Martha Henry CC OOnt
Henry as "A" inThree Tall Women in 2021
Born	Martha Kathleen Buhs (1938-02-17)February 17, 1938 Detroit, Michigan, U.S.
Died	October 21, 2021(2021-10-21) (aged 83) Stratford, Ontario, Canada
Other names	Martha Henry-Beattie
Education	Carnegie Mellon University (BFA) National Theatre School (GrDip)
Occupations	Actress theater director
Spouses	Donnelly Rhodes ​ ​ (m. 1962, divorced)​ Douglas Rain ​ (divorced)​ Rod Beattie ​ ​ (m. 1989, divorced)​
Children	1

Martha Kathleen HenryCC OOnt (néeBuhs; February 17, 1938 – October 21, 2021) was an American-Canadian actress and director of stage and screen. During her lifetime, she was considered one of her country’s most acclaimed and accomplished thespians.^[1][2] She was the first graduate of theNational Theatre School of Canada in 1961, and was most noted for her theatre work at theStratford Festival. She was the recipient of numerous accolades, including threeGenie Awards forBest Actress, and theGovernor General's Performing Arts Award for her contributions to Canadian theatre.

Martha Kathleen Buhs was born inDetroit, Michigan, on February 17, 1938.^[3][4] Her parents, Kathleen (née Hatch) and Lloyd Howard Buhs, divorced when she was around five years old.^[5] She grew up in the northern Detroit suburb ofBloomfield Hills, Michigan, attended the Kingswood School (todayCranbrook Kingswood School), and graduated from the drama department atCarnegie Institute of Technology before moving to Canada in 1959.^[6] She later adopted the stage surname Henry, the legal surname of her first husbandDonnelly Rhodes, whom she married in 1962.^[5]

Henry performed at Toronto'sCrest Theatre upon her arrival in Canada, and was soon after accepted into the first class at theNational Theatre School in Montreal.^[7] In 1961, the Theatre School took its students to Stratford to perform scene selections for the Festival company. Henry caught the attention of Artistic DirectorMichael Langham, who offered her a spot in the 1962 company based entirely on her performance that day. Accepting the offer would have required Henry to leave the Theatre School part way through the three-year program, however NTS DirectorPowys Thomas advised her to take the offer, saying she would learn more with the Stratford company than at the Theatre School. She took the offer and was awarded a diploma ahead of the inaugural class, making her the Theatre School's first graduate.^[8][9][10]

During Henry's first season at theStratford Festival in 1962, she played Miranda toWilliam Hutt's firstProspero inThe Tempest, andLady Macduff inMacbeth. Between the 1962 and 1980 seasons, she played leading roles in 40 productions, and made her directing debut in 1980. Some of her roles during this time included Cordelia inKing Lear (1964), Viola inTwelfth Night (1966), Titania inA Midsummer Night's Dream (1968), Desdemona inOthello (1973), Isabella inMeasure for Measure (1975-1976), Olga inThree Sisters (1976), Lady Anne inRichard III (1977), and Paulina inThe Winter's Tale (1978).^{[11][12][13][14][15][16][17]} During brief periods away from Stratford, Henry performed elsewhere in Canada and abroad, includingManitoba Theatre Centre,Shaw Festival,Broadway, New York'sLincoln Centre, and London'sWest End.^[18][19]

Henry and three other directors (Urjo Kareda, Peter Moss and Pam Brighton) were appointed to lead Stratford's 1981 season after the resignation of Artistic DirectorRobin Phillips, but the group was dismissed a few months later when the Board of Directors had lined up English stage directorJohn Dexter to replace them. A major uproar ensued across the Canadian arts community, and Immigration MinisterLloyd Axworthy denied Dexter a work permit.^[20][21][22] A month later, Canadian directorJohn Hirsch was appointed artistic director for the 1981 season.^[23] The "Gang of Four" fallout caused Henry and other Stratford veterans to work away from the Festival for many years, but the enduring result was noted by actorR.H. Thomson as "Stratford turning (a corner) and becoming a deeply Canadian enterprise".^[24][25][26]

After 1980, Henry performed and directed at major arts venues across North America, includingTarragon Theatre,^[27]Canadian Stage,^[28]Globe Theatre,^[29] theNational Arts Centre,Roy Thompson Hall,Citadel Theatre,Theatre Calgary,Manitoba Theatre Centre,Shaw Festival,^[30]Neptune Theatre,^[31][32] andCarnegie Mellon University.^[33]

