Canadian theatre titan Martha Henry has died, age 83, just two weeks following her final performance in Edward Albee’s Three Tall Women.
“Our hearts are shattered,” wrote artistic director Antoni Cimolino in a press release.
“In losing Martha Henry, we have lost the dearest friend, the most inspiring mentor and an unforgettable, original talent. Her profound love for the Stratford Festival, her ingrained wisdom and her integrity were for me a compass.”
“…Her sense of responsibility to the theatre was so profound that it enabled her to endure pain and face down her terminal disease to complete an astoundingly truthful performance as a dying woman in Three Tall Woman. Her life became art.”
Henry received her cancer diagnosis not long before the onset of the pandemic. The year following gave her time to undergo cancer treatment before joining the cast of Edward Albee’s Three Tall Women at the Stratford Festival.
Acting from a walker, she eventually moved into a wheelchair in September. Henry delivered a closing performance on October 9, giving her dedication to the craft until her last breath.
Martha Henry was born in Detroit, Michigan, and grew up in Greenville, North Carolina. She became a Canadian citizen in 1970 and made an indelible mark on Canada.
Henry worked with the Stratford Festival for nearly 60 years, directing and acting in more than 70 productions.
She made her Stratford-upon-Avon stage debut with William Hutt in The Tempest in 1962. Notably, she famously played Beatrice with another of her favourite leading men, Brian Bedford, in Much Ado About Nothing.
She also served as Artistic Director of the Grand Theatre in London, Ontario, from 1988 to 1994.
Henry died of cancer at her home in Stratford just after midnight on Thursday. A memorial for Henry will be held at the Stratford Festival.
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