Antony Holland (born 28 March 1920) is a British actor, playwright, and director from England. Currently he lives on Gabriola Island, British Columbia, Canada.
[>>]Source: WikipediaAntony Holland (born 28 March 1920) is a British actor, playwright, and director from England. Currently he lives on Gabriola Island, British Columbia, Canada.
History
Holland completed his drama training at the Labour Stage in London. Shortly after he was called into Her Majesty's Armed Forces as a signalman at the onset of the Second World War. It was here that while training at the coastal town of South Shields, that he put on a play in the local abandoned theatre. From there, Holland would continue to mount productions on his spare time throughout the course of the war. One notable instance was during a convoy aboard a naval freighter bound for Egypt that he put on one play a week using volunteers from the ranks. He was granted the officers' lounge for rehearsals and cast approximately 100 men in a wide variety of roles, including parts that required playing women. His plays continued through the North African Campaign, crossed the desert, and made it to Cairo where he would mount productions at the Khedivial Opera House. So successful were his plays that the military requisitioned stage materials for more elaborate productions. A use of resources said to be unheard of in times of war. Holland was transferred into military intelligence where he served out the remainder of the war.
In 1946, Laurence Olivier founded the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School where Holland would take up the position of vice principal for nearly a decade. Holland would move to Vancouver in 1957 and remains in British Columbia today. In 1965, he founded a theatre arts program at the King Edward Campus of Vancouver Community College. The school would relocate to Langara College and formally take the name of Studio 58. He was instrumental in shaping the direction and growth of the program for 20 years making it one of the top rated acting-training schools in Canada. Holland would retire as artistic director in 1985, only to return to professional acting, directing, and writing. Shortly after moving to Gabriola Island, he would establish a new theatre company at the Gabriola Theatre Centre.
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