Robin Phillips OC (28 February 1940 – 25 July 2015) was an English

actor An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...

and

film director A film director or filmmaker is a person who controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfillment of that Goal, vision. The director has a key role ...

Life

He was born in

Haslemere The town of Haslemere () and the villages of Shottermill and Grayswood are in south-west Surrey, England, around south-west of London. Together with the settlements of Hindhead and Beacon Hill (Hindhead, Surrey), Beacon Hill, they comprise ...

Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...

in 1940 to Ellen Anne (

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

Barfoot) and James William Phillips. He trained at the

Bristol Old Vic Bristol Old Vic is a British theatre company based at the Theatre Royal, Bristol. The present company was established in 1946 as an offshoot of the Old Vic in London. It is associated with the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, which became a fin ...

, where a contemporary was

Patrick Stewart Sir Patrick Stewart (born 13 July 1940) is an English actor. With a career spanning over seven decades of Patrick Stewart on stage and screen, stage and screen, he has received List of awards and nominations received by Patrick Stewart, variou ...

, and worked as an actor and director for many years in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, finishing as artistic director at the

Greenwich Theatre Greenwich Theatre is a local theatre located in Croom's Hill close to the centre of Greenwich in south-east London. Theatre first came to Greenwich at the beginning of the 19th century during the famous Eastertide Greenwich Fair at which the Ri ...

from 1973 to 1975. He was hired as artistic director at 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 ...

in Canada in 1975, where he spent six seasons directing many productions and cultivating new talent.

Maggie Smith Dame Margaret Natalie Smith (28 December 1934 – 27 September 2024) was a British actress. Known for her wit in both comedic and dramatic roles, she had List of Maggie Smith performances, an extensive career on stage and screen for over seve ...

Richard Monette Richard Jean Monette CM, DHum, LLD (June 19, 1944 – September 9, 2008), was a Canadian actor and director, best known for his 14-season tenure as the longest-serving artistic director of the Stratford Festival of Canada from 1994 to 2007. Ear ...

, Martha Henry and

Brian Bedford Brian Bedford (16 February 1935 – 13 January 2016) was an English actor. He appeared in film and on stage, and was an actor-director of Shakespeare productions. Bedford was nominated for seven Tony Awards for his theatrical work, winning once ...

, among others, were prominently featured during his tenure, and many of his Shakespearean, classical, and contemporary productions won widespread acclaim. Includes 24min video. In a review of Phillips' 1977 Stratford production of

Richard III Richard III (2 October 1452 – 22 August 1485) was King of England from 26 June 1483 until his death in 1485. He was the last king of the Plantagenet dynasty and its cadet branch the House of York. His defeat and death at the Battle of Boswor ...

with Bedford in the title role, ''

The Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Newspapers in Canada, Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in Western Canada, western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of more than 6 million in 2024, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on week ...

'' theatre critic John Fraser wrote: "The production Phillips has mounted is stunning, crackling with nuances and details that are spellbinding, while radiating an over-all economy of dramatic management that demands an intense involvement from any audience". Veteran Stratford actor and director William Hutt compared Phillips to earlier artistic directors by saying: "With Guthrie, the heartbeat of a production was loud, obvious, robust and healthy. With Langham, rhythmic, predictable and safe. With Gascon it ran fast; you suspected high blood pressure. With Phillips the heartbeat is thunderingly silent: it’s the audience’s hearts you hear beating”. Phillips' energy seemed boundless during his time at the Stratford helm. He directed 36 productions in six seasons (his predecessor Jean Gascon directed 17 productions in seven seasons), and the company, audience, and overall scale of the organization grew considerably. But the workload took its toll: exhaustion was cited as the primary reason for his departure when he resigned during the 1980 season. He would later become artistic director at the Grand Theatre in

London, Ontario London is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada, along the Quebec City–Windsor Corridor. The city had a population of 422,324 according to the 2021 Canadian census. London is at the confluence of the Thames River (Ontario), Thames River and N ...

and return to Stratford to direct the Young Company in 1987–88. He was also director general at the

Citadel Theatre The Citadel Theatre is the major venue for theatre arts in the city of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, located in the city's downtown core on Churchill Square. It is the third largest regional theatre in Canada. History It began in a former Salvati ...

Edmonton Edmonton is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Alberta. It is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Central Alberta ...

from 1990 to 1995. He directed a musical version of '' Jekyll & Hyde'' (1997) on

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...

(winning the

Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Set Design The Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Set Design was an annual award presented by Drama Desk in recognition of achievements in the theatre across collective Broadway, off-Broadway and off-off-Broadway productions in New York City. The award was fir ...

for his contribution to the scenic design); ''

Long Day's Journey into Night ''Long Day's Journey into Night'' is a play in four acts written by American playwright Eugene O'Neill in 1939–1941 and first published posthumously in 1956. It is widely regarded as his magnum opus and one of the great American plays of the ...

