Ann "Annie" Castledine (26 February 1939 – 4 June 2016), was a British

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 ...

, teacher and

dramaturg A dramaturge or dramaturg (from Ancient Greek δραματουργός – dramatourgós) is a literary adviser or editor in a theatre, opera, or film company who researches, selects, adapts, edits, and interprets scripts, libretti, texts, and pr ...

. Described in ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'' as "one of the arts world's best-known secrets" who "shaped some of the most influential players in British theatre" and had a "genius for doing work that is unfashionable".

Peter Brook Peter Stephen Paul Brook (21 March 1925 – 2 July 2022) was an English theatre and film director. He worked first in England, from 1945 at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre, from 1947 at the Royal Opera House, and from 1962 for the Royal Shak ...

described her as an "outstanding director of European classical and contemporary plays".Foreword to ''On Directing: Interviews with Directors'', Faber & Faber, 1999. She was regarded as an expert on the dramas of

Bertolt Brecht Eugen Berthold Friedrich Brecht (10 February 1898 – 14 August 1956), known as Bertolt Brecht and Bert Brecht, was a German theatre practitioner, playwright, and poet. Coming of age during the Weimar Republic, he had his first successes as a p ...

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

Anton Chekhov Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (; ; 29 January 1860 – 15 July 1904) was a Russian playwright and short-story writer, widely considered to be one of the greatest writers of all time. His career as a playwright produced four classics, and his b ...

and

Henrik Ibsen Henrik Johan Ibsen (; ; 20 March 1828 – 23 May 1906) was a Norwegian playwright, poet and actor. Ibsen is considered the world's pre-eminent dramatist of the 19th century and is often referred to as "the father of modern drama." He pioneered ...

, as well as being noted for her championing of new talent in British theatre and the arts, including work with new playwrights and the training of new directors. In supporting the development of British theatre, she was often likened to

Joan Littlewood Joan Maud Littlewood (6 October 1914 – 20 September 2002) was an English theatre director who trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and is best known for her work in developing the Theatre Workshop. She has been called "The Mother of M ...

– the "mother of modern (English) theatre".

Early life

Born in 1939, Ann Castledine grew up in

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...

and initially worked as a teacher. She attended the

University of York The University of York (abbreviated as or ''York'' for Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a public Collegiate university, collegiate research university in York, England. Established in 1963, the university has expanded to more than thir ...

as a mature student and turned to theatre directing in the 1970s. She was the eldest child of three born to Ida Castledine (née Armstrong) and Walter Cecil Castledine, who worked as an electrical engineer employed by the

National Coal Board The National Coal Board (NCB) was the statutory corporation created to run the nationalised coal mining industry in the United Kingdom. Set up under the Coal Industry Nationalisation Act 1946, it took over the United Kingdom's collieries on "ve ...

coal mines Coal mining is the process of resource extraction, extracting coal from the ground or from a mine. Coal is valued for its Energy value of coal, energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to Electricity generation, generate electr ...

including Kiveton Park Colliery. Her mother worked to run the household and bring up three children, while also donating time to the

NSPCC The National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) is a British child protection charity founded as the Liverpool Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (LSPCC) by Thomas Agnew on 19 April 1883. The NSPCC lobbies t ...

. Ida and Cecil were keen on plays and theatre and placed an emphasis on education as a means of betterment. Castledine claimed to have been well-versed with Greek and Roman mythology and literature at the age of 5. A bright student, she considered her early career prospects to be firmly established by her gender and class – in press interviews she recalled making the choice to work as a teacher, having been presented with a choice between becoming a teacher or becoming a nurse. Castledine attributed some of her early interest in theatre directing to the influence of Honor Mathews, who had been the head of drama at

Goldsmiths College Goldsmiths, University of London, formerly Goldsmiths College, University of London, is a Member institutions of the University of London, constituent research university of the University of London. It was originally founded in 1891 as The G ...

, London, during her own training. After working in London state schools as a teacher, and as senior lecturer in drama at Bulmershe College, Castledine attended the

as a mature student and found herself becoming preoccupied with directing plays. This early work was spotted by Michael Winter, the then director of York's Theatre Royal, who offered her the chance to be his

Arts Council An arts council is a government or private non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the arts; mainly by funding local artists, awarding prizes, and organizing arts events. They often operate at arms-length from the government to prevent pol ...

trainee in 1979.

