{{Short description|British stage director and actress (1938–2026)}} {{Use British English|date=April 2025}} {{Use dmy dates|date=May 2025}} {{Infobox person | name = Tina Packer | image = Cropped_Photo_of_Tina_Packer.jpg | caption = | birth_name = Christina Roberta Packer | birth_date = {{Birth date|1938|9|28|df=y}} | birth_place = Wolverhampton, Staffordshire, England | death_date = {{Death date and age|2026|1|9|1938|9|28|df=y}} | death_place = Pittsfield, Massachusetts, U.S. | alma_mater = Royal Academy of Dramatic Art | known_for = {{hlist|''The Web of Fear''|''Two a Penny''|''David Copperfield''}} | occupation = {{hlist|Stage director|actress|writer}} | years_active = 1964–2026 | spouse = {{plainlist| * {{marriage |Laurie Asprey|1962|1980s|end=div}} * {{marriage |Dennis Krausnick|1998|2018 |end=d.}} }} | children = 1 | awards = Guggenheim Fellowship (1994) }}
'''Christina Roberta Packer'''<ref>{{cite news|first=Richard|last=Sandomir|title=Tina Packer, Powerhouse of Shakespeare Performance, Dies at 87|date=January 18, 2026|newspaper=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/18/theater/tina-packer-dead.html|url-access=subscription|access-date=January 19, 2026}}</ref> (28 September 1938 – 9 January 2026) was a British stage director and actress based in the United States. Educated at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, she originally worked as an actress. She starred in the BBC television serial ''David Copperfield''. After she quit acting and became a stage director in the United States, she founded the Shakespearean theatre company Shakespeare & Company, serving as its artistic director from its second foundation in 1978 until 2009.
==Life and career== Christina Packer was born in Wolverhampton on 28 September 1938.{{sfn|Fliotsos|Vierow|2008|p=329}} She was raised in Nottingham and educated at a Quaker school,{{sfn|Fliotsos|Vierow|2008|p=329}} as well as West Bridgford Grammar School.<ref name="Guardian 1964" /> She later spent two years in France with an older man she had a relationship with before they broke up.{{sfn|Fliotsos|Vierow|2008|p=330}}{{sfn|Harris|2022|p=57}}
Originally working at a magazine editorial office, she decided to go into acting because "I suppose I'm a natural born exhibitionist."<ref name="Guardian 1964" /> Returning to the United Kingdom, she was educated at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, graduating in 1964 with the Ronson Award for Most Promising Actress.{{sfn|Fliotsos|Vierow|2008|p=330}} She then worked at the Royal Shakespeare Company, which she had visited in her youth, as an associate artist.{{sfn|Fliotsos|Vierow|2008|p=329-330}} Despite her contract lasting three years, she left early to star in ''David Copperfield'',{{sfn|Harris|2022|p=57}} where she starred as Dora Spenlow.<ref>{{Cite web |title=David Copperfield (1966) Credits |url=http://www.screenonline.org.uk/tv/id/1421009/credits.html |access-date=12 April 2025 |website=BFI Screenonline}}</ref> She also appeared in ''Doctor Who'',{{sfn|Fliotsos|Vierow|2008|p=330}} as well as in the 1967 movie ''Two a Penny''.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Champion |first=Lindsay |date=26 November 2012 |title=Tina Packer to Take On the Ladies of Shakespeare in Off-Broadway's Women of Will |url=https://www.broadway.com/buzz/165740/tina-packer-to-take-on-the-ladies-of-shakespeare-in-off-broadways-women-of-will/ |access-date=12 April 2025 |website=Broadway.com}}</ref> However, she felt that she lacked a voice as a performer, and after her scenes in an adaptation of ''Washington Square'' were cut from the final broadcast, she quit acting.{{sfn|Fliotsos|Vierow|2008|p=330}} In 1971, she began work in the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, where she was a stage director and teacher,{{sfn|Harris|2022|p=58}} before she moved to the United States to direct Shakespeare plays.{{sfn|Fliotsos|Vierow|2008|p=330-331}}
She started Shakespeare & Company, an experimental Shakespearean theatre company funded by the CBS Foundation and the Ford Foundation in 1974;{{sfn|Fliotsos|Vierow|2008|p=331}} she named the company after a bookstore of the same name she often visited during her time in Paris.{{sfn|Harris|2022|p=57}} After a poor reception in the United States and depletion of funding, she took a brief hiatus from stage direction.{{sfn|Fliotsos|Vierow|2008|p=331}} In 1978, she directed ''Les Femmes Savantes'' at the Kennedy Center and then restarted Shakespeare & Company at The Mount in Lenox, Massachusetts, wanting a traditional Shakespearean theatre.{{sfn|Fliotsos|Vierow|2008|p=331}}{{sfn|Harris|2022|p=58}} She was the founding artistic director of Shakespeare & Company, holding the position until stepping down in 2009.{{sfn|Harris|2022|p=57-58}}
