Clifford Williams (1926 – 20 August 2005) was a

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...

theatre director A theatre director or stage director is a professional in the theatre field who oversees and orchestrates the mounting of a theatre production such as a play, opera, dance, drama, musical theatre performance, etc. by unifying various endeavors a ...

and stage actor. He was born in

Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital and largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a Sir Caerdydd, links=no), and the city is the eleventh-largest in the United Kingd ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

, and died in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

Biography

Clifford Williams, son of George F. Williams and Florence (Gapper), was born in Cardiff, United Kingdom. He served in the British Army Ordnance Corps (RAOC) from 1945 to 1948. Williams was a fellow of Trinity College of Music (London), as well as the Welsh College of Music and Drama (on Board of Governors from 1980). Founder, 1994: (Director and Playwright) Mime Theatre London. 1950-53: Artistic Director,

Marlowe Theatre The Marlowe Theatre is a 1,200-seat theatre in Canterbury named after playwright Christopher Marlowe, who was born and attended school in the city. It was named a Stage Awards, 2022 UK Theatre of the Year. The Marlowe Trust, a not for profi ...

, Canterbury, 1956 Queen’s Theatre Hornchurch, 1957 Arts Theatre, London. 1963-80, Associate Director, Royal Shakespeare Company, U.K. From 1963: Artistic Directorships at: National Theatre, U.K., also the national theatres of: Spain, Yugoslavia, Mexico, Finland, Bulgaria, France, Denmark, Sweden, USSR, Canada, Japan Germany. In the United States, his Broadway productions included: ''The Comedy of Errors'', ''Soldiers'', ''Sleuth'', ''Emperor Henry IVth'', ''As You Like It'', ''A Pack of Lies'', ''Aren’t We All? Breaking the Code'' (TV) and ''Man and Superman''. His opera productions include: ''The Flying Dutchman'', ''Savitri'', ''Dido and Aeneas'', ''Bellman’s Opera''. Musical productions include (in London): ''Our Man Creighton'', ''Mardi Gras'', ''Oh! Calcutta'' and ''Carte Blanche''. He was the author of the children’s plays ''The Sleeping Princess'', ''The Goose Girl and The Secret Kingdom'', and he translated Ibsen,

Strindberg Johan August Strindberg (, ; 22 January 184914 May 1912) was a Swedish playwright, novelist, poet, essayist and painter.Lane (1998), 1040. A prolific writer who often drew directly on his personal experience, Strindberg wrote more than sixty p ...

and

Chekhov Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (; 29 January 1860 Old Style date 17 January. – 15 July 1904 Old Style date 2 July.) was a Russian playwright and short-story writer who is considered to be one of the greatest writers of all time. His career ...

. He was chairman of the British Theatre Association 1978-90. For the Royal Shakespeare Company: Directed 31 productions including the outstandingly successful (also set designer) ''Comedy of Errors'' (with Ian Richardson, Michael Williams,

Timothy West Timothy Lancaster West, CBE (born 20 October 1934) is an English actor and presenter. He has appeared frequently on both stage and television, including stints in both ''Coronation Street'' (as Eric Babbage) and ''EastEnders'' (as Stan Carte ...

, Donald Burton, Elizabeth Spriggs,

Janet Suzman Dame Janet Suzman, (born 9 February 1939) is a South African-born British actress who enjoyed a successful early career in the Royal Shakespeare Company, later replaying many Shakespearean roles, among others, on TV. In her first film, ''Nichol ...

and Susan Engel); ''The Merchant of Venice'' (Janet Suzman, Eric Porter and William Squire) and ''The Jew of Malta'' (Eric Porter and Tony Church).

Selected theatre credits

*''

The Comedy of Errors ''The Comedy of Errors'' is one of William Shakespeare's early plays. It is his shortest and one of his most farcical comedies, with a major part of the humour coming from slapstick and mistaken identity, in addition to puns and word play. ...

'' (1962), for the Royal Shakespeare Company *''

Cymbeline ''Cymbeline'' , also known as ''The Tragedie of Cymbeline'' or ''Cymbeline, King of Britain'', is a play by William Shakespeare set in Ancient Britain () and based on legends that formed part of the Matter of Britain concerning the early Celti ...

'' (1974), for the RSC *''

The Duchess of Malfi ''The Duchess of Malfi'' (originally published as ''The Tragedy of the Dutchesse of Malfy'') is a Jacobean revenge tragedy written by English dramatist John Webster in 1612–1613. It was first performed privately at the Blackfriars Theatre, ...

'' (1971), for the RSC *'' As You Like It'' (1974) *''

Sleuth Sleuth may refer to: * Detective *Sleuth, collective noun for a group of bears Computing * The Sleuth Kit, a collection of forensic analysis software *SLEUTH assembler language for the UNIVAC 1107 Entertainment and media *Cloo Cloo (stylized ...

'' (1970) *'' Antony and Cleopatra'' (1951–1952) (

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

) *'' Caesar and Cleopatra'' (1951–1952) (

)

References

External links

*
U.K. productions as director listed in Theatre Archive, University of BristolTheatre Director Clifford Williams Dead
{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Clifford British theatre directors Male actors from Cardiff Welsh male stage actors 1926 births 2005 deaths Royal Army Ordnance Corps soldiers 20th-century British Army personnel