Doreen Warburton

Warburton in 1953
Born(1930-03-22)22 March 1930
London, England
Died19 July 2017(2017-07-19) (aged 87)
West Gosford, New South Wales, Australia
Occupations
  • Actress
  • artistic director
  • theatre co-founder
Years active1948-1989
EmployerQ Theatre
SpouseBen Gabriel

Evelyn Doreen Warburton OBE (22 March 1930 – 19 July 2017) was an Australian actress, director, and theatre co-founder.

Biography

Evelyn Doreen Warburton was born in London, England on 22 March 1930.[1] At 18 she began her theatre career with the Theatre Workshop, a company where all performers received equal pay and which toured, not just England but also to Scandinavia and Germany.[2]

In 1953 she migrated to Australia to join her family, who had arrived in 1949 and seeking radio work.[3] She made her Australian stage debut in The Shop at Sly Corner at the opening of the Apollo Theatre in Manly[4] and then toured New South Wales in Love From a Stranger.[5][6]

Warburton became a full-time actress in 1959 when she joined the Young Elizabethans and toured Australia for three years bringing Shakespeare's plays to school children.[3]

With actors Ben Gabriel, Edward Hepple, Robert McDarra, Terry McDermott and Walter Sullivan, she was co-founder of the Q Theatre in 1963. Initially giving lunchtime performances at Circular Quay, the company also visited building sites and factories across Australia to bring theatre to the workers.[3] In 1977 the company moved to a permanent venue in Penrith, opening with the musical Lock Up Your Daughters.[7]

As artistic director, Warburton oversaw 81 productions for Q Theatre from 1977 until her retirement in 1989.[3] In 1979 she was the first woman to direct a play at the Sydney Opera House.[8]

Warburton was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in the 1979 Birthday Honours for service to theatre.[9]

Personal

Warburton married fellow actor Ben Gabriel in 1969, who predeceased her in 2012.[10] She died at West Gosford on 19 July 2017.[1]

Selected filmography

Television

References

  1. 1 2 "Warburton, Doreen". The Dictionary of Sydney. Archived from the original on 27 October 2020. Retrieved 9 January 2022.
  2. "No star system in unique stage group". The Sun. No. 13, 441. New South Wales, Australia. 9 March 1953. p. 14 (Late Final Extra). Retrieved 10 January 2022 via National Library of Australia.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Doreen Warburton, stalwart of Sydney theatre for more than three decades". The Sydney Morning Herald. 3 August 2017. Retrieved 9 January 2022.
  4. "Films and Theatres". The Daily Telegraph. Vol. XVIII, no. 15. New South Wales, Australia. 9 April 1953. p. 24. Retrieved 10 January 2022 via National Library of Australia.
  5. "Love From A Stranger". Lithgow Mercury. New South Wales, Australia. 30 June 1953. p. 4 (City Edition). Retrieved 10 January 2022 via National Library of Australia.
  6. "Thriller-Comedy on Monday Night". The Cessnock Eagle and South Maitland Recorder. Vol. 43, no. 4233. New South Wales, Australia. 10 July 1953. p. 5. Retrieved 10 January 2022 via National Library of Australia.
  7. "Q Theatre". The Dictionary of Sydney. Archived from the original on 6 October 2015. Retrieved 9 January 2022.
  8. Turner, Bunty (30 May 1979). "Doreen Warburton making history at the Opera House". The Australian Women's Weekly. Vol. 46, no. 52. p. 12. Retrieved 10 January 2022 via National Library of Australia.
  9. "Mrs Evelyn Doreen Warburton". It's an Honour. 16 June 1979. Archived from the original on 3 December 2021. Retrieved 9 January 2022.
  10. Anderson, Doug (30 May 2012). "All-rounder was always on a role". The Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 23 October 2018. Retrieved 9 January 2022.
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