Her first directed performance for the company had to be done outdoors because the mansion had not been restored yet.{{sfn|Fliotsos|Vierow|2008|p=331}}{{sfn|Harris|2022|p=58}} Despite initial reception being mostly lackluster, it was praised in ''The Village Voice'' and became well known in New York City.{{sfn|Fliotsos|Vierow|2008|p=331}}{{sfn|Harris|2022|p=58}} As a stage director, she also used color-blind casting in Shakespearean plays, allowing Black and Asian actors to appear in traditionally White roles.{{sfn|Fliotsos|Vierow|2008|p=334}}<ref>{{Cite book |last=Merlin |first=Bella |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DUg4DwAAQBAJ |title=Acting: The Basics|date=2 October 2017 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-317-59051-4 }}</ref> In 1985, a book from Helen Epstein on Packer and the company, ''Tina Packer Builds A Theater'' was published,{{sfn|Harris|2022|p=58}} and WGBH-TV aired a documentary centred around her, ''Sex, Violence and Poetry''.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Engstrom |first=John |date=24 September 1985 |title=Documentary on Parker lacks depth she deserves |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/441102908/ |work=The Boston Globe |page=79 |via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> In 2008, Anne Fliotsos and Wendy Vierow called her "one of the foremost directors of Shakespeare in the United States".{{sfn|Fliotsos|Vierow|2008|p=329}} She won the 2019 Shakespeare Theatre Association Lifetime Achievement Award.<ref name="Shakespeare & Company Lifetime Achievement Award">{{Cite news |last=St Clair |first=Ann |date=16 February 2019 |title=Shakespeare & Company's Tina Packer honored with Lifetime Achievement Award |url=https://theberkshireedge.com/shakespeare-companys-tina-packer-honored-with-lifetime-achievement-award/ |access-date=12 April 2025 |work=The Berkshire Edge}}</ref>
In 1991, she directed a version of ''Hamlet'' at North Shore Music Theatre, set in West Africa and performed by a predominantly-Black American cast.{{sfn|Fliotsos|Vierow|2008|p=333}} In 1993, she directed Boston Center for the Arts productions of John L. Balderston's ''Berkeley Square'' and Tom Kempinski's ''Duet for One'', as well as a Canadian Stage Company production of Marisha Chamberlain's ''Scheherazade''.{{sfn|Fliotsos|Vierow|2008|p=333}} She was also artistic director of the Boston Shakespeare Company.{{sfn|Fliotsos|Vierow|2008|p=330}} She also directed several adaptations of the works of Edith Wharton, who had lived in The Mount herself.{{sfn|Fliotsos|Vierow|2008|p=333}} She also did acting in addition to directing, calling directing "such a sedentary occupation".{{sfn|Fliotsos|Vierow|2008|p=333}}
Packer also worked as a Shakespeare teacher in higher education, including at the Columbia University MBA programme.{{sfn|Harris|2022|p=58}} In 1994, she was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship.<ref name="Guggenheim">{{Cite web |title=Tina Packer |url=https://www.gf.org/fellows/tina-packer/ |access-date=11 April 2025 |website=John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation}}</ref> She also published ''Power Plays: Shakespeare's Lessons in Leadership and Management'' (2001),{{sfn|Harris|2022|p=58}} ''Tales from Shakespeare'' (2004), the book of literary criticism ''Women of Will'' (2016), and ''Shakespeare & Company: When Action Is Eloquence'' (2020).{{sfn|Harris|2022|p=60}}
=== Relationships === In 1962 she married actor Laurie Asprey,<ref>{{Cite web |title=FreeBMD Entry Info |url=https://www.freebmd.org.uk/cgi/information.pl?cite=05EyDKhUkHLJRSOm55GkmQ&scan=1 |access-date=2026-01-12 |website=www.freebmd.org.uk}}</ref> with whom she had a son, Shakespeare & Company actor Jason Asprey.<ref name="Bass 2002">{{Cite news |last=Bass |first=Milton |date=12 September 2002 |title=It's all in the family |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/533871320/ |work=The Berkshire Eagle |page=55 |via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> The couple separated around the time she left acting, but did not formally divorce until the early 1980s.{{sfn|Fliotsos|Vierow|2008|p=330}}<ref name="Bass 2002" /> In 1998, she married Dennis Krausnick, a stage acting educator and Shakespeare & Company co-founder; they remained married until his death in 2018.<ref>{{Cite web |date=29 November 2018 |title=Shakespeare & Company Co-Founder Dennis Krausnick Dies At 76 |url=https://www.wbur.org/news/2018/11/29/shakespeare-company-co-founder-dennis-krausnick-dies-at-76 |access-date=12 April 2025 |website=WBUR}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Dennis Krausnick Obituary (1942 - 2018) - Lenox, MA - The Berkshire Eagle |url=https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/berkshire/name/dennis-krausnick-obituary?id=9998737 |access-date=12 April 2025 |website=Legacy.com}}</ref>
