Geoffrey George Gibbs (25 November 1940 – 17 August 2006) was an Australian actor and acting teacher.

Biography

Gibbs was born in Kalgoorlie, Western Australia, in 1940, and was educated at

Aquinas College, Perth Aquinas College, informally known as Aquinas or AC, is an Independent school, independent Roman Catholicism in Australia, Roman Catholic Single-sex education, single-sex Primary school, primary and Secondary school, secondary Day school, day a ...

. He studied for bachelor's and master's degrees in arts at the

University of Western Australia University of Western Australia (UWA) is a public research university in the Australian state of Western Australia. The university's main campus is in Crawley, Western Australia, Crawley, a suburb in the City of Perth local government area. UW ...

, and later a PhD from

Ohio State University The Ohio State University (Ohio State or OSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio, United States. A member of the University System of Ohio, it was founded in 1870. It is one ...

in the United States.''Who's Who in Australia'', Volume 35; Herald and Weekly Times, 2002. Gibbs was founding dean of dramatic arts at the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA) from 1979 to 1988, and trained several of Australia's best-known actors, including

Hugh Jackman Hugh Michael Jackman (born 12 October 1968) is an Australian and British actor, singer, and producer. Beginning in theatre and television, Jackman landed his breakthrough role as Wolverine in the ''X-Men'' film franchise and the Marvel Cinem ...

, Frances O'Connor, Lisa McCune and William McInnes. In 1988, he was made chairman of the International Foundation for Arts and Culture, a non-profit organisation formed to promote the creation of new work and cultural and artistic residencies.

Honours

Gibbs was made a Member of the

Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an Australian honours and awards system, Australian honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Monarch ...

(AM) in the 2002 Queen's Birthday Honours, for service to the performing arts through the establishment, development and promotion of the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts, and through professional associations.GIBBS, Geoffrey George
''It's an Honour'', 10 June 2002. In October 2007, the Academy Theatre at WAAPA was renamed the Geoff Gibbs Theatre in his honour. The ceremony at which the theatre was renamed was officiated by star graduate Hugh Jackman.Geoff Gibbs Theatre
Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gibbs, Geoff 1940 births 2006 deaths Australian male stage actors Australian male television actors Australian male film actors Drama teachers Academic staff of Edith Cowan University University of Western Australia alumni Ohio State University College of Arts and Sciences alumni People educated at Aquinas College, Perth Members of the Order of Australia People from Kalgoorlie Male actors from Western Australia