ARTIST PROFILE
Michael Hennessy
Born and raised in Dublin, Ireland, Hennessy's father was a professional actor who appeared on stage with stars such as Orson Welles, James Mason, Siobhann McKenna, and Barry Fitzgerald, and on screen with James Cagney, Rock Hudson, Robert Mitchum, Stephen Boyd, and Juliette Greco. All this was during the 1940's and 1950's when Michael was very young. Michael Hennessy spent a lot of time backstage in dressing rooms, running errands, and running lines, but he did not feel drawn to becoming actively involved in theatre.
Michael Hennessy arrived in Canada in 1970, and in 1972 he auditioned for a part in the Irish classic "Playboy of the Western World". That's when his interest in theatre became a passion for him. |
During the past 28 years, Michael has been actively involved in approximately 60 main stage productions in a number of areas, but mainly directing and acting. Many highlights (and some lows) came with the 1978 production of "Of Mice and Men" (a personal favourite), as well as the 1994 production of "The Boys Next Door".
In 1982, under the sponsorship of Family Counselling Centre of Sault Ste. Marie & District, Family Life Theatre came into being. Since that time, nearly 1600 performances of 27 plays focusing on social problems have been given to in excess of 150,000 people across Ontario.
Family Life Theatre is currently touring an original Sault Ste. Marie drama on the topic of gambling that will take the group across Ontario. The highlight to date was performing this play in the St. Lawrence Centre in Toronto. This tour is being done in partnership with the Canadian Foundation of Compulsive Gambling (Ontario) and funded by the Ministry of Health.
Family Life Theatre recently premiered their latest play, "The Covered Mirror", on the topic of palliative care. This play was developed in partnership with Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto. The premiere was a big success for Family Life Theatre, and they look forward to presenting the play in Sault Ste. Marie. Hennessy takes enormous pride in Family Life Theatre and the many people who have helped to bring it to where it is today.
In 1976, Michael directed his first play, "Juno and the Paycock", which starred Keith Knight, and 25 years later opened on January 17, 2001, in the G. Verdi Hall. This production again starrd Keith Knight, and brought back to Sault Ste. Marie the incomparable Arla Jean Sillers.
"My 28 years involvement in local theatre", Hennessy says, "has been exciting, challenging, scary, rewarding, and many other things, but above all, they have been fulfilling – and I wouldn't have missed a minute of them for the world."
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