'' in London's West End in 2000; and a stage version of '' Larry's Party'' at Canadian Stage and the

National Arts Centre The National Arts Centre (NAC) () is a Arts centre, performing arts organization in Ottawa, Ontario, along the Rideau Canal. It is based in the eponymous National Arts Centre (building), National Arts Centre building. History The NAC was one ...

in 2001. Phillips was appointed an Officer of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada () is a Canadian state order, national order and the second-highest Award, honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the Canadian Centennial, ce ...

in 2005. The citation read, in part, "Robin Phillips is revered amongst members of Canada's acting community. ... A tremendous asset to the cultural life of Canada, he is also credited with bringing new life to the Citadel Theatre in Edmonton and to theatres across the country." In 2010, Phillips received the

Governor General's Performing Arts Award The Governor General's Performing Arts Awards are an annual Canadian award, presented to honour distinguished achievements in Canadian performing arts and culture. Administered by the Governor General’s Performing Arts Awards Foundation in associ ...

for Lifetime Artistic Achievement, Canada's highest honour in the performing arts. Phillips died in his sleep on 25 July 2015, after a prolonged illness. He was survived by a younger sister, Hilary, and by his partner, Joe Mandel (1936–2023), whom he first met in 1962 but who became his partner in 1971.Obituary for Robin Phillips in ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'' - 30 July 2015

In film

Though none of his stage productions were captured on film, Phillips is featured in the documentary ''Robin and Mark and Richard III'', in which he guides veteran TV actor

Mark McKinney Mark Douglas Brown McKinney (born June 26, 1959) is a Canadian actor and comedian. He is best known as a member of the sketch comedy troupe The Kids in the Hall, which includes starring in the 1989 to 1995 TV series '' The Kids in the Hall'' and ...

through some key scenes in Shakespeare's

. Its creators

Susan Coyne Susan Coyne (born 16 June 1958) is a Canadians, Canadian writer and actress, best known as one of the co-creators and co-stars of the award-winning ''Slings & Arrows'', a TV series which ran 2003–06 about a Canadian Shakespearean theatre c ...

and

Martha Burns Martha Burns (born 23 April 1957)"Martha Burns ret ...

had both been directed and mentored by Phillips earlier in their careers, and wanted to capture some of his technique coaching McKinney, a Shakespeare novice. The film was released in 2016, shortly after Phillips' death.

Selected film and TV credits

*''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series, created by Sydney Newman, C. E. Webber and Donald Wilson (writer and producer), Donald Wilson, depicts the adventures of an extraterre ...

'' ''

The Keys of Marinus ''The Keys of Marinus'' is the fifth serial in the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast on BBC TV/BBC1 in six weekly parts from 11 April to 16 May 1964. Written by Terry Nation and directed by Joh ...

'' (1964) - Altos *'' The Saint'' (1 episode, 1965) - Nigel Perry *'' Broome Stages'' (6 episodes, 1966) - Robin Broome *'' The Avengers'' (1 episode, 1966) - John Pettit *''

The Forsyte Saga ''The Forsyte Saga'', first published under that title in 1922, is a series of three novels and two interludes published between 1906 and 1921 by the English author John Galsworthy, who won the 1932 Nobel Prize in Literature. They chronicle th ...

'' (1967) - Wilfred Desert *'' Decline and Fall... of a Birdwatcher'' (1968) - Paul Pennyfeather *'' Two Gentlemen Sharing'' (1969) - Roddy Pater *''

David Copperfield ''David Copperfield''Dickens invented over 14 variations of the title for this work; see is a novel by English author Charles Dickens, narrated by the eponymous David Copperfield, detailing his adventures in his journey from infancy to matur ...

'' (1970; TV) - David Copperfield *''Un estate con sentimento'' (1970) - Mark Faulkner *''

Tales from the Crypt Tales from the Crypt may refer to: * ''Tales from the Crypt'' (album), by American rapper C-Bo * ''Tales from the Crypt'' (comics), published by EC Comics during the 1950s ** ''Tales from the Crypt'' (film), a 1972 Amicus film starring Ralph Ric ...

'' (1972) - James Elliot (segment 3 "Poetic Justice") (final film role)

Director

*''

The House of Bernarda Alba ''The House of Bernarda Alba'' () is a play (theatre), play by the Spain, Spanish dramatist Federico García Lorca. Commentators have often grouped it with ''Blood Wedding (play), Blood Wedding'' and ''Yerma'' as the Rural Trilogy. García Lorc ...

'' tage(1973) *''

Miss Julie ''Miss Julie'' () is a naturalistic play written in 1888 by August Strindberg. It is set on Midsummer's Eve and the following morning, which is Midsummer and the Feast Day of St. John the Baptist. The setting is an estate of a count in Sweden. ...

'' elevision(1974) *''

The Wars ''The Wars'' is a 1977 novel by Timothy Findley that follows Robert Ross, a nineteen-year-old Canadian who enlists in World War I after the death of his beloved older sister in an attempt to escape both his grief and the social norms of oppressiv ...

ilm Ilm or ILM may refer to: Acronyms * Identity Lifecycle Manager, a Microsoft Server Product * '' I Love Money,'' a TV show on VH1 * Independent Loading Mechanism, a mounting system for CPU sockets * Industrial Light & Magic, an American motion p ...

(1983)

References

External links

* * *
Robin Phillips
at Theatricalia * (2007/06/27). The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived fro
the original
on 2008-04-30.
Robin Phillips
(Aveleyman)
Interview
with Stratford Festival costumer Cynthia MacLennan on working with Phillips (Theatre Museum Canada). {{DEFAULTSORT:Phillips, Robin 1940 births 2015 deaths English male stage actors English film directors English theatre directors Officers of the Order of Canada Film directors from Ontario Canadian theatre directors People from Haslemere Canadian gay actors British LGBTQ film directors British gay actors English emigrants to Canada Canadian artistic directors Governor General's Award winners 20th-century Canadian LGBTQ people Canadian LGBTQ film directors