John Percy Burrell (6 May 1910–28 September 1972) was an English

theatre director A theatre director or stage director is a professional in the theatre field who oversees and orchestrates the mounting of a theatre production such as a play, opera, dance, drama, musical theatre performance, etc. by unifying various endeavors a ...

. John Burrell was educated at

Shrewsbury School Shrewsbury School is a public school (English independent boarding school for pupils aged 13 –18) in Shrewsbury. Founded in 1552 by Edward VI by Royal Charter, it was originally a boarding school for boys; girls have been admitted into ...

in Shropshire, England and he led a successful theatre career afterwards. He was appointed as a co-director of the

Old Vic Theatre The Old Vic is a 1,000-seat, not-for-profit producing theatre in Waterloo, London, England. Established in 1818 as the Royal Coburg Theatre, and renamed in 1833 the Royal Victoria Theatre. In 1871 it was rebuilt and reopened as the Royal ...

in London, England, with Laurence Olivier and Ralph Richardson in 1948. He later moved to the US and worked on

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

, New York. "He was a founder of the American Shakespeare Festival Theatre and Academy at Stratford, Connecticut, where he also taught acting, and which opened its first season in July 1955. He was then executive artistic director for CBS TV in New York, and was credited with revolutionizing design on television. Burrell's final post was as a drama professor at the University of Illinois." He served as the first director of

Krannert Center for the Performing Arts The Krannert Center for the Performing Arts is an educational and performing arts complex located at 500 South Goodwin Avenue in Urbana, Illinois and on the campus of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Herman C. Krannert, an industria ...

, which a critic for ''The New York Times'' called “one of the most ingeniously worked out art complexes anywhere,” until his death in 1972.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Burrell, John 1910 births 1972 deaths English theatre directors People educated at Shrewsbury School