Keith Stanley Baxter-Wright (29 April 1933 – 24 September 2023) was a Welsh theatre, film and television actor and director.
Keith Baxter | |
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Paul Rogers and Baxter (right) in the Broadway production of Sleuth (1971) | |
Born | Keith Stanley Baxter-Wright 29 April 1933 Newport, Monmouthshire, Wales |
Died | 24 September 2023 | (aged 90)
Occupation | Actor |
Years active | 1957–2023 |
Spouse | Brian Holden |
Early years and RADA
editKeith Stanley Baxter-Wright was born in Newport, Monmouthshire, on 29 April 1933. He was the son of Stanley Baxter-Wright, a Merchant Navy sea captain, and Emily Baxter (née Howell).[1] They lived for a time in Romilly Road, Barry, Glamorgan. He was educated at Newport High School and Barry Grammar School. His early introduction to the stage was from his interest in making model theatres and stage scenery. He studied at London's Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts, during which period he shared a flat with a classmate, Alan Bates. He made his film debut in the 1957 remake of The Barretts of Wimpole Street and appeared uncredited as a detective in the British horror classic Peeping Tom (1960).
Films
editIn 1960, Orson Welles selected Baxter to portray Prince Hal in his stage production Chimes at Midnight, which combined portions of the Shakespearean plays Henry IV, Part I, Henry IV, Part II, Henry V, Richard II, and The Merry Wives of Windsor and brought the comic figure of Falstaff to the forefront of a primarily tragic tale. Baxter repeated his performance in the 1965 film version. Additional film credits include Ash Wednesday (1973; with Elizabeth Taylor), Golden Rendezvous (1977), and Killing Time (1998).[2]
Broadway
editIn 1961, Baxter made his Broadway debut as King Henry VIII in A Man for All Seasons.[2] Other New York City stage credits included The Affair (1962), Avanti! (1968), Sleuth (1970), Romantic Comedy (1980) and The Woman in Black (2001).
Other selected theatrical appearances
edit- Macbeth, Birmingham Repertory Theatre, Birmingham, England, 1972
- Vershinin, Three Sisters, Greenwich Theatre, London, 1973
- Benedick, Much Ado about Nothing, Royal Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh, Scotland, 1973
- Antony, Antony and Cleopatra, Stratford Festival Theatre, Stratford, Ontario, 1976
- Witwoud, The Way of the World, Stratford Festival Theatre, 1976
- Vershinin, Three Sisters, Stratford Festival Theatre, 1976
- King, The Red Devil Battery Sign, Round House Theatre, then Phoenix Theatre, both London, 1977
- Lord Illingworth, A Woman of No Importance, Chichester Festival Theatre, 1978
- Antony, Antony and Cleopatra, Young Vic Theatre, London, 1982
- Elyot, Private Lives, Aldwych Theatre, London, 1990
- Cassius, Julius Caesar, Hartford Stage Company, 1990-1991
- The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui, Chichester and The Duchess Theatre, 2013
Directing
edit- The Red Devil Battery Sign, Roundhouse and Phoenix Theatre, 1977
- Time and the Conways, 1988–89
- Rope, Chichester Festival Theatre then Wyndham's Theatre, 1994
- Dangerous Corner, Chichester Festival Theatre, 1994, and Whitehall Theatre, 1995
- Gaslight
- After October, 1996–97
- Silhouette
Baxter regularly directed shows at Shakespeare Theatre Company in Washington D.C., including:[3]
- The Country Wife (2000)
- The Rivals (2003)
- Lady Windermere's Fan (2003)[4]
- The Imaginary Invalid (2008)
- The Rivals (2009)
- Mrs. Warren's Profession (2010)[5]
- An Ideal Husband (2011)[6]
- The Importance of Being Earnest
Cleopatra
editBaxter was signed for the role of Octavian "Augustus" Caesar opposite Elizabeth Taylor's Cleopatra in the 1963 film of Cleopatra. Taylor's bout of pneumonia, soon after filming began, temporarily shut down filming. By the time she recovered, Baxter had other commitments and Roddy McDowall assumed the role. Baxter co-starred with Taylor in the film Ash Wednesday (1973). He also later played Mark Antony opposite Maggie Smith's Cleopatra in Antony and Cleopatra at the Stratford Festival in Canada in 1976.[7]
Television work
editBaxter's television work included appearances in Gideon's Way, The Avengers, Hawaii Five-O, Thriller (1976) and the 1998 mini-series Merlin.
Other work
editBaxter was the author of My Sentiments Exactly, memoirs.[8] He has written several plays including 56 Duncan Terrace, Cavell and Barnaby and the Old Boys.
In 1971, he recorded an LP of several of the short stories of Saki for Caedmon Records under the title Reginald on House-Parties, and Other Stories.[9]
Baxter was an associate member of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.
