John Leonard Burkitt Dalby (April 22, 1929 – July 13, 2017) was an English singer, pianist and composer. Dalby was hailed in London and New York City for his witty and sophisticated cabaret performances. As an accomplished entertainer, he was described by one New York Theatre critic as a combination 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 ...

, Flanders and Swann with a touch of Quentin Crisp". He wrote and performed in numerous musicals and revues. In the West End, he succeeded Dudley Moore, in '' Beyond the Fringe'', appeared in his own revue ''One in the Eye'' and appeared with Tom Conti, in ''An Italian Straw Hat''. He worked with many notable performers, such as Bette Davis,

Elizabeth Taylor Dame Elizabeth Rosemond Taylor (February 27, 1932 – March 23, 2011) was a British-American actress. She began her career as a child actress in the early 1940s and was one of the most popular stars of classical Hollywood cinema in the 1950s. ...

, Angela Lansbury, David Niven,

Alec Guinness Sir Alec Guinness (born Alec Guinness de Cuffe; 2 April 1914 – 5 August 2000) was an English actor. After an early career on the stage, Guinness was featured in several of the Ealing comedies, including ''Kind Hearts and Coronets'' (194 ...

and Evelyn Laye. Dalby taught singing at the Actor's Richmond Company, which he formed into an admirable performing group and during his 70s he was Musical Director, arranger and helped compile programmes for the company "Muse & Music" which performed anthologies of poetry, prose and song at The Jermyn Street Theatre as well as various other venues for charities. His one-man show ''Colley Cibber - The Man Who Rewrote Shakespeare'' has been performed at the

Royal National Theatre The Royal National Theatre in London, commonly known as the National Theatre (NT), is one of the United Kingdom's three most prominent publicly funded performing arts venues, alongside the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal Opera House. I ...

, the

Jermyn Street Theatre Jermyn Street Theatre is a performance venue situated on Jermyn Street, in London's West End. It is an off-west end studio theatre. History Jermyn Street Theatre opened in August 1994. It was formerly the changing rooms for staff at a Spaghetti ...

and internationally. He presented a centenary tribute to Evelyn Laye, ''A Glass of Champagne'', at the Jermyn Street Theatre in 2000. Dalby died on 13 July 2017 at the age of 88.JOHN LEONARD BURKITT DALBY
/ref>

Filmography

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dalby, John 1929 births 2017 deaths Place of birth missing English cabaret composers English cabaret pianists English male singers British male pianists