Roy Matthews Mitchell (4 February 1884 – 27 July 1944) was a Canadian-American
theatre practitioner
A theatre practitioner is someone who creates theatrical performances and/or produces a theoretical discourse that informs his or her practical work. A theatre practitioner may be a director, dramatist, actor, designer or a combination of these tr ...
who played an important role in
little theatre in Canada and the United States. He was involved in the creation and was the first artistic director of the
Hart House Theatre
Hart House Theatre is a 454-seat theatre in Toronto, Ontario located on the campus of the University of Toronto in the Hart House Student Centre. The theatre serves the university and the Toronto community at large.
Hart House Theatre opened i ...
at the
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...
, and was an influence on
Vincent Massey
Charles Vincent Massey (February 20, 1887December 30, 1967) was a Canadian lawyer and diplomat who served as Governor General of Canada, the 18th since Confederation. Massey was the first governor general of Canada who was born in Canada after ...
,
and
Mavor Moore
James Mavor Moore (March 8, 1919 – December 18, 2006) was a Canadian writer, producer, actor, public servant, critic, and educator. He notably appeared as Nero Wolfe in the CBC radio production in 1982.
Life and work
Moore was born in Tor ...
. In 1974 Moore wrote "in 1929, Roy Mitchell was a voice crying in the near-wilderness of Canada" and called him "the seer who said it all on our own doorstep nearly half a century ago." A later scholar wrote that Mitchell's "vision ... did not fully come to pass in his lifetime, nor did it subsequently."
Biography
Mitchell was born in Michigan in 1884 to Canadian parents. The family returned to Canada in 1886 and moved to Toronto in 1889, where Mitchell attended
Harbord Collegiate Institute
Harbord Collegiate Institute (HCI or Harbord) is a public secondary school located in downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The school is located in the Palmerston-Little Italy-Annex neighbourhood, situated on the north side of Harbord Street, betwe ...
and then the
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...
. He became a journalist and worked at various newspapers, including the
Toronto World
''The Toronto World'' was a newspaper based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It existed between 1880 and 1921, and a Sunday edition operated from 1891 to 1924. Founded by William Findlay "Billy" Maclean, it was popular among Toronto's working class a ...
until 1915.
Mitchell was a founding member of the
Arts and Letters Club of Toronto
The Arts and Letters Club of Toronto (usually just called ''The Arts and Letters Club'') is a private club in Toronto, Ontario, which brings together writers, architects, musicians, painters, graphic artists, actors and others working in or with a ...
in 1908, and there formed the Arts and Letters Players, which put on many shows at the club. The first was ''
Interior'' by
Maurice Maeterlinck
Maurice Polydore Marie Bernard Maeterlinck (29 August 1862 – 6 May 1949), also known as Count (or Comte) Maeterlinck from 1932, was a Belgian playwright, poet, and essayist who was Flemish but wrote in French. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in ...
in 1911; others included ''The Shadowy Waters'' by
W.B. Yeats, ''The Workhouse Ward'' by
Lady Gregory
Isabella Augusta, Lady Gregory (''née'' Persse; 15 March 1852 – 22 May 1932) was an Irish dramatist, folklorist and theatre manager. With William Butler Yeats and Edward Martyn, she co-founded the Irish Literary Theatre and the Abbey Theatre, ...
, and the North American premieres of
Rabindranath Tagore
Rabindranath Tagore (; bn, রবীন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer and painter. He resh ...
's ''
The Post Office
A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letters and parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post offices may offer additional serv ...
'' (in 1914) and ''
Chitra'' (in 1916). These productions, directed by Mitchell, "introduced skeptical Toronto audiences to the principles of theatrical modernism," and the Arts and Letters Players "became the foremost group in Toronto's amateur theatre."
Mitchell was an "ardent
Theosophist
Theosophy is a religion established in the United States during the late 19th century. It was founded primarily by the Russian Helena Blavatsky and draws its teachings predominantly from Blavatsky's writings. Categorized by scholars of religion a ...
," a belief shared with other Arts and Letters Club members such as
Lawren Harris
Lawren Stewart Harris LL. D. (October 23, 1885 – January 29, 1970) was a Canadian painter, best known as a leading member of the Group of Seven. He played a key role as a catalyst in Canadian art and as a visionary in Canadian landscape art. ...
and
Merrill Denison
Merrill Denison (23 June 1893 — 13 June 1975) was a Canadian playwright.Mel Atkey. Broadway North: The Dream of a Canadian Musical Theatre'. Dundurn; 30 October 2006. . p. 45–. He created many dramas which were broadcast during the early days ...
. He joined the Toronto Theosophical Society in 1910 and wrote a handbook, ''Theosophy in Action'', in 1923. In 1925 Mitchell and philanthropist Dudley Barr founded the Blavatsky Institute to print Theosophical texts. In 1926 the ''Toronto Daily Star'' said his "connection with the Theosophical Society made his name prominent throughout Canada." Theosophy was important in his theatre work, and this was reflected in productions such as ''The Trojan Women'' at Hart House and in his book ''Creative Theatre''.
