Peter Cureton (November 1, 1965 – March 2, 1994) was a

Canadian Canadians () 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 their being ''C ...

actor and

playwright A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes play (theatre), plays, which are a form of drama that primarily consists of dialogue between Character (arts), characters and is intended for Theatre, theatrical performance rather than just Readin ...

."Actor-playwright Peter Cureton, 28". ''

Montreal Gazette ''The Gazette'', also known as the ''Montreal Gazette'', is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper which is owned by Postmedia Network. It is published in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is the only English-language daily newspape ...

'', March 8, 1994. He was best known for his 1993 play ''Passages'', an autobiographical show about living with

HIV/AIDS The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...

."Passages is eloquent adieu by writer with AIDS". ''

'', October 22, 1993. Born and raised 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 ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, Cureton was a cousin of actor

R. H. Thomson Robert Holmes Thomson (born 1947), known as R. H. Thomson, is a Canadian television, film, and stage actor. With a career spanning five decades he remains a regular presence on Canadian movie screens and television. He has received numerous ...

. He attended high school at

Lisgar Collegiate Institute Lisgar Collegiate Institute is an Ottawa-Carleton District School Board secondary school in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The school is located in downtown Ottawa by the Rideau Canal. History In 1843, a grammar school with 40 paying students was ...

, and later studied drama at

Concordia University Concordia University () is a Public university, public English-language research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1974 following the merger of Loyola College (Montreal), Loyola College and Sir George Williams Universit ...

."Actor, AIDS educator Peter Cureton dead at 28". ''

Ottawa Citizen The ''Ottawa Citizen'' is an English-language daily newspaper owned by Postmedia Network in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. History Established as the Bytown ''Packet'' in 1845 by William Harris (journalist), William Harris, it was renamed the ''Ci ...

'', March 7, 1994. He acted in theatre roles in both Ottawa and

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

, including productions of

Agatha Christie Dame Agatha Mary Clarissa Christie, Lady Mallowan, (; 15 September 1890 – 12 January 1976) was an English people, English author known for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections, particularly those revolving ...

's ''

The Mousetrap ''The Mousetrap'' is a murder mystery play by Agatha Christie. The play opened in London's West End in 1952 and ran continuously until 16 March 2020, when the stage performances had to be temporarily discontinued during the COVID-19 pandemi ...

'', Jack Todd's ''The Day Luzinski Stole Home'' and

William Mastrosimone William Mastrosimone (born August 19, 1947) is an American playwright and screenwriter from Trenton, New Jersey. He attended high school at The Pennington School and received a graduate degree in playwriting from Mason Gross School of the Arts, ...

's ''Shivaree'', participated in Montreal's first bilingual

theatresports Theatresports is a form of improvisational theatre, which uses the format of a competition for dramatic effect. Opposing teams can perform scenes based on audience suggestions, with ratings by the audience or by a panel of judges. Developed by di ...

competition,"Anglophones face off against French in Quebec improvisational theatre". ''

'', March 16, 1991. and appeared in the television film '' The Boys of St. Vincent'' as Brother Peter. Diagnosed

HIV-positive The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of '' Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the im ...

in 1988 while acting in ''The Mousetrap'', he also worked as an HIV educator. ''Passages'' premiered in Montreal in 1993, with Cureton as the director of the inaugural production. The cast included Joe de Paul,

Susan Glover Susan Irene Glover (born January 14, 1957) is a Canadian actress, best known for playing Sarah in ''Naked Josh''. She is also known for voicing Mrs. Wood in ''Arthur'', Izabella Dehavalot in '' Amazon Jack'', Mrs. Schuman in ''Spaced Out'', Mrs. ...

Lisa Bronwyn Moore Lisa Bronwyn Moore is a Canadian actress who has worked extensively in film and television. She had supporting roles in the movies ''Windsor Protocol'', ''The Legend of Sleepy Hollow'', '' The Courage To Love'' and ''Heart: The Marilyn Bell Stor ...

, Patrick Brosseau and

Pauline Little Pauline Little is a Scottish-born Canadian voice, film, and television actress. She voices the twins Lotus and Jasmine in '' The Little Flying Bears'', Maya in ''Maya the Bee'', Francine in ''Samurai Pizza Cats'' and Caillou's Grandma in ''Cail ...

. The play was favourably reviewed, with ''

'' theatre critic Pat Donnelly writing that "it should be a kickoff, not a swan song". Cureton died on March 2, 1994, aged 28, at his family's home in Ottawa, while working on a planned production of ''Passages'' in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cureton, Peter 1965 births 1994 deaths 20th-century Canadian male actors 20th-century Canadian dramatists and playwrights Canadian male stage actors Canadian male television actors Canadian male dramatists and playwrights Canadian gay actors Canadian gay writers Canadian LGBTQ dramatists and playwrights Male actors from Ottawa Male actors from Montreal Writers from Ottawa Writers from Montreal Concordia University alumni AIDS-related deaths in Canada Canadian theatre directors 20th-century Canadian male writers Lisgar Collegiate Institute alumni 20th-century Canadian LGBTQ people Gay dramatists and playwrights