Peter Thomas Donaldson (29 October 1953 – 8 January 2011) was a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

actor. Donaldson was the son of Betty and Norman Donaldson, and was born and raised in Midland, Ontario. While attending Midland Secondary School, he performed in

Brigadoon ''Brigadoon'' is a musical with a book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner, and music by Frederick Loewe. The song "Almost Like Being in Love", from the musical, has become a standard. It features two American tourists who stumble upon Brigadoon, a m ...

and an abridged version of ''

Romeo and Juliet ''Romeo and Juliet'' is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare early in his career about the romance between two Italian youths from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's most popular plays during his lifetime and, along with ''Ham ...

''; his drama teacher did not spot Donaldson's acting potential at the time. He attended plays 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 ...

during his youth, which fired his enthusiasm for acting. Donaldson attended

Trent University Trent University is a public liberal arts university in Peterborough, Ontario, with a satellite campus in Oshawa, which serves the Regional Municipality of Durham. Trent is known for its Oxbridge college system and small class sizes.

and graduated from the

University of Guelph , mottoeng = "to learn the reasons of realities" , established = May 8, 1964 ()As constituents: OAC: (1874) Macdonald Institute: (1903) OVC: (1922) , type = Public university , chancellor ...

. He also later studied with

Uta Hagen Uta Thyra Hagen (12 June 1919 – 14 January 2004) was a German-American actress and theatre practitioner. She originated the role of Martha in the 1962 Broadway premiere of ''Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?'' by Edward Albee, who called her "a ...

Stella Adler Stella Adler (February 10, 1901 – December 21, 1992) was an American actress and acting teacher.
''

Olympia Dukakis Olympia Dukakis (June 20, 1931 – May 1, 2021) was an American actress. She performed in more than 130 stage productions, more than 60 films and in 50 television series. Best known as a screen actress, she started her career in theater. Not lon ...

in New York. He began his acting career in 1975 with a summer stock company formed with fellow Guelph students that played Muskoka resorts. He subsequently worked as a stage carpenter and scene painter in Toronto. Donaldson was known for his stage work in Shakespearean roles, particularly at the

Stratford, Ontario Stratford is a city on the Avon River within Perth County in southwestern Ontario, Canada, with a 2016 population of 31,465 in a land area of . Stratford is the seat of Perth County, which was settled by English, Irish, Scottish and German ...

. He auditioned for the festival without success in 1975, but was hired years later by artistic director Robin Phillips, making his debut in ''

'' in 1977. He subsequently spent 24 seasons at the festival. Highlights of his career included his 2004 performance in ''

Timon of Athens ''Timon of Athens'' (''The Life of Tymon of Athens'') is a play written by William Shakespeare and probably also Thomas Middleton in about 1606. It was published in the '' First Folio'' in 1623. Timon lavishes his wealth on parasitic companio ...

'', as well as roles in ''

To Kill a Mockingbird ''To Kill a Mockingbird'' is a novel by the American author Harper Lee. It was published in 1960 and was instantly successful. In the United States, it is widely read in high schools and middle schools. ''To Kill a Mockingbird'' has become ...

'', ''

The Seagull ''The Seagull'' ( rus, Ча́йка, r=Cháyka, links=no) is a play by Russian dramatist Anton Chekhov, written in 1895 and first produced in 1896. ''The Seagull'' is generally considered to be the first of his four major plays. It dramatises ...

'', ''

Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf ''Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?'' is a play by Edward Albee first staged in October 1962. It examines the complexities of the marriage of a middle-aged couple, Martha and George. Late one evening, after a university faculty party, they receive ...

''. His performance of Jamie in '' Long Day's Journey Into Night'' at Stratford in 1995 was widely praised. Toronto critic

Richard Ouzounian Richard Ouzounian (born March 8, 1950) is a Canadian journalist and theatre artist. He was the chief theatre critic for the '' Toronto Star'' and the Canadian theatre correspondent for '' Variety''. Early life, family and education Ouzounian was ...

later noted that "Of all the fine actors I've ever seen in the part, only Donaldson gave us the charm as well as the pathos, the hope as well as the despair". He received a

Genie award The Genie Awards were given out annually by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television to recognize the best of Canadian cinema from 1980–2012. They succeeded the Canadian Film Awards (1949–1978; also known as the "Etrog Awards," for sc ...

for this performance when it was filmed by David Wellington in 1996 for the film adaptation '' Long Day's Journey into Night''. He also worked at the

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 productio ...