Mitchell moved to
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
in 1916 to study and work in theatre, mostly in
Greenwich Village
Greenwich Village ( , , ) is a neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City, bounded by 14th Street to the north, Broadway to the east, Houston Street to the south, and the Hudson River to the west. Greenwich Village ...
. In 1917 he was technical director for the first season of the
Greenwich Village Theatre Greenwich Village Theatre was an arts venue in Greenwich Village, New York which opened in 1917 and closed for the last time in 1930. Herman Lee Meader was the architect and it was located in Sheridan Square
The West Village is a neighborhoo ...
. In 1918 he returned to Canada, and worked as Director of Motion Pictures at the Department of Information in Ottawa.
Mitchell knew Vincent Massey from the Arts and Letters Club, and worked with him in creating the
Hart House Theatre
Hart House Theatre is a 454-seat theatre in Toronto, Ontario located on the campus of the University of Toronto in the Hart House Student Centre. The theatre serves the university and the Toronto community at large.
Hart House Theatre opened i ...
, which opened in 1919. Mitchell moved back to Toronto be its first artistic director. Plays he directed there include:
* March 1920: ''
The Trojan Women
''The Trojan Women'' ( grc, Τρῳάδες, translit=Trōiades), also translated as ''The Women of Troy'', and also known by its transliterated Greek title ''Troades'', is a tragedy by the Greek playwright Euripides. Produced in 415 BC during ...
'' by
Euripides
Euripides (; grc, Εὐριπίδης, Eurīpídēs, ; ) was a tragedian
Tragedy (from the grc-gre, τραγῳδία, ''tragōidia'', ''tragōidia'') is a genre of drama based on human suffering and, mainly, the terrible or sorrowful e ...
, with music by
Healey Willan
James Healey Willan (12 October 1880 – 16 February 1968) was an Anglo-Canadian organist and composer. He composed more than 800 works including operas, symphonies, chamber music, a concerto, and pieces for band, orchestra, organ, and ...
and set design by
Arthur Lismer
Arthur Lismer, LL. D. (27 June 1885 – 23 March 1969) was an English-Canadian painter, member of the Group of Seven and educator. He is known primarily as a landscape painter and for his paintings of ships in dazzle camouflage.
Early life ...
* June 1920: ''
Love's Labour's Lost
''Love's Labour's Lost'' is one of William Shakespeare's early comedies, believed to have been written in the mid-1590s for a performance at the Inns of Court before Elizabeth I of England, Queen Elizabeth I. It follows the King of Navarre and ...
'' by
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...
, with music by Willan; Mitchell did the set and lighting design
* June 1921 ''
Cymbeline
''Cymbeline'' , also known as ''The Tragedie of Cymbeline'' or ''Cymbeline, King of Britain'', is a play by William Shakespeare set in British Iron Age, Ancient Britain () and based on legends that formed part of the Matter of Britain concerni ...
'' by Shakespeare, with music by Willan and set design by
Merrill Denison
Merrill Denison (23 June 1893 — 13 June 1975) was a Canadian playwright.Mel Atkey. Broadway North: The Dream of a Canadian Musical Theatre'. Dundurn; 30 October 2006. . p. 45–. He created many dramas which were broadcast during the early days ...
and Lismer
''Cymbeline'' was his last Hart House production. After two seasons, and disagreements with the Board of Syndics about concentrating on Canadian plays, he left. He spent two years on the west coast of Canada, then returned to Toronto, where for a while he taught scene design at the Ontario College of Art. Through the 1920s he lectured extensively on Theosophy and little theatre in Canada and the United States.
Mitchell married Jocelyn Taylor on 17 May 1926 at the
Church of St. Mary Magdalene. She had worked with him on stage productions for several years, doing sets, costumes and lighting. The ''Toronto Daily Star'' announcement of the wedding described Mitchell as "author, lecturer, theatrical director, theosophical leader and onetime newspaperman" and Taylor as a "well-known artist and sculptress." In 1929 they moved to New York City. Mavor Moore wrote, "Mitchell left for New York to teach and write about the theatre Canada was not yet ready for."
In 1930 Mitchell was appointed to the Faculty of Dramatic Art at
New York University
New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin.
In 1832, the ...
. There he developed a system of phonetic notation that allowed people to sing folk songs in other languages. He formed a seven-member singing group called The Consort (Jocelyn Taylor was a member) that sang songs in forty languages and dialects.
In 1934, Mitchell and his wife joined the faculty of the
Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity
Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, formerly known as The Banff Centre (and previously The Banff Centre for Continuing Education), located in Banff, Alberta, was established in 1933 as the Banff School of Drama. It was granted full autonomy as ...
, known then as the Banff School of Drama.