Henry was artistic director of theGrand Theatre inLondon, Ontario, from 1988 to 1995, during which time she programmed a wide variety of contemporary works, including newer plays such asOleanna byDavid Mamet,The Rez Sisters byTomson Highway, andThe Stillborn Lover byTimothy Findley.^[34][35][36]

Henry's return to the Stratford stage in 1994 as Mary Tyrone inLong Day's Journey Into Night was widely acclaimed, and the production was remounted for the 1995 season.^[37] A filmed version of the production earned her aGenie Award forBest Actress at the17th Genie Awards. The return also marked the start of a second lengthy run for Henry at Stratford, with her performing in leading and supporting roles, directing, and instructing. In 2007, she was appointed director of Stratford's Birmingham Conservatory for Classical Theatre Training, a program that has trained many promising new Canadian actors.^[38] Her production ofAll My Sons byArthur Miller was included in multiple theatre reviewers' lists of top theatre productions in 2016.^[39][40][41] In 2017, she took over leadership of Stratford'sMichael Langham Workshop for Classical Direction.^[42]

In 2018, in her 44th season of performing, at age 80, Henry playedProspero inThe Tempest, directed byAntoni Cimolino.Chris Jones, theater critic for theChicago Tribune, wrote "in all my years watching shows at this theater, a miragelike fountain of excellence ... I have never seen anything quite like the experience of watching Henry".^[43]

During theCOVID-19 pandemic in 2021, Henry played the role of "A" inThree Tall Women byEdward Albee at Stratford's Studio Theatre. In his review of the production,J. Kelly Nestruck of theGlobe and Mail said "Henry’s performance is a reminder of how much more daringly theatrical her generation of stage actors – she’s now in her 80s – can be".^[44] A stage to screen adaptation of Henry's final performance inThree Tall Women was captured by directorBarry Avrich months before Henry died;^[45] following its television broadcast in 2022, it received severalCanadian Screen Award nominations at the11th Canadian Screen Awards in 2023, including a posthumous nod for Henry in the category Best Performance in a Television Film or Miniseries.

Notable television roles include Catherine inEmpire, Inc.,^[46] the prime minister's mother inH₂O,^[3][47] and the owner of the Chateau Rousseau inKen Finkleman'sAt the Hotel.^[3] In 1994, she starred in the TV filmAnd Then There Was One.^[47][48]

Henry was made an officer of theOrder of Canada in 1981, and promoted to companion in 1990.^[49] She was made a member of theOrder of Ontario in 1994. Henry received aGovernor General's Performing Arts Award for her lifetime contribution to Canadian theatre in 1996.^[50]

Henry's marriages to Rhodes andDouglas Rain ended in divorce.^[51][52] She marriedRod Beattie and, although they later separated, they remained married until her death.^[53] She had one child (Emma) with Rain.^[54]

Henry died of cancer shortly after midnight on October 21, 2021, at her home inStratford, Ontario, twelve days after her final stage appearance inThree Tall Women.^[4][52][55]

• "Henry, Martha 1938–".Contemporary Theatre, Film and Television. Vol. 56.ISSN 0749-064X.
• "Henry, Martha 1939–".Creative Canada: A Biographical Dictionary of Twentieth-Century Creative and Performing Artists. Vol. 1.University of Victoria;University of Toronto Press. 1971. pp. 151–152.ISBN 0-8020-3262-1.OCLC 266860.
• Ouzounian, Richard (2002). "Martha Henry".Stratford Gold: 50 Years, 50 Stars, 50 Conversations.McArthur & Company Publishing. pp. 156–164.ISBN 1-55278-271-9.OCLC 48941142.

• Martha Henry atIMDb 
• Martha Henry at theInternet Broadway Database
• An Interview with Martha Henry by TheatreMuseumCanada
• Entry at thecanadianencyclopedia.ca

• 1938 births
• 2021 deaths
• American stage actresses
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• Canadian stage actresses
• Canadian film actresses
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• Best Supporting Actress Genie and Canadian Screen Award winners
• Members of the Order of Ontario
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• Governor General's Award winners

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