{{short description|Canadian actress (born 1941)}} {{Infobox person | name = Roberta Maxwell | birth_name = Roberta Farnham Maxwell | birth_date = {{birth date and age|1941|6|17}} | birth_place = Toronto, Ontario, Canada | occupation = Actress | years_active = 1956–present }}
'''Roberta Farnham Maxwell''' (born June 17, 1941)<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.northernstars.ca/maxwell_roberta/|title=Roberta Maxwell|first=Ralph|last=Lucas|date=September 17, 2014}}</ref> is a Canadian actress.
==Biography== Maxwell began studying for the stage in her early teens. She joined John Clark for two years as the child co-host of his ''Junior Magazine'' series for CBC Television. She first performed at the Stratford Shakespeare Festival in 1956.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=cBgiAAAAIBAJ&pg=4684%2C274255|title=A short trip for Roberta Maxwell|newspaper=The Gazette|location=Montreal|date=March 21, 1986|page=D1|accessdate=June 19, 2014}}</ref>
She appeared as Ursula in ''Much Ado About Nothing'', Lady Anne in ''Richard III'', Olivia in ''Twelfth Night'', and Anne in ''The Merry Wives of Windsor'', before going on to England, where she spent three years in repertory. She made her West End debut with Robert Morley and Molly Picon in ''A Majority of One''.
She first traveled to New York at age 19 in 1960. She debuted on Broadway in ''The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie'' in 1968, going on to five more plays with the Tyrone Guthrie Theatre in Minneapolis, Minnesota. In 1974, she was back on Broadway playing the role of Jill in ''Equus'', which starred Anthony Hopkins and Peter Firth.<ref>{{IBDB name}}</ref>
Maxwell played Lavinia Mannion (opposite Joan Hackett's Christine Mannion) in the 1978 PBS adaptation of ''Mourning Becomes Electra''. In 1982, she starred as Rosalind in the Stratford Festival's stage production of Shakespeare's ''As You Like It'', a production which was videotaped and telecast on Canadian television in 1983. In 2011, she played the duchess of York in Richard III<ref>[http://archives.cbc.ca/IDCC-1-68-249-1283/arts_entertainment/stratford_festival/ 1958 sound interview, Stratford, Ontario], cbc.ca; accessed March 30, 2018.</ref> In 2009-10 she appeared in two episodes of the Syfy series ''Warehouse 13''.<ref>{{Citation|title=Warehouse 13 (TV Series 2009–2014) |website=IMDb.com |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1132290/fullcredits |language=en |access-date=May 8, 2020}}</ref>
Maxwell has also appeared in several noteworthy films including ''Rich Kids'' (1979), ''Popeye'' and ''The Changeling'' (both 1980), ''Psycho III'' (1986), ''Philadelphia'' (1993), ''Dead Man Walking'' (1995) and ''Brokeback Mountain'' (2005). Her performance in the 1998 independent Canadian dramady ''Last Night'' garnered Maxwell a nomination for a Genie Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role.
==Filmography== ===Film=== {| class="wikitable sortable" |- ! Year ! Title ! Role ! class="unsortable" | Notes |- | 1968 | ''{{sortname|A|Great Big Thing}}'' | Eve | |- | 1979 | ''Rich Kids'' | Barbara Peterfreund | |- | 1980 | data-sort-value="Changeling, The" | ''The Changeling'' | Eva Lingstrom | |- | 1980 | ''Popeye'' | Nana Oyl | |- | 1986 | ''Psycho III'' | Tracy Venable | |- | 1989 | ''Kingsgate'' | Marlene | |- | 1993 | ''Philadelphia'' | Judge Tate | |- | 1995 | ''Dead Man Walking'' | Lucille Poncelet | |- | 1997 | ''Fall'' | Joan Alterman | |- | 1997 | ''{{sortname|The|Postman|The Postman (film)}}'' | Irene March | |- | 1998 | ''Last Night'' | Mrs. Wheeler | |- | 1999 | ''Water Damage'' | Dr. Winfrey | |- | 2001 | ''Full Disclosure'' | Sarah Archer | Direct-to-video |- | 2005 | ''Brokeback Mountain'' | Mrs. Twist, Jack's Mother | |- | 2007 | ''{{sortname|The|Killing Floor|The Killing Floor (2007 film)}}'' | Ms. Alimet | Uncredited |- | 2014 | ''Hungry Hearts'' | Anne | |- | 2014 | ''What We Have'' | Rosemary | |- | 2015 | ''Stranger in the House'' | Alice | |- | 2015 | ''Unearthing'' | Mary Hart | |- | 2017 | ''Gwendolyn Green'' | Gwendolyn Green | Short film |- | 2020 | ''Percy'' | Louise Schmeiser | |- | 2022 | ''This is Harriet'' | Beatrice | Short film |}
