Bruce Barry (actor)

Bruce Alaric Barry (24 October 1934 – 20 April 2017[1] (6 May 2017 is also mentioned as a death date in one source)[2]) was an Australian stage, television and film actor, and singer.

Bruce Barry
Born
Bruce Alaric Barry

24 October 1934
Gympie, Queensland, Australia
Died20 April 2017(2017-04-20) (aged 82)
Sydney, New South Wales
OccupationActor, singer

Early life and career

Bruce Barry was born the son of a teacher in Gympie, Queensland, and grew up in Charters Towers.[3] Having started his career as a radio announcer in Queensland and northern New South Wales, Barry ventured into singing at Gold Coast nightclubs and then to acting with the Young Elizabethans, a Sydney-based theatre troupe. His first role was the title role in Henry V.[3] In his three years there, he performed throughout Australia on various regional tours.[1]

He then combined his singing and acting skills in stage musicals such as Funny Girl (with Jill Perryman), A Little Night Music (with Taina Elg), Irma La Douce, Annie Get Your Gun, Lola Montez, 1776, Hello, Dolly!, and Promises, Promises. He also acted in straight theatre such as Noël Coward's Private Lives (with Susannah York).[1]

He then became a familiar face on Australian television screens, in such shows as Bellbird, The Spoiler, The Mavis Bramston Show, Skyways, The Flying Doctors, Glenview High, The Restless Years, Possession, and Division 4.

For three years from 1980 he worked in musical theatre in London, in such shows as The Biograph Girl, Marilyn! the Musical [based on the life of Marilyn Monroe, at the Adelphi Theatre; Bruce sang the role of Arthur Miller], H.M.S. Pinafore, and a long-running West End revival of Oklahoma!.[1] He also toured the UK with Evita, appearing with Rula Lenska and others at Leeds and in other UK cities.

While living in London, Bruce Barry presented "An Evening with Bruce Barry", followed by a reception, at the Australian High Commission in Aldwych, London, under the auspices of the Australian Cultural Attache.

Personal life

Bruce Barry was married and divorced twice, and was survived by two children.[4] He died in 2017 in Sydney from complications of dementia.[2]

Filmography

References
  1. Gympie Times, 16 July 2017. Retrieved 12 January 2019
  2. Obituaries in the Performing Arts 2017. Retrieved 12 January 2019
  3. Philip O'Brien, "Barry happy to perform as himself", Canberra Times, 23 September 1998, p. 16
  4. "Bruce Barry interviewed by Bill Stephens [sound recording]". NLA Trove. 1998. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
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