born Jan. 16, 1872, Stevenage, Hertfordshire, Eng.
died July 29, 1966, Vence, France
British actor, stage designer, and drama theorist.
The son of Ellen Terry , he acted with Henry Irving 's company (188997), then turned to designing stage sets, decor, and costumes. He moved to Florence (1906), where he opened the School for the Art of the Theatre (1913). His international journal The Mask (190829) made his theatrical ideas widely known. His books On the Art of the Theatre (1911), Towards a New Theatre (1913), and Scene (1923) outlined innovations in stage design based on the use of portable screens and changing patterns of light; his theories influenced the antinaturalist trends of the modern theatre.