===Television=== {| class="wikitable sortable" |- ! Year ! Title ! Role ! class="unsortable" | Notes |- | 1957–1958 | ''Junior Magazine'' | Herself / Host | Various episodes |- | 1957 | ''Folio'' | {{Unk}} | Episode: "Peer Gynt" |- | 1957, 1959, 1960, 1961 | ''Encounter'' | ** / Marjorie / Kathryn Loring / Laurie / Stella Meredith / Helen / Betty | Episodes: "The Movie Star"; "Lady's Choice"; "The Room"; "The Oddball"; "The Watchers"; "The Touch of Light"; "Counsel for the Defense" |- | 1960 | ''Just Mary'' | (voice) | |- | 1962 |''BBC Sunday-Night Play'' | Carolyn Claybourne | Episode: "The Day Before Atlanta" |- | 1962 | ''Emergency-Ward 10'' | Nurse Merritt | 2 episodes |- | 1965 | ''Festival'' | Ria Hennessy | Episode: "A Cheap Bunch of Nice Flowers" |- | 1966 | ''Henry V'' | {{Unk}} | TV movie |- | 1974 | ''{{sortname|A|Touch of the Poet|nolink=1}}'' | Sara Melody | TV movie |- | 1974 | ''Great Performances'' | Clara | Episode: "The Widowing of Mrs. Holroyd" |- | 1974 | ''Another World'' | Barbara Weaver | 91 episodes |- | 1976 | ''{{sortname|The|Other Side of Victory|nolink=1}}'' | {{Unk}} | TV movie |- | 1978 | ''For the Record'' | Carol | Episode: "A Matter of Choice" |- | 1978 | ''Mourning Becomes Electra'' | Lavinia Mannon | TV miniseries (four-part) – Episodes: "The Secret"; "The Homecoming"; "The Hunted"; "An Act of Justice" |- | 1979 | data-sort-value="Other Side of Victory, The" | ''The Other Side of Victory'' | Nancy Turner | TV movie |- | 1981 | ''Today's FBI'' | Phyllis Slater | Episode: "The Bureau" |- | 1982 | ''Lois Gibbs and the Love Canal'' | Mary Belinski | TV movie |- | 1982 | ''Faerie Tale Theatre'' | Griselda / Queen Beatrice | Episode: "The Tale of the Frog Prince" |- | 1983 | ''As You Like It'' | Rosalind |TV movie |- | 1983 | ''Special Bulletin'' | Diane Silverman | TV movie |- | 1984 | ''St. Elsewhere'' | Cat Lady | Episode: "Hello, Goodbye" |- | 1986–1987 | ''Airwaves'' | Jean Lipton | 26 episodes |- | 1988 | ''All My Children'' | Nanny Judith | 1 episode |- | 1989 | ''Great Performances'' | Mrs. Webb | Episode: "Our Town" |- | 1989 | ''{{sortname|The|Equalizer|The Equalizer (1985 TV series)}}'' | Justice Lindsey Smith | Episode: "Heart of Justice" |- | 1989 | ''{{sortname|The|Hitchhiker|The Hitchhiker (TV series)}}'' | Marybeth | Episode: "The Dying Generation" |- | 1996 | ''We the Jury'' | Lydia Bosco | TV movie |- | 1996 | ''Mistrial'' | Judge Friel | TV movie |- | 1997 | ''When Innocence Is Lost'' | Cynthia Adams | TV movie |- | 1997 | ''Liberty!'' | Mercy Otis Warren | TV miniseries (six-part) – Episodes: "The Reluctant Revolutionaries"; "Blows Must Decide"; "The Times That Try Men's Souls"; "Oh Fatal Ambition!" |- | 1998 | ''As the End of the Day: The Sue Rodriguez Story'' | Doe | TV movie |- | 1999 | ''Shadow Lake'' | Louise Garvey | TV movie |- | 1999 | ''Too Rich: The Doris Duke Story'' | Myra | TV movie |- | 1999 | ''Forget Me Never'' | {{Unk}} | TV movie |- | 1999 | ''Twice in a Lifetime'' | Eloise Hawke / Eileen Kotter | Episode: "School's Out" |- | 2000 | ''Law & Order'' | Teresa Brewster | Episode: "Collision" |- | 2000 | ''{{sortname|The|Outer Limits|The Outer Limits (1995 TV series)}}'' | Mrs. Reynolds | Episode: "Inner Child" |- | 2000 | ''Life in a Day'' | Carla Jennings | TV movie |- | 2000 | ''{{sortname|The|Dinosaur Hunter|nolink=1}}'' | Adult Julia | TV movie |- | 2001 | ''What Makes a Family'' | Claire | TV movie |- | 2002 | ''Scar Tissue'' | Mora Carlisle-Nevsky | TV movie |- | 2002 | ''Benjamin