Around the mid-1960s, she resided in Woodthorpe, Nottinghamshire, and later<ref name="Guardian 1964">{{Cite news |date=16 July 1964 |title=City girl wins top award for acting promise |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/881001007/ |work=The Guardian Journal |page=2 |via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> in Stockbridge, Massachusetts.<ref>{{Cite web |date=31 January 2025 |title=Shakespeare & Company's 2025 Women of Will Directing Fellowship Accepting Applications |url=https://shakespeare.org/newsroom/2025/01/shakespeare-companys-2025-women-of-will-directing-fellowship-accepting-applications/ |access-date=12 April 2025 |website=Shakespeare & Company}}</ref>
=== Death === Packer died, aged 87, on 9 January 2026 at the Berkshire Medical Center in Pittsfield, Massachusetts.<ref>{{cite news |title=Shakespeare & Company co-founder Tina Packer dies at 87 |url=https://www.timesunion.com/theater/article/tina-packer-shakespeare-company-lenox-died-21287556.php |access-date=10 January 2026 |publisher=timesunion.com |date=10 January 2026}}</ref>
==Filmography== ===Film=== {| class="wikitable sortable" |- ! Year ! Title ! Role ! class="wikitable unsortable"|Notes ! class="wikitable unsortable"|Ref. |- | 1967 | ''Two a Penny'' | Gladys | Feature film | <ref>{{cite web |title=Two a Penny (Original) |url=https://collections-search.bfi.org.uk/web/Details/ChoiceFilmWorks/%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20150045850 |access-date=2026-01-10 |work=British Film Institute Collections Search}}</ref> |- | 1970 | ''Praise Marx and Pass the Ammunition'' | Air Hostess | Feature film | <ref>{{cite web |title=Praise Marx and Pass the Ammunition (Original) |url=https://collections-search.bfi.org.uk/web/Details/ChoiceFilmWorks/%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20150030058 |access-date=2026-01-10 |work=British Film Institute Collections Search}}</ref> |}
===Television=== {| class="wikitable sortable" |- ! Year ! Title ! Role ! class="wikitable unsortable" | Notes ! class="wikitable unsortable" | Ref. <!-- unsourced: |- | 1959 | ''It's Saturday Night'' | | 1 episode | --> |- | rowspan="2"|1964 | ''No Hiding Place'' | Ann | Episode: "Real Class" | <ref>{{cite web |title=Real Class (Original) |url=https://collections-search.bfi.org.uk/web/Details/ChoiceFilmWorks/150711823 |access-date=2026-01-10 |work=British Film Institute Collections Search}}</ref> |- | ''Thursday Theatre'' | First girl | Episode: "Point of Departure" | <ref>{{cite web |title=Point of Departure (Original) |url=https://collections-search.bfi.org.uk/web/Details/ChoiceFilmWorks/150482173 |access-date=2026-01-10 |work=British Film Institute Collections Search}}</ref> |- | 1965 | ''The Avengers'' | Suzanne (uncredited) | Episode: "Dial a Deadly Number" | <ref>{{Cite web |title=The Avengers Forever: Dial a Deadly Number |url=http://theavengers.tv/forever/peel1-10.htm |access-date=2026-01-10 |website=theavengers.tv}}</ref> |- | 1966 | ''David Copperfield'' | Dora Spenlow | 8 episodes | <ref name="David Copperfield"/> |- | rowspan="2"|1968 | ''Doctor Who'' | Anne Travers | Serial: ''The Web of Fear'' | <ref>{{Cite web |last=Mulkern |first=Patrick |date=6 July 2009 |title=The Web of Fear ★★★★★ |url=https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/sci-fi/doctor-who-guide/the-web-of-fear/ |access-date=2025-10-06 |website=Radio Times |language=en-GB |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251101062038/https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/sci-fi/doctor-who-guide/the-web-of-fear/ |archive-date=1 November 2025}}</ref> |- | ''Boy Meets Girl'' | Sister Tannis March | Episode: "The Enchanted Shore" | <ref>{{Cite web |title=Boy Meets Girl: The Enchanted Shore |url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/6c069bba32ac44bb843d3f918c9b2024 |access-date=2026-01-10 |website=BBC Genome}}</ref> |- | 1972 | ''Crime of Passion'' | | | <ref>{{cite news |date=1972-05-21 |title=Calling Tina Packer |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/841130292/ |work=Sunday Mercury |page=12 |via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> |- | 2013 | ''Charlie Rose'' | Self — Guest | 1 episode | <ref>{{Cite web |title=Tina Packer |url=https://charlierose.com/videos/17176 |access-date=2026-01-10 |website=Charlie Rose}}</ref> |}
