aunt , The Judas Kiss, Waiting for Godot , A Midsummer Night's Dream , The Crucible and Sir Roger Hall's Who Wants to be 100? [2] [6]

In 2011 he directed the inaugural production at Auckland's Q Theatre, Raise the Titanics. [7] His other directing credits include Angels in America , Three Tall Women , The Herbal Bed , Julius Caesar, Cabaret, Into the Woods, Travesties , High Society, Oliver! and Guys and Dolls. He has acted in film and television projects including Children of the Dog Star , Mortimer's Patch , Bread and Roses , Shortland Street and As Dreams Are Made On . [1] [8] [2] [9]

Theatre Corporate

Hawthorne founded Theatre Corporate in 1974, a professional theatre company based in Auckland. The company helped bring to prominence such notable artists as Jennifer Ward-Lealand and Michael Hurst. Hawthorne remained director of the company until 1981. [10] [2] Theatre Corporate wound up in 1986. [10] Theatre Corporate had a theatre in education arm called Story Theatre which toured Auckland and North Island primary and secondary schools. [11]

Honours and awards

In the 2000 Queen's Birthday Honours, Hawthorne was appointed an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to the theatre. [12]

Personal life

Married to Elizabeth Hawthorne, he is the father of Emmeline Hawthorne and the late Sophia Hawthorne. [13]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cinema of New Zealand</span>

New Zealand cinema can refer to films made by New Zealand–based production companies in New Zealand. However, it may also refer to films made about New Zealand by filmmakers from other countries. New Zealand produces many films that are co-financed by overseas companies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lani Tupu</span> New Zealand actor

Lani Tupu, billed variously as Larney Tupu, John Tupu and Lani John Tupu, is a New Zealand-born actor of Samoan and English descent. Also known as Lani Tupu Jr.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jennifer Ward-Lealand</span> New Zealand actor and director

Jennifer Cecily Ward-Lealand is a New Zealand theatre and film actor, director, teacher and intimacy coordinator. She has worked for 40 years, appearing in over 120 theatre performances: Greek, Shakespeare, drama, comedy, devised, and musical theatre. Her screen credits include the 1993 movie Desperate Remedies as well as appearances in The Footstep Man, the soap Shortland Street and Australian comedy series Full Frontal.

Paolo Rotondo is a New Zealand director, writer and actor of stage and screen.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Auckland Theatre Company</span> Aucklands premier professional theatre company

Auckland Theatre Company (ATC) is a professional theatre company in Auckland. It was founded in 1992 and since 2016 has been based in ASB Waterfront Theatre in the Wynyard Quarter in central Auckland.

Simon Prast is a director and actor from Auckland, New Zealand. Prast was the founder of the Auckland Theatre Company and director of the first Auckland Festival AK03.

Red Mole was an avant garde theatre company from New Zealand. It was founded by Alan Brunton and Sally Rodwell in 1974.

Philippa Hall is a New Zealand stage, screen and radio script writer and actor.

Stuart Hoar is a New Zealand playwright, teacher, novelist, radio dramatist and librettist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kate JasonSmith</span> New Zealand actress and filmmaker

Kate JasonSmith is a New Zealand actor, film producer, playwright, filmmaker, photographer, and businesswoman. Based in Wellington, she has studied and worked elsewhere, including Australia, Ireland, and the United Kingdom. A feminist, as a theatre and film practitioner, she has been most recognised throughout her career for her role in establishing and producing Hens' Teeth, a platform for dozens of Kiwi female actors, musicians, and comedians that became a staple of the New Zealand theatre and comedy scene between 1988 and 1996. Her short film, Xmas for Lou (1992), won the Best Drama – Television award in the New Zealand Film and Television Awards of 1994. From 2018 on, the one-woman show I'll Tell You This for Nothing: My Mother the War Hero has received national and international praise for both the play, which she wrote, and her performance. JasonSmith is a member of the New Zealand Society of Authors/Te Puni Kaituhi O Aotearoa.

Raymond Stanley Boyce was a British-New Zealand stage designer, costume designer and puppeteer and puppet designer. Boyce was part of the start professional theatre movement in New Zealand influencing the artistic landscape with his design knowledge. Boyce designed hundreds of theatre shows and was named an Arts Foundation of New Zealand Icon in 2007.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Circa Theatre</span> Wellington theatre company

Circa Theatre is a professional theatre company in Wellington, New Zealand, that was established in 1976. They present a number of plays each year in their two auditoriums, and have a unique partnership and funding model with incoming shows underpinned with a cooperative principle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bill Sheat</span> New Zealand lawyer and arts advocate (1930–2021)

William Newton Sheat was a New Zealand lawyer and arts advocate whose input was instrumental in many arts organisations including as a founding member of the New Zealand Film Commission, Creative New Zealand and Downstage Theatre.

Massive Theatre Company, also called Massive or Massive Company, is a professional theatre company in Auckland, Aotearoa New Zealand.

Brian McNeill is a New Zealand playwright, actor and director.

Catherine Patricia Downes is a New Zealand theatre director, actor, dramaturg and playwright. Of Māori descent, she affiliates to Ngāi Tahu. Downes wrote a one-woman play The Case of Katherine Mansfield, which she has performed more than 1000 times in six countries over twenty years. She has been the artistic director of the Court Theatre in Christchurch and the director of Downstage Theatre in Wellington. She lives on Waiheke Island and works as a freelance actor, director and playwright.

Miriama McDowell is a New Zealand actor, director and playwright. She is a graduate of Toi Whakaari.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elizabeth Whiting</span> New Zealand costume designer

Elizabeth Whiting is a stage costume designer from New Zealand.

Jason Te Kare is a New Zealand director, playwright and actor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Helen Medlyn</span> New Zealand opera singer (born 1958)

Helen Medlyn is a New Zealand mezzo-soprano opera singer, musical theatre actor, media producer and gardener. She is particularly known for her comic roles and for her cabaret performances.

References

  1. 1 2 Christian, Dionne. "Stage master". NZ Herald. Retrieved 19 August 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "Raymond Hawthorne". Playmarket. Retrieved 5 August 2021.
  3. ↑ "Theatre Corporate :[Theatre programmes and fliers for drama productions. 1970-1980s]". National Library of New Zealand. 1 January 1975. Retrieved 5 August 2021.
  4. ↑ Taylor, Lindis. "New Zealand opera companies". Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand. New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatū Taonga. Retrieved 1 June 2021.
  5. ↑ "About ATC". Auckland Theatre Company. Retrieved 19 August 2021.
  6. ↑ "Raymond Hawthorne". Auckland Theatre Company. Retrieved 19 August 2021.
  7. ↑ "Upbeat". Radio New Zealand. 29 August 2011.
  8. ↑ "NZ On Screen". NZ On Screen. Retrieved 19 August 2021.
  9. ↑ "Raymond Hawthorne". IMDb. Retrieved 19 August 2021.
  10. 1 2 Derby, Mark (22 October 2014). "Theatre companies and producers - Theatre companies since the 1970s". Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand.
  11. ↑ "The Rise of Professional Theatre in Auckland". Auckland History Initiative. Retrieved 13 December 2023.
  12. ↑ "Queen's Birthday honours list 2000 (including special list for East Timor)". Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 5 June 2000. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  13. ↑ "Dad: Tell Them How Much You Love Them". New Zealand Herald. 5 March 2016.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.