Franklin'' | Deborah Read Franklin | TV miniseries documentary (three-part) – Episodes: "Let the Experiment Be Made"; "The Making of a Revolutionary"; "The Chess Master" |- | 2003 | ''{{sortname|The|Atwood Stories}}'' | Lois | Episode: "Death by Landscape" |- | 2004 | ''Gracie's Choice'' | Judge | TV movie |- | 2005 | ''Vinegar Hill'' | Ellen's Mother | TV movie |- | 2005 | ''Riding the Bus with My Sister'' | Valerie | TV movie |- | 2005 | ''Queer as Folk'' | Michael's Lawyer | Episode: "5.3" |- | 2006 | ''Booky Makes Her Mark'' | Aunt Aggie | TV movie |- | 2006 | ''{{sortname|The|Mermaid Chair|The Mermaid Chair (film)}}'' | Nelle | TV movie |- | 2009–2010 | ''Warehouse 13'' | Rebecca St. Clair | 2 episodes |- | 2010 | ''Rookie Blue'' | Marie D'Abramo | Episode: "Bullet Proof" |- | 2014 | ''Theater Talk'' | Herself / Guest | Episode: "Dick Cavett, Roberta Maxwell and Marcia Rodd on 'Hellman v. McCarthy'" |- | 2017 | data-sort-value="Gabriels: Election Year in the Life of One Family, The" | ''The Gabriels: Election Year in the Life of One Family'' | Patricia Gabriel | TV miniseries (three-part) – Episodes: "Hungry"; "What Did You Expect?"; "Women of a Certain Age" |}
===Theater=== {| class="wikitable sortable" |- ! Year ! Title ! Role ! class="unsortable" | Notes |- | 1958 | ''Two Gentlemen of Verona'' | Ursula | |- | 1968 | ''{{sortname|The|Prime of Miss Jean Brodie|The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (play)}}'' | Various Roles | Understudy: Sister Helena, Sandy |- | 1968–1969 | ''{{sortname|The|House of Atreus|nolink=1}}'' | Handmaiden / Chorus | |- | 1968–1969 | ''{{sortname|The|Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui}}'' | Betty Dullfeet | |- | 1969 | ''King Henry VI'' | Katherine | |- | 1970 | ''Othello'' | Desdemona | |- | 1970 | ''Hay Fever'' | Sorel Bliss | |- | 1972 | ''There's One in Every Marriage'' | Lucienne | |- | 1973 | ''{{sortname|The|Plough and the Stars}}'' | Nora Clitheroe | |- | 1973 | ''{{sortname|The|Merchant of Venice}}'' | Jessica | |- | 1974–1977 | ''Equus'' | Jill Mason | |- | 1977 | ''{{sortname|The|Merchant|The Merchant (fairy tale)}}'' | Portia Contarini | |- | 1988–1989 | ''Our Town'' | Mrs. Webb | |- | 1996 | ''Summer and Smoke'' | Mrs. Winemiller | |- | 2015 | ''Indian Ink'' | Eleanor Swan | American Conservatory Theater production |- | 2016 | data-sort-value="Gabriels: Election Year In the Life of One Family, The" | ''The Gabriels: Election Year In the Life of One Family'' (''Hungry'', ''What Did You Expect?'', and ''Women of a Certain Age'') | Patricia Gabriel | Play Cycle by Richard Nelson at The Public Theater |}
==Awards and recognition== * 1970: Obie Award for Distinguished Performance by an Actress, ''Whistle in the Dark'' — Winner * 1971: Drama Desk Award for Best Lead Performance, ''Slag'' — Winner * 1977: Obie Award for Distinguished Performance by an Actress, ''Ashes'' — Winner * 1999: Genie Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role, ''Last Night'' — Nominee * 2003: Gemini Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Dramatic Program or Mini-Series, ''Scar Tissue'' — Nominee * 2006: Online Film & Television Association Award for Best Ensemble, ''Brokeback Mountain'' — Winner * 2006: International Online Cinema Award for Best Ensemble (INOCA), ''Brokeback Mountain'' — Nominee
{{Portal|Biography|Canada|Film|Television|Theatre|Women}}
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== * {{IMDb name|0561809}} * {{iobdb name|2126}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Maxwell, Roberta}} Category:1941 births Category:Living people Category:Actresses from Toronto Category:Canadian film actresses Category:Canadian Shakespearean actresses Category:Canadian stage actresses Category:Canadian television actresses Category:Canadian voice actresses Category:Dora Mavor Moore Award winners