Tony-Nominated Director Michael Langham Dies at 91

Tony-nominated director Michael Langham, who helmed both the Stratford Shakespeare Festival and the Guthrie Theater during his celebrated career, died on January 15 at his home near Cranbrook, Kent, in England after failing to recover from a chest infection. He was 91.

Langham served as the Artistic Director of the Stratford Shakespeare Festival in Canada from 1956 to 1967, and in 1971 he became artistic director of the Guthrie in Minneapolis, where he served until 1977. He also served as the Director of the Juilliard School’s Drama Division in New York from 1979 to 1992, and continued to direct at Stratford and elsewhere. His Broadway directorial career spanned more than 40 years, from his 1958 production of Two Gentlemen of Verona with The Phoenix Theatre to his 1999 production of Noel Coward’s Waiting in the Wings, starring Lauren Bacall and Rosemary Harris. He earned a Best Director Tony nomination for his 1993 mounting of Timon of Athens, starring Brian Bedford.

Born on August 22, 1919 in Bridgewater, England, Langham was a law student at the University of London before enlisting in the British Army in 1939. After spending five years as a prisoner of war, Langham went on to lead several U.K. repertory theaters including Coventry, Birmingham and Glasgow, before taking over leadership of the Stratford Festival from founder Sir Tyrone Guthrie.

Langham is survived by his wife, actress Helen Burns, his son Chris, daughter-in-law Christine and five grandchildren.