Yvonne Brewster
Encyclopedia
Yvonne Brewster, O.B.E. is a stage director, teacher and writer.

Born in Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...

, Yvonne Brewster went to the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 to study drama in the mid-fifties at the Rose Bruford College
Rose Bruford College
Rose Bruford College of Theatre & Performance is a British drama school, offering university-level and professional vocational training for theatre and performance and the BA and MA degrees, based in Sidcup, Southeast London.-History:Founded in 1950, Rose Bruford "pioneered the first acting degree...

 and the Royal Academy of Music
Royal Academy of Music
The Royal Academy of Music in London, England, is a conservatoire, Britain's oldest degree-granting music school and a constituent college of the University of London since 1999. The Academy was founded by Lord Burghersh in 1822 with the help and ideas of the French harpist and composer Nicolas...

. She returned to Jamaica to teach Drama and she also jointly founded The Barn—Jamaica's first professional theatre company.

Upon her return to England she worked extensively in radio, television, and directing for Stage Productions. In 1985 she jointly founded Talawa Theatre Company
Talawa Theatre Company
The Talawa Theatre Company was founded in London in 1985 by Jamaican born Yvonne Brewster, Mona Hammond, Carmen Munroe and Inigo Espejel, becoming the UK's most prominent black theatre company...

 with Mona Hammond
Mona Hammond
Mona Hammond OBE is a Chinese Jamaican actress and co-founder of the Talawa Theatre Company. Born in Jamaica, Hammond emigrated to the United Kingdom in 1959, where she has remained ever since. Hammond has had a long and distinguished stage career...

 and Carmen Munroe
Carmen Munroe
Carmen Munroe OBE is a British actress, born in Berbice, Guyana. Since the early 1950s she has been a resident of the UK. She made her West End stage debut in 1962 and has since played an instrumental role in the development of black British theatre and representation on small screen...

 using funding from the Greater London Council
Greater London Council
The Greater London Council was the top-tier local government administrative body for Greater London from 1965 to 1986. It replaced the earlier London County Council which had covered a much smaller area...

.

In 1993, she was awarded an Order of the British Empire
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...

 for Services to the Arts in the Queen’s New Years Honours list; and in 2001 she was granted an honorary Doctorate from the Open University
Open University
The Open University is a distance learning and research university founded by Royal Charter in the United Kingdom...

. She published her memoirs titled The Undertaker’s Daughter in 2004.

External links

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