Early life and education
Lamberts was born James Lancaster in Toronto, Ontario, the eldest son of Cyril and Patricia Langcaster, a factor worker and retail clerk (respectively). As a boy, he and his brothers John and Raymond performed pantomime shows for senior citizens and Kiwanis groups. Heath won singing contests at school, allowing him to perform with Toronto's Opera Festival Association. In high school, he took a two-year course in art before leaving to study acting. Lamberts took an apprenticeship at Vineyard Theatre near Niagara Falls, learning his craft from stars such as Tallulah Bankhead and Jack Carter. In 1960 he was admitted into the National Theatre School of Canada in Montreal and graduated in 1963. He also studied mime in Paris, France, at Le Coq d'Or. He pursued the arts as a career, changing his name to Heath Lamberts.Career
Lamberts worked extensively in theaters across Canada, especially at the Shaw Festival and the Stratford Festival, where he grew into a great comedic actor, starring in popular farces such as '' Rookery Nook'' and ''One for the Pot''. From 1982 to 1983 he played the demanding title role of '' Cyrano de Bergerac''. On Broadway his longest role was in the original cast of '' Beauty and the Beast'' as Cogsworth. In later years, he performed numerous roles in Pittsburgh theatre. Although most prominently a stage actor, he also had more than twenty roles in theatrical and made-for-television films including '' A Great Big Thing'' (1968), '' Where's Pete'' (1986), and '' Sam & Me'' (1991), as well as appearances on television series such as '' Counterstrike'' (1991), '' Law & Order'' (1996), and '' Remember WENN'' (1998).Awards and honors
Lamberts was inducted as a Member of the Order of Canada in 1987 by Queen Elizabeth II and the Governor General of Canada to recognize his distinction as an actor."Hansen, Bouey named to Order of Canada". '' The Globe and Mail'', July 7, 1987. He won a Dora Mavor Moore Award (the "Toronto Tony") for his role in the 1996 Toronto rivival of ''One for the Pot''. The '' Pittsburgh Post Gazette'' named Lamberts, "Performer of the Year" (2000) for his central role in '' Quills'' at the Pittsburgh Playhouse.Personal life
Lamberts was married to Carole Macomber, stage manager for the Shaw Festival, for a brief period in the 1980s. He later had an eight year relationship with Louise Silk, a Pittsburgh artist. Lamberts was a recovering alcoholic with a twenty-three year membership in Alcoholics Anonymous, in which he was an inspiration to his friends.Death
Lamberts died at UPMC Shadyside in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, US, on February 22, 2005, from cancer.Theatre
Some of Lamberts' many stage roles include the following. * 1982–1983: '' Cyrano de Bergerac'' as Cyrano de Bergerac – Shaw Festival, Niagra-on-the-Lake * 1994–: '' Beauty and the Beast'' as Cogsworth * 1996: ''One for the Pot'' – Toronto revival * 1997: '' Once Upon a Mattress'' as King Sextimus – Broadway's Broadhurst Theatre * 1998: '' A Midsummer Night's Dream'' as Bottom – Pittsburgh Public Theater * 1999: ''Gross Indecency'' as Marquis of Queensbury – City Theatre * 2000: '' Quills'' – Pittsburgh Playhouse * 2000: '' La Bête'' – Pittsburgh Playhouse * 2001: '' By Jeeves'' as Sir Watkyn Basset – Pittsburgh Public Theater * 2002: ''La Bête'' as Title role – Playhouse Rep * 2003: '' Hamlet'' as Gravedigger – Pittsburgh Playhouse * 2003: '' Macbeth'' as Porter * 2003: '' Uncle Vanya'' as Telegin – Pittsburgh Irish & Classical Theatre * 2004: ''e-lectricity'' – Pittsburgh PlayhouseFilmography
References
External links
* 1941 births 2005 deaths Canadian male stage actors Members of the Order of Canada Male actors from Pittsburgh Deaths from cancer in Pennsylvania National Theatre School of Canada alumni Dora Mavor Moore Award winners Male actors from Toronto Canadian male film actors Canadian male television actors 20th-century Canadian male actors 21st-century Canadian male actors {{tv-actor-stub