Personal life and death
editDuring the 1960s, Baxter had a brief affair with the dancer Rudolf Nureyev.[10] In 1979, he met Brian Holden and formed a lasting relationship; they married in 2016, and moved from London to West Sussex.[2]
Keith Baxter died from a heart attack while swimming on holiday in Corsica, on 24 September 2023. He was 90, and was survived by his husband.[1]
Theatre awards
edit- 1962 Theatre World Award for A Man for All Seasons
- 1971 Drama Desk Award for Sleuth
Filmography
editFilm
editYear | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1956 | She Stoops to Conquer | Thomas | TV film |
1957 | The Barretts of Wimpole Street | Charles Barrett | |
1958 | Incident at Echo Six | Duty officer | TV film |
1960 | Peeping Tom | Detective Baxter | Uncredited |
1963 | Where Angels Fear to Tread | Gino Carella | TV film |
1965 | Hold My Hand, Soldier | The Private | TV film |
Chimes at Midnight | Prince Hal | ||
1970 | With Love in Mind | Tony Preston | |
1973 | Ash Wednesday | David | |
1974 | The Regent's Wife | Don Fermín de Pas | |
1977 | Golden Rendezvous | Preston | |
1988 | Berlín Blues | Professor Huessler | |
1998 | Killing Time | Reilly Bodyguard #3 |
Television
editYear | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1957 | ITV Television Playhouse | Vivian Brent | Episode: "Six Stayed the Night" |
1958 | ITV Play of the Week | Ben Kent | Episode: "The Troublemakers" |
Desmond O'Malley | Episode: "The Young May Moon" | ||
Hector Malone | Episode: "Man and Superman" | ||
1959 | Stacey Crispin | Episode: "A Dead Secret" | |
Broadcaster | Episode: "Sweet Poison" | ||
ITV Television Playhouse | Police Constable Peterson | Episode: "The Extra Grave" | |
1960 | Tom Belton | Episode: "After the Party" | |
ITV Play of the Week | Adrian | Episode: "Square Dance" | |
1963 | BBC Sunday-Night Play | Viazemsky | Episode: "The Reward of Silence" |
Nicholas | Episode: "For Tea on Sunday" | ||
The Sentimental Agent | Yanni | Episode: "Not Quite Fully Covered" | |
1964 | The Hidden Truth | Yanni | Episode: "One for the Road" |
Gideon's Way | Geoffrey Miles | Episode: "The 'V' Men" | |
1965 | Armchair Theatre | Harry | Episode: "I've Got a System" |
Public Eye | Paul Garston | Episode: "Nobody Kills Santa Claus" | |
ITV Sunday Night Drama | Drango | Episode: "Suspense Hour: Curtains for Sheila" | |
1968 | Love Story | David | Episode: "The Vast Horizons of the Mind" |
BBC Play of the Month | Dunois | Episode: "St. Joan" | |
1969 | Thirty-Minute Theatre | Jim Garden | Episode: "Stake Money" |
The Avengers | Dunbar | Episode: "Homicide and Old Lace" | |
1973 | Orson Welles Great Mysteries | Philip Faulkner | Episode: "Farewell to the Faulkners" |
1974 | Dial M for Murder | Paul Duras | Episode: "The Vineyard" |
1976 | Thriller | Tony Risanti | Episode: "Nightmare for a Nightingale" |
1978 | Will Shakespeare | Earl of Essex | Episode: "Rebellion's Masterpiece" |
Hawaii Five-O | Reverend Andy | Episode: "The Miracle Man" | |
1992 | Performance | Actor | Episode: "Six Characters in Search of an Author" |
1998 | Merlin | Sir Hector | Miniseries |
References
edit- ^ a b "Keith Baxter, much-loved actor and theatre man who played Prince Hal to Orson Welles's Falstaff – obituary". The Telegraph. 13 October 2023. Retrieved 13 October 2023.
- ^ a b c Michael Coveney (22 October 2023). "Keith Baxter obituary". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 December 2023.
- ^ "Complete Listing of Past Seasons at the Shakespeare Theatre Company". Shakespeare Theatre Company. Archived from the original on 25 May 2011. Retrieved 18 February 2011.
- ^ "Keith Baxter Directs Dixie Carter, Tessa Auberjonois in D.C. Shakespeare Theatre's Lady Windermere's Fan June 7". Playbill. Archived from the original on 19 October 2012. Retrieved 20 January 2011.
- ^ Marks, Peter (16 June 2010). "'Mrs. Warren's Profession' is alluring in Shakespeare Theatre Company production". The Washington Post. Retrieved 25 February 2013.
- ^ Marks, Peter (16 March 2011). "Theater review: Shakespeare Theatre Company's 'An Ideal Husband'". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on 16 December 2013. Retrieved 25 February 2013.
- ^ "Keith Baxter acting credits". Stratford Festival Archives. Retrieved 5 June 2019.
- ^ "My Sentiments Exactly (Hardback)". Oberon Books. Oberon Books. Archived from the original on 4 October 2015. Retrieved 13 August 2015.
- ^ "Reginald on house-parties, and other stories". SearchWorks. Stanford University Libraries. Retrieved 13 August 2015.[permanent dead link]
- ^ Julie Kavanagh (2008). Rudolf Nureyev: the Life. Penguin Random House. pp. 336–9. ISBN 9780241986905.
External links
edit- Keith Baxter at IMDb
- Keith Baxter at the Internet Broadway Database
- Keith Baxter at Internet Off-Broadway Database
- Selected plays directed by Keith Baxter, Bristol University Theatre Archive