, and in London as part of Robin Phillips' repertory company at the Grand Theatre. Donaldson appeared in two CBC television series based on

L.M. Montgomery Lucy Maud Montgomery (November 30, 1874 – April 24, 1942), published as L. M. Montgomery, was a Canadian author best known for a collection of novels, essays, short stories, and poetry beginning in 1908 with ''Anne of Green Gables''. She ...

books. He played Ian Bowles in ''

Emily of New Moon ''Emily of New Moon'' is the first in a series of novels by Lucy Maud Montgomery about an orphan girl growing up on Prince Edward Island. Montgomery is also the author of ''Anne of Green Gables'' series. It was first published in 1923. Plot sum ...

'' and Reverend Leonard in ''

Road to Avonlea ''Road to Avonlea'' is a Canadian television series first broadcast in Canada between January 7, 1990, and March 31, 1996, as part of the '' CBC Family Hour'' anthology series, and in the United States starting on March 5, 1990. It was created ...

''. He also appeared in the TV series ''

Little Mosque on the Prairie ''Little Mosque on the Prairie'' is a Canadian television sitcom created by Zarqa Nawaz and produced by WestWind Pictures, originally broadcast from 2007 to 2012 on CBC. Filmed in Toronto, Ontario, and Indian Head, Saskatchewan, the series was s ...

'' and ''

Murdoch Mysteries ''Murdoch Mysteries'' is a Canadian television drama series that premiered on Citytv on January 20, 2008, and currently airs on CBC. The series is based on characters from the ''Detective Murdoch'' novels by Maureen Jennings and stars Yannick ...

''. In the late 1990s, he also co-starred in the

Atom Egoyan Atom Egoyan (; hy, Աթոմ Եղոյեան, translit=Atom Yeghoyan; born July 19, 1960) is a Canadian filmmaker. He was part of a loosely-affiliated group of filmmakers to emerge in the 1980s from Toronto known as the Toronto New Wave. Egoyan m ...

film '' The Sweet Hereafter'' and played

John Adams John Adams (October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, attorney, diplomat, writer, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the second president of the United States from 1797 to 1801. Befor ...

in the six-part 1997 PBS television documentary ''

Liberty! The American Revolution ''Liberty! The American Revolution'' is a six-hour documentary miniseries about the Revolutionary War, and the instigating factors, that brought about the United States' independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain. It was first broadcast on ...

''. He met actress

Sheila McCarthy Sheila McCarthy (born January 1, 1956) is a Canadian actress and singer. She has worked in film, television, and on stage. McCarthy is one of Canada's most honoured actors, having won two Genie Awards (film), two Gemini Awards (television), an A ...

in 1983 while working in theatre in

London, Ontario London (pronounced ) is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada, along the Quebec City–Windsor Corridor. The city had a population of 422,324 according to the 2021 Canadian census. London is at the confluence of the Thames River, approximat ...

, and they were married in December 1986 in Stratford. The couple had two daughters. Donaldson was diagnosed with lung cancer, and while undergoing treatment continued to rehearse and perform as an actor. He would often have chemotherapy in the morning and work in the evenings. According to the writer

George F. Walker George F. Walker (born August 23, 1947) is a Canadian playwright and screenwriter. He is one of Canada's most prolific playwrights, and also one of the most widely produced Canadian dramatists both in Canada and internationally. Early years Wal ...

"He had such great energy – he never made you feel like he needed special treatment". Roles during this period included acclaimed performances in ''

Glengarry Glen Ross ''Glengarry Glen Ross'' is a play by David Mamet that won the Pulitzer Prize in 1984. The play shows parts of two days in the lives of four desperate Chicago real estate agents who are prepared to engage in any number of unethical, illegal acts ...

'' at the

Soulpepper Theatre Soulpepper is a theater company based in Toronto, Ontario. It is the largest non-profit theater in the city. History Soulpepper was founded in 1998 by twelve Toronto artists aiming to produce lesser-known theatrical classics. Soulpepper has sinc ...

, ''

'Art' ''Art'' is a French-language play by Yasmina Reza that premiered in 1994 at Comédie des Champs-Élysées in Paris. The play subsequently ran in London in 1996 and on Broadway in 1998. Productions The play premiered on 28 October 1994 at Com� ...

'' at

Canadian Stage 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 ...

and Walker's ''And So It Goes'' at Factory Theatre. Donaldson died of lung cancer at Princess Margaret Hospital in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

at the age of 57. The director of the Stratford Festival, Antoni Cimolino, described Peter as "the finest actor's actor. He was deeply admired for the conviction he brought to his work and the unsparing truth of his portrayals. He was versatile and able to give outstanding performances in modern plays, musicals and classics. But his home was Shakespeare."

References

External links

Peter Donaldson at Northern Stars
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Donaldson, Peter 1953 births 2011 deaths Male actors from Ontario Canadian male stage actors Canadian male television actors People from Midland, Ontario Best Supporting Actor Genie and Canadian Screen Award winners Deaths from lung cancer University of Guelph alumni Deaths from cancer in Ontario Canadian male film actors