Goldie Semple (11 December 1952 – 9 December 2009) was a Canadian actress. Semple was born Marigold Ann Semple in

Richmond, British Columbia Richmond is a coastal city in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia, Canada. It occupies almost the entirety of Lulu Island (excluding Queensborough), between the two estuarine distributaries of the Fraser River. Encompassing the ad ...

. She studied at the

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a public university, public research university with campuses near Vancouver and in Kelowna, British Columbia. Established in 1908, it is British Columbia's oldest university. The university ranks a ...

where she graduated with a

Bachelor of Fine Arts A Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) is a standard undergraduate degree for students for pursuing a professional education in the visual, fine or performing arts. It is also called Bachelor of Visual Arts (BVA) in some cases. Background The Bachelor ...

degree. She continued drama studies at the

Bristol Old Vic Theatre School The Bristol Old Vic Theatre School is a drama school in Bristol, England. The institution provides training in acting and production for careers in film, television and theatre. BOVTS is an affiliate of the Conservatoire for Dance and Drama. I ...

. Semple's stage work included performances with the

Alberta Theatre Projects Alberta Theatre Projects ("ATP") is a professional, not-for-profit, Canadian theatre company, founded in 1972 by Lucille Wagner and Douglas Riske, currently based out of the Martha Cohen Theatre in Arts Commons, in Calgary, Alberta. The compan ...

Canadian Stage Company Canadian Stage is a non-profit contemporary performance arts company based in Toronto, Ontario, ''Canada''. About Canadian Stage Canadian Stage is one of Canada's largest not-for-profit contemporary theatre companies, based in Toronto, Ontari ...

Manitoba Theatre Centre Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre (Royal MTC) is Canada's oldest English-language regional theatre. Next to the Stratford and Shaw Festivals, MTC has a higher annual attendance than any other theatre in the country. It was founded in 1958 by John ...

Shaw Festival The Shaw Festival is a not-for-profit theatre festival in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, Canada. It is the second largest repertory theatre company in North America. The Shaw Festival was founded in 1962. Originally, it only featured production ...

Stratford Shakespeare Festival The Stratford Festival is a theatre festival which runs from April to October in the city of Stratford, Ontario, Stratford, Ontario, Canada. Founded by local journalist Tom Patterson (theatre producer), Tom Patterson in 1952, the festival was fo ...

Tarragon Theatre The Tarragon Theatre is a theatre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and one of the main centers for contemporary playwriting in the country.

and

Vancouver Playhouse Theatre Company The Vancouver Playhouse Theatre Company ("The Playhouse") was a regional theatre company, producing plays since 1962. Its first production was '' The Hostage'' by Brendan Behan, which opened on October 2, 1963. The company performed out of the V ...

. She occasionally appeared on television series such as '' Queer as Folk'' and '' Street Legal''. Among Semple's performances at the Shaw Festival were the title roles in Camille and Candida in, respectively, 1981–82 and 1983; ''

The Magic Fire ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

'' in 2006, '' The Cassilis Engagement'' in 2007 and Desirée in ''

A Little Night Music ''A Little Night Music'' is a Musical theatre, musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by Hugh Wheeler. Inspired by the 1955 Ingmar Bergman film ''Smiles of a Summer Night'', it involves the romantic lives of several couples. ...

'' in 2008. At the Stratford Festival, her notable performances included Kate in ''

The Taming of the Shrew ''The Taming of the Shrew'' is a comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1590 and 1592. The play begins with a framing device, often referred to as the induction, in which a mischievous nobleman tricks a drunken ...

'' in 1988, Beatrice in ''

Much Ado About Nothing ''Much Ado About Nothing'' is a comedy by William Shakespeare thought to have been written in 1598 and 1599.See textual notes to ''Much Ado About Nothing'' in ''The Norton Shakespeare'' ( W. W. Norton & Company, 1997 ) p. 1387 The play ...

'' in 1991, and Cleopatra in ''

Antony and Cleopatra ''Antony and Cleopatra'' (First Folio title: ''The Tragedie of Anthonie, and Cleopatra'') is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. The play was first performed, by the King's Men, at either the Blackfriars Theatre or the Globe Theatre in around ...

''. During her last eight years, Semple was treated for breast cancer. Her final performances were for the Shaw Festival's production of

Noël Coward Sir Noël Peirce Coward (16 December 189926 March 1973) was an English playwright, composer, director, actor, and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what ''Time'' magazine called "a sense of personal style, a combination of cheek and ...

's ''Brief Encounters'' in the 2009 season. The comedy consists of a trio of one-act plays with Semple playing Dolly, Clara and Clare Wedderburn. Her performance was widely praised by critics. After this and a family vacation in Venice, her health deteriorated due to the

metastasis Metastasis is a pathogenic agent's spread from an initial or primary site to a different or secondary site within the host's body; the term is typically used when referring to metastasis by a cancerous tumor. The newly pathological sites, then, ...

of her cancer. Semple died at her residence in

Niagara-on-the-Lake Niagara-on-the-Lake is a town in Ontario, Canada. It is located on the Niagara Peninsula at the point where the Niagara River meets Lake Ontario, across the river from New York, United States. Niagara-on-the-Lake is in the Niagara Region of On ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, aged 56, on 9 December 2009.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Semple, Goldie 1952 births 2009 deaths Actresses from British Columbia Actresses from Ontario Canadian stage actresses Canadian television actresses Deaths from cancer in Ontario Deaths from breast cancer People from Richmond, British Columbia University of British Columbia alumni Canadian Shakespearean actresses