==Awards and nominations== {| class="wikitable sortable" |- ! Year ! Award ! Result ! References |- | 1994 | Guggenheim Fellowship | {{won}} | <ref name="Guggenheim" /> |- | 2019 | Shakespeare Theatre Association Lifetime Achievement Award | {{won}} | <ref name="Shakespeare & Company Lifetime Achievement Award" /> |}
==References== <references>
<ref name="David Copperfield"> * {{Cite web |title=David Copperfield: 6: The Bachelor Party |url=http://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/0a9bda9d4a4147ebbf1e5ff00c5afc4a |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20141030185350/http://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/0a9bda9d4a4147ebbf1e5ff00c5afc4a |archive-date=2014-10-30 |access-date=2026-01-10 |website=BBC Genome}} * {{Cite web |title=David Copperfield: 7: Courtship |url=http://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/6c12d16328ba4a3c81ca68f7e0b15498 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20141030100107/http://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/6c12d16328ba4a3c81ca68f7e0b15498 |archive-date=2014-10-30 |access-date=2026-01-10 |website=BBC Genome}} * {{Cite web |title=David Copperfield: 8: The Proposal |url=http://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/90aa88041e1641888c5990c96a5b2be5 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20141030075746/http://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/90aa88041e1641888c5990c96a5b2be5 |archive-date=2014-10-30 |access-date=2026-01-10 |website=BBC Genome}} * {{Cite web |title=David Copperfield: 9: Domestic Tangles |url=http://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/9ecea46381f9406aa1714c76f4f39e19 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20141030091447/http://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/9ecea46381f9406aa1714c76f4f39e19 |archive-date=2014-10-30 |access-date=2026-01-10 |website=BBC Genome}} * {{Cite web |title=David Copperfield: 10: Toll of the Sea |url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/266a3216520e4e2184557b9658d25bc0 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20200627235522/https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/266a3216520e4e2184557b9658d25bc0 |archive-date=2020-06-27 |access-date=2026-01-10 |website=BBC Genome}} * {{Cite web |title=David Copperfield: 11: 'umble Aspirations |url=http://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/2beffff7a4ff4a3087e9f6659ec7be99 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20141030071133/http://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/2beffff7a4ff4a3087e9f6659ec7be99 |archive-date=2014-10-30 |access-date=2026-01-10 |website=BBC Genome}} * {{Cite web |title=David Copperfield: 12: Fortunes Restored |url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/33d3e399672840fca2e44ea770a230d1 |access-date=2026-01-10 |website=BBC Genome}} * {{Cite web |title=David Copperfield: 13: Home at Last |url=https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/4962fd7b560a4183aa4e9c9d7486ec45 |access-date=2026-01-10 |website=BBC Genome}} </ref>
</references>
==Sources== * {{Cite book |last1=Fliotsos |first1=Anne |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EGOBtC_Jum0C |title=American Women Stage Directors of the Twentieth Century |last2=Vierow |first2=Wendy |publisher=University of Illinois Press |year=2008|isbn=978-0-252-03226-4}} * {{Cite book |last=Harris |first=Patricia |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rTFxEAAAQBAJ |title=New England's Notable Women: The Stories and Sites of Trailblazers and Achievers |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |year=2022|isbn=978-1-4930-6602-5}}
==External links== *{{IMDb name|0655507}} *{{discogs artist|Tina Packer}}
{{authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Packer, Tina}} Category:1938 births Category:2026 deaths Category:Actresses from Nottingham Category:Actresses from Wolverhampton Category:People from Gedling (district) Category:People from Stockbridge, Massachusetts Category:Actresses from Berkshire County, Massachusetts Category:People educated at West Bridgford School Category:Alumni of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art Category:English expatriate actresses in the United States Category:English theatre directors Category:English film actresses Category:English television actresses Category:English stage actresses Category:English Shakespearean actresses Category:British women theatre directors Category:British theatre managers and producers Category:English artistic directors Category:20th-century English actresses Category:English expatriates in France