Edward Danylo Evanko (October 19, 1938 – November 18, 2018) was a Canadian actor and singer who became a Ukrainian Catholic priest. He was born and died in

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. It is centred on the confluence of the Red River of the North, Red and Assiniboine River, Assiniboine rivers. , Winnipeg h ...

Biography

Early life

Evanko was born in

Manitoba Manitoba is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population ...

, to Danylo Evanko and Justyna Dmytryk, who had emigrated from Western

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

. At an early age, he showed a special talent for music, winning the first of many trophies in the Manitoba (Winnipeg) Music Competition Festival at thirteen years of age. He studied with Herbert Belyea and Lucien Needham and sang professionally for the first time at Rainbow Stage. He earned a BA Degree at the University of Manitoba, majoring in English. In 1961, he began training at the

Bristol Old Vic Theatre School The Bristol Old Vic Theatre School (BOVTS) is a drama school in Bristol, England. The institution provides training in acting and production for careers in film, television and theatre. BOVTS was an affiliate of the Conservatoire for Dance a ...

and sang with two opera companies in the 1970s - the

English Opera Group The English Opera Group was a small company of British musicians formed in 1947 by the composer Benjamin Britten (along with John Piper, Eric Crozier and Anne Wood) for the purpose of presenting his and other, primarily British, composers' operat ...

and the

Welsh National Opera Welsh National Opera (WNO) () is an opera company based in Cardiff, Wales. WNO gave its first performances in 1946. The company began as a mainly amateur body and transformed into an all-professional ensemble by 1973. In its early days, the ...

. Upon his return to Winnipeg in 1967, he hosted his own “Ed Evanko Show.” He appeared in many evening and daytime television drama including ''

Ryan's Hope ''Ryan's Hope'' is an American soap opera created by Claire Labine and Paul Avila Mayer, airing for 13 years on ABC from July 7, 1975, to January 13, 1989. It revolves around the trials and tribulations within a large Irish-American family in ...

'', ''

Chicago Hope ''Chicago Hope'' is an American medical drama television series created by David E. Kelley, that originally aired for six seasons on CBS from September 18, 1994, to May 4, 2000, with a total of 141 episodes. The series is set in a fictional pr ...

'', and ''

3rd Rock from the Sun ''3rd Rock from the Sun'' is an American television sitcom created by Bonnie and Terry Turner, which originally aired from January 9, 1996, to May 22, 2001, on NBC. The show is about four Extraterrestrial life, extraterrestrials who are on an e ...

''. He appeared on Broadway in ''

Canterbury Tales ''The Canterbury Tales'' () is a collection of 24 stories written in Middle English by Geoffrey Chaucer between 1387 and 1400. The book presents the tales, which are mostly written in verse (poetry), verse, as part of a fictional storytellin ...

'' and '' Rex''.

Education and career

He earned a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

at the

University of Manitoba The University of Manitoba (U of M, UManitoba, or UM) is a public research university in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Founded in 1877, it is the first university of Western Canada. Both by total student enrolment and campus area, the University of ...

, where he was Marc Antony in "Julius Caesar" among other productions, appeared at

Rainbow Stage Rainbow Stage is a not-for-profit musical theatre company and outdoor theatre operator, located in Kildonan Park in north Winnipeg, Manitoba. The covered amphitheatre seats up to 2,600 people and operates from May to September. History As urb ...

, and on

CBC Television CBC Television (also known as CBC TV, or simply CBC) is a Television in Canada, Canadian English-language terrestrial television, broadcast television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcasting, p ...

and

CBC Radio CBC Radio is the English-language radio operations of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. The CBC operates a number of radio networks serving different audiences and programming niches, all of which (regardless of language) are outlined below ...

. His Broadway debut gained him a

Theatre World Award The Theatre World Award is an American honor presented annually to actors and actresses in recognition of an outstanding New York City stage debut performance, either on Broadway or off-Broadway. It was first awarded for the 1945–1946 theatre se ...

, a New Jersey Drama Critics Award and a Los Angeles Ovation Award nomination. He recorded Broadway albums for Capitol, RCA, an album for Decca, and three for Destiny Records. He appeared at all the major Ukrainian festivals in Canada and the USA, and promoted Ukrainian music by singing on many occasions at the Ukrainian Institute and at

Lincoln Center Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (also simply known as Lincoln Center) is a complex of buildings in the Lincoln Square neighborhood on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. It has thirty indoor and outdoor facilities and is host to 5 ...

in New York City. He was also a member of the

Stratford Festival The Stratford Festival is a repertory theatre organization that operates from April to October in the city of Stratford, Ontario, Canada. Founded by local journalist Tom Patterson in 1952, the festival was formerly known as the Stratford Shak ...

company for three seasons in the early 1960s and late 1970s.

Rome

He did his academic and spiritual formation at the Pontificio Collegio Beda in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

, a
St. Josaphat Ukrainian Catholic Seminary
and at

The Catholic University of America The Catholic University of America (CUA) is a private Catholic research university in Washington, D.C., United States. It is one of two pontifical universities of the Catholic Church in the United States – the only one that is not primarily ...

(both in

Washington D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, and at Holy Spirit Ukrainian Catholic Seminary and St. Paul University in

Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

. He completed his Master of Arts in Theology degree (Eastern Christian Studies concentration) in the spring of 2005, and began to serve in the Archeparchy of Winnipeg. He entered the priesthood in his sixties and was practicing as a travelling priest in rural Manitoba. He then moved out to the West Coast for a brief spell, before returning to Manitoba.

Death

On October 21, 2016 he suffered a stroke to which he succumbed on November 18, 2018.

References

External links

Obituary of Father Edward Danylo Evanko

Ed Evanko at The Canadian Encyclopedia
*
Entry at discogs.com
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Evanko, Ed 1938 births 2018 deaths 20th-century Canadian Roman Catholic priests Canadian male musical theatre actors Canadian male stage actors Canadian male television actors 20th-century Canadian male opera singers Canadian people of Ukrainian descent Catholic University of America alumni Male actors from Winnipeg Canadian members of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church Musicians from Winnipeg University of Manitoba alumni Singers from Manitoba