Wensley Pithey
Wensley Pithey (b. 21/06/1914 - d. 10/11/1993). Actor.
Contents
Biography
He emigrated to England after World War II, where he enjoyed a succesful career, spending much of his screen time impersonating Winston Churchill.
Contribution to SA theatre, film, media and/or performance
As actor
He made a striking debut on stage with Henry IV by Luigi Pirandello, at the Little Theatre in 1935. In 1938 he did Six Characters in Search of an Author the newly founded Theatre Club at the Little Theatre under the direction of Rollo Gamble.
Performed for the Gwen ffrangçon-Davies / Marda Vanne Company between 1941 and 1946 e.g. in And So to Bed, Full House, A Month in the Country, Milestones and The Merry Wives of Windsor. Performed in George Washington Slept Here together with Gordon Mulholland. It was directed by Taubie Kushlick in 1946. Starred in Emlyn Williams's The Wind of Heaven in 1946, together with Gwen ffrangçon-Davies, Marda Vanne, Zoë Randall and Sidney James. He presented and starred in A Man With Red Hair in 1946.
As director
He was the director of the Cape Town Little Theatre in December 1939. Productions directed by him include:
1937: The Importance of Being Earnest (UCT Dramatic Society)
1939: After October (UCT Dramatic Society)
1939: Three Sisters (UCT Dramatic Society/UCT Department of Speech and Drama)
1939: Close Quarters (Little Theatre Players)
1946: Laburnum Grove starring Siegfried Mynhardt
Sources
Tucker, 1997.: 13,
Inskip, Donald P., 1977 [TH]
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/obituary-wensley-pithey-1506543.html
The South African Theatre, Music and Dance 1(1), 1939
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