Stratford Festival to Stream THREE TALL WOMEN Featuring Theatre Legend Martha Henry in Her Final Role

One of the most significant Canadian theatrical events is coming to the screen this month. The Stratford Festival's 2021 production of Edward Albee's Three Tall Women, featuring Martha Henry in her final, tour-de-force performance, will be available for a limited time in Canada on CBC, CBC Gem and Stratfest@Home.

"Martha's final transcendent performance was given in the face of her own death," says Artistic Director Antoni Cimolino. "It is a potent distillation of her strength, fierce intelligence and boundless talent. Sadly we shall not look upon her like again."

At the height of the pandemic Henry starred in an unforgettable production of Three Tall Women. It was to be her final performance; she died just 12 days after the production closed on October 9. Now this remarkable performance is available for home viewing for a limited time directed for the screen by Barry Avrich and produced by Melbar Entertainment Group.

"To immortally capture this powerful final performance by theatre royalty was a privilege and undoubtedly one of the most emotional experiences of my career," says Avrich.

Directed for the stage by Diana Leblanc, and also featuring Lucy Peacock, Mamie Zwettler and Andrew Iles, the production was captured live on September 16, 2021.

As the stage production occurred during pandemic restrictions, only three thousand people were able to see the play live in Stratford. Now the Festival is able to bring this unforgettable production to all of Canada, through a one-time special arrangement with the Estate of Edward Albee in acknowledgment of the final performance of Martha Henry.

The production premières on Sunday, October 16, at 2 p.m. (2:30 NT) on CBC and will also stream free on CBC GEM.

It will be available on Stratfest@Home, the Festival's subscription-based streaming platform for 12 months beginning on October 16.

Subscribe to Stratfest@Home for just $10 a month and gain access to the best in Canadian digital theatrical productions, including the Stratford Festival's acclaimed Shakespeare films, selected productions from the 2021 and 2022 seasons, original digital content, and selected events from the Festival's Meighen Forum, along with documentaries and original content from across the country.

Support for the filming of Three Tall Women is generously provided by Sandra & Jim Pitblado.

Production support for the stage production of Three Tall Women was generously provided by Sylvia D. Chrominska, Dr. Desta Leavine in memory of Pauline Leavine, Sylvia Soyka, The Westaway Charitable Foundation and by Jack Whiteside.

CBC Gem is Canada's streaming service, offering more than 6,500 hours of live and on-demand Canadian programming and a curated selection of acclaimed, best-in-class content from around the world, including more than 800 documentaries, 500 hours of ad-free content for kids and tweens, and a collection of over 200 Canadian feature films. CBC Gem is available free as an app for iOS and Android devices and online at CBCGem.ca, and on TV screens via Apple TV, Google Chromecast, Amazon Fire TV and Android TV.

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