Roberta Maxwell
Encyclopedia
Background
Roberta Maxwell began studying for the stage at the age of 12. She joined John ClarkJohn Clark (actor/director)
Ivan John Clark is an English actor, director, producer, and writer with British, American and Canadian citizenship. He is also known as the ex-husband of actress Lynn Redgrave, to whom he was married for 33 years.-Early career:...
for 2 years as the child co-host of his Junior Magazine
Junior Magazine
Junior Magazine was a TV programme for teenagers, which ran for 7 years on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's coast to coast network, seen Sundays from 2-3 p.m....
series for CBC Television
CBC Television
CBC Television is a Canadian television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcaster.Although the CBC is supported by public funding, the television network supplements this funding with commercial advertising revenue, in contrast to CBC Radio which are...
, before becoming the youngest actress apprentice at the Stratford Shakespeare Festival in Stratford, Ontario
Stratford, Ontario
Stratford is a city on the Avon River in Perth County in southwestern Ontario, Canada with a population of 32,000.When the area was first settled by Europeans in 1832, the townsite and the river were named after Stratford-upon-Avon, England. It is the seat of Perth County. Stratford was...
,
to pursue an acting career.
Stratford Shakespeare Festival and England
She appeared as Ursula in Much Ado About NothingMuch Ado About Nothing
Much Ado About Nothing is a comedy written by William Shakespeare about two pairs of lovers, Benedick and Beatrice, and Claudio and Hero....
, Lady Anne in Richard III
Richard III (play)
Richard III is a history play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in approximately 1591. It depicts the Machiavellian rise to power and subsequent short reign of Richard III of England. The play is grouped among the histories in the First Folio and is most often classified...
, Olivia in Twelfth Night, and Anne in The Merry Wives of Windsor
The Merry Wives of Windsor
The Merry Wives of Windsor is a comedy by William Shakespeare, first published in 1602, though believed to have been written prior to 1597. It features the fat knight Sir John Falstaff, and is Shakespeare's only play to deal exclusively with contemporary Elizabethan era English middle class life...
, before going on to England, where she spent three years in repertory
Repertory
Repertory or rep, also called stock in the United States, is a term used in Western theatre and opera.A repertory theatre can be a theatre in which a resident company presents works from a specified repertoire, usually in alternation or rotation...
. She made her West End
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
debut with Robert Morley
Robert Morley
Robert Adolph Wilton Morley, CBE was an English actor who, often in supporting roles, was usually cast as a pompous English gentleman representing the Establishment...
and Molly Picon
Molly Picon
Molly Picon was an American actress of stage, screen and television, as well as a lyricist and dramatic storyteller....
in A Majority of One
A Majority of One
-Plot:The comedy involves Mrs. Jacoby, a Jewish widow from Brooklyn, New York, and Koichi Asano, a millionaire widower from Tokyo. Mrs. Jacoby is sailing to Japan with her daughter and foreign service officer son-in-law who is being posted to the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo...
.
In 1982, she starred as Rosalind in the Stratford Festival's stage production of Shakespeare's As You Like It
As You Like It
As You Like It is a pastoral comedy by William Shakespeare believed to have been written in 1599 or early 1600 and first published in the folio of 1623. The play's first performance is uncertain, though a performance at Wilton House in 1603 has been suggested as a possibility...
, a production which was videotaped and telecast on Canadian television in 1983. In 2011, she played the duchess of York in Richard III
Richard III (play)
Richard III is a history play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in approximately 1591. It depicts the Machiavellian rise to power and subsequent short reign of Richard III of England. The play is grouped among the histories in the First Folio and is most often classified...
.
Broadway
She debuted on BroadwayBroadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
in The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie in 1968, going on to five more plays with the Tyrone Guthrie Theatre in Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis , nicknamed "City of Lakes" and the "Mill City," is the county seat of Hennepin County, the largest city in the U.S. state of Minnesota, and the 48th largest in the United States...
. In 1974 she was back on Broadway playing the role of Jill in Equus
Equus (play)
Equus is a play by Peter Shaffer written in 1973, telling the story of a psychiatrist who attempts to treat a young man who has a pathological religious fascination with horses....
, which starred Anthony Hopkins
Anthony Hopkins
Sir Philip Anthony Hopkins, KBE , best known as Anthony Hopkins, is a Welsh actor of film, stage and television...
.
TV and film
Those, and many more plays, took her on to a successful television and film career.In 2009 and 2010 she appeared in two episodes of the SyfySyfy
Syfy , formerly known as the Sci-Fi Channel and SCI FI, is an American cable television channel featuring science fiction, supernatural, fantasy, reality, paranormal, wrestling, and horror programming. Launched on September 24, 1992, it is part of the entertainment conglomerate NBCUniversal, a...
series Warehouse 13
Warehouse 13
Warehouse 13 is an American fantasy television series that premiered on July 7, 2009 on the Syfy network.Executive-produced by Jack Kenny and David Simkins, the dramatic comedy from Universal Media Studios has been described as borrowing much from 1980s television series Friday the 13th: The...
