Dorothy Anna Sturgess (March 5, 1915 – September 30, 1999), known professionally as Sydney Sturgess, was a British-Canadian actress. She is best known for her work with the Shaw Festival and the Stratford Festival of Canada. Primarily a stage actress in Canada, England and the US, she occasionally worked in television and film.
Born in Ipoh, Malaya, Sturgess was the eldest of four children; two brothers and a sister. She carried a distinguished Canadian ancestry – her great-grandfather was Edward Palmer, Q.C., of Prince Edward Island, who was also one of the Fathers of Confederation. Her father was a civil engineer and was assigned to remote countries around the world to build bridges, so the family traveled frequently.
Her teenage years were spent for the most part at St. Stephen's boarding school in Folkestone, Kent, England. She received her dramatic training in England, as well, at the London College of Music where she received an A.L.C.M. in elocution. After graduation, she joined the Arthur Brough Players in Folkestone, first as a student and then later as an actress.
Sturgess acted in various English repertory companies before meeting Barry Morse in Peterborough on January 3, 1939. Morse and Sturgess married on March 26, 1939. As a result of her work in repertory, both prior to and following her marriage, she gained broad experience as an actress through her work in literally hundreds of stage productions throughout the 1930s and 1940s. Their two children, Hayward Morse and Melanie Morse MacQuarrie, were born in 1947 and 1945, respectively. The family emigrated to Canada in 1951, where Sydney enjoyed several successful seasons of theatre at the Montreal Mountain Playhouse, as well as radio work and teaching, until moving to Toronto with the advent of television in 1953.
Sturgess' stage credits span more than fifty years and include London West End productions with such personalities as Dame Marie Tempest and A.E. Matthews in The First Mrs. Fraser, and later in her career on Broadway opposite Morse and Alec McCowen in Hadrian VII.
Her performances ranged the gamut, from acting in Jupiter Theatre's production of Relative Values, The Potting Shed at the Crest Theatre, and with the Canadian Players in Romeo and Juliet and Pygmalion. She also played in George Bernard Shaw's Man and Superman, as "Mrs. Darling" in Peter Pan and played in more productions of Charley's Aunt than perhaps any other actress!
In 1958 she wrote and produced her own radio series for the CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation) called Poet's Corner. She also appeared on television as Catherine de Medici in Patrick Watson's series, Witness to Yesterday, and in the title role of George Bernard Shaw's Catherine the Great. She starred as the Countess of Brocklehurst in the Shaw Festival's production of The Admirable Crighton, appeared in A Day in the Death of Joe Egg at the Manitoba Theatre Centre, and played "Mrs. Higgins" in another run of Shaw's Pygmalion at the Nottingham Playhouse in England.
Sturgess was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 1985 and lived with her illness for over fourteen years, before dying in her sleep aged 84.
sydney, sturgess, dorothy, anna, sturgess, march, 1915, september, 1999, known, professionally, british, canadian, actress, best, known, work, with, shaw, festival, stratford, festival, canada, primarily, stage, actress, canada, england, occasionally, worked, . Dorothy Anna Sturgess March 5 1915 September 30 1999 known professionally as Sydney Sturgess was a British Canadian actress She is best known for her work with the Shaw Festival and the Stratford Festival of Canada Primarily a stage actress in Canada England and the US she occasionally worked in television and film Sydney SturgessBornDorothy Anna Sturgess 1915 03 05 March 5 1915Ipoh MalayaDiedSeptember 30 1999 1999 09 30 aged 84 Toronto Ontario CanadaResting placeSaint James Park London EnglandOccupationActressYears active1944 1980SpouseBarry Morse m 1939 wbr ChildrenHayward MorseMelanie Morse MacQuarrieWebsitehttp www anthonywynn com sydneysturgess Background editBorn in Ipoh Malaya Sturgess was the eldest of four children two brothers and a sister She carried a distinguished Canadian ancestry her great grandfather was Edward Palmer Q C of Prince Edward Island who was also one of the Fathers of Confederation Her father was a civil engineer and was assigned to remote countries around the world to build bridges so the family traveled frequently Her teenage years were spent for the most part at St Stephen s boarding school in Folkestone Kent England She received her dramatic training in England as well at the London College of Music where she received an A L C M in elocution After graduation she joined the Arthur Brough Players in Folkestone first as a student and then later as an actress Sturgess acted in various English repertory companies before meeting Barry Morse in Peterborough on January 3 1939 Morse and Sturgess married on March 26 1939 As a result of her work in repertory both prior to and following her marriage she gained broad experience as an actress through her work in literally hundreds of stage productions throughout the 1930s and 1940s Their two children Hayward Morse and Melanie Morse MacQuarrie were born in 1947 and 1945 respectively The family emigrated to Canada in 1951 where Sydney enjoyed several successful seasons of theatre at the Montreal Mountain Playhouse as well as radio work and teaching until moving to Toronto with the advent of television in 1953 Sturgess stage credits span more than fifty years and include London West End productions with such personalities as Dame Marie Tempest and A E Matthews in The First Mrs Fraser and later in her career on Broadway opposite Morse and Alec McCowen in Hadrian VII Her performances ranged the gamut from acting in Jupiter Theatre s production of Relative Values The Potting Shed at the Crest Theatre and with the Canadian Players in Romeo and Juliet and Pygmalion She also played in George Bernard Shaw s Man and Superman as Mrs Darling in Peter Pan and played in more productions of Charley s Aunt than perhaps any other actress In 1958 she wrote and produced her own radio series for the CBC Canadian Broadcasting Corporation called Poet s Corner She also appeared on television as Catherine de Medici in Patrick Watson s series Witness to Yesterday and in the title role of George Bernard Shaw s Catherine the Great She starred as the Countess of Brocklehurst in the Shaw Festival s production of The Admirable Crighton appeared in A Day in the Death of Joe Egg at the Manitoba Theatre Centre and played Mrs Higgins in another run of Shaw s Pygmalion at the Nottingham Playhouse in England Sturgess was diagnosed with Parkinson s disease in 1985 and lived with her illness for over fourteen years before dying in her sleep aged 84 External links edit nbsp Biography portalSydney Sturgess at IMDb Sydney Sturgess at the Internet Broadway Database nbsp Sydney Sturgess at Find a Grave Website of Sydney Sturgess Barry Morse Website Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Sydney Sturgess amp oldid 1170453388, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
