Morris Stephen Panych (born 30 June 1952) is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

playwright A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes plays. Etymology The word "play" is from Middle English pleye, from Old English plæġ, pleġa, plæġa ("play, exercise; sport, game; drama, applause"). The word "wright" is an archaic English ...

, director and actor.

Early life

Panych was born in

Calgary Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, maki ...

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

and grew up in

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city anc ...

, Alberta. He studied at

Northern Alberta Institute of Technology The Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT) is a applied sciences institute in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. NAIT provides careers programs in applied research, technical training, applied education, and learning designed to meet the dema ...

, and the

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a public university, public research university with campuses near Vancouver and in Kelowna, British Columbia. Established in 1908, it is British Columbia's oldest university. The university ranks a ...

Plays

*''Co$t of Living'' (1991) *'' The Ends of the Earth'' (1994) *''Vigil'' (1996) (adapted for the British stage as ''Auntie and Me'') Vigil played at the Belfry Theatre in Victoria, BC (15 November - 11 December 2022) and Panych is described on the playbill as one of Canada's "most prolific and idiosyncratic playwrights -- and one of the very best. I love his plays -- and his characters. So many of them approach the world with disdain and skepticism. But despite their best efforts -- they can't help finding the good in other people." This work is best described as a very funny black comedy.Playbill for Vigil at the Belfry Theatre, 15 November to 11 December 2022 *''

Lawrence & Holloman ''Lawrence & Holloman'' is a Canadian black comedy film, directed by Matthew Kowalchuk and released in 2013.Janet Smith"Lawrence & Holloman serves its comedy nihilistically black" '' The Georgia Straight'', July 16, 2014. Adapted from the theatr ...

'' *'' Girl in the Goldfish Bowl'' (2003) *''Earshot'' *''

7 Stories ''7 Stories'' is a play created by Canadian playwright Morris Panych. Plot The protagonist (a well dressed man) is standing on the ledge on the seventh story of a tall building, contemplating leaping to his death. He is interrupted by the colorfu ...

'' *''Dishwashers'' *''Still Laughing: Three Adaptations by Morris Panych'' (2009), Panych's adaptations of: **''The Government Inspector'' by Nikolai Gogol **''Hotel Peccadillo'' by Georges Feydeau and Mauric Desvallières **''The Amorous Adventures of Anatol'' by Arthur Schnitzler *''The Trespassers'' (2010) *''Gordon'' (2011) *''In Absentia'' (2012) *''The Shoplifters'' (2014) *''Sextet'' (2014) *'' The Waiting Room'' (2015) He has directed nearly one hundred theatre and opera productions, including most of his own works, and the Prix Italia nominated ''The Overcoat'', plus several music videos and '' Da Vinci's Inquest''. He won the 1994 Governor General's Award for Drama for ''The Ends of the Earth'', and the 2004 Governor General's Award for Drama for ''Girl in the Goldfish Bowl''. In 2020 he created and wrote the web series ''

Hey Lady! ''Hey Lady!'' is a Canadian comedy web series that is directed by Adriana Maggs, Will Bowes and Sarah Polley, and airs on CBC Gem. The series was created by playwright Morris Panych for Jayne Eastwood and is Eastwood's first leading role in her 50 ...

'', starring

Jayne Eastwood Jayne Eastwood (born December 17, 1946), also credited as Jane Easton or Jane Eastwood, is a Canadian actress and comedian. She is best known for her film roles as Anna-Marie Biddlecoff in the comedy film '' Finders Keepers'' (1984), Judy the Wa ...

, for CBC Gem.

Personal life

Openly gay, Panych married his longtime partner, Ken MacDonald, in 2004.

References

External links

*
Canadian Theatre Encyclopedia entry

kenandmorris.com
Morris Panych and Ken MacDonald {{DEFAULTSORT:Panych, Morris 1952 births 20th-century Canadian dramatists and playwrights 21st-century Canadian dramatists and playwrights Governor General's Award-winning dramatists Living people Canadian gay writers Male actors from Calgary Male actors from Edmonton Writers from Calgary Writers from Edmonton Canadian LGBT dramatists and playwrights Canadian male dramatists and playwrights Canadian music video directors 20th-century Canadian male writers 21st-century Canadian male writers