Theatres and theatrical companies

Much of Castledine's theatrical work was carried out on a freelance basis and involved productions for a great number of British theatres and companies, including the

Royal Shakespeare Company The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs over 1,000 staff and opens around 20 productions a year. The RSC plays regularly in London, Stratf ...

and the

Royal National Theatre The National Theatre (NT), officially the Royal National Theatre and sometimes referred to in international contexts as the National Theatre of Great Britain, is a performing arts venue and associated theatre company located in London, England, ...

. Her career also included periods as the artistic director for Derby Playhouse (1987–90). Prior to which she was Associate Artistic Director at

Theatr Clwyd Theatr Clwyd () is a regional arts centre and producing theatre from Mold, Flintshire, in North East Wales. It opened as Theatr Clwyd in 1976, but was known between 1998 and 2015 as Clwyd Theatr Cymru, before reverting to its original name. His ...

(1985–87). She also worked regularly at

Chichester Festival Theatre Chichester Festival Theatre is a theatre and Grade II* listed building situated in Oaklands Park in the city of Chichester, West Sussex, England. Designed by Philip Powell and Hidalgo Moya, it was opened by its founder Leslie Evershed-Mart ...

. While based in York, early in her directing career, Castledine ran her own small production company – Northern Studio Theatre. Later in her career, she frequently collaborated with Complicité.

Collaborators

Repeat collaborators included

Stephen Daldry Stephen David Daldry Commander of the Order of the British Empire, CBE (born 2 May 1960) is an English director and producer of film, theatre, and television. He has won three Tony Awards for his work on Broadway theatre, Broadway and an Olivie ...

, Neil Bartlett,

Simon McBurney Simon Montagu McBurney (born 25 August 1957) is an English actor, playwright, and theatre and opera director. He is the founder and artistic director of the Complicité, Théâtre de Complicité, London. He has had roles in the films ''The Manch ...

, Annabel Arden, Josette Bushell-Mingo, Iona McLeish,

Kathryn Hunter Aikaterini Hadjipateras (; born 9 April 1957), known professionally as Kathryn Hunter, is a British-American actress and theatre director, known for her work in physical theatre. Hunter has appeared as Arabella Figg in the '' ''Harry Potter' ...

, Marcello Magni, Maureen Lawrence, Gillian Wright,

Bryony Lavery Bryony Lavery (born 1947) is a British dramatist, known for her successful and award-winning 1998 play '' Frozen''. In addition to her work in theatre, she has also written for television and radio. She has written books including the biography ...

, Beatrix Campbell,

Corin Redgrave Corin William Redgrave (16 July 19396 April 2010) was an English actor. Early life Redgrave was born in Marylebone, London, the only son and middle child of actors Michael Redgrave and Rachel Kempson. He was educated at Westminster School and ...

, Kika Markham,

Jane Birkin Jane Mallory Birkin ( ; 14 December 1946 – 16 July 2023) was a British and French actress, singer, and designer. She had a prolific career as an actress, mostly in French cinema. A native of London, Birkin began her career as an actress, ...

, Mark Wheatley Polly Irvin,

Roger Allam Roger William Allam (born 26 October 1953) is a British actor who has performed on stage, in film, on television and radio. He played Inspector Javert in the original London production of the stage musical ''Les Misérables'', First Officer D ...

, Colin Ellwood and Catherine Bailey.

Theatre productions

Selected productions include: *In 1990, Annie Castledine directed a production of '' The Caretaker'' by

Harold Pinter Harold Pinter (; 10 October 1930 – 24 December 2008) was a British playwright, screenwriter, director and actor. A List of Nobel laureates in Literature, Nobel Prize winner, Pinter was one of the most influential modern British dramat ...

at the

Sherman Theatre The Sherman Theatre () is a venue in the Cathays district of Cardiff. It was built as a twin-auditorium venue in 1973 with financial support from University College Cardiff (now Cardiff University). Sherman Cymru was the name of the Sherman Thea ...

in Cardiff. It was noted as the first-ever production to have the title part played by a woman,

Miriam Karlin Miriam Karlin (23 June 19253 June 2011) was an English actress whose career lasted for more than 60 years. She was known for her role as Paddy in ''The Rag Trade'', a 1960s BBC and 1970s LWT sitcom, and in particular for the character's catchp ...

