Michael Seymour Langham (22 August 1919 – 15 January 2011) was an English director and actor, who spent much of his career living and working in Canada and the United States. He was educated at

Radley College Radley College, formally St Peter's College, Radley, is a public school (independent boarding school for boys) near Radley, Oxfordshire, England, which was founded in 1847. The school covers including playing fields, a golf course, a lake, an ...

and studied law at the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degre ...

before enlisting in the British Army in 1939. After spending five years as a prisoner of war, Langham set his sights on the theatre and led several repertory theatres in the UK including Coventry (1946–1948), Birmingham (1948–1950) and Glasgow (1953–1954). Langham was the second artistic director at the

Stratford Festival The Stratford Festival is a theatre festival which runs from April to October in the city of Stratford, Ontario, Canada. Founded by local journalist Tom Patterson in 1952, the festival was formerly known as the Stratford Shakespearean Festival ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tota ...

from 1956 to 1967, and he directed 38 productions over a 53 year association with Stratford. He was the third artistic director of the

Guthrie Theater The Guthrie Theater, founded in 1963, is a center for theater performance, production, education, and professional training in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The concept of the theater was born in 1959 in a series of discussions between Sir Tyrone Gu ...

from 1971 to 1977. He was also director of the

Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most ...

from 1979 to 1982, and again from 1987 to 1992. In 1995 he directed two plays for the inaugural season of the Atlantic Theatre Festival in Wolfville, Nova Scotia. Langham was married to actress Helen Burns. Their son is the writer and comedy actor Chris Langham. Langham died on 15 January 2011 in Cranbrook, Kent, England, after a short illness.

Video clips

*
Interview
with Stratford Festival costumer Cynthia MacLennan on working with Langham.

References

External links

* * * 1919 births 2011 deaths Alumni of the University of London British Army personnel of World War II British theatre directors Juilliard School faculty People educated at Radley College People from Bridgwater Canadian artistic directors British expatriates in Canada British expatriates in the United States {{england-actor-stub