Ann Wakefield
Ann Wakefield (19**-). Actress, playwright and director.
Contents
Biography
Ann was raised in East London, South Africa.
In the 1980s she moved to the United States to continue her career as teacher and actress. In Chicago, she performed for a range of theatres including Steppenwolf, Eclipse, Shattered Globe, Remy Bumppo, Lifeline Theatre, Interplay and Shaw Chicago.
She was a teacher in the Residency Program for Lifeline Theatre, collaborated on a translation of THE BARBER OF SEVILLE for Court Theatre, served as a dialect coach for British and South African plays, and served as dramaturg and vocal coach at Loyola University Theatre.
She served on the Adjunct Performance Faculty at the Theatre School of DePaul University where she taught acting and directed a wide range of work including productions for as part of the Chicago Playworks Program[1] (for young audiences). She directed a number of South African plays there, including Mango Leaf Magic by James Ambrose Brown (2005), Tokoloshe by Pieter Scholtz, The Coral King by James Ambrose Brown (2013) and her own play Tales as Old as Africa (2007).
She was honored with the Excellence of Teaching Award at DePaul University in 2007 and the Louise de Marillac Women of Spirit and Action in 2010.
She retired from her teaching position at DePaul Theatre School and moved to San Diego.
Training
She earned a BFA degree with Honors in Theatre/Acting from University of Natal; a Higher Teacher’s Degree from University of Cape Town; and a Maitrise (Masters) degree in Theatre and Athol Fugard at Nantes University, France.
Contribution to SA theatre, film, media and/or performance
Worked in children’s theatre, i.a. with Pieter Scholtz in Durban and the Brian Way Theatre in Education Company in England
As actress
Stage roles include The Cavern (1968), Twelfth Night, or What You Will (1970), Children of the Wolf (The Space, 1975).
As director
Productions as director (or assistant director) include:
1970: Umabatha (assistant director)
1971: Toad of Toad Hall
1973: The Royal Cricket of Japan, The Circus Adventure
1974: The Owl and the Pussycat Went to See...
1975: Three Cheers
1975/1976?: Miss South Africa
1979: Kap the Kappa and The Tickle (co-directed with Pieter Scholtz, University of Natal, Department of Speech and Drama),The Beeple
1980: Archy's life of Mehitabel
1984: Booby Beetle and the Protea People
She also directed plays for the Theatre Workshop Company (Durban).,
As playwright
Three Cheers (1975)
Booby Beetle and the Protea People (1984)
Awards
In Chicago she was awarded Joseph Jefferson Citations for her performances in THE ROAD TO MECCA and ANOTHER PART OF THE FOREST (also directedby Nick Bowling), and most recently an After Dark Award for her performance in THE LION IN WINTER.
Sources
Various entries in the NELM catalogue.
Theatre programme, 1961.
De Beer 1995.
Joyce, 1999.
Teacher Guide, The Coral King[2]
https://timelinetheatre.com/person/ann-wakefield/
Greyvenstein, Walter 1988. The history and development of children's theatre in English in South Africa. Unpublished doctoral dissertation. Johannesburg: Rand Afrikaans University.
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