. *In 1991, she co-directed with

"a revelatory, award-winning pair of 1920s plays", '' Pioneers in Ingolstadt'' and ''Purgatory in Ingolstadt'', by Marieluise Fleißer, at the

Gate Theatre (London) {{Infobox building , name = Gate Theatre , native_name = , native_name_lang = , logo = , logo_size = , logo_alt = , logo_caption = , image = Gate Thea ...

. These productions won the ''Time Out'' London Award for Best Director (1991). *In 1992–93, she directed ''Marching for Fausa'' by Biyi Bandele, the first African play to be staged at the Royal Court in London since 1966. *In 1993, she directed ''From The Mississippi Delta'' by Endesha Ida Mae Holland at the Cochrane Theatre. Winner of the Bass Charrington London Fringe Award for Best Ensemble and Best Director. *At the

in 1995, she directed an "impressive" and "unforgettable" production of the '' Women of Troy''. *In 2002, she directed Meredith Oakes' play ''Man for Hire'' in a season of new plays commissioned by Laura Harvey and Alan Ayckbourn at the Stephen Joseph Theatre. *Cambridge Arts Theatre on 13-16 October 2004, Oedipus Tyrannus, The Cambridge Greek Play of 2004, in the original language - A tradition that goes back to 1882 (The History of Cambridge Greek Play: https://www.cambridgegreekplay.com/the-history-of-the-cambridge-greek-play). Production team included Designer: Simon Brimson-Lewis, Lighting Designer: Ben Payne, Musical Director / Composer: Sinan Savaskan, Choreographer: Shona Morris. https://www.cambridgegreekplay.com/plays/2004/oedipus-tyrannus *In 2010, at the

Arcola Theatre Arcola Theatre is in the London Borough of Hackney. It presents plays, operas and musicals featuring established and emerging artists. The theatre building, in the former Colourworks paint factory on Ashwin Street, Dalston, houses two studio ...

in 2010, she co-directed with Annabel Arden Thomas Bernhard's last play ''Heldenplatz''. It was reviewed in the British press: "The superb Arcola staging made the case for Bernhard, a major European dramatist, for the first time, in effect, in this country." *Annie Castledine played a role in the creation of ''The Encounter'', based on the book ''Amazon Beaming'' by

Petru Popescu Petru Popescu (born February 1, 1944) is a Romanian-American writer, director and film producer, author of the novels ''Almost Adam'' and ''Amazon Beaming''. Romanian beginnings The son of theater critic Radu Popescu and actress Nelly Cutava, he ...

. The one-person show was first devised, directed and performed by

in 2015. Castledine had suggested the piece for adaptation to McBurney, with the gift of an inscribed book, 20 years before. It has been performed across the UK and Europe.

Radio productions

By Annie Castledine and Pier Productions: *''Book at Bedtime: Three stories written by

Stefan Zweig Stefan Zweig ( ; ; 28 November 1881 – 22 February 1942) was an Austrian writer. At the height of his literary career, in the 1920s and 1930s, he was one of the most widely translated and popular writers in the world. Zweig was raised in V ...

''. Originally broadcast on

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. The station replaced the BBC Home Service on 30 September 1967 and broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes from the BBC's headquarters at Broadcasti ...

in January 2005. *''Sister Under the Skin'' written by

, starring Corin Redgrave and Kika Markham. Originally broadcast on

in March 2005 Directed by Castledine and produced by Catherine Bailey Productions: *''Gaslight'' written by Patrick Hamilton, starring

Juliet Stevenson Juliet Anne Virginia Stevenson, (born 30 October 1956) is an English actress of stage and screen. She is known for her role in the film '' Truly, Madly, Deeply'' (1991), for which she was nominated for the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Le ...

and Corin Redgrave. Originally broadcast on

. *''Lady Audley's Secret ''written by Mary Bradden, adapted by

, starring Francesca Annis. Originally broadcast on

in 2000. *''Oh Sorry, Were You Asleep?'' written by

, starring Jane Birkin and Corin Redgrave. Originally broadcast on

. *''Hymn to Love – Homage to Piaf''. Originally broadcast on

BBC Radio 3 BBC Radio 3 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It replaced the BBC Third Programme in 1967 and broadcasts classical music and opera, with jazz, world music, Radio drama, drama, High culture, culture and the arts ...

