Canadian theatre legend Martha Henry dead at 83

Canadian theatre giant and Stratford Festival mainstay Martha Henry died Thursday of cancer. The 83-year-old actor died just 12 days after her last stage performance in Edward Albee's Three Tall Women at the Ontario festival.

"Our hearts are shattered," said Artistic Director Antoni Cimolino. "In losing Martha Henry we have lost the dearest friend, the most inspiring mentor and an unforgettable, original talent. Her profound love for the Stratford Festival, her ingrained wisdom and her integrity were for me a compass.

"The name Martha Henry is synonymous with artistry, intelligence and beauty. As an actor her performances became the stuff of legend. As a director her productions illuminated not only the text but the world that each actor inhabited as a result of her encouragement and imagination.

"And yet despite fame she worked tirelessly. She knew that grit, dedication and craft were the foundation for inspiration and art.

"Her sense of responsibility to the theatre was so profound that it enabled her to endure pain and face down her terminal disease to complete an astoundingly truthful performance as a dying woman in Three Tall Woman. Her life became art."

Ms Henry was with the Festival for a remarkable 47 seasons between 1962 and 2021. In addition to performing in more than 70 productions and directing 14 more, she served as the director of the Festival's Birmingham Conservatory for 10 years, from 2007 to 2016, and as director of the Michael Langham Workshop for Classical Direction from 2017 to 2020, nurturing the next generation of classical artists.