Mitchell died on 27 July 1944 in
Canaan, Connecticut
Canaan is a town in Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 1,080 at the 2020 census, down from 1,234 at the 2010 census. The town of Canaan is often referred to locally by the name of its principal settlement, Falls V ...
. He and Taylor had no children.
Writing
Mitchell wrote books and articles about theatre and Theosophy. Some of his articles appeared in ''
Theatre Arts Monthly
''Theatre Arts Magazine'', sometimes titled ''Theatre Arts'' or ''Theatre Arts Monthly'', was a magazine published from November 1916 to January 1964. It was established by author and critic Sheldon Warren Cheney.
History
Cheney established the ...
'' and ''The Canadian Theosophist''.
''Shakespeare for Community Players'' (1919) has illustrations by
J. E. H. MacDonald
James Edward Hervey MacDonald (1873–1932) was an English-Canadian artist, best known as a member of the Group of Seven who asserted a distinct national identity combined with a common heritage stemming from early modernism in Europe in the ear ...
. A review in the ''Canadian Bookman'' said, "It is not too much to say that Mr. Mitchell is a genius in the art of stage production. Thoroughly imbued with a sense of the importance of the theatrical art to the community (it is no exaggeration to say that he conceives of it as a form of religion), he is perfectly willing to place all his knowledge and experience at the disposal of other producers."
''Creative Theatre'' was published in 1929, with illustrations by his wife and colleague Jocelyn Taylor.
Mavor Moore
James Mavor Moore (March 8, 1919 – December 18, 2006) was a Canadian writer, producer, actor, public servant, critic, and educator. He notably appeared as Nero Wolfe in the CBC radio production in 1982.
Life and work
Moore was born in Tor ...
said it "constructs a vision of the theatre that foreshadows, often in clairvoyant detail, the ideas of
Artaud
Antoine Marie Joseph Paul Artaud, better known as Antonin Artaud (; 4 September 1896 – 4 March 1948), was a French writer, poet, dramatist, visual artist, essayist, actor and theatre director. He is widely recognized as a major figure of the E ...
on movement, of
Brecht
Eugen Berthold Friedrich Brecht (10 February 1898 – 14 August 1956), known professionally as Bertolt Brecht, was a German theatre practitioner, playwright, and poet. Coming of age during the Weimar Republic, he had his first successes as a p ...
on audiences, of
Guthrie on ritual, of
Peter Brook
Peter Stephen Paul Brook (21 March 1925 – 2 July 2022) was an English theatre and film director. He worked first in England, from 1945 at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre, from 1947 at the Royal Opera House, and from 1962 for the Royal Shak ...
on the open space, and of
Grotowski
Jerzy Marian Grotowski (; 11 August 1933 – 14 January 1999) was a Polish theatre director and theorist whose innovative approaches to acting, training and theatrical production have significantly influenced theatre today.
He was born in Rzes ...
on the monastic community." Scott Duschene, who edited a critical edition of the book in 2020, wrote that "while
t is
T, or t, is the twentieth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''tee'' (pronounced ), plural ''tees''. It is der ...
imbued with the spirit of the little theatre movement in Canada, ''Creative Theatre'' is equally steeped in the world of theosophy."
Bibliography
''Shakespeare for Community Players'' with illustrations by J. E. H. MacDonald (Toronto: J.M. Dent and Sons, 1919)
* ''Theosophy in Action'' (Toronto: Blavatsky Institute, 1923)
''The School Theatre: A Handbook of Theory and Practice'' with illustrations by Jocelyn Taylor (Toronto: National Council of Education, 1925)
* ''Creative Theatre'' (New York: John Daly, 1929), with illustrations by Jocelyn Taylor; see also ''Creative Theatre: A Critical Edition'', edited by Scott Duschene (Ottawa: University of Ottawa Press, 2020)
* ''Theosophic Study and A White Lotus Address'' (Toronto: Blavatsky Institute, 1945)
* ''Through Temple Doors: Studies in Occult Masonry'' (Toronto: Blavatsky Institute, 1945)
* ''Theosophy in Action'' (Toronto: Blavatsky Institute, 1951)
* ''The Creative Spirit of Art'' (Westwood, NJ: Kindle Press, 1969)
* ''The Exile of the Soul: The Case for Two Souls in the Constitution of Every Man'', edited by John L. Davenport (Buffalo, NY: Prometheus Books, 1983)
Notes
References
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
External links
available at th
Clara Thomas Archives & Special Collections, York University* Mitchell's writings for ''The Canadian Theosophist'' are indexed i
An Index to The Canadian Theosophist: Volumes 1 to 78an
The Canadian Theosophist: 1920-2007, index 1920-26 v1-6, 1927-28 v8, 1937-1938 v18, 1954-57 v35-7, 1959-67, 1974-2007
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mitchell, Roy
1884 births
1944 deaths
Canadian theatre directors
Canadian male non-fiction writers
American Theosophists
Canadian Theosophists
University of Toronto alumni
New York University faculty