. *''One Small Step'' written by Mark Wheatley. Originally broadcast on

. *''One Small Good Thing'' adapted by Mark Wheatley from a short story by

Raymond Carver Raymond Clevie Carver Jr. (May 25, 1938 – August 2, 1988) was an American short story writer and poet. He published his first collection of stories, '' Will You Please Be Quiet, Please?'', in 1976. His breakout collection, '' What We Talk About ...

. Originally broadcast on

. *''The Lovers of Viorne'' written by

Marguerite Duras Marguerite Germaine Marie Donnadieu (, 4 April 1914 – 3 March 1996), known as Marguerite Duras (), was a French novelist, playwright, screenwriter, essayist, and experimental filmmaker. Her script for the film ''Hiroshima mon amour'' (1959) ea ...

, adapted by

. Originally broadcast on

in October 2004. *''Boniface and Me'' written by Gillian Plowman. Originally broadcast on

in December 2007. *''Gracey and Me'' written by Gillian Plowman. Originally broadcast on

in October 2010. *''Gilead'' adapted by Mike Kenny from the novel by

Marilynne Robinson Marilynne Summers Robinson (born November 26, 1943) is an American novelist and essayist. Across her writing career, Robinson has received numerous awards, including the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 2005, National Humanities Medal in 2012, and th ...

. Originally broadcast on

in November 2010.

Television productions

Produced by Annie Castledine: *''Henry IV'' written by

, adapted and directed by John Caird, starring

Ronald Pickup Ronald Alfred Pickup (7 June 1940 – 24 February 2021) was an English actor. He was active in television, film, and theatre, beginning with a 1964 appearance in ''Doctor Who''. Theatre critic Michael Billington described him as "a terrific st ...

. Originally broadcast on

BBC 2 BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's second flagship channel, and it covers a wide range of subject matter, incorporating genres such as comedy, drama and d ...

on 28 October 1995. Directed by Annie Castledine: *''The Colour of Light'' written by Sheila Yeger, starring Kim Hicks, Barbara Marten and Rob Pickavance. Originally broadcast on

on 24 July 1997.

Teaching

* Bulmershe College *

Guildhall School of Music and Drama The Guildhall School of Music and Drama is a music school, music and drama school located in the City of London, England. Established in 1880, the school offers undergraduate and postgraduate training in all aspects of classical music and jazz al ...

, including productions of ''When Nora Left Her Husband'' by

Elfriede Jelinek Elfriede Jelinek (; born 20 October 1946) is an Austrian playwright and novelist. She is one of the most decorated authors to write in German and was awarded the 2004 Nobel Prize in Literature for her "musical flow of voices and counter-voices ...

. * Rose Bruford College: Placement Tutor from 2004 to 2010; teacher of the 'New Writing Production Module', 'The BAC Final Production Module', 'The Brecht Course', 'The Chekhov Course', and 'Lectures on Classic Texts'. Honorary Fellow. *

University of Manchester The University of Manchester is a public university, public research university in Manchester, England. The main campus is south of Manchester city centre, Manchester City Centre on Wilmslow Road, Oxford Road. The University of Manchester is c ...

/ Rose Bruford College: creation (2009–10) of a distance learning course with Polly Irvin, 'Four Contemporary Directors and the Stories They Tell'. *

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

, Cambridge Greek plays. Castledine was also a long-standing Patron of the British Regional Theatre Young Director Scheme, serving alongside fellow Patrons

Phyllida Lloyd Phyllida Christian Lloyd, (born 17 June 1957) is an English film and theatre director and producer. Her theatre work includes directing productions at the Royal Court Theatre and Royal National Theatre, and opera director for Opera North and ...

Trevor Nunn Sir Trevor Robert Nunn (born 14 January 1940) is an English theatre director and lyricist. He has been the artistic director for the Royal Shakespeare Company, the Royal National Theatre, and, currently, the Theatre Royal Haymarket. He has dir ...

, Adrian Noble, Michael Boyd,

Michael Grade Michael Ian Grade, Baron Grade of Yarmouth (born 8 March 1943) is an English Media proprietor, television executive and businessman. He has held a number of senior roles in television, including controller of BBC1 (1984–1986), chief executive ...

and Michael Billington.