.
Awards and recognition
- 1970: Obie AwardObie AwardThe Obie Awards or Off-Broadway Theater Awards are annual awards given by The Village Voice newspaper to theatre artists and groups in New York City...
, Whistle in the Dark - 1971: Drama Desk AwardDrama Desk AwardThe Drama Desk Awards, which are given annually in a number of categories, are the only major New York theater honors for which productions on Broadway, Off-Broadway, Off-Off-Broadway compete against each other in the same category...
, Slag (David HareDavid Hare (dramatist)Sir David Hare is an English playwright and theatre and film director.-Early life:Hare was born in St Leonards-on-Sea, Hastings, East Sussex, the son of Agnes and Clifford Hare, a sailor. He was educated at Lancing, an independent school in West Sussex, and at Jesus College, Cambridge...
's first play) - 1977: Obie AwardObie AwardThe Obie Awards or Off-Broadway Theater Awards are annual awards given by The Village Voice newspaper to theatre artists and groups in New York City...
, Ashes (with Brian MurrayBrian MurrayBrian Murray is a South African actor and theatre director. He was inducted into the American Theatre Hall of Fame in 2004....
for Joseph PappJoseph PappJoseph Papp was an American theatrical producer and director. Papp established The Public Theater in what had been the Astor Library Building in downtown New York . "The Public," as it is known, has many small theatres within it...
and Manhattan Theatre ClubManhattan Theatre ClubManhattan Theatre Club is a theater company located in New York City. Under the leadership of Artistic Director Lynne Meadow and Executive Producer Barry Grove, Manhattan Theatre Club has grown since its founding in 1970 from an Off-Off Broadway showcase into one of the country’s most acclaimed...
)
Movies
- 1968: A Great Big Thing
- 1979: Rich Kids
- 1980: The ChangelingThe Changeling (film)The Changeling is a 1980 horror film directed by Peter Medak and starring George C. Scott and Trish Van Devere . The story is based upon events that writer Russell Hunter said he experienced while he was living in the Henry Treat Rogers Mansion of Denver, Colorado.-Plot:Scott stars as Dr...
- 1980: PopeyePopeye (film)Popeye is a 1980 live-action film adaptation directed by Robert Altman and adapted from E. C. Segar's Thimble Theatre aka Popeye comic strip.Marketed with the tagline, "The sailor man with the spinach can!", the film is a musical...
- 1986: Psycho IIIPsycho IIIPsycho III is a 1986 sequel to Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho. The film stars Anthony Perkins , Diana Scarwid, Jeff Fahey and Roberta Maxwell. The screenplay is written by Charles Edward Pogue...
- 1993: PhiladelphiaPhiladelphia (film)Philadelphia is a 1993 American drama film that was one of the first mainstream Hollywood films to acknowledge HIV/AIDS, homosexuality and homophobia. It was written by Ron Nyswaner and directed by Jonathan Demme. The film stars Tom Hanks and Denzel Washington...
- 1995: Dead Man WalkingDead Man Walking (film)Dead Man Walking is a 1995 American drama film directed by Tim Robbins, who adapted the screenplay from the non-fiction book of the same name...
- 1997: Fall
- 1997: The PostmanThe Postman (film)The Postman is an American post-apocalyptic epic film based on the 1985 novel of the same name by David Brin. It was filmed in northeastern Washington , Fidalgo Island, Washington, central Oregon and Tucson, Arizona, and was directed by Kevin Costner, who also stars in the film...
- 1998: Last Night
- 1999: Water DamageWater damageWater damage describes a large number of possible losses caused by water intruding where it will enable attack of a material or system by destructive processes such as rotting of wood, growth, rusting of steel, de-laminating of materials such as plywood , and many, many others.The damage may be...
- 2001: Full DisclosureFull Disclosure (film)Full Disclosure is a 2001 thriller film starring Fred Ward, Christopher Plummer, Rachel Ticotin and Penelope Ann Miller. It was directed by John Bradshaw.- Background :The film was shot in 1999...
(video release) - 2005: Brokeback MountainBrokeback MountainBrokeback Mountain is a 2005 romantic drama film directed by Ang Lee. It is a film adaptation of the 1997 short story of the same name by Annie Proulx with the screenplay written by Diana Ossana and Larry McMurtry...
Television series
- 1957-58: Junior MagazineJunior MagazineJunior Magazine was a TV programme for teenagers, which ran for 7 years on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's coast to coast network, seen Sundays from 2-3 p.m....
(co-host) - 1960: Just MaryJust MaryJust Mary is a Canadian children's television series which aired on CBC Television in 1960.-Premise:Mary Grannan narrated stories based on her Just Mary books in this Toronto-produced series while puppets and human actors performed the storylines...