Books

*''Plays by Women, Volume 9'', first published by Methuen Drama for

Bloomsbury Publishing Bloomsbury Publishing plc is a British worldwide publishing house of fiction and non-fiction. Bloomsbury's head office is located on Bedford Square in Bloomsbury, an area of the London Borough of Camden. It has a US publishing office located in ...

in 1992, edited and introduced by Annie Castledine. *''Plays by Women, Volume 10'', first published by Methuen Drama for Bloomsbury Publishing in 1994, edited and introduced by Annie Castledine. *Interviewed in ''On Directing: Interviews with Directors'', edited by Gabriella Giannachi and Mary Buckhurst, published by

Faber & Faber Faber and Faber Limited, commonly known as Faber & Faber or simply Faber, is an independent publishing house in London. Published authors and poets include T. S. Eliot (an early Faber editor and director), W. H. Auden, C. S. Lewis, Margaret S ...

1999.

Death

She died in June 2016, aged 77, in hospital in

Eastbourne Eastbourne () is a town and seaside resort in East Sussex, on the south coast of England, east of Brighton and south of London. It is also a non-metropolitan district, local government district with Borough status in the United Kingdom, bor ...

Family

Castledine was survived by her sister, brother, five nieces and a nephew. This family includes the classicist Helen Morales.

Quotations by Annie Castledine

*''"Our priority then and now is to extend our hands across cultural barriers to grasp our common humanity. If we ignore that, we are condemning the whole human race."'' *''"Too many theatres are driven by caution and a desire to do work that is proven."'' *''"I hadn't realised regional rep was about money. I thought it was about encouraging the young and being radical."'' *''"When you spend so many weeks in the presence of a great playwright with a challenging voice and a political consciousness, then your quality of life goes into the stratosphere."'' *''"If women playwrights are not given enough practice through production and have to snatch what experience they can... it is because their work is not the first choice of those in power in our theatre."''From the Introduction of ''Plays by Women: Nine'' ed. Annie Castledine, published by Methuen, 1991. *''"The curse of our theatre is the linear, suburban imagination which has to be literal about time and place."'' *''"In doing it for us, the characters allow us to also experience the scream. Hugely cathartic, hugely important. Classless, timeless, placeless."'' *''"Theatre is an abused art form here. And it is undervalued because it is underfunded."'' *''"When you have nothing else you have words, so use those words."''

Quotations about Annie Castledine

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

, director & producer: "''A giant, a mother and a force for all that's best in the theatre.''" *Sarah Brigham, artistic director and chief executive of Derby Playhouse: ''"Annie was fearless in her programming of Derby Playhouse, encouraging innovation, work of the highest quality and encouraging audiences to take as many risks as we ask artists to."'' * Mike Kenny, playwright: ''"I don't think they make them like Annie any more... She had a belief in the creativity of ordinary people and never compromised on a parallel belief in excellence. She promoted women's work and diversity when it wasn't fashionable. She threw together volatile groups of creative people and often produced magic and sometimes, it has to be said, chaos. If you were an actor in her rehearsal room, every day was like having a full house – the quality of the attention she paid you was as enormous as she was as a personality. I did smile when I heard that she died on the same day as

Muhammad Ali Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and social activist. A global cultural icon, widely known by the nickname "The Greatest", he is often regarded as the gr ...

. If those two met at the Pearly Gates, I wouldn't fancy his chances."'' *

Lyn Gardner Lyn Gardner is a British theatre critic, children's writer, and journalist who contributes reviews and articles to ''The Stage'' and '' Stagedoor'' and has written for ''The Guardian''. Theatre critic and educator A graduate in drama and English ...

, critic and journalist: ''" e of the most energising and dynamic talents in the business. She was always a late starter... Castledine's work... combines an English working-class and feminist toughness tempered by a lyric, European sensibility."'' *

, director: ''" astledinehas defined herself as an outstanding director of European classical and contemporary plays, bringing a compelling visionary power to the stage."''

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Castledine, Annie 1939 births 2016 deaths English theatre directors British women theatre directors People from Sheffield Schoolteachers from Yorkshire Alumni of the University of York