(puppet voice) - 1974: Another WorldAnother World (TV series)Another World is an American television soap opera that ran on NBC from May 4, 1964 to June 25, 1999. It ran for a total of 35 years. It was created by Irna Phillips along with William J...
- 1979: Mourning Becomes ElectraMourning Becomes ElectraMourning Becomes Electra is a play cycle written by American playwright Eugene O'Neill. The play premiered on Broadway at the Guild Theatre on 26 October 1931 where it ran for 150 performances before closing in March 1932...
(mini-series) - 1985-1987: AirwavesAirwaves (TV series)Airwaves is a Canadian television dramedy which aired on CBC from 1986 to 1990.The Toronto-filmed show starred Roberta Maxwell as Jean Lipton, a radio talk show host and widowed mother, who lived with her daughter Zoe, played by Ingrid Veninger, and her father Bob, played by Roland Hewgill...
- 1988: All My ChildrenAll My ChildrenAll My Children is an American television soap opera that aired on ABC from January 5, 1970 to September 23, 2011. Created by Agnes Nixon, All My Children is set in Pine Valley, Pennsylvania, a fictitious suburb of Philadelphia. The show features Susan Lucci as Erica Kane, one of daytime's most...
- 1997: Liberty! The American Revolution (mini-series)
- 1999: Too Rich: The Life of Doris Duke (mini-series)
- 2002: Benjamin FranklinBenjamin Franklin (TV miniseries)Benjamin Franklin is a 1974 American television miniseries that chronicles the life of Benjamin Franklin. It was broadcast by CBS. It won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Limited Series.-Cast:*Willie Aames as Franklin at age 12...
(mini-series) - 2009-10: Warehouse 13Warehouse 13Warehouse 13 is an American fantasy television series that premiered on July 7, 2009 on the Syfy network.Executive-produced by Jack Kenny and David Simkins, the dramatic comedy from Universal Media Studios has been described as borrowing much from 1980s television series Friday the 13th: The...
Television movies
- 1974: A Touch of the PoetA Touch of the PoetA Touch of the Poet is a play by Eugene O'Neill.It and its sequel, More Stately Mansions, were intended to be part of a nine-play cycle entitled A Tale of Possessors Self-Dispossessed...
- 1982: Lois Gibbs and the Love Canal
- 1983: Special BulletinSpecial BulletinSpecial Bulletin is an American made-for-TV movie first broadcast in 1983. It was an early collaboration between director Edward Zwick and writer Marshall Herskovitz, a team that would later produce such series as thirtysomething and My So-Called Life...
- 1989: Our TownOur TownOur Town is a three-act play by American playwright Thornton Wilder. It is a character story about an average town's citizens in the early twentieth century as depicted through their everyday lives...
- 1996: We the Jury
- 1996: Mistrial
- 1997: When Innocence Is LostWhen Innocence Is LostWhen Innocence Is Lost is an 1997 American drama TV film directed by Bethany Rooney and written by Deborah Jones. It stars Keri Russell, Jill Clayburgh, Vince Corazza, Julie Khaner, and Charlotte SullivanPlot:...
- 1998: At the End of the Day: The Sue Rodriguez StoryAt the End of the Day: The Sue Rodriguez StoryAt the End of the Day: The Sue Rodriguez Story is a 1998 Canadian documentary/drama film about the life of Canadian right to die advocate Sue Rodriguez....
- 1999: Forget Me Never
- 1999: Life in a Day
- 2001: What Makes a FamilyWhat Makes a FamilyWhat Makes a Family is a 2001 television movie from Lifetime Television. The film premiered on the network on January 22, 2001.-Plot:Based on a true story, the movie involves a lesbian couple living in Florida who choose to have a child...
- 2002: Scar Tissue
- 2003: Death by LandscapeThe Atwood StoriesThe Atwood Stories was a Canadian television drama series, which aired on W in 2003. A short-run dramatic anthology series produced by Shaftesbury Films, the series dramatized six short stories by Margaret Atwood....
- 2004: Gracie's ChoiceGracie's ChoiceGracie's Choice is a 2004 television movie that premiered on Lifetime, written by Joyce Eliason and directed by Peter Werner, and starring Kristen Bell Anne Heche Diane Ladd and Kristin Fairlie...
- 2005: Riding the Bus with My SisterRiding the Bus with My SisterRiding the Bus with My Sister is a memoir by Rachel Simon, published in 2002 by Houghton Mifflin about the time she spent with her sister Beth, who has a developmental disability, whose lifestyle revolves around riding buses in her home city.-Book:...
- 2005: Vinegar Hill
- 2006: The Mermaid ChairThe Mermaid Chair (film)The Mermaid Chair is a 2006 movie adapted from the book written by Sue Monk Kidd. It was directed by Steven Schachter and stars Kim Basinger, Alex Carter, and Bruce Greenwood. The movie was filmed in British Columbia Canada...